Human development is a perpetual process that commences with our conception and proceeds until the point where we breathe our last breath. While we remain more stagnant during certain times of our lives, there are others that are loaded with rapid change. One of these periods is adolescence, in which teenagers develop psychosocially, cognitively, and morally. They must undergo these dramatic changes that set a frame for the rest of their lives.
From a psychosocial perspective, Erik Erikson illustrated diverse stages of life as sundry circumstances of contention. The conflict for adolescence is identity versus role confusion. He believed this was the duration when humans must decipher our identity and have a strong feeling of self. We explore through different gregarious relationships and may endeavor different roles. To be successful in this stage of development, however, we must find our personal identity. Psychology.about.com.
This journey for a firm identity along with the cognitive and moral maturation adolescents experience all play an integral part in how young teenagers decipher who they are going to be and what their notions are. They are maturing in their coherent considering, their identity, and their moral credence’s. These variable are largely present or developing amid experiences students will have as they “come of age.” It may be their advent of age experience that authentically solidifies their moral development, or that helps them nail down precisely who
Erikson theorizes that in such a period, adolescents have certain tasks, one of which is identifying who they are. An individual successfully completes the task by staying true to his or her self, whereas when a person fails that stage, it leads to role confusion; consequently creating a weak sense of self. (Block 2011). The stage also entails a variety of personal challenges and limitations faced as well as a series of needs to be met, including: attention, guidance, independence, stability, and acceptance, among other needs. Meeting an adolescent’s needs is fundamental to their healthy development and personal growth. Nevertheless, adolescence remains as puzzling of a period in time for both the teens experiencing it, as well as for the individuals surrounding them, watching them as they navigate through the trials that adolescence brings them.
Adolescence is Erikson’s fifth stage of development wherein the person must master the conflict of identity versus role confusion. The question, who I am? Is a question that arises during this time? The child is concerned with
For Erikson (1950) adolescence is a period during which individuals seek to avoid dangers of role diffusion and identity confusion by establishing a sense of personal identity. Individuals have to find answers for two major questions “who am I?” and “what is my place in society?” Identity is a “conscious sense of individual uniqueness” and an “unconscious striving for a continuity of experience” (Erikson, 1968, p. 208).
During adolescents, huge changes take place physically, mentally and socially. Physically, adolescents are experiencing puberty and their bodies are changing from that of a child to an adult. Cognitively, adolescents become increasingly egocentric and are developing from Piaget’s concrete operational stage to the formal operational stage of development. In this stage, teenagers are able to grasp abstract concepts and think logically and systematically (Berger, 2001). The greatest change that occurs during adolescents is socially. During this time there is a shift from a teenager’s dependence on their parents for advice and support to forming new and deeper relationships with peers.
It outlines the struggle an individual faces in finding stability between developing a sense of forming a unique identity while still being accepted and “fitting in” with society. Erikson believed that when teenagers adequately navigated their way through this crisis, they would transpire into having a clear understanding of their individual identity and easily share this new ‘self’ with others. However, if an individual is unable to navigate their way through this crisis period, they may be uncertain of who they are which can result in a lack of understanding, leading to disconnection from society and the people around them. If youth become stuck at this stage they will be unable to become emotionally mature adults, according to Erikson’s theory. This period of an individual’s life allows them to investigate possibilities which will lead them to discovering their own identity based upon the result of their explorations.
With respect to Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development, the adolescence is the stage of identity versus role confusion. He also believes that identity as the significant personality achievement of adolescence is an essential step toward becoming a productive happy adult (Feldman, 2006). I remember so vividly my high school experience; especially
PSYU 324 has introduced students to the major theoretical models of adolescent development and biological maturation. For instance, this course addressed the issues of identity, peers, family, school, sexuality, morality, substance abuse and psychological problems. One of the assignments was to interview an adolescent and demonstrate our mastery of psychological theory as it applies to adolescence.
