The primacy of historical and material conditions in the development of cognition: a critique of "cross-cultural" research in the Vygotskian tradition

• Main Author: Tlokotsi, Matsiliso Mary
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: 2014
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net10539/14412

This research report compares the orientation and findings of the socio-historical research initiated by Vygotsky (1978 ) with thatof various Western researchers. Specifically, the report attempts to establish whether there is a continuity between the tradition o f research inspired by Vygotsky on the one hand and the crosscultural research tradition, on the other. The report concludes that there are fundamental differences between the two traditions and argues that Vygotsky’s focus on material conditions in the development o f cognition is significantly different to a focus on culture as the determinant of cognition. KEYWORDS Dialectical-historical materialism, Socio-historical, Socio-cuitural, Cognitive competency. Scientific concepts. Spontaneous concepts, Universalist. Relativist, Context-specific, Cognitive performance.