Research About Erikson’s Psycho-social Theory of Development

Introduction
Erikson's stage theory characterizes an individual advancing through the eight life
stages as a function of negotiating their biological and sociocultural forces. Each stage is
characterized by a psychosocial crisis of these two conflicting forces. If an individual
does indeed successfully reconcile these forces (favoring the first mentioned attribute in
the crisis), they emerge from the stage with the corresponding virtue.

8 Stages of Psycho-social Theory of Development

1. Hope: trust vs. mistrust
Existential Question: Can I Trust the World?
The first stage of Erik Erikson's theory centers around the infant's basic needs
being met by the parents and how this interaction leads to trust or mistrust. Trust as
defined by Erikson is "an essential trustfulness of others as well as a fundamental sense
of one's own trustworthiness."The infant depends on the parents, especially the mother,
for sustenance and comfort. The child's relative understanding of world and society
comes from the parents and their interaction with the child. A child's first trust is always
with the parent or caregiver; whoever that might be, however, the caregiver is secondary
whereas the parents are primary in the eyes of the child. If the parents expose the child to
warmth, regularity, and dependable affection, the infant's view of the world will be one of
trust. Should parents fail to provide a secure environment and to meet the child's basic
needs; a sense of mistrust will result. Development of mistrust can lead to feelings of
frustration, suspicion, withdrawal, and a lack of confidence.

2. Will: autonomy vs. shame/doubt

Existential Question: Is It Okay to Be Me?
As the child gains control over eliminative functions and motor abilities, they
begin to explore their surroundings. Parents still provide a strong base of security from
which the child can venture out to assert their will. The parents' patience and
encouragement helps foster autonomy in the child. Children at this age like to explore the
world around them and they are constantly learning about their environment. Caution
must be taken at this age while children may explore things that are dangerous to their
health and safety.
At this age children develop their first interests. For example, a child who enjoys
music may like to play with the radio. Children who enjoy the outdoors may be interested
in animals and plants. Highly restrictive parents, however, are more likely to instill in the
child a sense of doubt, and reluctance to attempt new challenges. As they gain increased
muscular coordination and mobility, toddlers become capable of satisfying some of their
own needs. They begin to feed themselves, wash and dress themselves, and use the
bathroom.
3. Initiative vs. Guilt
Existential Question: Is it Okay for Me to Do, Move, and Act?
Initiative adds to autonomy the quality of planning, undertaking and attacking a
task for the sake of just being active and on the move. The child is learning to master the
world around them, learning basic skills and principles of physics. Things fall down, not
up. Round things roll. They learn how to zip and tie, count and speak with ease. At this
stage, the child wants to begin and complete their own actions for a purpose. Guilt is a
confusing new emotion. They may feel guilty over things that logically should not cause
guilt. They may feel guilt when this initiative does not produce desired results.
The development of courage and independence are what set preschoolers, ages
three to six years of age, apart from other age groups. Young children in this category
face the challenge of initiative versus guilt. As described in Bee and Boyd (2004), the
child during this stage faces the complexities of planning and developing a sense of
judgment. During this stage, the child learns to take initiative, and prepares for leadership
and goal achievement roles. Activities sought out by a child in this stage may include
risk-taking behaviors, such as crossing a street alone or riding a bike without a helmet;
both these examples involve self-limits.

4. Competence: industry vs. inferiority

Existential Question: Can I Make it in the World of People and Things?
The aim to bring a productive situation to completion gradually supersedes the
whims and wishes of play. The fundamentals of technology are developed. The failure to
master trust, autonomy, and industrious skills may cause the child to doubt his or her
future, leading to shame, guilt, and the experience of defeat and inferiority. The child
must deal with demands to learn new skills or risk a sense of inferiority, failure, and
incompetence.

