Concept in Definition ABC

In its most general use the word accommodation refers to the action and to the effect of accommodating something or of accommodating oneself in a certain place, either because it should be there or because it turns out to be the most comfortable.

Meanwhile, the word accommodation also has other references in specific contexts such as the psychology and the physiology.

The Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget, famous for his studies and conclusions on the childhood, the intelligence and the develop cognitive named with the word accommodation to one of the basic processes, are two, involved in the cognitive development of kids. It may also appear referred to as adjustment.

As explained by Piaget, by accommodation, the individual will modify his existing mental schemes in order to include new concepts in his cognitive structure. This situation is possible by creating a new scheme or by modifying an existing scheme to make way for the new element. For example, it is considered a qualitative modification of the scheme.

The other process is called assimilation and it implies the way in which individuals add new elements to their mental schemes. The main difference with the previous one is that there will be no accommodation of other elements in the scheme but the entry of new ones.

On the other hand, in physiology It is called accommodation to adaptation that the eye undergoes in relation to different distances, thanks to the refractive power of the lens, thus forming a picture sharp on the retina of nearby objects. It is worth mentioning that the phenomenon of accommodation occurs because in a relaxed state the eye can focus on distant objects

The increase in power refractive lens, which is precisely what allows focusing on nearby objects, can be achieved by the contraction of the ciliary muscle that causes the thickness and curvature of the surface of the crystalline.

The synonym most used at the behest of this concept is the adjustment.