Concrete thinking: what it is and how it develops in childhood.

This type of cognitive process is based on the description of objective facts and physical objects.

The process by which human beings mentally elaborate and relate ideas about what surrounds us is quite complex. It begins in our earliest years and progresses according to a series of stages and characteristics.

Among other things, this process allows us to develop two ways of thinking: one based on the physical objects of the world, which we call concrete thinkingand the other based on mental operations, which we call abstract thinking.

In this article we will see what concrete thinking is and how it is related or differentiated from abstract thinking.

What is concrete thinking and how does it originate?

Concrete thinking is a cognitive process characterized by the description of facts and tangible objects. It is the type of thinking that is linked to real-world phenomena, i.e. material objects. Concrete thinking allows us to generate general concepts about particular phenomena and to categorize them in a logical way. in a logical manner.

In this area, the studies of the Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget on the stages of thought formation are classic. Broadly speaking, he analyzed how cognitive processes develop from early childhood to adolescence.

From a biological, psychological and logical perspective, Piaget was interested in how a child achieves his or her cognitive abilities.. He proposed, among other things, that thinking has patterns derived from genetic makeup, which in turn are activated by sociocultural stimuli.

The latter are the ones that allow the person to receive and process information, thus, psychological development is always active.. From this he proposed a series of stages, each one qualitatively different from the others, and that allow the child to move towards a more complex form of understanding and organization of knowledge.

Stage of concrete operations.

According to Piaget, concrete thinking develops during the stage of concrete operations, which occurs between the ages of 7 and 12. In this stage, the child is already able to perceive and discriminate between reality and appearances. He cannot do without reality and, unlike what happens in previous stages, he begins to decenter his thinking, i.e., egocentric thinking gradually decreases.

In addition, during this stage, he can classify and account, for example, for the transformations of the states of matter. A series of logical comparisons takes place that allow him to respond to stimuli in a way that is no longer conditioned on appearance, as in the previous stage, and begins to be determined by concrete reality..

In the mathematical area, for example, the child is expected to be able to develop cognitive skills such as conservation of numbers, notions of substance, weight, volume and length, as well as spatial coordination. All of the above are acquired once the child is able to describe objects based on their material composition..

In this sense, for learning to occur, the child must always have the object present: through his senses he establishes relationships that allow him to know reality. In this period, in addition it is not yet possible for children to make hypotheses, nor is it possible for them to apply previously acquired learning to new situations (the latter belongs to abstract thinking).nor is it possible for them to apply previously acquired learning to new situations (the latter belongs to abstract thinking).

Differences between concrete and abstract thinking

While concrete thinking is what allows us to process and describe objects in the physical world, abstract thinking occurs through purely mental processes. Piaget called the latter "formal thinking" because it occurs in the "formal operations" stage, which occurs between the ages of 12 and 16. In addition to occurring at different times of development, concrete thinking and abstract thinking have the following differences:

1. deductive or inductive?

Abstract thinking is hypothetical-deductive thinking, which allows for the construction of hypotheses. without the need to test them empirically.. In the case of concrete thinking this is the other way around: knowledge can only be formulated through direct experience with the phenomenon or object; it is an inductive type of thinking.

2. The general and the particular

Abstract thinking can go from the general to the particular, thus making it possible to formulate laws, theories and more general properties. Concrete thinking operates in the opposite direction, going from the particular to the general. A broad or multidimensional phenomenon can only be understood and described by its particular characteristics..

3. Flexibility

Abstract thinking allows for openness to reflection and debate; it is therefore flexible thinking. On the other hand, concrete thinking, being based on the tangible and the evident, does not allow variations.

4. Complexity in acquisition

Abstract thinking, as Piaget puts it, is acquired later than concrete thinking because it requires a more complex process. Although concrete thinking is finally consolidated towards the end of childhoodThroughout its development, the child acquires learning and psychological maturation only through direct experience with the environment. Abstract thinking occurs only after the need to make purely empirical checks has been achieved and satisfied.

Bibliographical references:

• Fingermann, H. (2011). Concrete thinking. Guide. Retrieved July 26, 2018. Available at https://educacion.laguia2000.com/general/pensamiento-concreto
• Piaget, J. (1986). Developmental psychology. Madrid: Editorial Paidós.
• Pagés, J. (1998). La formación del pensamiento social, pp. 152-164. In Pijal Benejam and Joan Pagés, Enseñar y aprender ciencias sociales, geografía e historia en la educación secundaria. Barcelona: ICE/Horsori.