Disequilibrium, Theories of

Jean Piaget, one of the most influential epistemologists of the twentieth century, proposed his theory of disequilibrium in conjunction with the manner in which individuals acquire knowledge. In support of his theories on the cognitive development of children and adults, Piaget proposed several facets of growth through which every individual makes meaning and adapts to his or her surroundings. The processes of assimilation and accommodation and the role of schemata combine to support the role of equilibration and disequilibration in the cognitive growth of individuals.

As individuals progress through life, they adapt to the organization of the physical environments that surround them. Originally beginning his research in the biological world, Piaget later applied his observations of simple organisms to the cognitive processes of humans, noting that in similar fashion, cognitive acts are also acts of organization and adaptation to perceived environments. In the same way that the human body has physical structures that perform specific functions, Piaget also believed that the mind created and maintained similar structures. He noted these cognitive structures as schemata and further classified them as mental structures by which individuals adapt to and organize the environment. Schemata are often clarified by the notion that they serve as concepts or categories within the human mind that are used to classify and process incoming information or stimuli. The concept of schema theory is that incoming stimuli (information) is fit into a certain schema (or category). As stimuli are taken in, they are classified into schemata that already contain information of similar content or characteristic. The processes by which the stimuli are organized into schemata are known as assimilation and accommodation.

The process of assimilation is dependent on the assumption that existing schemata are present, as is the case of any individual from birth onward. Through assimilation, an individual integrates new information (stimuli) into preconceived ways of thinking about the surrounding environment. The person processing stimuli imposes his or her available schemata structures on the information. Consequently, the stimuli are “forced” to fit the person's existing cognitive structures. The existing ways of thinking, which we now know as schemata, take in new perceptual matter similar to the manner in which a balloon takes in air. As assimilation occurs and information is taken in, the balloon (schema) grows but does not change shape or characteristic.

Assimilation allows for the growth of the amount of information within a schema but does not account for the changes that occur to that schema as a result of the intake of information. At times, the characteristics of the existing schemata will not allow a new incoming stimulus to be processed. Consequently, the process of accommodation allows for a modification of the existing schemata in order to better process incoming stimuli. Essentially, the individual is forced to change his or her ways of thinking (schemata), adjusting to new experiences or objects by revising or altering entirely the prior method of processing.

The processes of assimilation and accommodation are necessary for the development of cognitive structures. In addition to the simple existence and use of these processes is the equally important aspect of the amounts of assimilation and accommodation that take place within an individual. This balance between assimilation and accommodation, commonly referred to as equilibrium, occurs when an individual has effectively used the environment to learn but also learned to adjust to changes in the environment. The process of seeking equilibrium, or melding assimilation and accommodation, is the journey toward harmony between the self and the environment.

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