Table of ContentsAutonomy versus shame and doubt: Braxton, age 3 Identity versus role confusion, Evan, age 13 Generativity versus stagnation, Joshua, age 35 Conclusion Works Cited Erik Erikson was a twentieth very important centurion, psychoanalyst (Erikson Institute). It is best known for its eight psychological stages of development. Erikson believed that personality developed in several stages. He believed that every person goes through these eight stages of development and that at each stage, every person faces a psychological crisis. This struggle results in a positive or negative outcome for personality development. According to Erikson's theory, if each stage is successfully completed, it will result in a healthy personality and the acquisition of characteristic strengths that a person uses to resolve subsequent crises (McLeod, 2018). If a person does not successfully complete these eight steps, Erikson states that this can result in a reduced ability to complete the next steps (McLeod, 2018). In turn, this would create an unhealthy personality and low self-esteem. Recovery from these “missed steps” can, however, be done later (McLeod, 2018). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Erik Erikson's theory has eight psychological stages. The stages are as follows: Trust versus distrust (ages birth to 1 year), Autonomy versus shame and doubt (ages 1 year to 3 years), Initiative versus guilt (ages 3 to 6 years), Industry versus inferiority (ages 6 to 12 years). years), Identity versus role confusion (ages 12 to 18), Intimacy versus isolation (ages 18 to 30), Generativity versus stagnation (ages 30 to late adulthood), and Integrity versus despair (late adulthood). adulthood) (Boyd & Bee, 2015). It is important to find balance across several of these steps. We will discuss three of these eight steps here. We will focus on autonomy versus shame and doubt, identity versus role confusion, and generativity versus stagnation. An interview was carried out with three individuals entering these three stages. We will relate the answers to the interview questions to the specific stage to determine exactly how the person is in that stage. Each interviewee was asked the same questions; just in different forms to make sure the question was understood by each person. One interviewee was three years old, the second thirteen years old, and the third thirty-five years old.Autonomy versus shame and doubt: Braxton, age 3Autonomy versus shame and doubt is the second stage of Erikson's eight stages. This stage occurs during a child’s early childhood (Boyd & Bee, 2015). The main idea behind this stage is that a child begins to learn independence and develop greater personal control (Cherry & Gans, 2018). Children who successfully complete the stage of autonomy from shame and doubt will feel confident in themselves; however, if they fail to achieve this milestone, the child will likely feel inadequate (Cherry & Gans, 2018). Braxton says that in the future, he looks forward to his job: feeding animals, which is the same as his current job. job'. This shows that Braxton expresses his independence by feeding all of his animals himself most of the time. He doesn't rely on his father and mother to do the work for him. This also shows that Braxton doesn't have the full capacity to think futuristically. Braxton's favorite thing about him is that he's handsome. We, as adults, can have a list a mile long to criticize ourselves and point out every little flaw. However, Braxton hasstill an innocent state of mind and doesn't think negatively about himself yet. When asked what his least favorite thing about himself is, Braxton insisted that he likes himself. He doesn't have negative thoughts or think anything about himself is "bad." This shows that he is not quite in the third stage (Initiative versus Guilt) because he does not view things that concern him as good or bad. Braxton thinks others think he's kind and awesome. This goes hand in hand with not noticing negative things about yourself. Children this age are so innocent and mainly focused on their increased independence. Braxton's biggest fears are snakes and bears. This response shows that he understood what fear was but that it did not consume him. He understands that these things could hurt him but he doesn't focus on that all the time, he just knows that these things could be mean to him and that scares him. If Braxton could change anything in the world, he would change his underwear. This makes it very clear that Braxton is not capable of seeing the big picture or seeing overall negative things in the world at this age. When asked what he would change about himself, he said he would turn into a cowboy. This goes hand in hand with the innocent mind and not seeing the negative in him at the age of three. Braxton was given the opportunity to master her independence from a safe distance. Her parents supported and encouraged her independence and this shows through her development. Patience is huge for parents as their children take this step. Even letting children dress themselves or put on their own shoes helps the child; although it is good for parents to be supportive and help if and when the child asks for help. Braxton said he cares most about going to the park and his favorite people right now are two of his cousins, Silas and Violet. It's not until stage three (Initiative versus Guilt) that children really focus on playing and interacting with others. Braxton may be about to enter stage three as he is much more interested in spending more time with his cousins ​​and playing with them. If Braxton could teach someone younger than him anything, he said he would teach babies to walk and talk. It's very clear, based on this response alone, that Braxton is in the stage of empowerment against shame and doubt. This stage is about teaching children to gain independence and Braxton would very clearly want to teach someone younger than him that bit of independence that he knows and has mastered. Overall, it seems like Braxton has mastered the step of empowerment versus shame and doubt. He seems to have confidence in himself and will achieve the virtue of will. It doesn't seem like Braxton feels inadequate or has low self-esteem. He has high self-esteem and loves himself as he is. Confusion between identity and role, Evan, 13 years old. Confusion between identity and role is the fifth stage of Erikson's eight stages. This stage takes place during adolescence, between approximately twelve and eighteen years old. During identity and role confusion, adolescents go through pubertal changes and learn their sense of personal identity (Cherry & Gans, 2018). This is another stage where independence plays a major role, but in a very different aspect. Adolescents who successfully complete the identity-role confusion stage will emerge with a vivid sense of self and develop feelings of independence and control (Cherry & Gans, 2018). During this