Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development

Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development respond to a comprehensive psychoanalytic theory that identifies a series of moments that a healthy individual goes through throughout their life history. Each stage would be characterized by a psychosocial crisis of two conflicting forces.

Erikson, like Sigmund Freud, believed that personality developed in a series of phases. The fundamental difference is that Freud focused on the psychosexual stages. For his part, Erikson focused on psychosocial development. He was interested in how social interaction and relationships played a role in the growth of human beings.

Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development

Each of the eight stages described by Erikson depend on each other.. You cannot move on to one without first finishing the previous one, so this paves the way for subsequent periods of development.

Erikson proposed that people experience a conflict at each stage that serves as a turning point., as a stimulus for evolution. These conflicts allow us to develop a psychological quality. However, if the conflict is not resolved correctly, it can prevent the emergence of said attribute.

At each stage two polarities come into contradiction: one positive and the other negative. Both are necessary to adapt to the environment, but what guarantees good development is the predominance of the positive side. At the end of each stage, if the person has managed to solve it, he will develop a particular virtue.

Stage 1. Trust vs. Distrust (0-18 months): hope

Children learn to trust or not trust others. Trust has a lot to do with attachment, relationship management, and the extent to which the child expects others to meet his or her needs. Because a baby is dependent, the development of trust is based on the reliability and quality of the child’s caregivers, especially the child’s mother.

If parents expose the child to an affectionate relationship in which trust prevails, it is likely that the child will also adopt this posture towards the world. If parents do not provide a safe environment and do not meet the child’s basic needs, the child will probably learn not to expect anything from others. The development of distrust can lead to feelings of frustration, suspicion, or callousness. so it happens in an environment from which they expect little or nothing.

Papalia, Wendkos and Duskin, in their book Human development (2009) point out that the ideal is for babies to know how to move between trust, which will allow them to relate, and distrust, which will help them protect themselves. However, The development of virtue will depend on the predominance of the first. In this case, the virtue that would appear would be hope.

Stage 2. Autonomy vs. Shame and doubt (18 months-3 years): autonomy

In the second part of Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development, Children acquire a certain degree of control over their bodies, which in turn causes their autonomy to grow..

By being able to successfully complete tasks on their own, they gain a sense of independence and autonomy. Thus, by allowing children to make decisions and gain control, parents and caregivers can help children develop a sense of autonomy.

Children who successfully complete this stage usually have a healthy and strong self-esteem.while those who do not tend to be left with a feeling of walking on too unstable ground: themselves (their own support).

Erikson believed that striking a balance between autonomy, shame, and doubt would lead to the virtue of will.which is the belief that children can act with intention, within reason and limits.

In an article published in the Lasallian Research Magazine It is highlighted that the balance between these trends is necessary to the configuration of moral conscience, the sense of justice, law and order. Also for “a wise balance between the experiences of love or hate, cooperation or isolation, autonomy or heteronomy.”

Stage 3. Initiative vs. Guilt (3-5 years): purpose

In the third stage proposed by Erikson, Children begin to strengthen their power and control over the world through play, invaluable framework for social interactions. When they achieve an ideal balance of individual initiative and the willingness to work with others, the ego quality known as purpose emerges.

Children who succeed at this stage feel capable and confident in leading others.. Those who fail to acquire these skills are likely to be left with a feeling of guilt, self-doubt, and lack of initiative.

Guilt is good in the sense that it demonstrates children’s ability to recognize when they have done something wrong.. However, excessive and undeserved guilt can cause the child to discard challenges because they do not feel capable of facing them: the feeling of guilt is still one of the richest nutrients of fear.

In the words of Papalia, Wendkos and Duskin: “children who learn how to regulate these contrary drives develop the virtue of purpose, the courage to foresee and pursue goals without becoming too inhibited by guilt or fear of punishment.”

