Childhood has been studied using a more scientific approach since the 19th and 20th century

Wild Boy of Averyron - influential stories that originated a more scientific approach to research

Wild Boy of Averyron - supported John Locke’s belief

Developmental scientists research in order to discover and explain new observations whilst testing the competing claims and adequacy of existing theories surrounding childhood

Development approaches use a combination of different factors to benchmark their findings against

Charles Darwin - one of the first and most significant researcher to write and record early child development theories

Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was arguably one of the most influential developmental theorists to study intellectual and social development in children

Lev Vygotsky (1986) was a Russian psychologist who dismissed aspects of Piaget’s theory on child development linked to cognitive ability