Equilibration (Morrow, 2009; Ormond, 2003)
Children experience equilibration as they learn about their world, create new schema, and move through the cognitive stages:
When children can explain new events with their existing schemes they are in a state of equilibrium.
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Inexplicable events create a sort of mental discomfort (disequilibrium)
In this state children must: ~incorporate new information into already existing schemes (assimilation) ~change existing schemes to incorporate new information (accomodation). |
The movement from equilibrium to disequilibrium and back to equilibrium is the process known as equilibration.
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Wood, Smith, & Grossniklaus (2001)