Erikson's Theory

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Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development Erik Erikson was born on June 15, 1902 in Frankfurt, Germany. Even though Erikson didn’t have even a bachelor’s degree, he served as a professor of prominent institutions such as Harvard and Yale. He was an influential and pioneering psychologist, psychoanalyst, and author. Erikson is also the most famous for coining the phrase identity crisis. His son, Kai T. Erikson is a noted American sociologist. Erikson believed that personality develops in a series of stages. Like Austrian neurologist, Sigmund Freud, he explored social and emotional interactions between children and their caregivers. He also emphasized the relationship of early experiences to later personality development. One of the main elements of Erikson’s psychosocial stage theory is the development of ego identity. Ego identity is the conscious sense of self that we develop through social interaction. Our ego identity is constantly changing due to new experience and information we acquire daily interactions with others, according to Erikson. Erikson believed Freud misjudged some important dimensions of human development. Humans develop throughout their life span, while Freud said that our personality is shaped by the age of five. Erikson’s eight stages of personality development are characterized by basic life conflicts. In each stage, Erikson believed people experience a conflict that served as a turning point in development. Erikson also believed that a sense of competence also motivates behaviors and actions. During these times, the potential for personal growth is high, but so is the potential for failure. The first stage was Trust vs. Mistrust which takes place from birth to one year and during this stage, feeding is one of the important events. The second stage is Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt which takes place from a year to three years old.
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