Erik Erikson’s Eight Stages of Development Essay

The topic of focus is Down syndrome (DS) teenagers between the ages of 12 - 18 years old. According to Erikson growth and development theory there are five stages, namely: Infancy, Toddlers, Preschoolers, School-ages and Adolescence (Teenagers) (Leifer 2011, p.365). The stage of development that we will be elaborating on is stage five, Adolescence. Erikson defines adolescence as “the period of life beginning with the appearance of secondary sex characteristics and ending with cessation of growth and emotional maturity” (Leifer 2011, p.451). Erikson continues in discussing that the major growth and development theory during the adolescence years in that he/she is trying to identify whom one is and because of their delayed physical and mental

An individual is made up of his or her frames of reference. Our social interactions and beliefs are all a reflection of our surroundings, environment, things we hear, feel or touch. A frame of reference can simply be defined as “The context, viewpoint, or set of presuppositions or of evaluative criteria within which a person's perception and thinking seem always to occur, and which constrains selectively the course and outcome of these activities" therefore one can say, Gender, Age, Religion, Environment, Education, Occupation, Political Class, Family and Press are the common determinants of individual frames of reference.

Eric Erikson was one of the most famous theorists of the twentieth century; he created many theories. One of the most talked about theories is his theory of psychosocial development. This is a theory that describes stages in which an individual should pass as they are going through life. His theory includes nine stages all together. The original theory only included eight stages but Erikson‘s wife found a ninth stage and published it after his death. The nine stages include: trust vs. mistrust, autonomy vs. shame and doubt, initiative vs. guilt, industry vs. inferiority, identity vs. identity confusion, intimacy vs. isolation, generativity vs. stagnation, integrity vs. despair, and hope and faith vs. despair (Crandell and Crandell,

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

However, Erikson is rather vague about the causes of development self. These stages, however, can be resolved successfully at a later time. No matter what, people form thousands of relationships to get through the ups and downs in life. To be honest, life would be pretty boring and empty without relationships. One of the most important relationships is the one that people form with their parents. Many people find that they can relate to his theories about various stages of the life cycle through their own experiences.

The diary I listened to was about Frankies life as a high schooler and provided a background story about his upbringing. When Frankie was a child, his father was accused of stabbing a man outside of a bar, his father claimed that he was only protecting himself from the person he stabbed. As a result, Frankies parents left the town they lived in, taking with them little Frank, who at the time did not know what was going on. Frankie believed that he was on vacation traveling with his parents. Moreover, 15 years passed when Frankie got back home from school, and all of the sudden there were several police vehicles at the front of their house. At that moment, his dad realized that he may not see his family for a long time and gave his family a

with family members. We moved each year and never stayed in a home for more than two years.

The first stage of Erikson’s eight stages of development is called Trust vs Mistrust, and these two coexists on how the infant will later be affected in the world. Trust revolves around how often the parent attends to their children. Mistrust of course is the complete opposite from Trust. According to Erikson, my mother informed me that I developed a sense of Mistrust/Trust. She explained to me that at first she used to attend to my needs, and pick me up every time I cried, therefore, I developed trust. That all went downhill when my great grandmother told my mother to not pick me up because, crying will help my lungs. Ending with mistrust, is part of the reason why I don’t try to get close to others as much. Nowadays, I tend to keep my distance from other people.

Erik Erikson’s lifespan development theory has proven to be popular and applicable to many people. However, Erikson’s theory was a bit bias and generalized groups of people whose cultures, genders and environments did not apply to his theory. This paper will focus on Erikson’s last four stages of development, and discuss how each stage may be impacted by these various factors.

My entire family and myself are of Hispanic heritage born in Mexico and Spanish speakers.

Erik Erikson was a psychoanalyst who believed that throughout a person’s life, they will likely experience eight different developmental stages. Erikson focused heavily on social interactions between people and the way that people would understand society. The eight stages begin at birth and end at death, so there can be a plethora of situations in someone's life that makes them act or feel a certain way. The first stage begins at birth and progresses to 18 months and during this stage the concept of trust versus mistrust arises. It is important for a new baby to be loved and cared for as well as properly nourished and fed. When someone neglects to fulfill their task as a parent or caregiver, the result is that the child will not trust them. The second stage is between 2 and 3 years of age, the early childhood stage. It is important for 2 and 3 year olds to have a sense of personal autonomy and to have enough confidence to act with a sense of independence. Potty training is a main event that occurs in this developmental stage. If a child is unsuccessful in potty training, that may result in shame and doubt and a potential lack on control over physical skills.

The 8 year old child I observed and interacted with did not fall perfectly into any of Erikson’s, Piaget’s, Kohlberg’s, or Vgotsky’s stages. The child varied in stages by the way she behaved in certain activities and in the way she would answer the question I would ask. After asking her the 10 questions for development research, I googled different cognitive test. I gave her IQ test to take to see if she was capable of thinking as an adult although she is a child. One interesting question was “Which is hottest?” and she answered lightbulb when the correct answer was a flame. I would relate this situation to Piaget’s Stage 3: Concrete Operational Period because although shedid not get the correct answer, she took time and thought about

Parents are primarily responsible for satisfying this stage of development in their child. It is imperative parents are attentive to their infant's needs so trust can be developed.

An issue I notice in my peers and people around me is the extreme desire to buy make up products. The image above portrays how many women feel about their appearance because of the portrayal of women on media. They feel that to be beautiful they have to modify themselves. Women are expected to be a certain body type, have their lips a certain size and their eye brows done in a certain way. The media is a method of mass communication, this can be through the newspaper, posters and social media. Today we are surrounded by media intentionally and unintentionally and we absorb information consciously and subconsciously. The conscious mind is when we are aware of what is happening around us and think when we take in that new information while the

My client is a teenage girl; who has recently become pregnant. The daughter maintains that she does not know who the father is, she is 14 years- old; frequently skips school in a small town, smokes, and seems to think that everyone is out to get her. The teen also believes her mother hates her. Her mother is at her wits end and just wants what is best for her daughter. The mother is poor and can’t afford much in the way of psychological assistance for her daughter. I am going to review three theories and try and apply them to this case. The theories that will be looked at are Erik Erickson’s Eight Stages of development, Vygotsky’s development theory, and Schaffer & Emerson’s attachment theory.