Psychosocial Development - Assignment Example

#1. Thoroughly discuss your understanding of the "conflict" that the person is working through.

In Erikson’s theoretical framework of psychosocial development, every developmental stage presupposes an emerging conflict – a crisis of ego - that is to be resolved for an individual to pass to the next stage. According to Whitbourne and Waterman, “personality change during adulthood is the result of the resolution of the adult crises surrounding the emergence of the ego components of identity, intimacy, generativity, and integrity” (Whitbourne & Waterman, 1979, p.373). Thereby, the stage of early adulthood entails a crisis, or conflict, too. In Erikson’s view, this stage, with the average span from 20 to 39 years, is related to the conflict of intimacy vs. isolation which is based on love. Entering this psychosocial stage, an individual is expected to be ready to devote themselves to close relationships and “sharing identity” with other people (Sigelman & Rider, 2014, p.354). Willing to enter long-term commitments, the individual is ready for compromises and sacrifices for establishing of reciprocal intimate relationships. Thereby, the conflict emerging on this stage shows whether the person is able to form such commitments, i.e. intimacy. However, in case s/he is unable or perceives such relationships as a threat, the conflict might resolve in isolation. In other words, a successful resolution of the conflict leads to feelings of safety, comfort and commitment in intimate committed relationships as well as love as the basic ‘virtue’. On the other hand, the failure to resolve the conflict leads to alienation, fear of long-term commitment, inability to establish truly intimate relationships with a partner, and, eventually, to isolation.

#2. How does success in resolving the conflict affect his/her future functioning? How does failure (or delayed development) affect his/her future functioning?

As Erikson emphasizes intrapersonal relationships in development of the personality (DeRobertis, 2008, p.89), resolution of each stage’s crisis in emotional and social domains is of key importance for the individual’s development and proper social functioning. Thereby, the intimacy versus isolation conflict needs to be resolved for a person to pass deal with the following psychosocial conflicts which will emerge later in life. Resolution of intimacy vs. isolation crisis directly impacts the future functioning of the person and depends greatly on the person’s life experiences. Successful resolution of the conflict, that is, development of long-term commitment and the sense of intimacy, produces an obviously positive impact on the individual’s social functioning. One feels comfortable about engaging in close relationships with people and is able to construct his/her self-actualization through the relationships. On the other hand, the individual’s functioning might be impaired in case of resolution of the conflict in favor of isolation: “Being unable to meet this developmental challenge resulted in a sense of personal isolation”, while “the isolation outcome is viewed as a developmental failure” (Beaty, 2002, p. 3). The young people who fail to form meaningful committed relationships are at risk of having multiple problems in their social lives both on the discussed stage and in future. The core point of this conflict is losing oneself in order to find oneself in committed relationships. If a person is unable to take risks in order to find such relationships, s/he will feel unfulfilled and empty.

#3. How does this stage relate to the prior stage? How does it relate to the next stage? Give two examples of each.

Naturally, all developmental stages are closely interconnected in Erikson’s framework: successful completion of one stage defines the progress the individuals will undergo during the following stage. The stage of early adulthood focused on the intimacy vs. isolation conflict is preceded by the stage of adolescence with the conflict of identity vs. role confusion and followed by the stage of middle adulthood when the individual faces the crisis of generativity vs. stagnation. In the stage preceding early adulthood, the individual is expected to disengage from the family and for a personal sense of identity (Beaty, 2002, p.4). After having distanced from the family and formed a unique identity, the individual starts seeking reengagement and new connections with peers, romantic partners and friends. That is, the experience of young adulthood depends directly on the outcome of the preceding stage of adolescence. For instance, when an individual forms a firm identity through exploration and experiments in adolescence, s/he will have no fear of dissolving completely in a partner and lose the sense of who s/he is. On the other hand, strong commitment to certain ideas or traumatic social experiences might result in inability to trust a partner (for instance, for young females who form misandric attitudes as a result of unsuccessful experiences in socialization) and engage in secure commitments.

Similarly, the stage of intimacy vs. isolation produces the direct impact on the progress during the following stage of generativity vs. stagnation. For instance, an individual who has fulfilled themselves in intimate relationships and created secure family relationships will be more successful in resolving the following conflict and producing meaning of life through career and family. Another example is an individual who has failed to create a family or build secure relationships with a partner (e.g. marriage), can feel unhappy in the further stage, for the only domain of self-actualization is career. In other words, resolution of the intimacy vs. isolation crisis affects the person’s search for meaning and stability, either encouraging the process or impeding it.

#4. What are events/incidents that can cause delayed development? Give two clear examples.

Throughout the process of psychosocial development, the individual experiences multiple influences of environmental factors which might eventually shape the course of development and predetermine success of failure in resolving crises arising during these stages. It is common to emphasize factors and events that shape the person’s psychosocial development from early years to adolescence or cause delays in transition to the next stage (for instance, exposure to abuse in childhood, rejection from peers etc.). However, such incidents and events can occur in the stage of intimacy vs. isolation and later stages as well. Beaty (2002) provides an example of the cases study involving traumatic experiences from adolescence which might have caused delays in the individual’s development. Particularly, an example of the traumatic experience which evidently disrupted the person’s identity formation is divorce of the parents. As one sees his/her family falling apart (the model of intimate relationships one had beginning with childhood), it becomes more difficult to trust other people and engage in long-term commitments. On the other hand, there are cases when parents overprotect their adolescent children and thus deprive them of opportunities to explore and construct their self. This is also an example of the incident (or tendency) which delays development and transition to the next stage, for the person is still unable to take responsibility and express his/her identity in a proper way despite the age.

