Download Block, Jerry

Block, Jerry
Psychology 302 – Fall 2008
Paper #1
After reviewing several of the developmental theories, Eric Erikson’s 8 stages of
development are detailed, yet broad enough to apply to a variety of persons. Sigmund
Freud offered research to suggest humans develop in psychosexual stages, whereas
Erikson stated individuals develop in psychosocial stages (Erikson, 1997).
A. Distinguishing Characteristics of Erikson’s Stages of Development:
Erik Erikson offers 8 stages of psychosocial development beginning at infancy and
continuing through late adulthood. Erikson believes the first stage, trust vs. mistrust
takes place during infancy and helps an individual determine if they think the world will
be a good and pleasant place to live or not. The second stage, autonomy vs. doubt, refers
to individuals between infancy and 3-years-old, and this stage is where individuals realize
they are independent. Erikson believes if infants are punished too harshly or restrained
too much during this period, they could feel shame or doubt, as opposed to autonomy or
independence. Initiative vs. guilt is the third stage of development and usually occurs
during the preschool years. Children are asked to start taking responsibility during this
life stage and they could develop feelings of guilt if there is too much anxiety created for
children when they are perceived to be irresponsible. These three early childhood stages
are important periods for children to develop, and Erikson believes (like many
psychoanalysts) these early years are critical for positive development.
Erikson’s theory of development also includes the belief of critical changes taking
place during adulthood, not just during childhood. This is a distinguishing characteristic
of Erikson’s theory while other theorists, such as Freud, believed most or all of an
individuals problems later in life, were directly related to improper development during
one or more of the psychosexual stages (Santrock, 2008). Erikson’s fourth stage,
industry vs. inferiority, details the period of middle and late childhood and warns of the
dangers of gaining a sense of inferiority, incompetence, or unproductiveness, when they
do not perceive themselves as mastering knowledge and intellectual skills comparable to
their peers. As with many theorists, Erikson believes adolescence is a time when
individuals develop their identity (fifth stage, identity vs. identity confusion). Erikson’s
final 3 stages are intimacy vs. isolation (20’s, 30’s), generativity vs. stagnation (40’s,
50’s), and integrity vs. despair (60’s and up). Another distinguishing characteristic of
Erikson’s model is the idea that each stage has a “positive” pole, and a “negative” pole.
For example, in the first stage, trust vs. mistrust, it is considered positive to learn to trust
others, but exposure to the negative side of this idea is inevitable, and individuals learn
not to trust everyone. The hope is, the positive exposure dominates the development
during this stage (Erikson, 1997).
B. Important People, Events, etc. in My Life
Currently, I find myself fitting somewhere in between Erikson’s sixth and seventh
stages of development (intimacy vs. isolation and generativity vs. stagnation). I’m 29years-old now (30 soon), but I’ve been married for over four years and I’ve been a
teacher (or worked with children/adolescents) for nearly 7 years. Prior to getting
married, my wife and I dated and lived together for several years. We met in college and
were friends first, and we both see this as a healthy way to form a relationship. Our only
regret is we did not marry sooner, because this held us back when it came to making
major purchases together (such as buying our first home, car, etc. together).
I was born in Tacoma, Wash., and I lived there until I turned 18. My biological
parents were divorced when I was an infant, and I grew up with multiple step-parents on
each side of my family. I believe my father was married a total of 3 times, and my
mother married 3 times. Adolescence was a little rough for me, and this period
contributed greatly to who I am today. Until about the 6th grade, most of what I did was
to please my parents and make both my mother and father proud of me. For whatever
reason, when I entered middle school, I really started doing things for me, and nobody
else. I received a lot of positive attention for being a good athlete, and I attribute most of
my success to the coach’s I had growing up. It’s interesting, but most of my coach’s
growing up were African-American men, and many of my friends at school and in my
neighborhood were African-American. This culture definitely influenced me and I
always felt a sense of pride because I could have a diverse group of friends (regarding
race, religion, etc.) and it just seemed natural too me. I see it as more of an urban culture
as opposed to a specific race influencing me. It wasn’t until I left Tacoma, I realized not
all people grew up the way I did. My environment involved gangs, crime, drugs, alcohol,
etc., and I definitely made some poor choices as a youth, but these were just normal
things to me. It was amazing to see so many college kids going “crazy” when I went to
WSU. For them, it was a big deal to stay out and drink all night. For me, this was
common practice in high school, and I think it was good for me to experience some of the
pitfalls related to partying too much at an earlier age, as opposed to a later age.
A very influential moment in my life took place when I was about 14 and I filled
in for a friend’s paper route. It was probably 4:00 in the morning, and I was “jumped” by
4 guys and they knocked me out with a rock and stole my jacket. I woke up, finished my
paper route, and made a vow to never let that happen again. There is not enough room in
this paper to fully detail that situation and how it contributed to my “trust” issues in this
society, but this is why I decided to start carrying a knife wherever I went, and later, I
carried guns for protection. Luckily, I never had to use either. Now, as an adult, It’s easy
to see how some of the situations I faced as a youth contributed to my overall
development (however, I do not feel the need to carry weapons anymore).
References
Erikson, Erik, (1997) The Life Cycle Completed, Extended Version. W.W. Norton &
Company.
Santrock, J.W., (2003) Adolescence, 9th Edition. McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
Santrock, J.W., (2008) Life-Span Development, 11th Edition. McGraw-Hill Higher
Higher Education.