The Role of Developmental Psychology to Understanding History, Culture and Social Change

Abstract

Developmental psychology of the past generations has evidenced that the whole pre-modern humankind stood on pre-operational or concreteoperational stages. Only the modern humankind has also developed the fourth stage of human development, the adolescent stage of formal operations. Lew Vygotski was 1933 one of the first to earmark convincingly the connection of socialisation (school education) and cognitive development as a precondition to reach the "higher psychological processes", as the Russian school designated what the school of Geneva called "formal operations". The essay documents that developmental psychology is necessary to reconstruct the history of magic, religion, sciences, philosophy, law, morals, politics, economy, population, arts, customs and mentality. It is impossible to understand human's history on earth and social change from Pleistocene up to modern times without developmental psychology. Moreover, the emergence of the formal operations during the early modern times caused the rise of modern, industrial society, including its main parts "industrialism", "sciences", "Enlightenment", "humanism" and "democracy". These five main phenomena of modernity manifest higher stages of psyche and cognition, having arisen in the same region and in the same era. Developmental psychology is able to explain their nature and their internal coherence, while traditional social sciences have no means available to deal with these phenomena, considering their common origination as an accidental phenomenon or misinterpreting it.

<p>The Rise of the Physical Sciences in &ldquo;Stricto Sensu&rdquo; The Developmental Approach and the History of Sciences</p><p><br></p>

“…Obviously, the modern sciences are a main causer to the emergence of the modern, industrial society. Moreover, the psychological advancement also concerns the rise of democracy, humanism, Enlightenment and economy, not only that of the sciences, as parts and causers of modern society (Oesterdiekhoff, 2011;2000;2013a;2013b;2014a;2014b;2014c;2015a;Radding, 1985;LePan, 1989). Thus, the formal operational stage is the main reference point both to the rise of sciences and to the rise of the modern, industrial civilization.…”

Evolution of mentality, politics, law, and social affairs during the past century

“…As children, premodern adults regard laws as unchangeable, as not susceptible to democratic modifications and as not exposed to the will of people. Presidents, kings, or dictators alone, on behalf of god and cosmos, announce "the" law (Hallpike, 2004;Kern, 1952;Radding, 1985;Oesterdiekhoff, 2014aOesterdiekhoff, , b, c, 2015aPost, 1891).…”

“…However, against the law consciousness of the premodern humans these hard punishments were necessary to guarantee justice, to satisfy their needs of revenge and retaliation, and to hold the stability of society. They believed that the abolishment of these brutal punishments would seduce people to commit more crimes and would endanger the society´s existence (Schild, 2004;Oesterdiekhoff, 2014aOesterdiekhoff, , 2011Oesterdiekhoff, , 2009Oesterdiekhoff, , 2016a.…”

“…Even in liberal middle class milieus children initially emphasize a law and order mentality. The psychological stage development accounts to that evolution of ideas, not socialisation practices or forms of education (Piaget, 1932;Tapp & Kohlberg, 1971;Oesterdiekhoff, 2014a).…”

“…Stoning to death for adultery, amputation of arm or hand for theft, crucifixion for robbery, or whiping for alcohol consum may happen in many nations of the region. Capital punishment may also happen for religious delicts such as atheism or agnosticism (Sarrazin, 2015;Tibi, 2000;Oesterdiekhoff, 2014b;Schirrmacher, 2003).…”