Analyzing Erikson's Stages Of Development

Erik Erikson, was a German psychoanalyst that was heavily influenced by Sir Sigmund Freud. Erikson explored the three aspects of identity, those being; the id, ego, and superego. A Key overview of Erikson’s theory if development is based on external factors. Factors that include the subject’s parents and society that shape their personality from childhood to adulthood. According to this theory every person must go through a series of eight interrelated stages over the span of their lifetime.
These stages start at birth with Basic Trust vs. Mistrust. This stage has an emphasis on the infants starting to trust the mother and father as caregivers. The second stage is Autonomy vs. Shame, in this stage the child begins to build self-esteem along
Isolation. Stating that all young adults seek deep intimacy and satisfying relationships. Pat Jr. had this exact relationship. He had an intimate and satisfying relationship wife his wife that he based his whole life off of. This also touches on Erikson’s 7th stage of Generativity vs. Self-absorption. Stating that career, work, and making a difference in this world is very important. Inactivity and meaninglessness are fears during this time. Not only did Pat lose his wife but he also lost his job and everything that he worked for, forcing him to move back into his parents’ house.
A key factor in Erikson’s stages of development is that external factors and our experiences shape our personalities. External factors such as our parents and living situations, along with major life events. Pat experienced a couple major life events in the sense of wife cheating on him, losing his job, and spending eight months in a mental health hospital. These experiences would drive the sanest person a little mad. These life events changed Pat in some major ways. Shaping the person, he becomes. This is a trail he must go through to develop fully as a
Reverting back to a sense of childhood wonder and freedom in his manic highs. People respond to trauma in many different ways. Pat dealt with in my retreating into his own mind which in the long term caused him some mental damage. Toward the end of Pat’s stay at the mental health hospital he had reached a baseline and was free to go on his way. This baseline was Pat at a manic high. People with Bipolar disorder that are experiencing manic high usually become fixated on one goal. Pat’s goal was to get his old life back, which included getting his wife