Unit 331
2.3 Explain how theories of development and framework to support development influence current practice.
In this work I will refer to the main group of psychologists that are associated with child development and their consequent impact on the way we care for and teach our children. It is clearly a vast subject, but I hope to identify the most important theories and show how they are implemented in order to provide each child with the greatest chance of reaching their potential. Psychologists have spent whole lifetimes studying how we develop socially and emotionally. Some of the key theories are described below.
Psychodynamic Theories Psychodynamic theories of personality are strongly influenced by the work of Sigmund Freud, and emphasise the influence of the unconscious mind and sometimes forgotten childhood experiences on personality. Psychodynamic theories include Sigmund Freud's psychosexual stage theory and Erik Erikson's stages of psychosocial development.
Sigmund Freud believed the three components of personality were the id, the ego, and the superego. The id is responsible for all needs and urges, while the superego for ideals and moral. The ego then moderates between the demands of the id, the superego, and reality in order to produce a satisfactory conclusion or compromise.
Erik Erikson discusses psychosocial stages, and believed that personality progressed through a series of stages, with certain conflicts arising at each stage. Success in any stage depended upon successfully overcoming these conflicts He placed importance on the role of culture and society and the conflicts that can take place within the ego itself, whereas Freud emphasised the conflict between the id and the superego. According to Erikson, the ego develops as it successfully resolves difficulties of a specifically