Personal and Social Development PDF

Personal and Social Development ASST. PROF.DR. AZIZA KAVLU A theory of Personal and Social development proposed by Erik Erikson Erikson’s work is often called a Psychosocial Theory because it relates principles of psychological and social development. A set of principles that relates social envir...

Personal and Social Development ASST. PROF.DR. AZIZA KAVLU A theory of Personal and Social development proposed by Erik Erikson Erikson’s work is often called a Psychosocial Theory because it relates principles of psychological and social development. A set of principles that relates social environment to psychological development Erikson hypothesized that people pass through eight psychosocial stages in their lifetimes. 12/17/2023 2 12/17/2023 3 Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development • At each stage, there are crises or critical issues to be resolved. • Most people resolve each psychosocial crisis satisfactorily and put it behind them to take on new challenges, but some people do not completely resolve these crises and must continue to deal with them later in life (Miller, 1993). • The more successfully an individual resolves each crisis, • the more psychologically healthy • the individual will be. • Each stage has both • positive and negative aspects. P.59 STAGE I: TRUST VERSUS MISTRUST (BIRTH TO 18 MONTHS) • The goal of infancy is to develop a basic trust in the world. • The mother, or maternal figure, is usually the first important person in the child’s world. She is the one who must satisfy the infant’s need for food and affection. • The development of trust requires warm, nurturing caregiving. • The positive outcome is a feeling of comfort and minimal fear. • Mistrust develops when infants are treated negatively or ignored. • The mother’s behavior creates in the infant a • sense of trust or mistrust for his or her world • that may persist throughout • childhood and into adulthood. STAGE I: TRUST VERSUS MISTRUST (BIRTH TO 18 MONTHS) • If he sees that his needs are met by his parents, and especially his mother's love and attention, this feeling will develop. • However, if the opposite happens, the child develops a sense of insecurity, not a sense of trust. • Children who experience this period 12/17/2023 negatively may show the characteristics of shy, anxious, indecisive, and pessimistic people in the future. 7 STAGE II: AUTONOMY VERSUS DOUBT (18 MONTHS TO 3 YEARS) Erikson’s second psychosocial stage. It occurs in late infancy and the toddler years. After gaining trust in their caregivers, infants begin to discover that their behavior is their own. They assert their independence and realize their will. By the age of 2, most babies can walk and have learned enough about language to communicate with other people. Children no longer want to depend totally on others. Instead, they strive toward autonomy, the ability to do things for themselves. The child’s desires for power and independence often clash with the wishes of the parent. STAGE II: AUTONOMY VERSUS DOUBT (18 MONTHS TO 3 YEARS) The child tries to perform some behaviors herself. He/She wants to show behaviors such as dressing, eating, and toileting on her own. The child gets a lot of pleasure from these behaviors. She doesn't want her/his parents to interfere with her. Parents who are flexible enough to permit their children to explore freely and do things for themselves, while at the same time providing an ever-present guiding hand, encourage the establishment of a sense of autonomy. Parents who are overly restrictive and harsh give their children a sense of powerlessness and incompetence, which can lead to shame and doubt in one’s abilities. 12/17/2023 If infants are restrained too much or punished too harshly, they develop a sense of shame and doubt STAGE III: INITIATIVE VERSUS GUILT (3 TO 6 YEARS) Erikson’s third psychosocial stage. It corresponds to early childhood, about 3 to 5 years of age. During this period, children’s continually maturing motor and language skills permit them to be increasingly aggressive and energetic in the exploration of both their social and physical environment. As young children experience a widening social world, they are challenged more than they were as infants. To cope with these challenges, they need to engage in active, purposeful behavior that involves initiative. Children develop uncomfortable guilt feelings if they are irresponsible or are made to feel too anxious. Parents who severely punish children’s attempts at initiative will make the children feel guilty about their natural urges both during this stage and later in life. STAGE III: INITIATIVE VERSUS GUILT (3 TO 6 YEARS) •Three-year-olds have a growing sense of initiative, which can be encouraged by parents and other family members or caregivers who permit children to run, jump, play, slide, and throw. • STAGE IV: INDUSTRY VERSUS INFERIORITY (6 TO 12 YEARS) Erikson’s fourth psychosocial stage. Entry into school brings with it a huge expansion in the child’s social world. Teachers and peers take on increasing importance for the child, while the influence of parents decreases. Children now want to make things. They direct their energy