Stage 4. Industriousness vs. Inferiority (5-13 years): competition

Children begin to perform more complicated tasks; on the other hand, Their brain reaches a high degree of maturity, which allows them to begin to handle abstractions. They can also recognize their abilities, as well as those of their peers. In fact, children will often insist on being given more challenging and demanding tasks. When they accomplish these tasks, they hope to earn recognition.

Success in finding balance at this stage of Erikson’s psychosocial development leads us to the virtue of competition: Children develop confidence in their abilities to handle the tasks presented to them. Another important achievement is that they begin to calibrate more realistically those challenges that they are prepared to face and those that they are not.

If children who cannot perform as well as they wish, the feeling of inferiority often appears. If this echo of inferiority is not adequately addressed and the child does not receive help in emotionally managing her failures, she may choose to discard any task that is difficult for fear of reliving that feeling. This is why it is so important to consider the child’s effort when evaluating a task, separating it from the objective result.

in his book The life cycle completed, Erikson points out that this stage is key for self-esteem. Feeling competent and skilled allows them, in turn, to perceive themselves as valuable people, which increases the appreciation they have for themselves.

Stage 5. Identity vs. Identity Dissemination (13-21 years): fidelity

In this phase of Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development, children become adolescents. They find their sexual identity and begin to design an image of that future person they want to look like.. As they grow up, they try to find their purposes and roles in society, as well as solidify their unique identity.

In this stage, Young people should also try to discern which activities are age-appropriate and which are considered “childish.”. They must find a compromise between what they expect of themselves and what their environment expects of them. For Erikson, successfully completing this stage means finishing building a solid and healthy foundation for adult life.

Thus, adolescents configure their identity by solving three problems: choose an occupation, adopt values ​​and have a sexual identity satisfactory. When they manage to solve the crisis of this stage, they develop the virtue of fidelity. In The life cycle completed, The author indicates that this virtue may be associated with identification with certain values, an idolology, religion or ethnic group.

Stage 6. Intimacy vs. Isolation (21-39 years): love

In this stage of Erikson’s psychosocial development, adolescents become young adults. At the beginning, the confusion between identity and role is coming to an end. In young adults, it is still often an important priority to respond to the wishes of the environment and thus “fit in.”

However, It is also a stage in which the individual begins to draw certain red lines autonomously.: aspects that the person will not be willing to sacrifice to please someone.

It is true that this also occurs in adolescence, but now what changes is the meaning. What is defended stops being largely reactive and becomes active. We talk about initiative.

Once people have established their identities, they are ready to make long-term commitments to others. They become capable of forming intimate and reciprocal relationships, and willingly make the sacrifices and commitments that such relationships require. If people are unable to form these intimate relationships, an unwanted sense of isolation may appear, awakening feelings of darkness and distress.

If during this stage people do not find a partner, they may feel isolated or alone. Isolation can create insecurities and a feeling of inferiority, as people may think there is something wrong with them. They may believe that they are not good enough for other people, and this can lead to self-destructive tendencies. The virtue that develops in love.

Stage 7. Generativity vs. Stagnation (40-65 years): interest in others

During adulthood, we continue to build our lives, focusing on our careers and our families. Generativity means caring for people beyond your immediate loved ones. As people enter the “middle-aged” era of their lives, the scope of their vision extends from their direct environment, which includes themselves and their family, to a broader, more complete picture that encompasses the society and its legacy.

In this stage, people recognize that life is not just about themselves. Through their actions, they hope to make contributions that become a legacy. When someone achieves this goal, they receive a sense of accomplishment. However, if you don’t feel like you’ve contributed to the bigger picture, then you may feel like you haven’t done or aren’t capable of doing anything meaningful.

Generativity is not necessary for adults to live. However, the lack of it can rob a person of a greater sense of accomplishment. In this stage the virtue that will be developed is interest in others, caring. In the article cited at the beginning, Nelso Bordignon points out that it is a feeling of responsibility that “transcends attention to one’s own family and work. “A feeling of universal responsibility for all children and for every product of human labor.”