ERIKSON'S THEORY.

Erik Erikson's Theory On Social Development



Erik Erikson's Theory On Social Development

Abstract

Although Erikson had “neither medical training nor an advanced degree of any kind except a certificate in Montessori education” (Fitzpatrick, 2007, p. 298), his contributions to psychology have transformed our understanding of human development and of the relationship between the individual and society. Erikson's most important contribution was a model of personality development that extends throughout the life span. The concept of ego development, although by no means exclusively Erikson's contribution, has become much more popular as a consequence of his work. Erik Erikson emphasized the positive functions of the ego in his theory. One of the ego's most important functions is to develop and maintain a sense of identity. Erikson outlined eight stages of personality development that we pass through during our lifetimes. At each stage, we are faced with a crisis and two means to resolve the crisis. Erikson's description of personality development brings to mind the image of a path. We continue down this path from infancy to old age, but at eight different points along the way we encounter a fork, two directions in which to proceed. In Erikson's model, these forks in the path represent turning points in personality development. He called these points crises. How we resolve each crisis determines the direction of our personality development and influences how we resolve later crises.

Erik Erikson's Theory On Social Development

Introduction

Erikson's theory has implications for major theoretical questions. Like other psychoanalytic theories, it proposes a number of broad concepts for understanding individual development that are not easily captured within the precise hypothesis-testing language of verifiable scientific research. Some of his concepts, however, have been operationally defined in ways that have generated many research studies. Most notably, identity statuses are measured by interview and questionnaire. Additionally, many empirical studies of racial and ethnic identity have been conducted, testing theoretical ideas proposed by others but owing a historical debt to Erikson's ground-breaking work on identity. Some of his clinical observations, such as differences between the play constructions of boys and girls, have not been confirmed by carefully controlled scientific studies. This paper discusses provides a detailed account of the theoretical and historical perspectives presented in Erik Erikson Theory on social development.

Discussion

Erikson's theory is more comprehensive than classical psychoanalysis because it encompasses cultural phenomena. Erikson's theory has been applied to therapy with children and adolescents. It also has suggested attention to identity issues in a multicultural society. (Erikson 1997)

Each person develops within a particular society, which, through its culturally specific patterns of child rearing and social institutions, profoundly influences how that person resolves conflicts. The ego is concerned not only with biological (psychosexual) issues but also with interpersonal concerns, which Erikson termed psychosocial. His emphasis on culture was Erikson's fundamental contribution to psychoanalysis. (Bloland 2005)

In contrast to Freud's emphasis on sexuality, Erikson (1968) proposed that the prime motivation for development is social: “Personality ... can be said to develop according to steps determined ...