Possibility and Necessity, Vol. 1

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Library Journal

First published posthumously in France in 1981, these volumes conclude Swiss psychologist Piaget's celebrated studies of cognitive development in children ages four through 12. Volume 1, through a series of 13 experimental problems (e.g., taking a toy car from point A to point B), displays the inventive and creative capacities for children to form possibilities. Volume 2 relates equilibration (a normal process of assimilation and accommodation to reach an intellectual balance) to mathematical laws that result from logical necessities and ``closures.'' The volumes mix detailed playbacks of the experiments with theoretical discussions, using a technical vocabulary intended strictly for scholars, psychologists, and educators. A sometimes clumsy translation makes for difficult reading. For research libraries or collections wanting Piaget's complete works. Janice Arenofsky, formerly with Arizona State Lib., Phoenix

Translator Helga Feider was a professor of psychology at the Universite de Quebec a Montreal.