- When I was in eighth grade, towards the end of the year, I was bullied. It was unwarranted, or I would like to think it was as I was not one to stir up conflict. The bullies would throw things at me, and if they were sitting behind me, they would poke my back with pencils. At dismissal, they hid my book bag underneath one of the auditorium seats. The teacher aid became furious with me, for taking too long to dismiss. As well, as a bully would, they would also threaten to beat me up. The Eriksononian stage that would fit this scenario would be identity vs. role confusion. This stage pits identity against role confusion. A role which one can fit, identity, it is a personal self-evaluation that an adolescence goes through to refine the ego.
Adolescent is a disconcerting time when there are many life changes emotionally, physically, socially and psychologically. There are unrealistic expectations which lead to disappointment and rejection. The maturity level of adolescents makes them feeling life is not fair and things will never change to benefit them. Erikson’s identity vs. role confusion is an example of how developing into owns identity can be challenging, especially when learning how to transition into adulthood. Adolescence is one of the most importance stages in life where the mind and body goes through varies changes. When changes cause impairment or interfere with activities of daily living it results in
Sarah I also had something of an attitude problem when I was an adolescent. For me, my behavior was never a problem at school, but when I was at home my attitude was a bit of a problem. Much like you, I was pretty quiet and kept to myself. There was a time at this age where I was pretty open with my emotions and thoughts, but I was constantly being written off as being a hormonal teenage girl. So, eventually I just stopped talking about my feelings because no one took them seriously, and this resulted in those emotions being bottled up and me lashing out at my family. As far as what we will learn in this course, I am also very interested in how adolescents develop their
The life transitions are the major changes that occur throughout individual’s lifespan. Adolescence is often classified as one of the most challenging and significant stage during life transition. In this phrase, the individuals not only developing physical and sexual maturation but also experiencing the development of identity and transitions into social and economic independence (WHO, 2014). This essay will discuss the different concept of self-identity for adolescents, the important predictable and unpredictable elements during the transition, as well as the nurses’ role in relation to adolescence care.
In this paper I plan to discuss the developmental stages of adolescence. Adolescents are also referred to as "teenagers" or "young adults." Adolescence begins after the childhood stage and ends right before adulthood. The years of adolescence range from 12 years old to 21 years old. The years of adolescence can be quite a roller coaster ride. Young people in this stage encounter a great deal of changes in their life as they prepare for adulthood. I will discuss emotional, intellectual, physiological, and social domains of development and how it relates to adolescents. I will also discuss some helpful tips for teachers to aide in communicating effectively to adolescents and understanding their
The adolescent individuals begin to reach sexual maturity and established their identity as an adult. This period marks the transition in which individuals think and reason. They also start to encounter conflicts between their family and their peers.
Adolescence is the distinct transitional stage between childhood and adulthood in human development, extending primarily over the teenage years and terminating legally when the age of majority is reached (Rathus, 2014). However in some instances, this biological, cognitive, social and emotional maturity may not be reached until a later stage and may be dictated by gender. Adolescence is characterised by rapidly changing and unpredictable behaviour (Freud, as cited in Rathus 2014), heightened and unstable emotions (Hall, as cited in Rathus 2014), disturbances in identity, the gradual development of one’s moral reasoning (Kohlberg, as cited in Rathus, 2014) and the gradual establishment of one’s independence. Several of these changes may occur at differing phases in adolescent growth. This development is categorized into three separate stages; early adolescence, middle adolescence, and late adolescence. Early Adolescence, commencing from the ages of eleven or twelve until the age of fourteen, comprises of several features such as rapid biological development and maturity, heightened stress levels and limited coping capabilities. On the other hand, middle adolescence, from the approximate age of fourteen to sixteen, involves the gradual cease of biological change, an increase in coping strategies and declined stress levels. Furthermore, late adolescence, commencing from the age of sixteen until the age of eighteen or nineteen, encompasses physical maturity, whereby the
Erikson’s theory of identify versus role confusion, the psychological conflict of adolescence, was evident in my early adolescent years. My parents divorced shortly after I was born and due to a custody agreement, I grew up switching household’s everyday. This meant I had two different school busses, two neighborhoods, two sets of friends, and two very different parents with vastly opposing parenting styles and expectations. My dad was always very authoritative and somewhat forced independence onto me. He worked a well paying but stressful job and wasn’t home often. His absence meant my sisters and