Development across the lifespan helps in providing a human’s development chronological overview from the conception moment through death. Therefore, students can choose from various theories that relate to the development across the lifespan, and then applying them to their life, in addition to explaining their development and progression so far. Besides, for future stages, the chosen theory must assist students in predicting their future development and progress.
Theory Related to Development across the Lifespan
The psychosocial theory of lifespan development is the chosen one. This theory primarily focuses on the social nature of a person’s development instead of its sexual nature. It was proposed by Eric Ericson, who asserted that the development of an individual’s personality happens all through the stages of lifespan development. Furthermore, it suggests that the manner at which individuals are interacting with each other is what affects their sense of self, also known as the ego identity ( Dunkel & Harbke, 2017). This theory also helps to motivate individuals by the need for achieving a high competency level within specific areas of their lives.
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Additionally, the psychosocial theory of lifespan development observes that individuals often experience eight different developmental stages from infancy all through late adulthood. However, Schaie (2016) observes that there is a task or conflict at each step that must be resolved. It implies that the successful completion of every developmental task or conflict results in a significant sense of healthy personality and competence. However, failing to master all these tasks has the potential of resulting in the feeling of inadequacy to an individual.
Applying the Theory to Life
From a personal perspective, I can apply the psychosocial theory of lifespan development during my age of between 1-3 years in which I started exploring my world as a toddler. I believe that it is through this theory that I learned how I could easily control my actions in addition to acting on the underlying environment for getting the best outcome. For instance, I started to exhibit clear preferences for certain environmental elements, including food, clothing, and toys. It is because the psychosocial theory observes that the primary task of a toddler is for resolving the autonomy issue versus doubt and shame, through working towards establishing independence ( Dunkel & Harbke, 2017). It was the “I do it” stage of personal development.
For example, this theory significantly helped me in observing a growing sense of autonomy from another toddler of 2 years who wanted to choose her clothing and dressing. Even though her outfits were never appropriate for that particular situation, her input in making such a fundamental decision had a significant effect on her sense of independence. If she could be denied the opportunity of acting on her environment, I believe that she could have started doubting her capabilities, thereby resulting in feelings of shame and low self-esteem.
Development and Progression so Far
So far, I can say that I am in the psychosocial stage 5 within my development and progression, which comprises of identity vs. confusion. It is because this stage has played a significant role in developing a sense of my personality that has helped in influencing my behavior and development. It is because identity refers to an individual’s all of the ideals, values, and beliefs that assist in guiding and shaping one’s behavior ( Schaie, 2016). However, in this stage, I have never been unsure of my desires and ideas since I know that this would make me feel confused and insecure about myself and the future.
I believe that I have completed this stage successfully because of my gained fidelity attitude. As a result, I have the capability of living by the expectations and standards of society. Besides, I have been capable of developing my ego identity as my conscious self of sense. It has been developed as a result of my social interaction as well as becoming primary emphasis during the confusion versus the identity stage of psychosocial development.
Predicted Future Development and Progression
I believe that I would be capable of developing psychosocial stage 7 in the future, which is generativity versus stagnation. It is because, in my adulthood, I would continue building my life, by focusing on family and career. They would be the two most successful things in my life during this stage since I would always have a feeling that I am significantly contributing to the world by being active in my community and home. It implies that I would always be feeling involved and productive within the global community.
In the future, I also believe that I would be capable of developing psychosocial stage 8, which is all about integrity versus despair. It is because it would occur during my old age years, and therefore, I would always reflect back on my life. Dunkel and Harbke (2017) posit that at this stage of development across the psychosocial lifespan theory, individuals tend to reflect on the failures and achievements of their lives. As a result, this helps them in determining whether they were happy or not happy with the life they lived. Besides, the ones who are unsuccessful in this stage would always have a feeling that they have lived a wasted life and will experience several regrets. However, since I am proud of my accomplishments, I would ever feel a sense of integrity when I finally reach this stage. It implies that I would always be reflecting with few regrets as well as a general feeling of satisfaction.
References
Dunkel, C. S., & Harbke, C. (2017). A review of measures of Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development: Evidence for a general factor. Journal of Adult Development , 24 (1), 58-76.
Schaie, K. W. (2016). Theoretical perspectives for the psychology of aging in a lifespan context. In Handbook of the psychology of aging (pp. 3-13). Academic Press.
