Erik Erikson: Psychosocial

Development Theory

REPORTER:

KEVIN LENDEL C. DUCAO

 Who was Erik Erikson?
 Born in Germany on June
15th 1902.
 He was an artist and a
teacher in the late 1920s
when he met Anna Freud,
an Austrian
psychoanalyst. With
Anna’s encouragement,
he began to study child
psychoanalysis at the
Vienna Psychoanalytic
Institute.
 Who was Erik Erikson?
 He immigrated to the US in 1933 and
taught at Yale and Harvard University.
 It was at this point in his life that he
became interested in the influence of
society and culture on child
development.
 He studied groups of American Indian
Children to help formulate his theories.
Studying these children enabled him to
correlate personality growth with
parental and societal values.
Field of Research
 He studied groups of
children to learn about the
influence of society and
culture on child
development.

 He believed that humans

have to resolve different
conflicts as they progress
through each stage of
development in the life
cycle.
ERIK ERICKSON
THEORY OF
PSYCHOSOCIAL
DEVELOPMENT
 Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial
Stages of Development
 Erikson’s theory consists of eight
stages of development. Each
stage is characterized by a
different conflict that must be
resolved by the individual. If a
person is unable to resolve a
conflict at a particular stage, they
will be confronted and struggled
with it later in life.
 Stage 1:Trust vs. Mistrust
(1 year old)
Psychosocial Crisis
Psychosocial Strength
 Trust vs. Mistrust
 Hope
 Caregiver meets needs:
child develops trust.  Belief our desires will be
satisfied
 Caregiver does not meet  Feeling of confidence
needs: child develops
mistrust Psychosocial Influence:
Maternal/caregivers
 Stage 2: Autonomy Vs Shame &
Doubt ( 2-3 yrs old)
Psychosocial Crisis
Psychosocial Strength
 Autonomy
 Will
 Child able to exercise
 Determination to exercise
some degree of choice freedom of choice in face of
 Vs. society’s demands
 Shame & Doubt  Psychosocial Influence
 Child’s independence is Both parents & adult
thwarted: child develops
substitutes
feelings of self-doubt,
shame in dealing with
others
 Stage 3: Initiative Vs Guilt
(4-5 yrs old)
Psychosocial Crisis Psychosocial Strength
 Initiative  Purpose
Child expresses desire to  Courage to envision and
take initiative in activities pursue goals

Vs.  Psychosocial Influence

 Parents, family and friends
 Guilt
Parents punish child for
initiative: child develops
feelings of guilt that will
affect self-directed activity
throughout life
 Stage 4: Industry Vs Inferiority
(6-11yrs old)
Psychosocial Crisis Psychosocial Strength
 Industry  Competence
Child develops cognitive  Exertion of skill and
abilities to enable in task intelligence in pursuing and
completing tasks
completion (school work,
play)  Psychosocial Influence
Vs. School
Inferiority
Parents/teachers do not
support child’s efforts: child
develops feelings of inferiority
and inadequacy
 Stage 5: Identity Vs Role
Confusion (12-18yrs old)
Psychosocial crisis Psychosocial Strength
 Identity  Fidelity
 Form ego identity: self-  Emerges from cohesive
ego identity
image
 Sincerity, sense of duty in
 Strong sense of identity: relationships with others
face adulthood with
 Psychosocial Influence
certainty and confidence
 Vs.
 Peers
 Role Confusion
confusion of ego identity
 Stage 6: Intimacy Vs Isolation
(18-35yrs old)

Psychosocial Crisis Psychosocial Strength

 Intimacy
Undertake productive work
and establish intimate
relationships.
 Isolation
 Inability to establish
intimacy leads to social
isolation
 Love
 Mutual devotion in a
shared identity
 Fusing of oneself with
another person
 Psychosocial Influence
 Spouse, lover, friends
 Stage 7: Generativity vs. Stagnation
(35-65 yrs old)

Psychosocial Crisis Psychosocial Strength

 Generativity
 Active involvement in
teaching/guiding the next
generation
 Vs.
 Stagnation
 involves not seeking
outlets for generativity
 Care
 Broad concern for others
 Need to teach others
 Psychosocial Influence
Family & Society
 Stages 8: Integrity Vs Despair
(65 years onwards)
Psychosocial Crisis Psychosocial Strength
 Integrity  Wisdom
Look back with satisfaction  Detached concern with the
whole of life
Vs.
 Psychosocial Influence
Despair
 All Humans
Review with anger,
frustration
Erikson’s Contributions
 He made major contributions in
the area of child development
by studying groups of Native
American children and
developed the concept of
identity crisis.
 He was concerned with the
relationship between
society/culture and child
development, which he
termed “psychosocial
development”.
 This interest led him to develop
the Eight Stages of
Development.
 In each stage, the individual
encounters a developmental
crisis.
 In order to move on to the next
stage, the individual must
resolve the crisis.
THE END