5. Fidelity: identity vs. role confusion

Existential Question: Who Am I and What Can I Be?
The adolescent is newly concerned with how they appear to others. Superego
identity is the accrued confidence that the outer sameness and continuity prepared in the
future are matched by the sameness and continuity of one's meaning for oneself, as
evidenced in the promise of a career. The ability to settle on a school or occupational
identity is pleasant. In later stages of adolescence, the child develops a sense of sexual
identity. As they make the transition from childhood to adulthood, adolescents ponder the
roles they will play in the adult world. Initially, they are apt to experience some role
confusion—mixed ideas and feelings about the specific ways in which they will fit into
society—and may experiment with a variety of behaviors and activities (e.g. tinkering
with cars, baby-sitting for neighbors, affiliating with certain political or religious groups).
Eventually, Erikson proposed, most adolescents achieve a sense of identity regarding
who they are and where their lives are headed.
6. Love: Intimacy vs.Isolation
Existential Question: Can I Love?
The Intimacy vs. Isolation conflict is emphasized around the age of 30. At the
start of this stage, identity vs. role confusion is coming to an end, though it still lingers at
the foundation of the stage (Erikson, 1950). Young adults are still eager to blend their
identities with friends. They want to fit in. Erikson believes we are sometimes isolated
due to intimacy. We are afraid of rejections such as being turned down or our partners
breaking up with us. We are familiar with pain and to some of us rejection is so painful
that our egos cannot bear it. Erikson also argues that "Intimacy has a counterpart:
Distantiation: the readiness to isolate and if necessary, to destroy those forces and people
whose essence seems dangerous to our own, and whose territory seems to encroach on
the extent of one's intimate relations" (1950).
7. Care: Generativity vs. Stagnation
Existential Question: Can I Make My Life Count?
Generativity is the concern of guiding the next generation. Socially-valued work
and disciplines are expressions of generativity. The adult stage of generativity has broad
application to family, relationships, work, and society. "Generativity, then is primarily
the concern in establishing and guiding the next generation... the concept is meant to
include... productivity and creativity."

8. Wisdom: Integrity vs. Despair

Existential Question: Is it Okay to Have Been Me?
As we grow older and become senior citizens we tend to slow down our
productivity and explore life as a retired person. It is during this time that we contemplate
our accomplishments and are able to develop integrity if we see ourselves as leading a
successful life. If we see our life as unproductive, or feel that we did not accomplish our
life goals, we become dissatisfied with life and develop despair, often leading to
depression and hopelessness. The final developmental task is retrospection: people look
back on their lives and accomplishments. They develop feelings of contentment and
integrity if they believe that they have led a happy, productive life. They may instead
develop a sense of despair if they look back on a life of disappointments and unachieved
goals.

According to the powerpoint of Mr. Sean Sanko, here are some keypoints:
 Erikson believes that personality develops in a series of stages.
 The main elements behind his theory is the identity of one's ego.
 According to his theory when conflicts arise, people have the opportunity to grow or
fail equally.
Trust vs. Mistrust
 occurs in infancy( birth-18 months
 Questions one's hope.
Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
 Occurs in the toddler age (18 months- 3 years)
 Questions the child's willpower.
Initiative vs. Guilt
 Pre-school age (3-5 years old)
 Questions one's purpose and role in life
Industry vs. Inferiority
 Questions one's purpose and role in life
 Questions competency.
Identity vs. Role Confusion
 Adolescence (11-18 years of age)
 Questions who you are and if you are happy.
Intimacy vs. Isolation
 Young adulthood (18-40 years of age)
 Questions if the person is ready for new relationships, or if there is a fear of rejection.
Generativity vs. Stagnation
 Middle adulthood (40-65 years of age).
 Questions what the person will do with their extra time.
Integrity vs. Despair
 Late adulthood (60 and up)
 Questions one's overview of their entire life.
Erikson’s Psycho-Social Theory of Development
“Healthy children will not fear life if their elders have integrity enough not to fear
death.”
-Erik Erikson

Introduction
Erikson’s stages of psycho-social development is very relevant, highly regarded
and meaningful theory. Life is a continuous process involving learning and trials which
help us to grow. Erikson’s enlightening theory guides us and helps to tell us why.

Introduction to 8 Stages:
1. Erikson’s ‘psycho-social’ term is derived from the two source words- namely
psychological (or the root, ‘psycho’ relating to the mind, brain, personality, etc) and
social (external relationships and environment), both at the heart of Erikson’s theory.
Occasionally you’ll see the term extended to biopsychosocial, in which “bio” refers to
life, as in biological.
2. Erikson’s theory was largely influenced by Sigmund Freud. But Erikson extended the
theory and incorporated cultural and social aspects into Freud’s biological and sexually-
oriented theory.
3. Erikson’s eight stages theory is a tremendously powerful model. It is very accessible
and obviously relevant to the modern life, from several different perspectives for
understanding and explaining how personality and behavior develops in people. As such
Erikson’s theory is useful for teaching, parenting, self-awareness, managing and coaching,
dealing with conflict, and generally for understanding self and others.

