Human development refers to the scientific study of how and why human beings experience specific changes in their life. Human development deals with the understanding of the characteristics that identify and differentiate different stages in human life. Several theories have been developed to understand the process biologically, psychoanalytically, as well as psychosocially. Erick Erikson's psychosocial development theory is one of the most important ways of describing changes experienced during human life in eight distinct developmental stages. According to the theorists, human beings go through infancy, early childhood, pre-school, School-age, adolescence, young adulthood, middle adulthood, and finally maturity. The social interactions around an individual influence changes in each stage. Each of the eight stages of Erikson's development process has two conflicting emotional forces known as the opposite personalities. The two personalities cause a crisis that each person needs to resolve for him/her to develop the right character and view of the world.
Trust versus Mistrust Stage
The first stage of the psychosocial development theory is the trust versus mistrust stage. The stage starts from infancy to approximately 18 months old. This is the most critical stage of human life because it shapes the social perception of the world as well as the personality of the child. At this stage, children learn to trust or mistrust those around them. This is entirely dependent on the consistency of caregivers in meeting their needs. For instance, infants may cry when they are feeling frightened or hungry. The ability of the caregiver to respond to these needs with consistency causes them to trust or not trust them. When a child develops trust for those around them, they tend to perceive the world as safe and secure ( Gilleard, & Higgs, 2016) . Nevertheless, in the case of inconsistent, emotionally unavailable, and rejecting caregivers, they develop mistrust for people. For that reason, they generate fear and belief in the world being unpredictable and unpredictable.
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Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt is the second stage in the process and occurs to children between the age of 18 months and 2/3 years of age. During this stage, children are dedicated to developing a better sense of self-control. Essentially, the maker question that children aim at answering is whether they can do things by themselves or whether they need to rely on others to help them. During this phase, children want to be independent and gain control of the world around them. Among the tasks that they try developing independence in include toilet training where they learn to control their body functioning, thus leading to control and autonomy. Other areas that children tend to gain control is developing a preference for specific toys, selection of clothes, and the choice of food they want to eat.
Although it can be frustrating for the parents and caregivers, the stage is critical in enhancing self-esteem and self-autonomy in children. Children who complete the phase successfully always develop a feeling of confidence and security. However, those who do not complete the stage successfully are often left with a sense of inadequacy and self-doubt. It is a building block for the success of children as it influences their success in subsequent tasks, including academics and mastering social skills. In this case, parents and caregivers need to provide children with the necessary support to develop their independence as opposed to punishing and pushing them to do particular tasks against their will. A negative response to child behavior at this stage may result in the feeling of shame and self-doubt, thus causes them to have low self-esteem in everything that they do.
Initiative vs. Guilt
The stage takes place during the pre-school age, which is between 3 and 5 years. During the period, children begin to assert children start to show their authority and control by directing others while playing or in other social interactions. At this stage, children to establish their ability to do things by themselves and explore their skills in life. Therefore, they start asserting power and control over the surrounding by taking initiatives to plan activities, accomplish tasks, as well as face challenges. Caregivers and parents need to encourage their children to explore, trying new things in life, and making appropriate choices. Discouraging and dismissive caregivers can make children ashamed of themselves hence becoming dependent on others for help.
Despite the frustrations that parents and caregivers might experience as children resist following their guide, it is crucial to allow children to make certain decisions by themselves while at the same time, reinforcing boundaries. Encouraging children to make the right decisions should be made through modeling and reinforcement by parents and caregivers. Freedom and helping children to make their decisions enhances their initiative. Nevertheless, in instances when adults in their lived stifle children's effort to take part in physical and imaginative playing, children start feeling like their efforts to self-initiative is a source of embarrassment, thus the feeling of guilt.
Kids who fail to develop some sense of initiative at this stage may result to fear of trying new things in their lives. This is because they may feel like any effort to doing something is wrong. To them, mistakes are a sign of persona failure. Often, they might think that they are wrong. For children with initiative, they understand rat mistakes are a part of life, and all they need to do after failing is to try again.
Industry versus inferiority
The stage, which is the fourth in the psychosocial development process, occurs between the age of six and 13 years. During the elementary school age, children tend to become more competitive in that they wish to do things that their peers can do. During the period, they learn how to learn, read, write, make calculations, and even engage in various sports activities. Teachers play a critical role in the industry versus inferiority stage because they help children develop the skills they need to be competent. As children keep on comparing themselves to their peers, they continue feeling the need to validate their capability.
Additionally, children start to expand their social network during the period. This is the period kids get to understand abilities, as well as those of others. Children can discover their ability better as they interact with their peers' time and against; they keep on comparing their skills to that of others ( Malone et al., 2016) . Therefore, they tend to be proud and confident in their ability to perform what can do things as well as other peers. However, in the case, their skills do not measure up to those of those around them; children feel inferior.
The stage is vital for children to develop self-confidence as they receive praise on things that perform, such as drawing, reading, and problem-solving. Often, people who have excellent performance in school are more likely to be competent and confident as they feel good and proud of their success.
