In Piagetian theory, the process by which a balance is achieved and then maintained (equilibrium) between assimilation and accommodation. It endeavors to describe the role of self-regulation in the process of cognitive development. When attempts to assimilate an object to a scheme are out of balance with attempts to accommodate a scheme to an object, the psychological system enters a state of disequilibrium. In short then, equilibration refers to the process of modifying existing schemes in order to restore equilibrium between assimilation and accommodation.
See Accommodation, Assimilation, Cognitive development, Equilibrium, Scheme