Determination of the ordering among seven Piagetian tasks by an ordering-theoretic method

Applied a method of generating task hierarchies (ordering theory) to 7 Piagetian tasks. 30 high school freshmen were individually administered 3 concrete operational and 4 formal operational tasks. Analysis of the response patterns on the dichotomously scored tasks revealed the following findings: (a) the Piagetian theory that success on concrete operational tasks is a necessary prerequisite to success on formal operational tasks was confirmed and (b) the 7 tasks were closely interrelated with an array of prerequisite relations more complex than a simple linear hierarchy. The methodology utilized appears to have value for defining nonlinear lines of implication among behavioral science phenomena. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved).