BLOG PODS #24 - Theory Bites 3 - Erik Erikson: Psychosocial Stages of Development
INTRODUCTION
Erik Erikson, was a German born American developmental psychologist, who proposed a theory that human development unfolds in a series of eight psychosocial stages, each characterised by a specific conflict that individuals must resolve to move successfully to the next stage.
* Psycho - this is about the ‘psyche’ and relates to the psychological needs of each person
* Social - the ‘social’ bit is about the impact of and ‘conflict’ with the world around that person
Building on Freud, the theory was first published in 1950 in his book, ‘Childhood and Society’ and covers the whole human lifespan, from aged ‘0’ to ‘65+.’
His work is helpful in understanding the psychological and social development of children and adolescents, and provides some useful insights that can be applied in professional child care.
The Basics
Sequencing and Pre-potency
As with Maslow, Bronfenbrenner and the other theories we’ve looked at, Erikson assumes development unfolds in order, in a sequence.
He also assumes pre-potency. In other words, the assumption that each stage of development relies, at least in part, that the previous stage has been achieved. Each stage rests on the one before it, if you like.
‘Basically the theory boils down to this: Life is a series of lessons and challenges which help us to grow. Erikson's psychosocial development theory helps explain why.’ (Source: The Clearing)
Overview of the 8 Psychosocial Stages
As we said in the introduction, Erikson posited the idea that each stage of development involves a conflict that has to be resolved. This can lead to two broad outcomes, dependent on whether or not that conflict is resolved or not.
In other words, how our personality develops (our psyche) depends on how we navigate our way through the challenges of existence in the world around us (the social).
This might seem blindingly obvious - all good theory is, in my view - it can really help us to understand the kids we work with as not just a personality, but a personality that is striving to develop in a specific social context.
Both the personality (presentation, behaviour, problems, etc.) and the context (parenting, family, home environment, experiences) must be taken into account if we are to assess the situation properly and construct decent, developmentally targeted interventions.
So it might be obvious but it’s also important.
The Stages - in brief
We’ll look quickly at each of the eight stages and then - because this blog is about helping troubled kids - we’ll focus in a little more on the first 5 stages that cover human childhood.
It’s important, however, to understand that Erikson himself did not initially split the stages by age, but rather by slightly broader, less clearly defined phases throughout the lifespan.
I have included both age and development phases in the brackets for each of his 8 stages, summarised here:
1. Trust vs. Mistrust (Birth to 18 months - infancy)
* Conflict: Developing trust in caregivers and the environment
* Key Event: Feeding and nurturing
* Outcome: Successful resolution leads to trust and security, while failure results in fear and suspicion
* Application: Consistent care and meeting a child's needs are crucial for building trust, especially for those who have experienced neglect or instability
2. Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (18 months to 3 years - early childhood)
* Conflict: Gaining a sense of personal control and independence
* Key Event: Toilet training and choices in food, toys or clothing
* Outcome: Positive outcomes foster autonomy and confidence, while negative outcomes lead to shame and self-doubt
* Application: Encourage young children to make choices and explore their environment safely, which helps in building confidence and self-esteem
3. Initiative vs. Guilt (3 to 5 years - play age)
* Conflict: Initiating activities and asserting control
* Key Event: Engaging in play and social interactions
* Outcome: Successful navigation leads to a sense of purpose, while failure results in guilt over desires and ambitions
* Application: Support children in creating their own games and activities, allowing them to take the lead and make decisions
4. Industry vs. Inferiority (5 to 12 years - school age)
* Conflict: Mastering skills and gaining competence
* Key Event: School and academic achievements
* Outcome: Children who receive encouragement develop a sense of competence, while those who do not may feel inferior
* Application: Reinforce the child's abilities through positive feedback, especially in academic and extracurricular activities
5. Identity vs. Role Confusion (12 to 18 years - adolescence)
* Conflict: Developing a personal identity and sense of self
* Key Event: Exploration of different roles, ideologies, and relationships
* Outcome: Success results in a strong sense of identity, while failure can lead to confusion and insecurity
