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Perry's Legacy: Models of Epistemological Development

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Abstract

This paper compares the different ways that intellectual development has been described by W. Perry (1970) and M. Belenky, B. Clinchy, N. Goldberger, and J. Tarule (1986); M. Baxter Magolda (1992); and P. King and K. Kitchener (1994). The similarities are summarized into a comprehensive, gender-neutral 4-stage model (E. J. West, 1996). The nature of the stages is discussed from both a constructivist-developmental perspective (H. G. Furth, 1981; A. Colby & L. Kohlberg, 1987) and using skill-complexity theory (M. L. Commons, E. J. Trudeau, S. A. Stein, F. A. Richards, & S. R. Krause, 1998; M. L. Commons, D. Danaher-Gilpin, P. M. Miller, & E. A. Goodheart, 2002). Educational implications are proposed.

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Correspondence to Elise J. West.

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West, E.J. Perry's Legacy: Models of Epistemological Development. Journal of Adult Development 11, 61–70 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JADE.0000024540.12150.69

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JADE.0000024540.12150.69

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