What Is Assimilation?
Part of Piaget's Adaptatio n Process
By Kendra Cherry
Updated April 20, 2016
Definition:
Assimilation is a term referring to another part of the adaptation process initially proposed
by Jean Piaget. Through assimilation, we take in new information or experiences and incorporate
them into our existing ideas. The process is somewhat subjective, because we tend to modify
experience or information somewhat to fit in with our preexisting beliefs.
How Does It Work?
Piaget believed that there are two basic ways that we can adapt to new experiences and
information.
Assimilation is the easiest method because it does not require a great deal of adjustment.
Through this process, we add new information to our existing knowledge base, sometimes
reinterpreting these new experiences so that they will fit in with previously existing information.
For example, let's imagine that your neighbors have a daughter who you have always known to
be sweet, polite and kind. One day, you glance out your window and see the girl throwing a
snowball at your car. It seems out of character and rather rude, not something you would expect
from this girl. How do you interpret this new information? If you use the process of assimilation,
you might dismiss the girl's behavior, believing that maybe it's something she witnessed a
classmate doing and that she does not mean it to be impolite. You're not revising your opinion of
the girl, you are simply adding new information to your existing knowledge.
She's still a kind child, but now you know that she also has a mischievous side to her personality.
If you were to utilize the second method of adaptation described by Piaget, the young girl's
behavior might cause you to reevaluate your opinion of her. This process is what Piaget referred
to as accommodation, in which old ideas are changed or even replaced based on new
information.