toward mastering knowledge and intellectual skills. The danger in the elementary school years is developing a sense of inferiority, unproductiveness, and incompetence. Success brings with it a sense of industry, a good feeling about oneself and one’s abilities. Failure creates a negative self-image, a sense of inability that may hinder(prevent) future learning. The state of being inferior; a lower state or condition; as, inferiority of rank, of talents, of age, of worth STAGE IV: INDUSTRY VERSUS INFERIORITY (6 TO 12 YEARS) STAGE V: IDENTITY VERSUS ROLE CONFUSION (12 TO 18 YEARS) Erikson’s fifth psychosocial stage. The question “Who am I?” becomes important during adolescence. To answer it, adolescents increasingly turn away from parents and toward peer groups. Erikson believed that during adolescence the individual’s rapidly changing physiology, coupled with pressures to make decisions about future education and career, creates the need to question and redefine the psychosocial identity established during the earlier stages. Adolescence is a time of change. Teenagers experiment with various sexual, occupational, and educational roles as they try to find out who they are and who they can be. STAGE VI: INTIMACY VERSUS ISOLATION (YOUNG ADULTHOOD) Erikson’s sixth psychosocial stage. It corresponds to the early adult years, the twenties and thirties. The developmental task is to form positive close relationships with others. The stage is set for the sharing of their life with another. The young adult is now ready to form a new relationship of trust and intimacy with another individual, a “partner in friendship, competition, and cooperation.” The hazard of this stage is that one will fail to form an intimate relationship with a romantic partner or friend and become socially isolated. STAGE VII: GENERATIVITY VERSUS SELF-ABSORPTION ( Stagnation) MIDDLE ADULTHOOD Erikson’s seventh psychosocial stage. It corresponds to the middle adulthood years, the forties and fifties. Typically, people attain generativity through raising their own children. During this stage, people should continue to grow. Generativity means transmitting something positive to the next generation. This can involve such roles as parenting and teaching, through which adults assist the next generation in developing useful lives. Generativity is “the interest in establishing and guiding the next generation”. Erikson described stagnation as the feeling of having done nothing to help the next generation. Stagnation- a stop of motion, stop, a state of inactivity Self-absorption only interested in yourself and your own activities STAGE VIII: INTEGRITY VERSUS DESPAIR (LATE ADULTHOOD) In the final stage of psychosocial development. Adults at this stage, usually over age 65 look back over their lifetime and resolve their final identity crisis Acceptance of accomplishments, failures, and ultimate limitations brings with it a sense of integrity, or wholeness, and a realization that one’s life has been one’s own responsibility. The finality of death must also be faced and accepted. Despair can occur in those who regret the way they have led their lives or how their lives have turned out. Despair -lose or be without hope Integrity - The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. The state of being whole and undivided. Teachers how they apply Erikson’s life-span theory in their Classrooms Early Childhood -The initiative versus guilt stage of Erikson’s theory characterizes my classroom as students are expected to become more responsible throughout the year. Children are assigned “jobs” to do for the day, such as being the door-holder, line leader, or messenger. The children are also expected to follow through with classroom and school rules. Uncomfortable, guilty feelings may arise if the children feel responsible as a result of breaking classroom rules or not fulfilling their responsibilities. Missy Dangler, Suburban Hills School Elementary School Grades K–5 - The industry versus inferiority stage of Erikson’s theory most applies to my second-grade students. As children enter this stage, there is an energy to learn; however, the dangers at this stage are that children may feel incompetent if they are unsuccessful in their work. As a teacher of students at this developmental stage, it is important to give students opportunities to be successful. For example, if a second-grader is reading at a kindergarten level, and second-grade-level materials are given to this student, the student will develop feelings of incompetence. I use leveled reading materials in my classroom in reading and spelling. Each student is reading and being instructed with material at his or her reading level, which fosters feelings of confidence. Susan Froelich, Clinton Elementary School Teachers how they apply Erikson’s life-span theory in their Classrooms Middle School: Grades 6–8 Erikson’s identity versus identity confusion stage is evident in my sixth-grade students. At this stage, so many of my students experience a decline in self-esteem. To address these negative feelings, I often have them become the teacher. That is, under my guidance, a student will conduct different classroom activities. Many times I select students