Erikson's Phychosocial Theory: The Journey Of Human Development

There are many theories that help explain the journey of human development. Theorists, such as Sigmund Freud, Erik Erikson, Jean Piaget, and Lawrence Kohlberg, are among the most renowned theorists in identifying the different stages of human development from a cognitive, social, and emotional perspective. This paper is aimed at the works of Erik Erikson’s view on human development. Erikson’s psychosocial theory emphasized the impact of society and culture in an individual’s development. His psychosocial theory encompasses eight distinct stages of development (Matthews, In Class Discussion, September 2, 2015). He believed that individuals must find their own sense of regulation as a result of the interplay urges of the individual, and the nature of social influences. At each stage, individuals learn to handle new instincts and ways of understanding the self as well as others, to create a balanced sense of self-regulation (Batra, 2013). The first stage of Erikson’s psychosocial theory is trust versus mistrust, which occurs during the first year of life. Erikson believed that this is when infants build trust towards their parents and/or caretakers to care for their basic needs. The primary caretakers nurturing abilities are put to the test in terms caring for

Children become more confident in their physical abilities and begin to test their limits. One example is taking their first steps. It takes several trials until children are able to successfully accomplish walking without stumbling over. Children also begin to have a sense of personal identity and belonging as well as becoming independent. They display their every emotion, such as happiness or frustration. With emotional and physical development occurring, intellectual development is also noticeable. Children begin to verbally communicate their wants and needs (Matthews, In Class Discussion, September 9,