#5. Compare this theoretical framework with Freud's Psycho-Sexual Stages. How is it similar and how is it different?

Freud’s framework of psychosexual development implies that the entire life of the individual is based on the interplay of pleasure and tensions. These tensions, in turn, are caused by libido, while pleasures result from discharge of libido. The stages of development include oral, anal, phallic, latent and genital; while the stage corresponding to Erikson’s stage of intimacy vs. isolation is genital. However, Freud’s genital stage is the final step in the person’s psychosocial development, though Erikson’s intimacy vs. isolation stage is narrower in the age range and is followed by the stage of generativity vs. stagnation. The key similarity of these two frameworks is, however, significance of intimate relationships for the individual’s fulfillment. In Freud’s view, an individual develops sexual experimentation in adolescence, and the ‘normal’ outcome of such exploration is development of secure and love-based relationships with a heterosexual partner. Although Erikson distinguishes the period of exploration from the period of relationships development (that is, two stages correspond to Freud’s genital stage), these frameworks are very similar in the individual’s way through exploration to secure relationships and intimacy. Moreover, both theorists emphasize the role of conflict in developmental delays: Erikson points to challenges in development due to failure to resolve a crisis, and Freud implies that failures to resolve developmental conflicts might lead to fixations. However, Erikson and Freud stress different domains of conflicts: Freud focuses on development of neuroses and perversions, while Erikson rather emphasizes the individual’s social functioning.

#6. Compare this theoretical framework with Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development. How is it similar and how is it different?

The theory of moral development suggested by Kohlberg distinguishes three main level of development, each divided into two stages: the individual commonly goes through changes in thinking “about moral judgments and reflected societal norms” (Mandleco & Mandleco, 2004, p.45). The three levels of moral development – pre-conventional morality, conventional morality and post-conventional morality – reflect the way people form perceptions of moral norms in relation to the external factors. The main commonality found in Kohlberg’s and Erikson’s frameworks is the significant role played by social relationships and society’s response in development of the individual. Furthermore, Erikson’s stage of intimacy vs. isolation could be paralleled to Kohlberg’s stage of conventional morality. Erikson’s stage is hence similar to that of Kohlberg in terms of significance of personal relationships: conventional morality implies making decisions in order to develop identity, conform and form good interpersonal relations and Erikson’s early adulthood shows that one’s identity – whether well-developed or insecure – plays a role in establishment of intimate partnerships. However, the frameworks are different in the frames of each period and the individual’s ability to transfer to the next stage. For instance, Kohlberg states that only 10 to 15 percent people reach the stage of post-conventional morality; while Erikson’s individual passes to the next stage literally inevitably, though success and the normal course of development depend on the way the previous crisis was resolved.

#7. Place the person in the context of the family system. a. How does this stage "fit in" or "tax" the family system? b. How is it affected by other family members who are in different stages? c. How are they affected by the stage that you are focusing on? d. What stage is the actual family in?

Overall, the discussed stage of Erikson’s developmental framework is closely connected to the family system, because creating a family is a crucial outcome of the crisis resolution. In other words, a person at this stage of development is expected to acquire the ability to engage in intimate relationships, while family is probably the perfect type of intimate relationships and the pathway to meaningful life at the following stage. On the other hand, the individual’s family (i.e. the one s/he descends from) can affect resolution of the conflict of intimacy vs. isolation: for instance, parents who are commonly at later stages of development might put pressure on the person in order to motivate him/her to merry or find a partner. At the same time, the discussed stage is transitional, for the person has already separated his/her identity from that of the family and is in search of self-fulfillment in the new intimate relationships. That is, parents’ influence on the individual’s values and behavior is minimized, though they might be affected by the psychological challenges faced by their adult children. The family of the individual is in a kind of transitional stage: the person in early adulthood is facing the conflict of intimacy vs. isolation and thus has to resolve: s/he will either proceed with self-fulfillment through commitment and intimate relationships or fail to establish a kind of relationships that was a basis for his/her own family in the past.

Reference list

Beaty, L. A. (2002). Developmental Counseling: The Young Adult Period. Critical Issues in Young Adult Development. Retrieved May 13, 2016 from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED461803.pdf

DeRobertis, E. M. (2008). Humanizing Child Developmental Theory: A Holistic Approach. iUniverse Inc.

Mandleco, B. L. &Mandleco, B. H. (2004). Growth and Development Handbook: Newborn Through Adolescence. Cengage Learning.

Sigelman, C. K. & Rider, E. A. (2014). Life-Span Human Development. Cengage Learning.

Whitbourne, S. K., & Waterman, A. S. (1979). Psychosocial development during the adult years: Age and cohort comparisons. Developmental Psychology, 15(4), 373-378. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.15.4.373