Educational Psychology

Name and describe Erikson's theory of

psychosocial development. Note
behaviors associated with each stage and
the implications of the theory for
classroom practice. Evaluate the theory
and compare/contrast it with Bingham &
Strykers theory of socioemotional
development for girls.

Developed by W. Huitt, 1999

 Eriksons Theory

Erik Erikson was a follower of Sigmund

Freud who broke with his teacher over the
fundamental point of what motivates or
drives human behavior.

For Freud it was biology or more specifically

the biological instincts of life and aggression.
 Eriksons Theory

For Erikson, who was not trained in biology

and/or the medical sciences (unlike Freud
and many of his contemporaries), the most
important force driving human behavior and
the development of personality was social
interaction.
 Eriksons Theory

Erikson left his native Germany in the 1930's

and immigrated to America where he studied
Native American traditions of human
development and continued his work as a
psychoanalyst.
His developmental theory of the "Eight Stages of
Man" was unique in that it covered the entire
lifespan rather than childhood and adolescent
development.
 Eriksons Theory

Eriksons view was that the social

environment combined with biological
maturation provides each individual with a
set of crises that must be resolved.
The individual is provided with a "sensitive
period" in which to successfully resolve each
crisis before a new crisis is presented.
 Eriksons Theory

The results of the resolution, whether

successful or not, are carried forward to the
next crisis and provide the foundation for its
resolution.
 Eriksons Eight Stages

Child develops a
belief that the
environment can
Trust vs.
Infancy be counted on to
Mistrust
meet his or her
basic physiological
and social needs.
 Eriksons Eight Stages

Child learns what

he/she can control
Autonomy
and develops a
vs. Shame Toddlerhood
sense of free will
& Doubt
and corresponding
sense of regret and
sorrow for
inappropriate use
of self-control.
 Eriksons Eight Stages

Child learns to
begin action, to
Initiative Early explore, to
vs. Guilt Childhood imagine as well as
feeling remorse
for actions.
 Eriksons Eight Stages

Child learns to do
Industry things well or
vs. Middle correctly in
Inferiority Childhood comparison to a
standard or to
others
 Eriksons Eight Stages

Develops a sense of
Identity vs. self in relationship to
Role Adolescence others and to own
Confusion internal thoughts and
desires
social identity
personal identity
 Eriksons Eight Stages

Develops ability to
Intimacy give and receive
vs. Young love; begins to make
Isolation Adulthood long-term
commitment to
relationships
 Eriksons Eight Stages

Develops interest
Generativity in guiding the
vs. Middle development of
Stagnation Adulthood the next
generation
 Eriksons Eight Stages

Develops a sense of
Ego- acceptance of life as
integrity Later it was lived and the
vs. Adulthood importance of the
Despair people and
relationships that
individual developed
over the lifespan
 Bingham & Strykers Theory

A major criticism of Eriksons theory is that

it is based primarily on work done with boys
and men.
Bingham and Stryker (1995) suggest that
development of identity, intimacy and
generativity may receive different emphases
throughout adulthood for men and women.

Bingham, M., & Stryker, S. (1995). Things will be different for my daughter: A practical
guide to building her self-esteem and self-reliance. New York: Penguin Books.
 Bingham & Strykers Theory

Bingham and Stiker propose five stages of

socioemotional development for girls and
women that parallels those proposed by
Erikson, but places different emphases at
important sensitive time periods.
 Bingham & Strykers Theory

Feel in control of
Developing own life, committed
the Through to specific activities,
Hardy age 8 look forward to
Personality challenge and
opportunity for
growth
 Bingham & Strykers Theory

Develop steady,
Form durable core of self as
Identity Age 9-12 person who is capable
as an of accomplishment in
Achiever a variety of areas
(e.g., intellectual,
physical, social,
potential career)
 Bingham & Strykers Theory

Feeling of being
Skill worthy, deserving,
Building Age 13-16 entitled to assert
for Self- needs and wants;
Esteem confidence in ability
to cope with life
 Bingham & Strykers Theory

Strategies Sense of responsibility

for Self- for taking care of
Sufficiency Age 17-22 herself and, perhaps,
(Emotional a family; based on a
-Financial) sense of autonomy
 Bingham & Strykers Theory

Contentedness in
Satisfaction personal
in Work Adulthood accomplishments and
and Love social/personal
relationships
 A Hardy Personality

Suzanne Kobasa Ouellette, a professor at the

City University of New York suggests that a
hardy personality is based on three C's:
control,
commitment, and
challenge.
 A Hardy Personality

Ouellette proposes that these can be developed

through the acquisition of eight specific skills:
Recognize and tolerate anxiety and act
anyway;
Separate fantasy from reality and tackle
reality;
Set goals and establish priorities;
 A Hardy Personality

Ouellette proposes that these can be developed

through the acquisition of eight specific skills:
Project into the future and understand
how today's choices affect the future;
Discriminate and make choices consistent
with goals and values;
Set boundaries and limits;
 A Hardy Personality

Ouellette proposes that these can be developed

through the acquisition of eight specific skills:
Ask assertively for wants and desires;
Trust self and own perceptions.
 Theories Compared

The competencies for developing a hardy

personality seem to be very similar to the to
the outcomes of a satisfactory resolution of
the first three crises proposed by Erikson:
Trust vs. Mistrust
Autonomy vs. Shame & Doubt
Initiative vs. Guilt
 Theories Compared

What may be different is that these are not the

traditional desired outcomes of infancy and
early childhood for girls.

Rather there may be a tendency to socialize girls

to be more acquiescent and dependent, which is
to their detriment in terms of further
development.
 Theories Compared

Eriksons stage of Industry vs. Inferiority

seems to be essentially equivalent to Bingham
and Strykers Form Identity as an Achiever.
For boys, there may be more of an opportunity to
address the issue of any deficiencies in a sense of
accomplishment within the stage of identity
formation.
 Theories Compared

However, it is likely that if girls have not

successfully developed a sense of accomplishment
during middle and late childhood, it may be a
decade or more before there is an opportunity to
again tackle this issue.

This is because as girls attend to the issue of

identity, their natural attention to relationships
produces a different pathway for identity
development .
 Self-Esteem

Another issue is the drop in self-esteem that

occurs naturally as a part of adolescence in
modern society.
The importance of self-esteem for girls in the
adolescent years cannot be overemphasized.
 Self-Esteem

A study by the American Association of

University Women (AAUW, 1991) showed that
girls had a precipitous drop in self-esteem
between elementary and high school.

While boys also showed a decline it was not

nearly as dramatic.
 Self-Esteem

Percentage Responding Positively to the statement

"I am happy the way I am"
High %
Elementary School Decrease
Boys 67 46 19
White Girls 60 29 31
African-American Girls 65 58 7
Hispanic Girls 68 30 38
 Theories Compared

A major difference between the Erikson and

Bingham-Stryker models occurs in the
stages of adulthood.
In Erikson's model the crisis of young
adulthood is intimacy versus isolation.

In the Bingham-Stryker model the crisis is

emotional and financial self-sufficiency.
 Theories Compared

The difference may lie in gender expectations.

Men are expected to become self-sufficient;
the male crisis is one of establishing intimacy.

Women are expected to establish

relationships; the female crisis is autonomy in
terms of taking care of themselves emotionally
and financially.
 Theories Compared

Similar differences exist in middle and older

adulthood.
Erikson considers two separate crises:
Generativity and Ego Integrity.
Bingham and Stryker hypothesize one crisis
for adult women: Satisfaction in Work and
Love
The End