Erikson's Eight Stages Of Development

Throughout the field of psychology, it is important to learn and thoroughly understand the different developmental stages each individual will face. In general, development is a pattern of stability and change that begins at conception and continues until death (Santrock, 2016, p. 15). In specific, a developmental period that is highly influential upon an individual is adolescence, or the period of time between childhood and adulthood, involving biological, cognitive, and socioemotional changes (Santrock, 2016, p. 16). Therefore, adolescent psychology analyzes the various factors, defined by development, in determining the growth and possible future characteristics of an individual into adulthood. For instance, the 1986 movie "Stand By Me,"
According to Erikson, identity is when an individual believes that they are representing a synthesis and integration of self-understanding, specifically, the piecing together of various aspects of the self. Erikson's eight stages of psychosocial development focuses on the motivation for an individual's behavior, based on social interactions, to reflect a desire within the individual to affiliate with others. The stages begin during infancy until death, in which the first stage is trust versus mistrust, second is autonomy versus shame and doubt, third is initiative versus guilt, fourth is industry versus inferiority, fifth is identity versus identity confusion, sixth is intimacy versus isolation, seventh is generatively versus stagnation, and eight is integrity versus despair. In particular, during the fifth stage of development of identity versus identity confusion, adolescents are faced with deciding who they are, what they are all about, and where they are going in life. Part of exploring their place in the world, they experiment between different roles. If the adolescent successfully copes with the different roles and identities that emerge into a new sense of self,they resolve their crisis and achieve identity. A crisis or conflict is a unique development task that is age-appropriate per stage, and that must be resolved in order to experience healthier development throughout life. For example, adolescents that do not successfully resolve the crisis between identity and identity confusion, will suffer identity confusion, and may withdraw and isolate themselves from others (Santrock, 2016, p. 143). For instance, in the movie, the character Chris, shares how he wishes to escape this small town, in which his family's reputation is nothing but a bunch of criminals and alcoholics. However, he has a heart of gold and just wants to make something of himself, instead