Erik Erikson’s

Psychosocial Stages of
Development

Submitted by:
Lorraine Claire Uy
Lou Janssen Calotes
Maria Kathryna Denaga
Mariz Galang
Mervin Cabriana
Mika Ella Plaza
Newson Shann Uy

PSYCH 1
TTh 12:00-1:30

Submitted to:
Ms. Sherryl Muli Abellanosa
Erik Erikson

“Healthy children will not fear life if their elders have

integrity enough not to fear death.”
Erikson’s main contribution to psychology is his
developmental theory.

Biography
His young Jewish mother, Karla Abrahamsen, raised Erik by herself for a time before
marrying a physician, Dr. Theodor Homberger. The fact that Homberger was not in fact his
biological father was concealed from him for many years. When he finally did learn the truth,
Erikson was left with a feeling of confusion about who he really was.
This early experience helped spark his interest in the formation of identity. He would
later explain that as a child he often felt confused about who he was and how he fit into to his
community.
Erikson never received a formal degree in medicine or psychology since he never liked
formal schooling, so he decided against going to college. He decided to travel Europe but he had
to sleep under bridges. After he travelled around Europe for a year, he made the decision to
enroll in an art school back in Germany. After several years, Erikson began to teach art and other
subjects to children of Americans who had come to Vienna for Freudian training. He was then
admitted into the Vienna Psychoanalytic Institute. Anna soon noticed Erikson’s rapport with
children and encouraged him to formally study psychoanalysis.
In 1933 he came to the U.S. and became Boston's first child analyst and obtained a
position at the Harvard Medical School. Later on, he also held positions at institutions including
Yale, Berkeley, and the Menninger Foundation. Erikson then returned to California to the Center
for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Palo Alto and later the Mount Zion Hospital in
San Francisco, where he was a clinician and psychiatric consultant.
Erikson passed away in 1994 at the age of 92.
Developmental Theory
According to well-known psychologist Erik Erikson, a child will encounter kinds of
problems very different from the psychosexual ones proposed by Freud. Unlike Freud’s
emphasis on psychosexual issues, Erikson focused on psychosocial issues and said that each
individual undergoes eight psychosocial stages.
The psychosocial stages are eight developmental periods during which an individual’s
primary goal is to satisfy desires associated with social needs. Four are childhood stages, and
three adult stages bridged together by one stage in adolescents. The eight periods are associated,
respectively, with issues of trust, autonomy, initiative, industry, identity, intimacy, generativity,
and ego integrity.

Eight Psychosocial Stages of Development

Stage Psychosocial Crisis Basic Virtue Age
1 Trust vs. Mistrust Hope Early Infancy (infancy to 1 year)
2 Autonomy vs. Shame and Will Late Infancy (1 to 3 years)
Doubt
3 Initiative vs. Guilt Purpose Early Childhood (3 to 5 years)
4 Industry vs. Inferiority Competency Middle and Late Childhood (5 to 12
years)
5 Identity vs. Role Confusion Fidelity Adolescence (12 to 20 years)
6 Intimacy vs. Isolation Love Young Adulthood (20 to 40 years)
7 Generativity vs. Stagnation Care Middle Adulthood (40 to 65 years)
8 Ego Integrity vs. Despair Wisdom Late Adulthood (65 years and older)

Erikson hypothesized that from infancy through adulthood we proceed through these
stages, each of which is related to a different problem that needs to be resolved. If we
successfully deal with the potential problem of each psychosocial stage, we develop positive
personality traits that are better able to solve the problem at the next stage. However, if we do not
successfully handle the psychosocial problems, we may become anxious, worried, or troubled
and develop social or personality problems.
 Unlike Freud, Erikson believed that psychosocial needs deserve the greatest emphasis
and that social development continues throughout one’s lifetime. Thus Erikson would emphasize
a child’s psychosocial needs and downplay the importance of sexuality in the first five years.

Stage 1: Trust versus Mistrust – Hope

Period: Early Infancy – birth through first year
Potential Problem: A child comes into the world as a helpless infant who needs much care and
attention. If his parents are responsive and sensitive to his needs – such as feeding when he is
hungry, the child will develop what Erikson calls basic trust, which makes it easier for him to
trust people later in life. If the child’s parents neglect his needs, the child may view the world as
uncaring, inconsistent and unpredictable, learn to become mistrustful, have fear and have
difficulty dealing with the second stage. These lead to the withdrawal and lack of self-confidence
of the child. However, Erikson also mentioned that mistrust must be learned in order to
discriminate honest and dishonest people.

