Case Study : Erikson 's Theory

Erikson was a German psychologist and psychoanalyst. He was a student of Freud, and was greatly influenced by his theories of personality development. Similarly to Winnicott, Erikson drew on his experiences as a child analyst, to inform his contributions. Erikson’s theories, like Winnicott, are highly regarded today.

This theory considers external factors, parents, and society in the development of personality from childhood to adulthood. He developed a series of eight stages that he believed everyone went through over their lifetime. The third stage is the “preschooler: initiative vs. guilt. This is the stage where the child began to find purpose. Erikson described that by the age of 3, children began to deal with conflict and have a desire to gain independence. Josiah definitely went through this stage. At the age of 3, Josiah began to explore indoor and outdoor activities and let his interests be the guide to what he would pursue. By kindergarten, Josiah wanted to pick out his own clothes and wanted to choose what he would eat for lunch. Josiah and I were able to balance his decisions and my rules by compromising. I was able to pick out two outfits of my choice but allow Josiah to pick from those two choices so that he had some sort of independency. I also noticed that Josiah begin to interact with his peers better. He was able to help make up games and discuss new ideas to his teachers. Erikson’s initiative explained the development of purposefulness, trying new activities, trying out new skills, getting more involved with peers, and conscience development. Guilt, on the other hand, results in an overly strict superego related to excessive experiences such as criticism and punishment, from parents. I

The second stage is the autonomy versus shame and doubt stage, which occurs in early childhood. During this time period, children are discovering they have multiple abilities and skills. Erikson’s theory states that it is vital for children to be able to explore the limits of their abilities in a supportive environment that is permissive of failure. If the child is supported in their attempts at independence, they become more confident, but if they are over-controlled and criticized, the child will feel a sense of doubt in their abilities and may become overly dependent on

The second theory examined is Erik Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development. Each stage in Erikson’s theory involves a conflict/crisis that a person must work through to evolve their personality. Rosenthal (1981) explains that, “Each stage arises because a new dimension of social interaction

Erikson’s Theory is divided into periods of development in which an individual goes through a crisis. Depending on the outcome of said crisis, one would gain a positive or negative trait. In the theory, there is a set of crisis’ that nurture the most development. These are mainly the middle years, from about 3-40 years old. Dallas Winston can be more easily analyzed through these years considering that the most information about his past self is revealed in that time period. During the first period within this set, from 3-5 years

Erikson’s theory of personality is based on his eight stages of development. In each of these eight stages of

Erik Erikson was dabbled in art after he finished high school and then traveled through Europe. He then knew what he wanted to study after his friend suggested him to study psychoanalysis. So he did and later on down the road he received a certificate from Vienna Psychoanalytic Society. He then moved to the United States in 1933 and had a teaching position at Harvard Medical School. He began a private practice in child psychoanalysis. He also held a teaching position at the University of California, Berkeley, Yale, San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute, Austen Riggs Center, and also the Center for advanced Studies of the Behavioral Sciences. He published many books on his theories and research. He was awarded a Pulitzer Prize and also he

Both Erik Erikson’s theory and Mary Ainsworth and John Bowlby theory support the idea that early life experiences impact the person across their lifespan. Erikson’s developmental theory discusses the eight stages of life and the forces and values that arise at each stage, which should be developed within this frame. The attachment theory focuses on the interaction an individual has and the impact it may have on their psychological and social development. Both theories believe that personality begins to develop from a young age and therefore occurrences in early life can have lasting impacts on the developmental of an individual.

Erik Erikson is the most influential person in the field of psychology. He was born on June 15th, 1902 in Frankfurt, Germany and died on May 12th, 1994 in Massachusetts, Boston. He is known for his theory of psychosocial development comprising eight stages from early infancy to adulthood. Each of these stages, the person experiences a psychosocial crisis that influences personality based on their positive or negative outcomes. However, every human being enters certain stages to reach the full potential of development. In addition to Erikson, he was influenced by Sigmund Freud, who was a psychoanalysis, developed the structural models of personality, and psychosexual stages. Erikson extends on Freudian thoughts

Broderick and Blewitt (2015) state how Erikson’s theory addresses the human characteristics such as maturity, cognitive changes, motor skills, attitudes, behaviors, and expectations throughout development. All these characteristics are concerns clients confront professional counselors about. Depending on the age, counselors can study the personality theory to indicate the significant event the client is experiencing. An example of a significant event would be a 17-year-old male who feels unsure towards his beliefs and desires. This stage is called “Identity Verses Role Confusion”. Broderick and Blewitt (2015) explain that this stage is where an adolescent might feel confused about their career path, which social group to associate with, and

Erik Erikson’s specialty is in the field of ego psychology. As an ego psychologist, his theory on ego identity is renown as the best-known theory of psychosocial development. Erikson’s theory defines ego identity as “the conscious sense of self that we develop through social interaction which is inclusive of all beliefs, ideals, and values that help shape and guide a person’s behavior” (Cherry, n.d., p. 1).

Erikson’s first stage of development is Trust vs Mistrust, and the second stage of development is Autonomy vs Shame and Doubt (Rogers, 2013, p. 87). In stage one, a child depends on his/her caregiver to provide food, shelter, and love, and if these things are not met, mistrust can develop (Rogers, 2013, p. 87). In the second stage, the child is learning to do things independently, and gaining self-confidence (Rogers, 2013, p. 87). I would use this theory as psychoeducation to the mother by explaining these two stages, and to ask questions of the mom to see how these two stages of development have been experienced by the child. First, I would want to examine the Stage One, and examine the relationship the mother and the child had during

How is Laura’s behavior indicative of role confusion as discussed by Erik Erikson’s model of psychosocial development?

"Erikson's main contribution was to bridge the gap between the theories of psychoanalysis on the problems of human development, which emphasize private emotions, and the broader social influences that bear upon the individual. He was a strong proponent of the concept that social environment plays a major role in the development of personality. Going beyond the of a child's early life, Erikson concentrated on broader issues of peer culture, school environment, and cultural values and ideals. This led him to study the period of adolescence, in which he documented the interaction of a person's inner feelings and impulses with the world that surrounds the person."

For my life journey I have chose to use Eric Erikson’s theory I have decided to use his theory because to me his theory suited my life appropriately. Eric Erikson is a well known theorist from the twentieth century, he has produced many theories. One of his most known and recognized theory is the psychosocial development. This theory describes the steps a person goes through in life. There are nine stages in his theory. Originally his theory only eight steps, but his wife found the last step after his death and published it. The nine stages are: trust vs. mistrust, autonomy vs. shame and doubt, initiative vs. guilt, industry vs. inferiority, identity vs. role confusion, intimacy and soliditary vs. isolation, generativity vs. self absorption and stagnation, and integrity vs. despair. Although, I have not gone through all of these steps yet due to my age I am only twenty two. I will speak about the steps I have gone through so far.