Stage Theories of Development

Psycho-social Development

• Involves the development of personality through interactions with the world around us.
• Erik Erikson is a key figure in psycho-social development stage theory.

Erikson's Stage Theory

• Life stages represent specific crises; resolution influences personality health.
• Focus on social interactions and their impact on personality development.

Stages of Development

• Infancy (Trust vs. Mistrust): Trust formation depends on meeting basic needs. Mistrust develops if needs are unmet.
• Toddlers (Autonomy vs. Shame/Doubt): Emphasis on independence; shame arises from parental overprotection.
• Early Childhood (Initiative vs. Guilt): Encouraged exploration fosters initiative; restrictions lead to guilt.
• Middle Childhood (Industry vs. Inferiority): Success in school and social mastery builds industry; failure results in feelings of inferiority.
• Adolescence (Identity vs. Role Confusion): Identity formation is key; lack of exploration can lead to role confusion.
• Early Adulthood (Intimacy vs. Isolation): Establishing intimacy requires prior identity formation; isolation may ensue from dependency self-doubt.
• Middle Adulthood (Generativity vs. Stagnation): Reflection on legacy creation; stagnation occurs from feelings of unachieved potential.
• Late Adulthood (Integrity vs. Despair): Evaluating life achievements brings integrity or despair based on perceived fulfillment.

Attachment and Imprinting

• Imprinting: Biological attachment process during critical early life phases based on caregiver connections.
• Attachment: Emotional connections require satisfaction of emotional needs, evident in children's behavior towards caregivers.
• Temperament: Describes individual emotional reactivity and intensity.

Research Contributions

• Harlow and Harlow: Conducted studies on attachment emphasizing that emotional comfort often supersedes biological needs.
• Bowlby: Studied attachment formation and its effects; his student, Ainsworth, advanced understanding with the Strange Situation experiment.
• Ainsworth's Findings: Healthy attachment involves a caregiver’s consistent emotional support, influencing exploration behavior in children.

Parenting Styles (Baumrind)

• Focus on responsiveness and demandingness:
  • Neglectful: Low response and low demand leads to insecure attachment and poor social outcomes.
  • Indulgent: High response and low demand results in immature, spoiled behavior.
  • Authoritarian: Low response and high demand creates high achievement but can lead to low self-esteem.
  • Authoritative: High response and high demand fosters high achievers with a strong sense of self-esteem.

Additional Theories

• Stage Theories: Include cognitive (Piaget), moral (Kohlberg), psycho-social (Erikson), and psychosexual (Freud) development.
• Freud's Psychosexual Stages: Five distinct stages where unresolved conflicts can lead to fixation affecting personality.
• Vygotsky's Theory: Emphasizes social interaction in cognitive development, introducing concepts like Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding.

Kubler-Ross's Five Stages of Grief

• Stages include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance, illustrating emotional responses to loss.

Identity Formation (James Marcia)

• Identity Diffusion: Lack of concern or commitment to identity issues.
• Identity Foreclosure: Commitment to values without exploration; often aligns with parental or societal expectations.
• Identity Moratorium: Active questioning of beliefs and values during a crisis.
• Identity Achievement: Crisis resolved with a commitment to core values, with potential for regression.

Puberty and Adolescence

• Primary Sex Characteristics: Development of reproductive structures; females experience menstruation, males produce sperm.
• Secondary Sex Characteristics: Observable changes during puberty, like hair growth and breast development.
• Neurological Changes: Dopamine surge influences pleasure; re-establishing neural connections occurs.
• Spotlight Theory: Adolescents perceive heightened self-consciousness, feeling constantly observed by peers.
• Teenage Invincibility Complex: Belief that risky behaviors have no repercussions, typical in adolescence.

Explore the key concepts of Psycho-social Development through flashcards. Learn about Erik Erikson's influential stage theory and how personality is shaped by crises encountered throughout life. This quiz provides a foundational understanding of developmental psychology.