Analyzing Erikson's Eight Stages Of Social Development

Erik Erikson was born in Frankfurt, Germany on June 15th 1902, and died in 1994. He is a theorist that created “Erikson’s Eight Stages of Psychosocial development”. His theory on social development is a method to the behavior that extends on Freud’s psychosexual theory. Erikson believes that one’s surrounding culture has a lot to do while one’s development while Freud see’s that it’s the nature of one that will determine their personality. Freud’s theory also focuses more on the sexual aspect of each stage in development, while Erikson’s theory takes almost everything into consideration, including the whole lifespan. He also believes that children should have the freedom to explore and discover their own path in life. These are just some of
the reasons as to why I agree with Erik Erikson’s theory.
Erikson is best recognized for his concept of the identity crisis. His first stage, oral-sensory stage, deals with trust vs. mistrust, which focuses on how the child needs to develop trust through physical comfort and a need to reduce fear and anxiety of the future. Receiving care and bonding to become more attached to the caregiver is critical. The second stage, anal-muscular stage, deals with autonomy vs. shame and doubt. This stage focuses on locomotion, fantasy play, language development, self-control, and pride in one’s self. Children start to assert their sense of independence or autonomy. This is a reason as to why children scream when they are told “no”. The third stage, genital-locomotor stage, is where the child has an initiative vs. guilt crisis; it is also where the child begins to take control of their environment. Success can lead to feeling of accomplished, while failure can result in embarrassment and guilt. Stage four, the latency stage, is where the child has an industry vs. inferiority crisis. This is where the child begins to establish skills in school and other areas. Failure at this stage can lead to feelings of inferiority and helplessness. The fifth stage, adolescence, deals with an identity crisis/confusion. Teenagers try to create a feel of personal identity. Those who are successful gain a strong sense of self, while those who fail might go through role confusion and poor self-identity. Stage six, young adult hood, deals with intimacy vs. isolation crisis. Young adults will develop Romantic and close relationships with others. The capability to form loving relationships can lead to long-term healthy relationships, but failure at this stage can result in lonesomeness and separation. The seventh stage, middle adulthood, deals with generativity vs. stagnation. This stage talks about how adults feel the need to contribute to the future and design things that will help the next generation. Success at this stage leads to feelings of achievement, while failure results in feeling worthless. Finally, the last stage, stage eight, late adulthood, deals with integrity vs. despair. This last stage of life focuses on reflecting back on life. If one has had a successful life, it will lead to feelings of satisfaction and goodwill towards their life lived, while failure leads to bitterness, regret, and despair. Each of Erikson’s stages deals with a crisis that one must overcome to enter into the next stage. Unlike Freud, Erikson has created stages throughout the lifespan, which makes sense because people are changing all the time, so their can’t be just one stage for puberty and older. What one might do, sexually, at 18 could be totally different as to what someone that is 70 or 80 might do. This is why I agree with Erikson’s eight stages.
One of Erikson’s beliefs is to let the child “explore”.
This is stage five out of his eight stages of psychosocial development theory, which is the teen identity crisis. He says, “Parents need to allow teens to explore many different roles and different paths. If a teen explores such roles in a healthy manner, they should arrive at a positive path to follow, therefore, a positive identity will be achieved.” I strongly agree with this, as I am an adolescent going through this and can relate to some of the things Erikson has said. Compared to most of my friends, I would say my parents give me a lot of freedom. Some may see this as wrong, but looking at my life so far I haven’t made any “bad” decisions that will have a great impact on my life. I feel that if parents give their kid this type of freedom, it could go either way, but hopefully their smart enough not to steer themselves down the wrong path.
Erikson had strongly believed that culture influenced one’s development. I agree with this, as when one is born into a certain environment, they will act according to their surroundings. For example if one is born in China, they will most likely speak Chinese, and act the way others around them will; dress the same, eat the same food, etc. Whereas if someone is born in Canada, they will most likely speak English or French, and they will dress a certain way, and act a certain way, because they think they won’t be accepted into society if they act
differently.
In conclusion, I believe in Erik Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development over Sigmund Freud’s psychosexual theory of development. Erik Erikson includes the whole lifespan, believes that a child should be able to explore their environment, and thinks culture has a big impact on one’s development. These are just some of the many things I agree with Erikson’s theory.