Organizer influence on children''s responses to questions of physical causality

The purpose of this investigation was to study the effect of a child's perception of an interrogator upon the child's spontaneous responses to Piagetian questions of causality. Specifically, the study attempted to answer the question: Are there significant differences in children's responses to Piaget questions dealing with physical causality, when children are interviewed by interrogators whom they perceive to occupy different roles in society. In his book. The Child's Conception of Physical Causality, Piaget describes children's reaction to the question "What makes clouds move?" Five stages of explanations are noted: (1) magical, the clouds move when we move, or cars, or animals move, average age for this stage is 5; (2) God or large men make clouds move, average age 6; (3) the clouds move by themselves; the sun, rain, or moon cause the movement; or the wind from the snow, trees, or God cause the movement, average age 7; (4) the wind moves the clouds, but the wind, in turn, comes from the clouds, average age 8; and (5) the wind moves the clouds and the wind does not come from the clouds, trees, or God, average age 9. [...]