There are so many developmental theories in the world that try to explain why children act the way they do. \u00a0From Freud to Piaget and Vygotsky, many people (weirdly, mostly men) have researched children through the years and have tried to explain how we grow, develop and learn.\u00a0 But the theory that I find the most helpful in understanding why children are behaving the way they are is Erkison\u2019s theory of \u201cThe Eight Ages of Man.\u201d\u00a0 Keeping in mind his theory really helps me keep my sanity when dealing with temperamental children (whether my own or when teaching).<\/p>\n
Each of Erikson\u2019s ages focuses on the development of two converse feelings and how a person\u2019s experiences can sway their behavior one way or the other. \u00a0Here\u2019s the basics of Erikson\u2019s Eight Ages:<\/p>\n
Basic Trust vs. Basic Mistrust (infancy)<\/b><\/p>\n
Essentially babies learn to trust people (or conversely, mistrust) based on their early experiences.\u00a0 If they are well taken care of and have their needs lovingly met regularly, they should develop a sense of trust.<\/p>\n
Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (toddlerhood)<\/b><\/p>\n
In this stage children are becoming more independent and often want to do things on their own but they still want to feel loved and supported.\u00a0 Providing positive and loving support and guidance during this stage will help the child develop autonomy whereas not allowing them to explore their world and try new things on their own or not providing any guidance or boundaries at all can cause the child to develop shame or doubt.<\/p>\n
Initiative vs. Guilt (pre-school years)<\/b><\/p>\n
During this stage children are beginning to have their own thoughts and ideas about the world and expand on their inherent creativity.\u00a0 Again, if they are supported in their independence and encouraged to explore their ideas and try new things, they will develop initiative in self-guided learning and play.\u00a0 Conversely, if they are made to feel like their ideas are no good or they are incapable, they will develop guilt, feeling that their ideas or needs and wants are not important or stupid.<\/p>\n
Industry vs. Inferiority (primary school years)<\/b><\/p>\n
At this age children learn they can get positive attention from doing well.\u00a0 If properly encouraged and supported in their tasks, they will develop industry in which they will work hard and persist in tasks.\u00a0 But when children feel they are unable to meet the overly high expectations of adults, they will feel inferior and may stop trying, assuming their efforts wouldn\u2019t be good enough anyways.<\/p>\n
Identity vs. Role Confusion (adolescence)<\/b><\/p>\n
We all know the teen years are trying times as children become adults and experience so many changes all at once.\u00a0 This is when people explore who they are and who they want to be.\u00a0 Most go through a period of role confusion where they aren\u2019t sure where they fit into society and may try many different things to find their way to their own identity.<\/p>\n
Intimacy vs. Isolation (younger adulthood)<\/b><\/p>\n
This is the time when people begin making commitments to others and develop intimacy.\u00a0 When in loving relationships, they learn to make sacrifices and compromises that are required where as if they experience harmful relationships or cannot give up their own wants and desires for the sake of others, they may feel isolated.<\/p>\n
There is also Generativity vs. Stagnation which applies to the middle aged years and Integrity vs. Despair which applies to the elderly years.\u00a0 I\u2019ll let you explore those on your own if you\u2019re interested.<\/p>\n
So basically, according to Erikson, supporting and loving our children as they grown and allowing them supported independence rather than micromanaging their behavior is crucial to developing a healthy self-image and necessary in every stage of life.\u00a0 (Easier said than done some days!)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
There are so many developmental theories in the world that try to explain why children act the way they do. \u00a0From Freud to Piaget and Vygotsky, many people (weirdly, mostly men) have researched children through the years and have tried to explain how we grow, develop and learn.\u00a0 But the theory that I find the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[284],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-328","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-home-school-zone"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/328","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=328"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/328\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10060,"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/328\/revisions\/10060"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=328"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=328"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beyondmommying.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=328"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}