refers to the ways someone's conceptual understanding of some specific concept / concept area changes over time, and is sometimes distinguished cognitive development
Example of use:
"Vygotsky saw conceptual development as an interaction between spontaneous and scientific concepts. Spontaneous concepts, with their experiential grounding, allow scientific concepts to be understood as more than just formal definitions – so, in effect, the student can develop a 'feel' for what is meant by technical notions such as momentum or density or combustion or excretion, or indeed (by building up layers of concepts ultimately grounded in spontaneous concepts) what is meant by atomic orbital, electromagnetic induction, or cellular respiration). Scientific concepts provide sophisticated tools for thinking and communicating about spontaneous concepts. So, spontaneous concepts abstracted from perceived regularities in experience can come to be understood in terms of, for example, friction or viscosity or thermoregulation." (Taber, 2020)
