Erik Erikson Psychodynamic Theory

Before an individual may achieve success in later stages of life, he or she must first go through a number of difficult stages that are important in the evolution and development of one’s personality. The stages of psychosocial development refer to the problems that a person faces and overcomes before becoming successful in life. Erikson’s psychodynamic theory takes into account the effects of extrinsic influences such as parents and society on personality development from infancy to maturity. According to Erikson’s thesis, each individual must go through a succession of eight interconnected stages throughout their lives (Erikson, 1994). Erikson’s model of psychosocial development is regarded a highly significant and a meaningful concept in addressing human development issues. The theory by Erikson is a foundation for complex discourse and analysis of behaviour and personality, and it is also important to understand and facilitate personal development for oneself as well as for others. The paper provides a description of the history, principles, as well as principles of the psychodynamic theory of human development. Besides, there is a full explanation of the major concepts of the model, which I have applied in analyzing my own life experience. In my life, three stages namely preschool age, school age, and adolescent stage, which conform to guilt, inferiority, and role confusion were not resolved, hence the essay will address the stages with the help of the psychodynamic theory.

Overview, History, and Goal of the Psychodynamic Theory of Human Development

The theory by Erikson is widely and highly regarded, and it has been applied as a key counselling theory in many occasions. Erik was a psychoanalyst and a humanitarian; hence the theory is not only useful to psychoanalysts but also essential for any application that entails personal development and awareness, and not only for oneself but also for other people. Even though there is a strong Freudian element in Erik’s work and model, it is not essential since Erikson’s theory stands alone and is not dependent on Freud for its relevance and robustness. As explained by Chapman (2013), Erikson developed the theory fundamentally from his dedicated practical field research which initially focused on Native American communities, and later from his clinical therapy work conducted in major universities and mental health centres. Erikson was an active pioneer of psychoanalytical development between the late 1940s to mid-1990s (Chapman, 2013).

Erikson incorporated social and cultural aspects into the sexually and biological oriented theory developed by Freud. The move by Erikson was possible since he had a strong compassion and interest in people, particularly the young ones (McLeod, 2017). Besides, Erikson’s research was conducted among human societies that tended to be separated from the more inward–looking society of the psychoanalyst’s coach, and it was basically considered Freud’s method. With the approach, the eight stages-development theory by Erikson became a considerably powerful model. In addition, the model is easily accessible and further relevant to the modern society. The relevance of the theory is that it is applicable from various perspectives and also in fathoming and explaining the way personality and behaviour of an individual develops as they grow. Therefore, Erikson’s model is useful or relevant to parenting, teaching, self-awareness, coaching and managing, resolving conflicts, as well as understanding self and others (Chapman, 2013).

The primary principles of Erikson’s psychodynamic theory are that every stage involves a crisis of two emotional forces that oppose each other. Erikson uses a helpful term to describe their opposing forces i.e. ‘contrary dispositions,’ and each crisis stage is related to a corresponding life stage as well as its underlying challenges. For the first-listed positive dispositions in every crisis i.e. trust, Erikson used the word ‘syntonic’ while for the second-listed unwanted dispositions, he used the word ‘dystoni.’ In order to signify the conflicting or opposing relationship between every pair of dispositions, Erikson connected them with the term ‘versus’ (v).

According to Erikson, for an individual to successfully pass through every crisis, they have a achieve a healthy balance or ratio between the two opposing forces representing each crisis (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2017). For instance, a positive balance at crisis stage one i.e. Trust v Mistrust could be described as going through or growing through a crisis ‘Trust’ towards people or even life, and also experiencing and growing a suitable potential for ‘Mistrust’ if possible. With such a combination, it becomes possible for an individual not to be hopelessly unrealistic (gullible) nor to be mistrusting of every aspect they come across (Chapman, 2013). Erikson termed the successful, balanced results ‘Basic Strengths or Virtues’. It is essential to note that Erikson was sparing in his use of the word ‘achieve’ regarding successful outcomes since it implied gaining something easily perceptible and permanent (Chapman, 2013). According to Erikson (1994), psychosocial development is not clear cut, and it has the potential to be reversible as any previous crisis can effectively revisit anybody even though in a different stage, and with fruitful or unsuccessful results. With such understanding, it becomes possible to explain how ‘high achievers’ can fall from grace, and on the other hand how those considered as ‘hopeless failures’ can end up achieving great things in life. Therefore, no one should become complacent or self-satisfied, and there is further hope for all people.

Key Concepts of the Psychodynamic Theory of Development

The major concepts of the psychodynamic theory are that the model is composed of various psychosocial crisis stages through which an individual has to go through s they grow. Crisis stages are influenced by both physical and sexual growth, which then brings about the life issues that create the crises. In that light, the crises are therefore not precisely driven by age as there are other contributing factors.

The primary focus of this section is addressing the three crises stages that were not resolved in my life. The stages are guilt, inferiority, and role confusion. The guilt stage of this model is around age three, and it continues to age five, where children assert themselves more regularly (Erikson H. E., Childhood and society, 1993). The children are in their play age or are in pre-school or nursery. The crisis stage is particularly lively and rapid-developing years in the life of a child. As explained by Bee (1992), the play age is a time of vigour of behaviours and action and parents are more likely to see it as aggressive. At this age, the child regularly interacts or associates with other children at school. The central element of this stage of human development is play, and it provides young people with the chance to explore their interpersonal skills as they initiate activities.

