A Bio-Social-Cultural Approach to Early Cognitive Development: Entering the Community of Minds
Title
A Bio-Social-Cultural Approach to Early Cognitive Development: Entering the Community of Minds
Author
Nelson, Katherine
Research Area
Development
Topic
Developmental Processes
Abstract
Important cognitive changes take place during the preschool years in addition to the acquisition of a first language. A bio‐social‐cultural (BSC) theory is needed to explicate the relation between language and cognition during this period of development. The foundations of the BSC approach in evolutionary and developmental systems theory are noted and applied to the emergence of autobiographical memory and the understanding of one's own and other minds within the general conception of “entering the community of minds” a conceptual framework for the social‐cultural components of this approach. The need for further theoretical and empirical research including neurological change during this period is indicated.