stage, a teenager discovers who he isand where it is. go into their lives. Evan's biggest goal for the future is to attend college and he looks forward to playing baseball professionally in the future. Evan is very passionate about baseball at the moment and practices or plays every day of the year. He is very focused on his life at the moment and has realized how much this could affect his future. So he’s working hard now so he can achieve those goals as he gets older. Evan likes the way he throws in baseball and wishes he was taller so he could be even better at baseball than he already is. He is very involved in baseball and is confident that he will absolutely achieve the goals he has set for himself. Evan doesn't worry about not being able to achieve these dreams and goals. However, he is afraid of snakes. This shows that Evan is not enveloped in fear and it does not consume him, but he knows what fear is and he knows things to be afraid of. Evan feels accomplished when he and his teammates win a tournament and also when he has a good day's work. He begins to mature a lot more since he realizes that working hard to win and working hard in general is when he feels most accomplished. Evan had a few interview questions that he was hesitant to answer and he also felt uncomfortable at times. He is at a stage where he is learning to develop his self-esteem and also at this age most teenagers care about what their peers think of them and how their peers perceive them. Evan insisted that he doesn't care what others think of him, but it absolutely seemed like he wanted to say something. He was asked how he thought others thought of him, so it wasn't even a negative question. From the way he answered her question, I think he's starting to see negative things in himself, but he doesn't want his peers and friends to think or see the flaws Evan notices in him . He wishes he was taller than him so he can be even better at baseball and also because I think he feels inferior compared to the other kids at school or on his baseball team. He wants to feel like he belongs, but he doesn't feel that way all the time when he thinks about his size compared to other people's. Evan is able to see futuristically at this point. When asked what interests him most, I assumed he would answer baseball, because it's a very important part of his life right now and it's what he dreams of doing even when he's older, but Evan replied that what interests him most is money. He loves buying things, having the best of the best and wearing everything designer. Things like this make teens feel like they fit in better and are “cooler” because they have a brand. Evan is going to work right now because he likes it but also because he likes having money and being able to spend it on things he really likes. Evan has no regrets at this point in his life. He wishes the world had more fish in the waters. He wants to be able to catch more fish and he thinks that if there were more fish it would be inevitable that he would be able to catch more. If Evan were to give advice to someone younger than him, he would tell them if they make a bad decision, they need to admit it and accept the consequences. This made me think that maybe Evan had a bad experience with this and maybe someone he cared about lied or didn't own up to something he did and that rubbed Evan the wrong way. This answer shows that Evan understands the important parts of life. This shows that something bad may have happened to him, buthe learned from it and wants to make sure he acknowledges his choices because he didn't like how it made him feel when he didn't do it or when a friend didn't acknowledge it. to their bad decisions. Evan is definitely finding his role in life right now and focusing on the things in his life now, like baseball, and knowing how that can affect his future. Generativity versus stagnation, Joshua, 35 Generativity versus stagnation is Erikson's seventh step. psychological development. According to Kendra Cherry (2018), generativity refers to leaving one's mark on the world, while stagnation refers to the inability to find a way to contribute. During this stage, a person will focus on creating and developing things that will outlast them (Cherry, 2018). In most cases, the main focus of this stage will be on the children of the person currently in this stage. When a person successfully completes this stage, they will feel productive in the world around them, as if they are contributing (Cherry, 2018). The first answer Joshua gave when asked what he was looking forward to in the future was watching his children grow up. This was a very clear indicator that Joshua is in the phase of generativity rather than stagnation. Her biggest goal is to make sure her family is taken care of and worries about not being there for her family and not being able to make sure they are always taken care of. Joshua is a very caring person who is always willing to help anyone, even if they are complete strangers (unless it puts his family in danger). He wants to contribute to the world around him by creating more positivity for those currently in the armed forces and veterans. Joshua believes they need more support while on active duty and once they return home. He dreams of one day running hunting services for veterans, primarily but not limited to disabilities. Joshua would love to do guided hunts and create easier ways for veterans to have the ability to hunt, which is a passion of Joshua's. This makes it very clear that Joshua wants to be involved in the community and the world. He has mastered the fundamental virtue, care, which is the main virtue received at this stage if successfully completed (Cherry, 2018). Joshua feels most accomplished when he teaches someone something new. He is passionate about hunting and fishing and has often taken people out just to teach them how to do it and he thoroughly enjoys it with all his being. He not only loves teaching his children things, but he also loves teaching others new things and introducing them to things he is passionate about. This shows that Joshua is not at all self-centered and has mastered this step. Kendra Cherry (2018) says that many people experience a midlife crisis during this stage. It can be looking back and regretting something a person didn't do when they had the opportunity to do it. Joshua's biggest regret is not playing football in college. He had many opportunities but never received the proper guidance, so he ended up going to work instead of doing what he loved. This made him want to give advice to younger people to take advantage of all the opportunities available to them. He said that life is too short not to continue doing what you love and that life goes by so quickly. Joshua is completely happy with where his life has taken him, but he would have liked to take advantage of his college opportunity by playing football and earning a degree. Parenthood and, 18(3), 341-358.