There are eight stages of psychosocial development that all people go through according to Erik Erikson. Each stage builds upon the previous one, beginning at birth and not ending throughout all of life. People are constantly constructing and reconstructing their identity, which is based upon their maturational unfolding, or the progression of change within themselves.
The process of constructing identity comes into crisis when cultural challenges the adolescent's identity. Some of this conflict comes from how people react to the adolescent and the demands and expectations placed upon him or her. This clash creates a crisis that helps the individual move along to the next developmental stage.
Identity Vs. Role Diffusion
The fifth stage of Erikson’s psychosocial development is that of identity verses role diffusion. This most often occurs during an individual's adolescence. At this time peers and models have a huge impact upon the individual's life and he begin to form an identity.
Understanding One's Identity
An identity is the way people perceive themselves – in other words, their self-concept. This identity may or may not be true, as it is simply what they believe to be true about them self. Many things can affect their identity including:
- Emotions – emotions influence self-esteem, resulting in a positive or negative view of themselves.
- Task behavior – task behavior has to do with what people decide to get involved in.
- Social interactions – social interactions affect the way people perceive themselves and how they believe others will see them. Projection is common here, as people will interpret the actions and attitudes of those they see in light of how they feel about themselves.
Role Diffusion
The outcome of role diffusion is that of role confusion. In forming their identity, students will begin to think about who they are, where they are going and how they fit in. They may try new hairstyles, experiment with new clothing styles, and form a group of people with whom they hang out.
Adolescent children who develop role diffusion are those who revert to strange hairstyles and clothing styles such as the Gothic look. They may hang out with a bad group of kids, causing them to get in trouble as they search for acceptance from their peers.
Intimacy Vs. Isolation
The sixth stage of Erikson’s psychosocial development is that of intimacy verses isolation. This occurs during the young adult years. The people that are key players during this stage in life are friends, boyfriend/girlfriend, and other peers. Depending on how healthy an identity students form about themselves, they can move into this intimacy level in their friendships, enabling them to have stable relationships. Insecurity, on the other hand, as a result of role diffusion, often can lead to students isolating themselves in order to feel safer. The result is difficulty maintaining a healthy intimate relationship.
These two stages in Erikson’s psychosocial development can be seen in the everyday life of students. It helps to explain how student’s life experiences and relationships build upon one another. Without a positive identity, students may not have the capacity to form intimate relationships as quickly in young adulthood. Although it is not impossible to form intimate relationships without a positive self-concept, it does make it a more difficult and a generally longer process.
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Jennifer Wagaman - Jennifer is a mother of 2 and has both public, private and administrative experience in the education field.
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