Background on Beliefs

• Development is social in nature and a result of a desire to affiliate with other people

• A person encounters 8 developmental stages in life

• Each stage represents individuals with a crisis that must be faced

• “The more successfully an individual resolves the crisis, the healthier development will be”

Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development

• Crisis: a psychosocial challenge that presents opportunities for development

• Positive resolution for crisis leads to growth but negative resolution or no resolution leads to maladjustment

  • Positive Resolution

    • Constructive orientation toward future events related to that conflict

  • Negative Resolution

    • Problems resolving future crises

• Stage 1: Oral Sensory (Infancy: 1 years)

  • Issue: trust vs mistrust

  • Virtue: hope

  • Question: “Is the world a good and pleasant place to live?”

  • Characteristics: Infants need food, comfort, and warmth to develop a sense of trust. If these needs are not met, a sense of mistrust will follow.

• Stage 2: Muscular-Anal (Toddlerhood: 1 to 3 years)

  • Issue: autonomy vs shame and doubt

  • Virtue: will

  • Question: “Can I do things by myself/Must I always rely on others?”

  • Characteristics: Caregivers provide a strong sense of security and encourage children to accomplish self-sufficient behaviors, such as crawling, walking, changing clothes, and bathing. “If restrained too much or punished too harshly, they are likely to develop shame and doubt.”

• Stage 3: Locomotor (Pre-schooler: 3 to 5 years)

  • Issue: initiative vs guilt

  • Virtue: purpose

  • Question: “Am I good or bad?”

  • Characteristics: Children are faced with new challenges and learning to master the world around them. They begin to act with purpose and also  experience guilt when a particular action does not occur as planned. It is important not to belittle or make a child feel anxious about their attempts.

• Stage 4: Latency (Elementary School: 6 years to puberty)

  • Issue: industry vs inferiority

  • Virtue: competence

  • Question: “Am I successful or worthless?”

  • Characteristics: Children begin mastering knowledge and intellectual skills. This stage is imperative to foster self-confidence. Children should be encouraged to create and do things and then receive praise. If children are made to feel incompetent, they will develop feelings of inferiority and may be unwilling to try new things.

• Stage 5: Adolescence (10 to 20 years)

  • Issue: identity vs identity confusion

  • Virtue: fidelity

  • Question: ”Who am I and what am I all about?”

  • Characteristics: Adolescents try a variety of roles to identify where they fit in. They must decide who they are and decipher who society expects them to be. They start using their experiences to influence their future.

• Stage 6: Young Adulthood (20s and 30s)

  • Issue: intimacy vs isolation

  • Virtue: love

  • Question: “Am I loved or wanted by someone?”

  • Characteristics: Upon establishing identity, people are able to form long term commitments. Without healthy friendships and intimate relationships, isolation occurs.

• Stage 7: Middle Adulthood (40s and 50s)

  • Issue: generativity vs stagnation

  • Virtue: care

  • Question: “Will I produce something of real value?”

  • Characteristics: “Generativity” is a concern for helping the younger generation lead successful lives. In contrast, feeling like they’ve done nothing to help leads to stagnation.

• Stage 8: Maturity (60s onwards)

  • Issue: integrity vs despair

  • Virtue: wisdom

  • Question: “Was my life well spent?”

  • Characteristics: A person reflects the past. If a person feels their life was well spent, they develop a sense of integrity. If they look back on a life of disappointments and missed goals, they develop a sense of despair or gloom.