 Like Freud, personality develops in stages  Focuses on social experiences across the life span  Development of ego identity  Conscious sense of self we develop through social interaction

 Each stage is concerned with being competent in an area  Handle well=mastery  Handle poorly = inadequacy  Each stage has a conflict that serves as a turning point in development

 Develop a psychological quality or failing to develop that quality  Potential for growth and failure is high

 Born in Germany in  In grammar school, he was teased for being Jewish.  He did not feel comfortable (at a very early age) as a German or a Jew.  This feeling was a basis for his later theory of “identity crisis”  In 1920’s, he met Sigmund Freud’s daughter (Anna) and studied under her in Vienna.  Moved to U.S. in 1933 and taught at Yale, Harvard, and UCal at Berkeley.

 Trust vs. Mistrust  Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt  Initiative vs. Guilt  Industry vs. Inferiority  Identity vs. Confusion  Intimacy vs. Isolation  Generativity vs. Stagnation  Integrity vs. Despair

 Fundamental stage  Infants are dependent: need to develop trust  Based on dependability & quality of caregivers  If develops trust: safe and secure  Failure: fear and a belief that the world is inconsistent and unpredictable

 Focused on children developing a greater sense of personal control  Toilet training was a vital part of process  Learning to control one’s body function leads to sense of control and independence  Control over food, toys, and clothes  Success: secure and confident  Failure: inadequacy and self- doubt  Build self-esteem and autonomy as we gain control  Develop will

 Children begin to assert their power and control  Play and social interaction  Successful: capable and able to lead others  Failure: sense of guilt, self-doubt, and lack of initiative

 Through social interactions: sense of pride in accomplishments and abilities  Encouraged and commended by parents and teachers: develop a feeling of competence and belief in their skills  Little or no encouragement from parents, teachers, and peers: doubt ability to succeed  Industry: accomplishing new skills and knowledge

 Exploring independence, developing sense of self  Receive proper encouragement and reinforcement through personal exploration: strong sense of self and a feeling of independence and control  Unsure of beliefs and desires= insecure and confused about themselves and future  Up to this point: development is based upon what is done to us  Here on out is what we do!  Social interaction, moral issues

 Our task is to discover who we are as individuals separate from our family of origin and as members of a wider society.  And if we are unsuccessful in navigating this stage, we will experience role confusion and upheaval.

 A significant task for us is to establish a philosophy of life and in this process we tend to think in terms of ideals, which are conflict free, rather than reality, which is not.  The problem is that we don't have much experience and find it easy to substitute ideals for experience. However, we can also develop strong devotion to friends and causes.  It is no surprise that our most significant relationships are with peer groups.

 Seek companions and love  Attempt to find mutually satisfying relationships through marriage and friends  Start a family  Successful: intimacy on a deep level  Failure: isolation and distance from others, if no satisfying relationships our world shrinks

 Continue to build our lives  Focus on career and family  Success: feel like they are contributing to the world by being active in their home and community  Fail: unproductive and uninvolved, self-absorbed and stagnate  Creative and meaningful work  Children leave home, mid- life crisis, new meanings and purposes

 Much of life is preparing for the middle adulthood stage and the last stage is recovering from it  Reflecting back on life  Perhaps that is because as older adults we can often look back on our lives with happiness and are content, feeling fulfilled with a deep sense that life has meaning and we've made a contribution to life, a feeling Erikson calls integrity.  On the other hand, some adults may reach this stage and despair at their experiences and perceived failures.