ABSTRACT
This chapter considers elements of development that do not depend on language. It focuses upon the other side of the coin—those areas of development that depend on language. In part, cognitive development occurs within a system of responses to perceived stimuli. As a result of maturation and experience, this system becomes increasingly relevant to behavior. Language’s role in this stage of growth, however, is suspect since its involvement begins late in the sequence. The cognitive manipulation of objects and recognition of their qualitative elements, after all, depend upon a form of knowledge which is practical, experienced, and capable of reaching high levels of complexity. In terms of psychological, biological, and social activities, certain forms and functions correspond to basic structures and others to superstructures.
