The Middleness Concept in Children

Abstract

To test the concept of middleness, 4 series of 7 problems each consisting of 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, and 15 blocks were administered to 402 male and 381 female children between the ages of 36 and 155 mo. The task required S to select the middle block and the results showed that this ability began to emerge at the 3-yr. level, developed rapidly through year 6, and became asymptotic by the eighth year. A wide variance in the ability was exhibited but perfect performance on all of the problems was not found until age 13½. The use of the task as a test of cognitive development is discussed as well as alternate variations involving blocks of different colors, asymmetrical arrangements, paper-and-pencil forms, and verbal reinforcement.