Erikson's stages of psycho-social development is a comprehensive psychoanalytic theory

Erikson's stages of psycho-social development is a comprehensive psychoanalytic theory

Erikson's stages of psycho-social development is a comprehensive psychoanalytic theory that identifies a series of eight stages, in which a healthy developing individual should pass through from infancy to late adulthood.

All stages are present at birth but only begin to unfold according to both a natural scheme and one's ecological and cultural upbringing. In each stage, the person confronts, and hopefully masters, new challenges. Each stage builds upon the successful completion of earlier stages. The challenges of stages not successfully completed may be expected to reappear as problems in the future.

However, mastery of a stage is not required to advance to the next stage. The outcome of one stage is not permanent and can be modified by later experiences. Erikson's stage theory characterizes an individual advancing through the eight life stages as a function of negotiating his or her biological forces and socio-cultural forces. Each stage is characterized by a psycho social crisis of these two conflicting forces (as shown in the table below). If an individual does indeed successfully reconcile these forces (favouring the first mentioned attribute in the crisis), he or she emerges from the stage with the corresponding virtue. For example, if an infant enters into the toddler stage (autonomy vs. shame and doubt) with more trust than mistrust, he or she carries the virtue of hope into the remaining life stages.

Approximate Age Virtues Psycho-social crisis Significant relationship Existential question Examples

Infancy

0-23 months Hope Basic trust vs. mistrust Mother Can I trust the world? Feeding, abandonment

Early childhood

2–4 years Will Autonomy vs. shame and doubt Parents Is it okay to be me? Toilet training, clothing themselves

Preschool age

4–5 years Purpose Initiative vs. guilt Family Is it okay for me to do, move, and act? Exploring, using tools or making art

School age

5–12 years Competence Industry vs. inferiority Neighbours, school Can I make it in the world of people and things? School, sports

Adolescence

13–19 years Fidelity Identity vs. role confusion Peers, role model Who am I? Who can I be? Social relationships

Early adulthood

20–39 years Love Intimacy vs. isolation Friends, partners Can I love? Romantic relationships

Adulthood

40–64 years Care Generativity vs. stagnation Household, workmates Can I make my life count? Work, parenthood

Maturity

65-death Wisdom Ego integrity vs. despair Mankind, my kind Is it okay to have been me? Reflection on life