Stage 2: Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt – Will

Period: Late Infancy – 1 to 3 years old
Potential Problem: As a child begins walking, talking and exploring, he is bound to get into
conflict with the wishes of his parents. Thus, this second stage is a battle of wills between his
parents’ wishes and his desires to do as he pleases. If his parents encourages him/her to explore,
he will develop a sense of independence, or autonomy. If his parents disapprove of or punish his
explorations, he may develop a feeling that independence is bad and feel shame and doubt.

Stage 3: Initiative versus Guilt – Purpose

Period: Early Childhood – 3 to 5 years old
Potential Problem: As a pre-schooler, a child has developed a number of cognitive and social
skills that he is expected to use to meet the challenges in his small world. Some of these
challenges involve assuming responsibility and making plans. If his parents encourage initiative,
the child will develop the ability to plan and initiate new things. However, if the parents
discourage initiative, the child may feel uncomfortable or guilty, and may develop a feeling of
being unable to plan his future.
Stage 4: Industry versus Inferiority – Competency
Period: Middle and Late Childhood – 5 to 12 years old
Potential Problem: Children are at the stage where they will be learning to read and write, to do
sums, to make things on their own. Teachers begin to take an important role in the child’s life as
they teach the child specific skills.
It is at this stage that the child’s peer group will gain greater significance and will become
a major source of the child’s self-esteem. The child now feels the need to win approval by
demonstrating specific competencies that are valued by society, and begin to develop a sense of
pride in their accomplishments.
If children are encouraged and reinforced for their initiative, they begin to feel
industrious and feel confident in their ability to achieve goals. If this initiative is not encouraged,
if it is restricted by parents or teacher, then the child begins to feel inferior, doubting his own
abilities and therefore may not reach his or her potential.

Stage 5: Identity versus Role Confusion – Fidelity

Period: Adolescence – 12 to 20 years old
Potential Conflict: Erikson suggest that there are two identities involved: the occupational and
sexual identity. According to Bee (1992), what should happen at the end of this stage is “a
reintegrated sense of self, of what one wants to do or be, and of one’s appropriate sex role”.
Adolescents need to leave behind the carefree, irresponsible, and impulsive behaviors of
childhood and develop the more purposeful, responsible, planned behaviors of adults. During
this stage, the adolescent explores possibilities and begin to form their own identity based upon
the outcome of their explorations. If a child is successful in making this change, he will develop
a sense of confidence and a positive sense of identity. Otherwise, if he is unsuccessful, he will
experience role confusion, which will result in having low self-esteem and become socially
withdrawn.
Role Confusion involves the individual not being sure about themselves or their place in
society.
Stage 6: Intimacy versus Isolation –Love
Period: Young Adulthood – 20 to 40 years old
Potential Conflict: Young adulthood is a time for finding intimacy by developing loving and
meaningful relationships. We begin to share ourselves more intimately with others and explore
relationships leading toward longer term commitments with someone other than family.
Successful completion of this stage can lead to comfortable relationships and a sense of
commitment, safety, and care within a relationship. Avoiding intimacy, fearing commitment and
relationships can lead to isolation, loneliness, and sometimes depression. Success in this stage
will lead to the virtue of love.

Stage 7: Generativity versus Stagnation – Care

Period: Middle Adulthood – 40 to 65 years old
Potential Conflict: Middle adulthood is a time for helping the younger generation develop
worthwhile lives. On the positive side, we can achieve generativity through raising our own
children. If we do not have children of our own, we can achieve generativity through close
relationships with children of friends or relatives. Generativity can also be achieved through
mentoring at work and helping others. On the negative side, a lack of involvement leads to a
feeling of stagnation, of having done nothing for the younger generation.

Stage 8: Integrity versus Despair – Wisdom

Period: Late Adulthood – 65 years and older
Potential Conflict: Late adulthood is a time for reflecting on and reviewing how we met previous
challenges and lived our lives. On the positive side, if we can look back and feel content about
how we lived and what we accomplished, we will have a feeling of satisfaction or integrity. On
the negative side, if we reflect and see a series of crises, problems, and bad experiences, we will
have a feeling of regret and despair.

