ERIKSON'S EIGHT AGES OF MAN

In his book Childhood and Society, Erik Erikson (1963) presented a theory of psychological development that he called the “eight ages of man”; that is, eight developmental stages that he believed all human beings pass through during the course of their lives. Each stage includes a critical turning point that shapes the direction of future development, i.e., a conflict or some state of being versus another, contradictory, impulse.

Stage One: Basic Trust vs. Basic Mistrust

The first stage is characteristic of infants. As they are regularly fed and changed, they feel reassured that their needs will be met and that others always will be there for them. They begin to differentiate “self” from “other.” They begin to feel comfortable and familiar with their schedules and with the outer world. They learn to trust their environment as a result of being fed and cared for.
Erikson asserts that along with this basic sense of trust is a basic mistrust of the environment and those who inhabit it. He terms this “a sense of inner division and universal nostalgia for a paradise forfeited” (p. 250). He believes that all human beings feel a sense of loss and abandonment that leads them to mistrust. The development of basic trust over basic mistrust has a penetrating effect on the future development and psychological integration of the child and provides the foundation for the human virtue of hope.
An individual must pass through stage one before he or she can proceed to stage two.

Stage Two: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

Encouraged by their trust in the world, infants grow more independent. They begin to assert their will as they realize that the world will continue to care for them even as they become more demanding. Erikson calls this stage autonomy, which, he warns, must not be jeopardized by the experiencing of shame and doubt. Young children too often are made to feel ashamed of their attempts at independence—particularly of their bodies, curiosity about their bodies and their sexuality, and their bodily functions. When adults reprimand children for acts of curiosity, the children are likely to feel ashamed of themselves and of their bodies. Shame produces feelings of guilt and doubt—in oneself and in one’s world—that erode the basic sense of trust and inhibit the development of autonomy and assertiveness. The virtue of will emerges during this second stage of life.

Stage Three: Initiative vs. Guilt

Initiative, in Erikson’s definition, represents not only motivation to perform a task but also a way of approaching life. As children develop initiative, they become more comfortable with themselves and with their bodies, looking at the world with their own points of view. They are bold and almost-fearless explorers of their world, with seemingly boundless energy. During this stage, children present themselves as more advanced and “together” both physically and mentally.
This also, however, is the stage during which Oedipal conflicts emerge. The concept of “getting” begins to take on sexual connotations. At the same time, children begin to sense certain restrictions or taboos concerning their thoughts and desires. Erikson, like Freud, asserts that the Oedipal and Electra complexes produce a fear of castration and guilt feelings about sexual urges and contemplated actions. The challenge at this stage of development is for the child to maintain his or her initiative and zest for learning and exploring without feeling guilty about fantasies or thoughts that may arise. Purpose is the virtue that emerges during this developmental stage.

Stage Four: Industry vs. Inferiority

The child’s desire to learn and explore must be harnessed by some form of systematic schooling. In order to develop into a mature and successful adult, the child must learn to value the rewards of work and achievement—values that are instilled through the use of disciplined teaching. A subtle change takes place in that the child no longer wishes to dominate others and bend them to his or her will; rather, the child learns to win approval, attention, and things by producing an adult’s desired result. (For many modern parents, that desired result is good grades.) This new sense of industry is one of the steps a child must take toward adulthood and the development of the virtue of competence.
The danger at this fourth stage of development lies in the possibility of the child’s feeling inferior (slow to learn, unable to achieve or please its parents, unrewarded for achievement, etc.). The child’s parents and teacher, who exert the most influence and authority over the child, are the most likely to invoke these feelings. That is why it is so crucial that a child receive much loving, “no-strings-attached” attention from its parents, and sensitive, individualized attention from its teachers at this stage in order to encourage feelings of self-worth and personal competence.

Stage Five: Identity vs. Role Confusion

Identity versus role confusion is the classic adolescent conflict. At puberty, young people begin again to question their roles in the world, the meaning of their existence, and to search for their adult identities and self-perceptions. Adolescents have a great need to belong, to feel like others, and be accepted by their peers. To do so, they form cliques, dress alike, talk alike, and seek love relationships as a way of vindicating their worth and self-esteem. At this adolescent stage, the virtue of fidelity develops.
As adolescents seek their identity, they fight off an ever-present sense of role confusion. They do not know who they are, what they will do with their lives, what jobs they want to hold, or even what their core values are. It seems as if their world has been turned upside down, and they must struggle to achieve a new sense of the universe and their place in it.

Stage Six: Intimacy vs. Isolation

As young people struggle through adolescence, they begin to crave intimate relationships with others. Erikson defines intimacy as “the capacity to commit [oneself] to concrete affiliations and partnerships and to develop the ethical strength to abide by such commitments, even though they may call for significant sacrifices and compromises” (p. 263). Such relationships include romantic relationships, best friendships, sexual experiences, and intellectual stimulations by teachers or other figures of knowledge.
As desirable as such relationships may be, they often are feared by adolescents. They may fear that by becoming deeply involved with another, they will lose themselves and their identities. If a young person avoids intimacy with others and withdraws from social contacts or self-exposure, he or she is likely to feel a profound sense of isolation. Another side effect of the fear of loss of self is prejudice, which can be described as the fear of the unfamiliar. Remember that the adolescent, while desirous of intimacy, also craves familiarity and belonging. People and things unfamiliar are perceived as threatening and are, therefore, shunned. The virtue of love comes into being during the intimacy stage.

Stage Seven: Generativity vs. Stagnation

Presumably, after a person has successfully established an intimate relationship, he or she will move to the next stage of development, generativity, which Erikson defines as “the concern in establishing and guiding the next generation” (p. 267). Generativity is not merely the desire to have children, although this desire is a major part of it. Generativity also is the need to have something to care for and develop—the need to be needed. It also represents a person’s faith and basic trust in humankind: that we will continue to exist and that it is good that people inhabit the earth. The virtue of care develops during this stage.
Erikson asserts that stagnation can result if generativity is not present. This sense of stagnation can take the form of a feeling of purposelessness in life or a resurgence of basic mistrust. Persons who suffer from stagnation often attempt to fill the void by indulging one another as if they themselves were the children, which Erikson believes leads to “personal impoverishment” (p. 267).

Stage Eight: Ego Integrity vs. Despair

The final stage of development is ego integrity, which is achieved only after the issues present during the first seven stages have been resolved successfully. Ego integrity is a sense of “rightness” in the world, a sense that one’s presence in the universe is meaningful and that the universe itself has an order and a reason for being. A person who has achieved ego integrity also is aware of the briefness of life and therefore the value of each day spent on this earth. This person feels comfortable with his or her life decisions and view of the world and is willing to defend them. At the same time, though, the person who feels time passing harbors a fear of death.
If a person is not satisfied with his or her choices and wishes for another chance to “do it over,” he or she is likely to feel despair that time is running out and that there is not enough time to start over and live life another, better way. This final despair is the best argument to live life fully and to pursue one’s goals. That way, there will be fewer regrets. Wisdom is the virtue that develops out of the encounter with integrity and despair during this last stage of life.

Erikson’s “Eight Ages of Man”

ERIKSONS EIGHT AGES OF MAN