The 8 Psychosocial Stages of Development

Trust vs. Mistrust
The first stage, infancy, is approximately the first year or year and a half of life.
The crisis is trust vs. mistrust. The goal is to develop trust without completely eliminating
the capacity for mistrust, if the primary caregivers, like the parents can give the baby a
sense of familiarity, consistency, and continuity, the the baby will develop the feeling that
the world is a safe place to be, that people are reliable and loving. If the parents are
unreliable and inadequate, if they reject the infant or harm it, if other interest cause both
parents to turn away from the infant’s needs to satisfy their own instead, then the infant
will develop mistrust. He or she will be apprehensive and suspicious around people.
Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
The second stage is early childhood, from about eighteen months to three or four
years old. The task is to achieve a degree of autonomy while minimizing shame and
doubt. If mom and dad, or caregivers permits the child, now a toddler, to explore and
manipulate his or her environment, the child will develop a sense of autonomy or
independence. The parents should not discourage the child, but neither should they push.
A balance is required. People often advise new parents to be “firm but tolerant” at this
stage, and the advice is good. There are other ways to lead children to shame and doubt.
If you give children unrestricted freedom and no sense of limits, or if you try to help
children do what they should learn to do for themselves, you will also give them the
impression that they are not good for much. If you aren’t patient enough to wait for your
child to tie his or her shoe-laces, your child will never learn to tie them, and will assume
that this too difficult to learn.

Initiative vs. Guilt

Stage three is the early childhood stage, from three or four to five or six. The task
is to learn initiative without too much guilt. Initiative means a positive response to the
world’s challenges, taking on responsibilities, learning new skills, feeling purposeful.
Parents can encourage initiative by encouraging children to try out their ideas. We should
accept and encourage fantasy and curiosity and imagination. This is a time for play, not
for formal education. The child is now capable, as never before, of imagining a future
situation, one that isn’t a reality right now. Initiative is the attempt to make that non-
reality to reality. But if children can imagine the future, if they can plan, then they can be
responsible as well, and guilty.

Industry vs. Inferiority

Stage four is the school-age stage when the child is from about six to twelve. The
task is to develop a capacity for industry while avoiding an excessive sense of inferiority.
Children must tame the imagination and dedicate themselves to education and to learning
the social skills their society requires of them. There is a much broader social sphere at
work now: The parents and other family members are joined by teachers and peers and
other members of the society at large. They all contribute. Parents must encourage,
teachers must care, peers must accept. Children must learn that there is pleasure not only
in conceiving a plan, but carrying it out. They must learn the feeling of success, whether
it is in school or on the playground, academic or social.

Identity vs. Role Confusion

Stage five is adolescence, beginning with puberty and ending around 18 or 20
years old. The task during adolescence is to achieve ego identity and avoid role confusion.
It was adolescence that interested Erikson first and most, and the patterns he saw here
were the bases for his thinking about all other stages. Ego identity means knowing who
you are and how you fit in to the rest of society. It requires that you take all you’ve
learned about life and yourself and mold it into a unified self-image, one that your
community finds meaningful. When an adolescent is confronted by role confusion,
Erikson says, he or she is suffering from identity crisis. In fact, a common question
adolescents in our society ask is a straight forward question of identity: “Who am I?”

Intimacy vs. Isolation

If you have made it this far, you are in the stage of young adulthood, which lasts
from about 18 to about 30. the ages in the adult stages are much fuzzier in the childhood
stages, and people may differ dramatically. The task is to achieve some degree of
intimacy, as opposed to remaining in isolation. Intimacy is the ability to be close to others,
as a lover, a friend, and as a participant in society. Because you have a clear sense of who
you are, no longer need the fear “losing” yourself, as many adolescents do. The “fear of
commitment” some people seem to exhibit is an example of immaturity at this stage. The
young adult relationship should be a matter of two independent egos wanting to create
something larger than themselves.

Generativity vs. Stagnation

The seventh stage is that of middle adulthood. It is hard to pin a time to it, but it
would include the period during which we are actively involved in raising children. For
most people in our society, this would put it somewhere between the middle twenties and
the late fifties. The task here is to cultivate the proper balance of generativity and
stagnation. Generativity is an extension of love in the future. It is a concern for the next
generation and all future generations. Although the majority of people practice
generativity by having and raising children, there are many other ways as well. Erikson
considers teaching, writing, invention, the arts and sciences, social activism, and
generally contributing to the welfare of future generations to be generativity as well---
anything, in fact, that satisfies that old “need to be needed.” Stagnation, on the other hand,
is self-absorption, caring for no one. The stagnant person stops to be a productive
member of society.

