Erikson’s theory is probably one of the most recognized stages of development theories. Erikson believed that personality develops in a series of stages.
Unlike Freud’s theory of psychosexual stages, Erikson’s theory describes the impact of social experience across the whole lifespan. One of Erikson’s theories points is ego identity. Ego Identity is the sense of oneself as a distinct continuous entity. (medicaldictionary.
com) According to Erikson, our ego identity is constantly changing due to new experience and information we acquire in our daily interactions with others.This means that Erikson feels that you are not necessarily born the way you are; you area born one way but things, and situations change who you are. In addition to ego identity, Erikson also believed that a sense of competence also motivates behaviors and actions. Each stage in Erikson’s theory is concerned with becoming competent in an area of life. If the stage is handled well, the person will feel a sense of mastery, which he sometimes referred to as ego strength or ego quality and if the stage is managed poorly, the person will emerge with a sense of inadequacy.
There are different stages in Erikson theory. Here I will explain a little bit of researched information. The first psychosocial stage is called mistrust vs. trust. This stage occurs between birth and one year of age.
This is the stage Erikson believed established trust. The way a child is taken care of establishes the way they trust. The next stage is called autonomy vs. shame and doubt.
First of all autonomy is defined by dictionary. com as independence or freedom, as of the will or one's actions. This stage happens in early childhood. This stage focuses on self control.Children who successfully complete this stage feel secure and confident, while those who do not are left with a sense of inadequacy and self-doubt. The character that is an example of this stage is baby Dill of the cartoon “Rugrats”.
This is an old cartoon but I remember it well because it was watched quite often. He was a carefree baby that was totally dependent on his family. The next stage is called the initiative vs. guilt stage. This is the stage that occurs during the preschool years. This is the age children begin to assert their power.
Children, who make it through this stage successfully, tend to be leaders and feel capable. Children who do not make it through this stage successfully often feels inadequate, and lack initiative. The next stage is called the industry vs. inferiority stage. This stage covers the early school years from approximately age 5 to 11. Through socializing, children begin to learn a sense of pride in their accomplishments and abilities.
Children who are encouraged and commended by parents and teachers develop a feeling of ability and belief in their skills.Those who receive little or no encouragement from parents, teachers, or peers will doubt their ability to be successful. The character who most reminds me of this stage is the characters from the movie “Daddy Daycare”. There were daycare age kids who learned to socialize with other kids. They learned new things and flourished because they were encouraged and commended by their male teachers.
The next stage is the identity vs. confusion stage. This is during adolescence. This is when kids are learning who they are and what they are feeling.
This in my opinion is one of the most crucial stages. This is when encouraging and reinforcing helps kids to learn independence and control. Kids who don’t get the proper encouragement will be unsure of who they are and may be confused by what they believe. The character that most reminds me of this stage would be Carly Shay from the show “iCarly”.
She is about 16 years old. She is learning about herself and making decisions on her own. She owns her own internet web show. The next stage Erikson theory is intimacy vs.
isolation.This is early adulthood. This is the time when people are starting new relationships. According to Erikson committed relationships are vital.
The character that reminds me of this stage is Kevin Jonas of the “Jonas Brothers”. He is in his early 20’s and recently got married. He is learning how to be in a committed relationship. Stage 7 is called generatively vs. stagnation. This is still during adulthood.
This is when people are building their families and careers. The person I think of in this stage would be Nicole Richie. She is learning her way.She has young children and is building her career. She is making her own way. At this time, it is important to be successful because one needs the sense of feeling as if they are contributing to the world and their community around them.
The last and final stage is integrity vs. despair. This is the phase that occurs in older adults. This is a time of reflection. If one is not successful in this stage, they may feel as they wasted their life.
This could cause bitterness and despair. Those who are happy with their accomplishments will feel good about what they have done.This means they have little or no regrets about how they have lived their life. Those individuals happy with their lives are typically satisfied with their lives.
The character that reminds me of this stage is Betty White. She has been quoted as saying she doesn’t have any regrets. She is 86 years old and recently started a career. She is a woman that has lived out pretty much all of her dreams.
There are many theories that argue whether this Erikson’s theory is right or wrong. I think that Erikson does have a point. I think that of course there is no exact formula in regards to his theory.I mean I see it all the time. I see people who come with the worse of the worse baggage and come out on top. On the other hand I see those who didn’t have it really tough whine about everything and do nothing with their lives.
The point is, I believe that some of our personality as Erikson said, has to do with our childhood. On the other hand a lot of our personality may have to do with the things around us. I believe there are things in our lives that make us who we are. It is up to us to take the hard things and make them make you stronger.Referencehttp://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/psychosocial.htm
