Development of children's concepts about the interior of the body

Recent research suggests that children's understanding of the interior of the body and its functioning develops in an orderly sequence that parallels cognitive development generally. Two hundred and ten healthy school children aged 5-11 years were studied individually and required to draw the interior of the body inside a body outline provided. In order to overcome the constraints of pictorial representation, they were also interviewed about their understanding of the contents of the body. Changes were measured in the number and nature of body parts drawn and described. Responses on drawings were coded to differentiate level of integration of organs and parts into body systems. The findings demonstrate a significant increase in conceptual sophistication with age. Developmental changes in conceptualization of the body are interpreted within the context of a Piagetian model of cognitive development, supporting the possibility of delineating stages in the development of the child's thinking about the body interior. The implications of the findings for communicating with children about health and illness are discussed.