Integrity vs. Despair

This last stage, referred to delicately as late adulthood or maturity, or less
delicately as old age, begins sometime after retirement, after the kids have gone, say
somewhere around 60. The task is to develop ego integrity with a minimal amount of
despair. This stage, seems like the most difficult of all. First comes a detachment from
society, from a sense of usefulness, for most people in our culture. Ego integrity means
coming to terms with your life, and thereby coming to terms with the end of life. If you
are able to look back and accept the course of events, the choices made, your life as you
lived it, as being necessary, then you needn’t fear death.
8 STAGES OF PSYCHO-SOCIAL THEORY OF DEVELOPMENT
Topics Included in Powerpoint:
Introduction
Erikson’s Psycho-Social Theory of Development
“Healthy children will not fear life if their elders have integrity enough not to fear
death.”
-Erik Erikson
 Erikson’s ‘psycho-social’ term is derived from the two source words- namely
psychological (or the root, ‘psycho’ relating to the mind, brain, personality, etc) and
social (external relationships and environment), both at the heart of Erikson’s theory.
Occasionally you’ll see the term extended to biopsychosocial, in which “bio” refers
to life, as in biological.
 Erikson’s theory was largely influenced by Sigmund Freud. But Erikson extended
the theory and incorporated cultural and social aspects into Freud’s biological and
sexually-oriented theory.
 Erikson's stage theory characterizes an individual advancing through the eight life
stages as a function of negotiating their biological and sociocultural forces. Each
stage is characterized by a psychosocial crisis of these two conflicting forces.
 Erikson believes that personality develops in a series of stages.
 The main elements behind his theory is the identity of one's ego.
 According to his theory when conflicts arise, people have the opportunity to grow or
fail equally.

Trust vs. Mistrust

 Can I Trust the World?
 occurs in infancy( birth-18 months
 Questions one's hope.
 The goal is to develop trust without completely eliminating the capacity for mistrust.

Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

 Is It Okay to Be Me?
 Occurs in the toddler age (18 months- 3 years)
 Questions the child's willpower.
 The task is to achieve a degree of autonomy while minimizing shame and doubt.
 Initiative vs. Guilt
 Is it Okay for Me to Do, Move, and Act?
 Pre-school age (3-5 years old)
 Questions one's purpose and role in life.
 The task is to learn initiative without too much guilt.

Industry vs. Inferiority

 Can I Make it in the World of People and Things?
 Questions one's purpose and role in life
 Questions competency.
 The task is to develop a capacity for industry while avoiding an excessive sense of
inferiority.

Identity vs. Role Confusion

 Who Am I and What Can I Be?
 Adolescence (11-18 years of age)
 Questions who you are and if you are happy.
 The task during adolescence is to achieve ego identity and avoid role confusion.

Intimacy vs. Isolation

 Can I Love?
 Young adulthood (18-40 years of age)
 Questions if the person is ready for new relationships, or if there is a fear of rejection.
 The task is to achieve some degree of intimacy, as opposed to remaining in isolation.

Generativity vs. Stagnation

 Can I Make My Life Count?
 Middle adulthood (40-65 years of age).
 Questions what the person will do with their extra time.
 The task is to cultivate thr proper balance of generativity and stagnation.
Integrity vs. Despair
 Is it Okay to Have Been Me?
 Late adulthood (60 and up)
 Questions one's overview of their entire life.
 The task is to develop ego integrity with a minimal amount of despair.
Activity: Charades
Mechanics:
 The class will be divided into 4 groups.
 Each group will choose one member who will guess the stages that will be portray
by the other members.
 The presenters will show stages to students.
 The group who will get the high numbers of guessed stage will be declare as
winner.

References
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erikson%27s_stages_ofpsychosocial_development
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/teachereducationx92x1/chapter/eriksons-stages-of-
psychosocial-development/
https://www.slideshare.net/mobile/sanko1sm/eriksons-psychosocial-stages-of-
development
Lucas,M.R.(2010). Child and Adolescent Development: Looking at Learners at Different
Life Stages