Erik Erikson

Erikson developed one of the most known theories on human development–psychosocial development theory.

Erikson’s theory suggests that your ego identity develops throughout your entire life during eight specific stages:

* Infancy – Basic trust versus mistrust
* Toddler – Autonomy versus shame and doubt
* Preschool-age – Initiative versus guilt
* School-age – Industry versus inferiority
* Adolescence – Identity versus identity confusion
* Young adulthood – Intimacy versus isolation
* Middle age – Generativity versus stagnation‌
* Older adulthood – Integrity versus despair

visit: https://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html for more info! 🍔

📅 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝟯𝟭, 𝟭𝟵𝟲𝟳
🕢 𝟮𝟮:𝟮𝟬

Ψ

Today has been another productive day! Lately, I have been committed to preparing a new kind of early childhood practitioners, one with a deep understanding of child development. I met with these lovely people to discuss how children are not simply biological organisms but also products of society’s expectations, prejudices, and prohibitions.

DID YOU KNOW?

Erik Erikson coined the term “Identity Crisis”.

An identity crisis is defined as an event wherein a person questions their place in the world or their sense of self, which makes it a vital matter in the development and strengthening of one’s personality.
People with a weak ego are more prone to experiencing an identity crisis.

This concept sprung from Erikson’s ego psychology where he states that an individual’s ego defines the strength of their identity.
In Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development, the identity crisis is implied to be most noticeable during ages 12-18, within the stage of Identity vs Role Confusion. Teenagers going through a transition from childhood to adulthood tend to feel confused about how they fit into society.

I was the first child psychoanalyst to work in boston and held positions at Massachusetts general hospital and Harvard Medical School. I wrote about 8 stages of psychosocial development and my theory surrounding identity crisis. I taught at Harvard as a professor of human development and lecturer in psychiatry. I treated troubled young adults.

As you can see in the picture, I'm with Stanley Hoffman and Martin Peretz at a student-faculty advisory committee (SFAC), meeting to debate investments in south africa.

𝘌𝘳𝘪𝘬 𝘌𝘳𝘪𝘬𝘴𝘰𝘯, 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵 𝘳𝘰𝘸, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘓𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘙𝘰𝘰𝘮,. 𝘏𝘢𝘳𝘷𝘢𝘳𝘥, 1969.

Norman Rockwell was an American painter and illustrator. Rockwell himself entered therapy at Riggs with me. We become confidants and friends. We're both interested in ideas of identity individually. It's just interesting that were both working towards this topic at the time.

I decided to visit his studio in Stockbridge. And there I saw his masterpieces and artworks. My heart melts, because he even made a portrait of myself!.. It was fun!

𝘕𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘦 (𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘺) 𝘙𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘌𝘳𝘪𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘑𝘰𝘢𝘯 𝘌𝘳𝘪𝘬𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘨𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰, 1962.

Intimacy over Isolation.

In the wise words of Erikson, “Life doesn’t make any sense without interdependence. We need each other, and the sooner we learn that, the better for us all.”

Friendships and relationships always come in handy in the aspect of self-development. With that said, here are some photographs we found of Erikson and some of his friends:

𝙀𝙍𝙄𝙆 𝙀𝙍𝙄𝙆𝙎𝙊𝙉'𝙎 𝙉𝙀𝙏𝙒𝙊𝙍𝙆𝙎

Ψ Get to know Erikson's preferred psychological approach,
𝙋𝙨𝙮𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙮𝙨𝙞𝙨, along with his study of 𝙀𝙜𝙤 𝙋𝙨𝙮𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙤𝙜𝙮.

Ψ Fun fact: It was Sigmund Freud himself who encouraged Erikson to delve deeper into the study of Psychoanalysis, with the help of Anna Freud, his wife.

Neo-Freudian Psychologists rule! 🍔

From the ghosts of the past to the visions of the future; from the identity struggles of his childhood to the fruits of the development in adulthood. This is the narrative of the person behind the psychosocial development, Erik Homburger Erikson.

Ψ Fast Facts about Erikson!

Name: Erik Homburger Erikson
Birth facts: He was born on June 15, 1902 at Frankfurt, Germany
Death: May 12, 1994 at Harwich, Massachussets, U.S.

Subjects of study: Child development, Psychological development

Awards and Honors: Pulitzer Prize

(Read captions per photo for more information 🍔)