Who is associated with adult cognitive development and dualistic thinking, especially among college students?

• A. Jean Piaget
• B. Robert Perry
• C. Lawrence Kohlberg
• D. Erik Erikson

Answer: (B)

The idea being tested is how adults, including college students, develop cognitively beyond simple right-wrong thinking. The figure most associated with this is William G. Perry Jr. He proposed that college students often start with dualistic thinking, seeing knowledge as absolutely right or wrong and authorities as the sole sources of truth. As they advance, they tend to move toward relativistic thinking, recognizing that knowledge can be context-dependent and that multiple perspectives can be valid. Eventually they may reach a stage of commitment within that relativistic framework, forming their own reasoned positions.

This contrasts with Piaget, who focused on children’s stages of cognitive development; Kohlberg, who mapped moral reasoning stages; and Erikson, who outlined psychosocial stages across the lifespan. The question specifically targets adult cognitive development and the shift away from dualistic thinking in college-age thinking, which aligns with Perry’s model.