Topic OverviewEgocentric thinking is the normal tendency for a young child to see everything that happens as it relates to him- or herself. This is not selfishness. Young children are unable to understand different points of view. For example, a preschool child might sympathize with his or her father and try to comfort him by offering a favourite toy or stuffed animal, reasoning that what helps the child feel better will also comfort the adult. Egocentric thinking also can cause a young child to feel responsible if something bad happens. Show Magical thinking is a child's belief that what he or she wishes or expects can affect what really happens. For example, if a child wants very much for something to happen, and it does, the child believes he or she caused it to happen. If your daughter is mad at her brother and wants him to leave, and he then gets sick and goes to the hospital, your daughter may think her brother's illness is her fault. CreditsCurrent as of: September 20, 2021 Author: Healthwise Staff journal article Are Young Children Really Egocentric?Young Children Vol. 36, No. 6 (September 1981) , pp. 51-55 (5 pages) Published By: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) https://www.jstor.org/stable/42721648 Publisher Information The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is the world’s largest organization working on behalf of young children. Bringing together diverse points of view, NAEYC sets standards, crafts position statements, and develops guidelines that define excellence for early childhood professionals and programs. NAEYC has pioneered developmentally appropriate practice (DAP), the framework of which establishes principles and guidelines for best practice in the care and education of children from birth through age 8. The preoperational stage is the second stage in Piaget's theory of cognitive development. This stage begins around age 2, as children start to talk, and lasts until approximately age 7. During this stage, children begin to engage in symbolic play and learn to manipulate symbols. However, Piaget noted that they do not yet understand concrete logic.  Major CharacteristicsThe preoperational stage occurs roughly between the ages 2 and 7. Language development is one of the hallmarks of this period. Piaget noted that children in this stage do not yet understand concrete logic, cannot mentally manipulate information, and are unable to take the point of view of other people, which he termed egocentrism. During the preoperational stage, children also become increasingly adept at using symbols, as evidenced by the increase in playing and pretending. For example, a child is able to use an object to represent something else, such as pretending a broom is a horse. Role-playing also becomes important—children often play the roles of "mommy," "daddy," "doctor," and many other characters. Understanding EgocentrismPiaget used a number of creative and clever techniques to study the mental abilities of children. One of the famous techniques to demonstrate egocentrism involved using a three-dimensional display of a mountain scene. Often referred to as the "Three Mountain Task," children are asked to choose a picture that showed the scene they had observed. Most children are able to do this with little difficulty. Next, children are asked to select a picture showing what someone else would have observed when looking at the mountain from a different viewpoint. Invariably, children almost always choose the scene showing their own view of the mountain scene. According to Piaget, children experience this difficulty because they are unable to take on another person's perspective. Other researchers have also conducted similar experiments. In one study, children were shown a room in a small dollhouse. Children were able to see in the dollhouse that a toy was hidden behind a piece of furniture. Children were then taken into a full-size room that was an exact replica of the dollhouse. Very young children did not understand to look behind the couch to find the toy, while slightly older children immediately searched for the toy. Developmental psychologists refer to the ability to understand that other people have different perspectives, thoughts, feelings, and mental states as theory of mind. Understanding ConservationAnother well-known experiment involves demonstrating a child's understanding of conservation. In one conservation experiment, equal amounts of liquid are poured into two identical containers. The liquid in one container is then poured into a differently shaped cup, such as a tall and thin cup or a short and wide cup. Children are then asked which cup holds the most liquid. Despite seeing that the liquid amounts were equal, children almost always choose the cup that appears fuller. Piaget conducted a number of similar experiments on the conservation of number, length, mass, weight, volume, and quantity. He found that few children showed any understanding of conservation prior to the age of five. CriticismsAs you might have noticed, much of Piaget's focus at this stage of development focused on what children could not yet do. The concepts of egocentrism and conservation are both centered on abilities that children have not yet developed; they lack the understanding that things look different to other people and that objects can change in appearance while still maintaining the same properties. However, not everyone agrees with Piaget's assessment of children's abilities. Researcher Martin Hughes, for example, argued that the reason that children failed at the three mountains task was simply that they did not understand it. In an experiment that involved utilizing dolls, Hughes demonstrated that children as young as age 4 were able to understand situations from multiple points of view, suggesting that children become less egocentric at an earlier age than Piaget believed. Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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By Kendra Cherry
Thanks for your feedback! What is an example of egocentrism in a child?For example, if a child wants very much for something to happen, and it does, the child believes he or she caused it to happen. If your daughter is mad at her brother and wants him to leave, and he then gets sick and goes to the hospital, your daughter may think her brother's illness is her fault.
In which stage does a child show egocentrism?The preoperational stage occurs from 2 to 6 years of age, and is the secondstage in Piaget's stages of cognitive development. Throughout most of the preoperational stage, a child's thinking isself-centered, or egocentric.
What is the behavior of egocentrism?The term egocentrism refers to a person's inability to comprehend that views or opinions may be different from their own. More specifically, it is a cognitive bias that limits one's understanding of others to her own perspective.
Why is egocentrism important in development?Jean Piaget conceptualized egocentric thinking as a way to understand how the child understands the world. According to Piaget, children are not able to understand another person's point of view. Concurrently, this population believes that everyone else experiences the world in the same way that they do.
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