Identity vs. Role Confusion
The Identity vs. role confusion stage of the development process takes place during the adolescence age, between 13 and 21 years old. The stage helps in defining the shift from childhood to adulthood. Children try to develop independence and a sense of self as they try to understand who they are as individuals. It is considered a focal point where what the individual comes to meet the person that the society expects them to become.
Identity vs. Role Confusion stage is a period in life when young people experience changes in their bodies. They start thinking of the role they are supposed to take in the adult world by examining the questions on who they are or who they can be. This way, they get to grow their industrial and sexual identities through the exploration of various possibilities.
When people succeed during this period, they tend to create a strong sense of self. They can commit to the views, standards, and values when they are faced with a particular problem or challenge. In the case of a failure, young people become confused about themselves and about their future, thus resulting in following ideas of others as opposed to their own.
In his theory, Erikson argues that successful young people on resolving crisis during the period, they develop the virtue of fidelity. They are always described by self-confidence and self-assurance. They are essential to associate with individuals and opinions based on loyalty, value, and honesty.
Intimacy vs. Isolation
After the development of confidence in the fifth stage of Erikson's development theory, people start being concerned about their ability to find companionship and affection. It occurs between the age of 21 and 39years ( Darling-Fisher, 2019) . Young people begin having the mind of settling down and starting families, with the willingness to sacrifice and compromise for the sake of their relationships. During the period, they may also experience rejections such as being rejected by people they like or love, like during breakups with their partners. Often, painful rejection and, in other cases, the fear of being rejected due to prior experience, it causes distractions. As a result, they may result in isolation and even choose to avoid others ( Mackinnon et al., 2016) . This rejection may sometimes end up destroying the person and the negative forces becoming harmful to not only themselves but also those around them. The virtue developed after resolving crises during the period is love.
During the stage, young adults develop their ability to love others, both physically and emotionally. Therefore, they can receive love in return. People who go through this stage successfully they become more adept at forming sincere reciprocal relationship and bond with others form common fulfillment.
Generativity versus Stagnation
This stage of development occurs when people are in the middle-age, between 40and 65 years. The primary concern during the stage is leaving a legacy. Therefore, they develop the urge to be productive and contribute significantly to society. During the period, they volunteer at their church in activities such as mentoring children ( Chung, 2018) . They always want to leave a legacy and make the world a better place for future generations. Particular milestones take place during this period. For instance, children may leave home and even some change of career paths for people. In a few cases, some individuals may face a mid-life crisis, thus struggling to find a new reason for existence in their lives.
People who experience failure during the seventh stage lead to the feeling of stagnation in life. They become interested in their surroundings as well as the people around them. However, those that succeed in solving the crisis develop the quality of "Care." They can provide unconditional support for their children.
Integrity vs. Despair
Integrity vs. Despair is the last of the eight stages of Erikson’s theory of development. It is for people in later adulthood with the age of 65 and above. They are retirees, and it is, therefore, essential for them to feel a sense of contentment knowing that they had achievements something meaningful and significant influences on society when they were younger. When they look at their past, they get a sense of integrity and pride in their achievement in life. They tend to feel satisfied with things they have dealt with have a few regrets about their past. However, this is only possible in instances when the person was able to resolve the psychosocial crises during the stages before successfully.
For the unsuccessful people, they experience desolation because they develop the feeling of having wasted their entire lives hence experiencing many regrets. Unsuccessful people are always bitter about what they were not able to accomplish in their lives and keep wishing that they could have a second chance. Upon the successful resolution of the crisis at this phase, people develop wisdom characterized by composure, the suitable peace of mind, and broadmindedness. For these older people, they are likely to perceive life more positively, even at the time of death.
Conclusion
Erik Erikson suggests that human beings have eight stages that they go through during their entire life. Each stage requires a person to solve the crisis, which is essential for shaping their future personality. Therefore, failure to address these problems may lead to a feeling of inadequacy and a less healthy personality.
References
Chung, D. (2018). The eight stages of psychosocial protective development: Developmental psychology. Journal of Behavioral and Brain Science , 8 (06), 369.
Darling-Fisher, C. S. (2019). Application of the Modified Erikson Psychosocial Stage Inventory: 25 Years in Review. Western journal of nursing research , 41 (3), 431-458.
Gilleard, C., & Higgs, P. (2016). Connecting life span development with the sociology of the life course: A new direction. Sociology , 50 (2), 301-315.
Mackinnon, S. P., De Pasquale, D., & Pratt, M. W. (2016). Predicting generative concern in young adulthood from narrative intimacy: A 5-year follow-up. Journal of Adult Development , 23 (1), 27-35.
Malone, J. C., Liu, S. R., Vaillant, G. E., Rentz, D. M., & Waldinger, R. J. (2016). Midlife Eriksonian psychosocial development: Setting the stage for late-life cognitive and emotional health. Developmental psychology , 52 (3), 496.
