Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy ETDs
Publication Date
Summer 6-16-1971
Abstract
The purposes of this study were to show that using a paper and pencil exercise, developmental differences may be found in style of thinking that are similar to those found by Piaget, and to determine if socioeconomic status (SES) or ethnicity will influence these differences. The subjects consisted of 311 Anglo and Mexican American lower and middle SES students at the fourth, sixth, and eighth grade levels. The subjects were enrolled in a summer school program in a large city on the west coast. The subjects were administered the map reasoning exercise by eight experimenters. Significant differences were found between the fourth and sixth grade subjects and between the sixth and eighth grade subjects on Reasoning Level (RL) score. Differences also were found between the groups on RL score at each of the three grade levels. These results were interpreted as indicating that SES will influence a subject's rate of development, but will not affect his developmental sequence. In most cases, the middle SES subjects scored higher than the lower SES subjects. The magnitude of this SES influence seemed to decrease as age increased. The results of this study are consistent with Piaget's developmental theory.
Document Type
Dissertation
Level of Degree
Doctoral
Department Name
Teacher Education, Educational Leadership & Policy
First Committee Member (Chair)
Richard M. Gorman
Second Committee Member
Wayne Paul Moellenberg
Third Committee Member
Albert W. Vogel
Recommended Citation
Richard, Reedy L.. "The Effect of Socioeconomic Status and Ethnicity on The Transition from Concrete to Abstract Thinking." (1971). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/educ_teelp_etds/318