During this stage, children start to plan activities, makeup games, and also initiate activities with others. The only requirement that children need at this stage is to be given the opportunity to engage in such activities, and ultimately they develop a sense of initiative as well as feel secure in their potential to make decisions and lead others (Erikson H. E., Childhood and society, 1993). However, if the tendency for such freedom is suppressed through such means as control or criticism, children develop a sense of guilt. Such suppressed children end up feeling like a disturbance or a bother to other people, and as a result, the child will remain a follower as he or she will lack self-initiative. For my life, I am more of a follower, probably because my childhood age was marred by much criticism and control, particularly whenever I attempted to plan activities or initiate activities with others. My tendency to initiate activities such as games was suppressed by my parents as they believed it was the best way to protect me. Even though I overstepped the mark of control placed by my parents in my forcefulness, there was the danger in that my parents could punish me, thus restricting my initiatives. Furthermore, the stage is characterised with the child asking numerous questions as they have a yearn for knowledge (Bee, 1992), and I was not an exception. Even though some guilt is essential to enable the child to know the best way to have a conscience and exercise self-control, too much of it is detrimental as it makes the child slow when it comes to interacting with others, as well as it inhibits the creativity of the child (Erikson, 1994).

The other stage of the psychodynamic theory of development that pertains my life is on inferiority, which is the fourth stage of psychosocial development, and it takes place between age five and twelve. At this stage, children learn to read and write and also do sums as well as other things on their own. Teachers play a significant role in the life of the child since they teach specific skills. Similarly, the child’s peer group gain greater significance, and they are a major source of one’s self-esteem. As explained by McAdams (2001), the child at this stage feels the essence of winning approval through demonstration of specific capabilities that the society values most, and they further start to develop a sense of pride when they accomplish things on their own. The child feels industrious and confident if they are reinforced and encouraged for their initiative and also when they achieve goals.

On the other side, if the child receives no reinforcement or encouragement, or if the success is restricted by the teacher or the parents, the child have the tendency to feel inferior. Consequently, they doubt their own potential; thus they are unable to reach their potential (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2017). In addition, if the child at this stage does not develop the skills that the society mostly values i.e. athletes or academic performance, they have a likelihood of developing a sense of inferiority (McLeod, 2017). Reflecting the stage and comparing it with my life, I did not develop such highly valued skills, and that made me feel unappreciated by the society around. Besides, even though I tried my best in academics, I did not get the reinforcement and encouragement that I expected from my parents or my teachers. As a result, I developed a sense of inferiority, particularly when I compared myself with my peers who had commendable skills that the society greatly valued. However, it is essential to note that some failure may be necessary to make a child develop some form of modesty. Similarly, there is the need to strike a balance between competence and modesty, as success during this stage leads to the positive force of competence.

The last crisis stage addressed in this paper, and that relate to my life is about role confusion, which is the fifth stage in Erikson’s psychodynamic development model. The stage occurs during adolescents i.e. from about 12-18 year. Adolescents in this stage search for a sense of personal identity and self, which are achieved through a profound exploration of personal values, goals, and beliefs. The statement can elaborate the concept of adolescent growth:

“The adolescent mind is basically a moratorium or mind, a psychological stage that is between childhood and adulthood, and it is between the morality learned by the child as well as the ethics to be developed and mastered by the adult” (Erikson, Youth, Change and Challenge, 1963, p. 245).

When children transit from childhood to adulthood, they increasingly become more independent, and they start to look at the future through the lens of career, relationships, housing, families and such related aspects. It is at this stage that the individual seeks a sense of belonging in a society and further fit in.

As Bee (1992) explains, success in this crisis stage leads to the positive virtue of fidelity where an individual will be better placed to commit oneself to others through accepting other despite the underlying ideological differences. The adolescent explores possibilities and starts to form their own identity on the basis of the outcome of their explorations (McLeod, 2017). Role confusion is a key challenge during this stage as most adolescents fail to establish a sense of identity, and they further become unsure about themselves as well as their place in the society. Role confusion is a significant role that has affected my life regarding the career path I should follow as well as the relationships I should form, which will determine the course of my adult life.

References

Bee, L. H. (1992). The developing child. London: HarperCollins.

Chapman, A. (2013). Erik and Joan Erikson psychosocial development theory 1950-97. Retrieved April 27, 2017, from BusinessBalls: http://www.businessballs.com/erik_erikson_psychosocial_theory.htm

Erikson, E. H. (1994). Identity: Youth and crisis (No. 7). New York: WW Norton & Company.

Erikson, H. E. (1993). Childhood and society. New York: WW Norton & Company.

Erikson, H. E. (1963). Youth: Change and challenge. . New York City: Basic books.

Kail, R. V., & Cavanaugh, J. C. (2017). Essentials of Human Development: A life-span View. Boston, MA : Cengage Learning.

McAdams, P. D. (2001). The psychology of life stories. Review of General Psychology , 5 (2), 100.

McLeod, S. (2017). Erik Erikson. Retrieved April 27, 2017, from Simply Psychology: https://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html