Conclusions
Erikson believed that achieving a personally satisfying identity was the very heart and
soul of an adolescent’s development. As adolescents developed into adults and reached middle
adulthood (stage 7), Erikson described a shift from concerns about identity to concerns about
being productive, creative, and nurturing (R. Coles, 2000).
Researchers have found evidence that we do go through a sequence of psychosocial
stages and that how we handle conflicts at earlier stages affects our personality and social
development at later stages (Van Manen & Whitbourne, 1997).

The Strengths of Erikson's Theory

One of the strengths of psychosocial theory is that it provides a broad framework from
which to view development throughout the entire lifespan. It also allows us to emphasize the
social nature of human beings and the important influence that social relationships have on
development. Researchers have found evidence supporting Erikson's ideas about identity and
have further identified different sub-stages of identity formation. Some research also suggests
that people who form strong personal identities during adolescence are better capable of forming
intimate relationships during early adulthood (Kendra Cherry).
Limitations of Psychosocial Theory
What kinds of experiences are necessary to successfully complete each stage? How does
a person move from one stage to the next? One major weakness of psychosocial theory is that the
exact mechanisms for resolving conflicts and moving from one stage to the next are not well
described or developed. The theory fails to detail exactly what type of experiences are necessary
at each stage in order to successfully resolve the conflicts and move to the next stage (Kendra
Cherry).

Sources:
Plotnik, Rod. “Psychology.” 497-498,527-528. Pasig City: Cengage Learning Asia Pte Ltd,
2012.
McLeod, Saul. “Erik Erikson.” Simply Psychology. http://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-
Erikson.html (accessed July 29, 2015).
Baran, Evrim. “Psychosocial Development (Erik Erikson).”
http://www.slideshare.net/evrimb/week-6-psychosocial-development-erik-erikson
(accessed July 29, 2015).
Cherry, Kendra. “Erik Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development.” About Education.
http://psychology.about.com/od/psychosocialtheories/a/psychosocial.htm (accessed on
July 29, 2015).

Group Ratings
Lorraine Claire Uy…… … …____
Lou Janssen Calotes… … … ____
Maria Kathryna Denaga … …____
Mariz Galang … … … … … ____
Mervin Cabriana … … … … .____
Mika Ella Plaza… … … … .. ____

Prepared by: Newson Shann Uy

 Based on Erikson’s groundbreaking work on identity and psychosocial development,
Canadian developmental psychologist James Marcia refined and extended Erikson’s model,
primarily focusing on adolescent development. Addressing Erikson’s notion of identity crisis,
Marcia posited that the adolescent stage consists of neither of identity resolution nor identity
confusion, but rather that degree to which one has explored and committed to an identity in a
variety of life domains from vocation, religion, relational choices, gender roles, and so on.
Marcia’s theory of identity achievement argues that two distinct parts form an adolescent’s
identity: crisis (i.e. a time when one’s values and choices are being reevaluated) and
commitment. He defined crisis as a time of upheaval where old values or choices are being
reexamined. The end outcome of a crisis leads to commitment made to a certain role or value.
Upon developing a semi-structured interview for identity research, Marcia proposed
identity status of psychological identity development:
 Identity Diffusion – the status in which the adolescent does not have a sense of
choices: he or she has not yet made (nor is attempting/willing to make) a
commitment
 Identity Foreclosure – the status in which the adolescent seems willing to commit to
some relevant roles, values or goals for the future. Adolescents in this stage have not
experienced an identity crisis. They tend to conform to the expectations of others
regarding their future (e.g. allowing a parent to determine a career direction). As
such, these individuals have not explored a range of options.
 Identity Moratorium – the status in which the adolescent is currently in a crisis,
exploring various commitments and is ready to make choices, but has not made a
commitment to these choices yet.
 Identity Achievement – the status in which adolescent has gone through an identity
crisis and has made a commitment to a sense of identity (i.e. certain role or value)
that he or she has chosen.
The core idea is that one’s sense of identity is determined largely by the choices and
commitments made regarding certain personal and social traits. The work done in this paradigm
considers how much one has made certain choices and how much he or she displays a
commitment to those choices. Identity involves the adoption of 1) a sexual orientation, 2) a set of
values and ideals and 3) a vocational direction. A well-developed identity gives one a sense of
one’s strengths, weakness, and individual uniqueness. A person with a less well-developed
identity is not able to define his or her personal strengths and weaknesses, and does not have a
well-articulated sense of self.1

1 Identity Status Theory (Marcia). In Learning Theories. Retrieved from URL: http://www.learning-
theories.com/identity-status-theory-marcia.html (accessed Aug. 3, 2015).