* Application: Provide adolescents with opportunities to explore different identities and support them in their self-discovery process
6. Intimacy vs. Isolation (18 to 40 years - young adulthood)
* Conflict: Forming intimate relationships while maintaining a sense of self
* Key Event: Establishing meaningful relationships outside the family
* Outcome: Healthy relationships lead to strong connections, while a lack of intimacy may result in isolation and loneliness
* Application: For young adults working with children, maintaining a balanced personal and professional life is crucial
7. Generativity vs. Stagnation (40 to 65 years - adulthood)
* Conflict: Contributing to society and the well-being of future generations
* Key Event: Parenthood and career development
* Outcome: Successful navigation fosters care for others, while stagnation leads to self-absorption and disconnection
* Application: Professionals should aim to mentor and support younger colleagues and children, fostering a sense of contribution and purpose
8. Integrity vs. Despair (65+ years - old age)
* Conflict: Reflecting on life with a sense of fulfilment or regret
* Key Event: Life review and reflection
* Outcome: A sense of wisdom and satisfaction or regret and despair
* Application: In later years, reflecting on the positive impacts made in the lives of children can provide a sense of peace and integrity
Practical Implications for Professionals
Given that Erikson devised his stages around a series of developmental ages, we may need to adapt these to fit in practice. For the kids we work with in social care and related fields, they will mostly be older.
This is where our focus on how trauma and other difficulties can hold a child back developmentally. They may be 8 now, or 12, or 17, but if they haven’t had opportunity and the right environment to develop agency, for example, (which happens normally between the ages of 18 months and 5 years) they need those opportunities now.
Finding creative, encouraging and non-patronising ways of doing this is the trick. It will take time, thought and skill to achieve, but will pay dividends in the end.
So let’s drill down a bit more into how we can apply each of the first five stages in our work with troubled kids.
1. Building Trust
Establishing a consistent and reliable presence in a child's life is essential, especially for those in foster care or who have experienced trauma. This is why attachment theory is so crucial and the development of healthy, secure and positive attachments in a each child even more so!
* Avoid and look out for inconsistent, superficial or inadequate care. Constant changes of people (including professional personnel), a lack of stable routine. These engender uncertainty and anxiety in the growing child, making for a wobbly developmental foundation and undermining the essential pre-potency of this first stage in their growth.
* Caregivers should be consistent, reliable and nurturing - this helps a child develop a sense of trust; a belief that the world is an ‘OK’ place and that people are dependable. In turn, this brings confidence that they are safe in the world, that people can be relied on and care for them. This sense of security stays with the child, helping them navigate relationships and feel grounded, even when facing challenges later on. The ability to navigate, overcome and learn from such challenges will help them develop resilience - all of which is built on this foundation of trust. Small, un-called-for acts of unbridled affection, love and praise are great at any stage, but especially so in this one.
2. Encouraging Autonomy
When children are encouraged and supported in their growing independence, they become more confident and secure in their ability to cope. They’ll feel comfortable making decisions, explore more freely and slowly gain a sense of control. This autonomy helps them feel capable of managing their own lives, especially later on.
* Avoid being critical and overly controlling, both of which will stifle the child’s growing sense of wanting to explore, follow urges and desires and, instead, will induce feelings of shame and self-doubt. If they fail, don’t criticise, just intervene gently, offer guidance and encourage them to go again!
* Allow children to make age-appropriate choices and support them in taking initiative - while always ensuring safety. This helps them build autonomy and confidence, essential for their growth and self-esteem. For example, let toddlers choose between two outfits to wear or what game to play; try not to assume that they need you to do everything; the more we let them choose - within obvious limits - the more they will develop a sense of agency and autonomy now and, crucially, later on.
3. Enabling Initiative
The obvious positive sequelae of being encouraged to develop autonomy in the last phase, is increasing confidence to take initiatives. A child who’s been allowed, or even actively urged, to make choices will be more likely to possess the confidence necessary to believe in their own initiative.
