kwigibo

Not sure where this goes, thought somebody might find it of interest.

I was just studying for a mid-semester, and as i was going over my notes, i noticed that under Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development it mentioned that abilities for philosophy and religious thinking were not present until the formal operational stage, the fourth and final stage of child development, which begins at around age 11. This appeared to say to me that religious indoctrination in early childhood is arguably irresponsible (although not from the church's perspective obviously), and that religious instruction should ideally be postponed until the formal operational stage. Of course this would probably have the benefit of a greater instance of critical thought in children when they are exposed to religion, and should at least ensure that for the most part that they understand what they're getting into.

Now Piaget's theory is by no means a universal authority on child development, I hasten to add, but a lot of the criticism is levelled at the over-estimation of abilities of children in the formal stage. Critics point out that many adults don't possess the cognitive abilities outlined in this stage of development. I'm sure many of us have been frustrated with adults who still don't fully comprehend the intrinsic philosophical components of religion. Perhaps a lot of adults aren't really ready for religion either.



(just so i'm clear, i'm not proposing anything here, far be it from me to limit anyone's freedoms, it is just a thought on the implications of this particular theory)

seebs

It's an interesting question. For the most part, I think Piaget was a loon, who overgeneralized from far too little data.

That said, it's an interesting point. I know that it took me a long time to develop the necessary mental structures to properly consider the questions inherent in any discussion of religion.

ieyeasu

You'll want to look into Kohlberg, as well. He refined and extrapolated quite a bit on Piaget's data/