who need to be recognized by their peers to be teacher for a day. Other times, I ask students especially those most reluctant to participate in class—to have lunch with me. During lunch, I give them steps on how to overcome any fears or apprehensions they may have about taking part in class. Margaret Reardon, Pocantico Hills School High School: Grades 9–12 As high school teachers dealing with students in the identity versus identity confusion stage, we need to especially value adolescents as human beings. I know of so many teachers who roll their eyes at their students’ petty squabbles and emotional curves. However, we need to remember that we went through the very same things, and these struggles helped to define who we are as adults. This came to me so vividly during my student teaching. The building was so similar in design to my own school. As I walked in the door, I immediately experienced every pimple on my chin and every tear shed in the girls’ bathroom. Suddenly, I was the insecure girl listening to Lionel Richie at the dance, longing for John to ask me out. Jennifer Heiter, Bremen High School CONNECTING WITH STUDENTS: Best Practices Strategies for Educating Children Based on Erikson’s Theory 1. Encourage initiative in young children -Children in preschool and early childhood education programs should be given a great deal of freedom to explore their world. They should be allowed to choose some of the activities they engage in. If their requests for doing certain activities are reasonable, the requests should be honored. Provide exciting materials that will stimulate their imagination. Children at this stage love to play. It not only benefits their socioemotional development but also is an important medium for their cognitive growth. Especially encourage social play with peers and fantasy play. Help children assume responsibility for putting toys and materials back in place after they have used them. Criticism should be kept to a minimum so that children will not develop high levels of guilt and anxiety. Structure activities and environment for successes rather than failures by giving them developmentally appropriate tasks; for example, don’t frustrate young children by having them sit for long periods of time doing academic paper-and-pencil tasks. CONNECTING WITH STUDENTS: Best Practices Strategies for Educating Children Based on Erikson’s Theory 2. Promote industry in elementary school children. Teachers have a special responsibility for children’s development of industry. It was Erikson’s hope that teachers could provide an atmosphere in which children become passionate about learning. In elementary school, children thirst to know. Most arrive at elementary school steeped in curiosity and a motivation to master tasks. In Erikson’s view, it is important for teachers to nourish this motivation for mastery and curiosity. Challenge students, but don’t overwhelm them. Be firm in requiring students to be productive, but don’t be overly critical. Especially be tolerant of honest mistakes and make sure that every student has opportunities for many successes. 3. Stimulate identity exploration in adolescence. Recognize that the student’s identity is multidimensional. Ask adolescents to write essays about such dimensions, including vocational goals, intellectual achievement, and interests in hobbies, sports, music, and other areas, exploring who they are and what they want to do with their lives. Have people from different careers come and talk with your students about their work regardless of the grade you teach. Encourage adolescents to think independently and to freely express their views by listening to and reading about debates on religious, political, and ideological issues. This will stimulate them to examine different CONNECTING WITH STUDENTS: Best Practices Strategies for Educating Children Based on Erikson’s Theory 4. Examine your life as a teacher through the lens of Erikson’s eight stages. Your successful career as a teacher could be a key aspect of your overall identity. Develop positive relationships with a partner, one or more friends, and with other teachers or mentors, all of which can be very rewarding and enhance your identity as a teacher. 5. Benefit from the characteristics of some of Erikson’s other stages. Competent teachers trust, show initiative, are industrious and model a sense of mastery, and are motivated to contribute something meaningful to the next generation. In your role as a teacher, you will actively meet the criteria for Erikson’s concept of generativity. THROUGH THE EYES OF TEACHERS Using Art to Explore Adolescents’ Identities My seventh-grade art students come to class on the first day expecting to read a list of classroom rules. I surprise them by passing out sheets of art paper, old magazines, and glue with verbal directions to tell me about themselves and build a self-portrait with torn paper. The students are inventive, enthusiastic, and excited to focus on their identities and waste no time beginning. After the opening project, my students are at ease knowing their creative expression is allowed and encouraged, and I am better able to understand their many changing attitudes and need to express them.