Erikson’s Life Cycle ( The Eight Stages of Man)

1.Stage One(0-1 year) Trust vs Mistrust

Dependence- Safety and comfort is the basic attitude of trust and mistrust.

-Trust established– regular satisfaction of baby’s needs.

-Viewing the world as a dependable place.

-Mistrust–inadequate or unpredictable care.

-Cold, indifferent and rejecting parents.

-Basic mistrust– core of later insecurity , suspiciousness or ability to relate to others.

2. Stage two(1-3 years) Autonomy vs Shame and Doubt.

-Age of exploration.

-Physical development allows child to take charge of his or her behavior.

-Independence — Independent physical activities.

-Parents help their children develop a sense of autonomy.

-Encourage them try new skills and reassure them when they fail.

-Consistent overprotection may limit development by denying opportunities for self direction.

-Teasing and ridicule also creates problems.

-May cause shame and doubt of their abilities as unfavorable outcomes of this stage.

3.Stage Three(3-5 years) Initiative vs Guilt.

-Move from simple self control to an ability to take initiative.

– Children learn to plan ,undertake and carry out tasks.

-Parents reinforce initiative by giving freedom to play ,to ask questions, to use imagination and to choose activities.

-Child may be emotionally handicapped by parents who criticize severely , discourage play and creative ideas.

They learn to feel guilty about the activities they initiate when the activities are a nuisance to the parents.

4.Stage Four(6-12Years )Industry vs Inferiority.

-Primary school years ‘entrance into life’

-Children begin to learn skills valued by society, and success or failure can have lasting effects on feeling of adequacy.

-Develop feeling and sense of industry if they win praise for building, painting, cooking , reading and other productive activities.

-If accomplishments are regarded as messy, childish or inadequate, feelings of inferiority result.

–Stage 5 (13-19 Years) Adolescence , Identity vs Role Confusion.

-A need to answer the question ‘who am I’ is considered the primary crisis during this stage of life.

-Mental and physical maturation brings to the individual new attitudes.

-The adolescent must build a consistent identity of self perceptions and relationships with others.

-Role confusion may cause the person to seek identity by emulating musicians ,athletes, leaders or media heroes or undesirable groups or subcultures.

6. Stage Six(20-30 Years) Young Adulthood- Intimacy vs Isolation

-Emphasis on the need to to achieve an essential quality of intimacy in ones life.

-After establishing stable identity , a person is prepared to share meaningful love or deep friendship with others.

-Failure to establish intimacy with others leads to deep sense of isolation.

7.Stage Seven (30-50 Years) Middle Adulthood-Generativity vs Stagnation

-Interest in guiding the next generation called generativity , is the main source of balance in mature adulthood, caring about one self, one’s children and the future.

-Failure in this is marked by a stagnant concern with one’s own needs and comfort.

8.Stage Eight(50+) Integrity vs Despair.

-Old age is a time of reflection.

-A person should be able to look back over the events of a lifetime with a sense of acceptance.

-A person who has lived richly and responsibly develops a sense of integrity.

-This sense allows aging and death to be faced with dignity.

-If previous life events are viewed with regret , the elderly person falls into despair.