* Avoid being dismissive, ambivalent or (god forbid) critical of a child’s choices. A child who is constantly questioned when, or feels judged for, making choices will be reticent to do so again. This child learns to feel guilty, to doubt themselves and develops an inner critic that can be hard to silence later on.
* Actively support initiative and making choices, even when things don’t go to plan or work out as well as hoped. When parents, carers and professionals learn to separate the initiative itself (the drive, if you like) from the outcome of exercising the initiative, we will be able to help the child continue to make choices and not afraid of learning from times when they don’t work out. Kids need opportunities to run up against the fences of life (boundaries, laws, unhelpful or unsafe choices) if they are to gain confidence in their ability to make such choices and enjoy the full potential of what their inner drives and confident initiatives can bring.
4. Fostering Industry
We all love it when we learn something new - a skill, a subject or whatever. It gives us a sense of personal mastery and just feels great to be competent, even at a basic level. I recently passed my motorbike driving test - I can’t tell you how much joy it brought me! Growing children - at whatever stage - are no different.
* Avoid negative comparisons, disinterest and negative feedback while the child is learning new skills and coming to terms with social demands. At this stage children are already beginning to compare themselves with others around them, so deflecting from this is important; we don’t want them mounting the hamster wheel of ‘how good am I compared to…’ becoming a habit.
* Encourage whatever the child is doing, regardless of how ‘good’ it might be objectively. Wanting to try and wanting to show us what they’re doing and achieving is easily undermined by faint praise, a lack of interest or being critical. Stimulating play with other kids, highlighting that they’re doing OK in school, working to ensure kids feel ‘held’ and believed in by parents, carers, teachers and, eventually, peers all contribute to a child’s developing sense of having skills and competence. Having someone praise our efforts is essential for all of us - it builds confidence, encourages more effort and will feed into the development of increasing competence over time.
5. Supporting Identity Formation
Adolescence is a pivotal time when teenagers explore their emerging identity by questioning values, beliefs, and goals. As they move from childhood to adulthood, they want independence and think about their future - careers, relationships and aspirations.
So this stage is key to forming a strong sense of self and how they might want life to be going forward. Teens experiment with different roles and behaviours, while brain development and puberty drive changes in thinking and emotional regulation. A solid foundation from earlier stages, including confidence and healthy relationships, supports this crucial transition to adulthood - again, the pre-potency principle at work!
* Avoid judgement, the imposition of conformity and being too controlling. One of my colleagues repeatedly says that, ‘teenagers push boundaries, that’s their job!’ This is an inevitable part of discovering where the boundaries are and whether or not they want to cross them. Experimenting is important. Conformity (fitting in with and being accepted by peers) and individuality become completing concerns - ‘I don’t want to stand out but I want to be treated and valued as an individual.’
* Lots of scaffolded supported. Children and teenagers need support in exploring who they are. Encourage them to try different activities and create a safe space for self-expression. Give them chances to take on roles like leadership in clubs or volunteering, helping them uncover their strengths and interests. All the while, we need not to be too proactive or over-bearing in our support. Scaffolded support is exactly that - scaffolding doesn’t hold the building up; it merely allows for safety while the builders are at work. The teenager is the builder and we need to let them get on with it; but we need to be close at hand, available and ready with non-judgmental guidance and help when needed.
FINA THOUGHTS
Understanding Erikson's stages allows professionals to better support children and adolescents in their development. By being aware of the specific needs and potential challenges at each stage, including the conflicts being navigated, practitioners can tailor their approaches to foster a more nurturing and effective environment, ultimately aiding children in becoming well-adjusted and resilient individuals.
By thinking about each child and what we know of them now, and of their history, we can apply these principles, help create environments that support children's psychological and social growth, and encourage them to build a strong foundations for future development as adults.
See you in the next one!
More information:
* WEB ARTICLE: National Library of Medicine - summary article - (link)
* BOOK: Childhood and Society by Erik Erikson (link)
* WEB ARTICLE: Simply Psychology article - some useful critical comments in here (link)
* WEB ARTICLE: Positive Psychology article - (link)
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