Erickson &Identity

First things first…What are

we talking about?

Identity vs. Self

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Identity

- A relationship between an individual and the world-An individual’s identity may vary from group to

group

*This idea becomes crucial as a child’s social world expands

“Identity remains unintelligible unless it is located in a word.” (Berger & Luckman,

1966)

Self

-A person’s feelings about their own qualities-Influenced by social factors

*This concept becomes crucial as a child’s perception increases

Charles Horton Cooley’s “looking-glass self”- We look at the image that others reflect back to us through their communications (DeVito,

2009)

And now I present…

Erik Erikson!

All about ErikNever Graduated from high school

Product of an affair, which was concealed from him until later childhood

Raised by his Jewish mother- Teased at Temple for being blond haired & blue eyed-At Grammar school he was teased for being Jewish

Pursued the life of an artist-Taught at art school

Career as Developmental Psychologist Met Sigmund Freud’s daughter-Erickson experienced

Psychoanalysis and became trained himself, by Freud

Also spent time studying Montesori method

Left Germany in 1933 when the Nazis came to power

Began to work with emotionally troubled young people as well as Yurok tribe’s children

1st child psychoanalyst in Boston

Actually moved in with the family of a patient for a month to gain insight

Developed his own theories as his mentor’s were beginning to fall out of fashion

Written works1950- Published

“Childhood & Society”, for which he is best known

“Every adult, whether he is a follower or a leader, a member of a mass or an elite, was once a child.”

1969- “Ghandi’s Truth” won the Pulitzer Prize& National Book Award

In 1966, the Erickson Graduate School of Child Development was founded in Chicago

Theory of Psychosocial Development 8 Stages- From birth to end of life (Expanded final stage in his

golden years-Realized that his own development wasn’t finished)

Each stage has a conflict, a crisis question that must be answered if the individual is to make a healthy transition to the next stage

Unlike Piaget, the structure is less rigid, an individual may move on without “mastering” a stage

Ideal scenario is that the person masters the “virtues” of each stage for the optimal result

Virtues- The individual comes to understand and accept the extremes of both sides of a life-stage challenge

Full understanding of the virtue may not arrive during stage

***See handout

Eight stages of psychosocial development1.) Hope

2.) Will

3.) Purpose

4.) Competence

5.) Fidelity

6.) Love

7.) Caring

8.) Wisdom

Volunteers, please?

You may be asked to do interpretive dance!

Let’s look at this concept of virtues.

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Preschool years

-The child at this stage is focused primarily on their own needs and perceptions

1.) Hope- Trust vs. Mistrust

2.) Will- Autonomy vs. Doubt

3.) Purpose- Initiative vs. Guilt

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Elementary Years

The child is beginning to understand the concept of “others”, particularily the fact that these “others” have a vision of them!

3.) Purpose- But in a non-home environment!

4.) Competence- Industry vs Inferiority

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Adolescence

The person is developing abstract concepts and is able to see perspectives other than their own

5.) Fidelity-Identity vs. Role Confusion

6.) Love-Intimacy vs. Isolation

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Later Years

Development is NOT complete! People do not stop growing

7.) Caring- Generativity vs. Stagnation (This is easier to handle when you have a school named after you)

8.) Wisdom- Ego integrity vs. Despair (Erickson added this stage in his later life as he experienced it himself)

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Unique moments of crisis!

All stages are essential for healthy lifelong development of an individual

There are two stages that educators must be EXTREMELY sensitive too because of the major life changes children are experiencing

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“Transitioning from a relatively warm, caring, child centered kindergarten environment to a potentially more intimidating and less flexible first-grade classroom is also quite a struggle for many children…” (Sink, Edwards, & Weir, 2007)

The child’s whole structure of life changes at this point- Longer days, classroom structure, larger children, assignments, many teachers…

Kindergarten to 1st Grade

Sense of Self has expandedThe child is just beginning to learn how to compare

self-worth

“…the classroom is a complex and social setting requiring understanding of the expectations and roles of teachers and peers and adaptation to a particular set of social rules and responsibilities.” (Porath, 2003)

The child is now “forced” to deal with judgement & expectations-They will receive feedback from classmates, teachers, coaches, even parents

The child now also adds on additional group identities- Student, member of a homeroom, friend groups, teams, etc…

Elementary school to High SchoolBecause of increased transportation &

communication options, as well as a greater amount of autonomy, these students must negotiate a multitude of identities at a stage where their own self concept is fragile and malleable

The concept for abstract thought is more developed. This can lead to healthy questioning or role confusion

The stakes are raised- Adult life looms and the choices carry consequences

For EducatorsBe aware of the stages children are

negotiating-Not every child develops in a linear fashion

Encourage questions and autonomy

Allow children to experience success but provide realistic feedback

Provide support & resources when necessary

Special kinds of Identity“However, the intellectual standards

individuals are measured against are generally set by researchers who are unfamiliar with the various contexts from which their participants are drawn, and tend to reflect middle-class ideals and the criteria for success in middle-class culture.” (Klaczynski, 1990)

***Our demographics are changing. What about the “non-mainstream” students?

Possible IdentitiesEthnic

Racial

Gender

Economic

Sexuality

What else?

Role ConfusionMore than just who am I?

Who am I when I’m at school? With my friends? At church? Playing on a team….

In many cases, children are forced to make a choice as to which identities are the most valuable.

Self ConceptNow that we have a good

understanding of identity, we can examine the idea of the self-concept

Like identity, the self-concept is developed socially

Somebody tell me about Charles Horton Cooley’s “Looking –Glass” theory!

Self-KnowledgeNo identity without self and no self

without other people!

“We see ourselves not by looking inward, but by gazing into the social mirror of other’s opinions of us, and even the opinions are not given directly, but are the products of our imagining of the other’s view of ourselves.” (Myers, 1996)

Can we see where this can go wrong?

Big Questions1.) How does self-esteem affect a student’s

behavior in school?

2.) How does life in school affect a student’s self esteem?

3.) What do students see as their capabilities?

4.) As teachers, are we aware of our preconceived ideas about our students? Can these ideas affect our expectations?

5.) Are our students aware of our expectations?

And back to Erickson!The process of development never stops! It is fluid,

dynamic and there may be opportunities for individuals to move forward and backwards.

This flexibility is both a blessing and a curse for students. I can’t help but wonder if our educational system is set up to challenge students at just the wrong time.

We as educator’s can have a tremendous influence, both positive and negative. It is crucial that we are aware of how we influence a child’s identity formation! Erickson provides a road map for us!

We can provide the support and help develop the thinking that will help each student gain a full measure of the virtues.

Erickson speaks to WHY we teach.

Works CitedBerger, P.L., & Luckmann, T. (1966). The Social construction of reality.

Garden City, NY: Doubleday.

DeVito, J.A. (2009). The Interpersonal communication book. United States of America: Pearson Education.

 Erik Erikson. (2010, May 13). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved May 21, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Erickson

Klaczynski, P.A. (1990). Cultural-developmental tasks and adolescent development: theoretical and methodological. Adolescence, 25(100), 811-20.

Myers, D.G. (1996). Social psychology. United States of America: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Porath, M.P. (2003). Social understanding in the first years of school. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 18.

Sink, Ph.D, C.A., Edwards, Ph.D, C.N., & Weir, S.J. (2007). Helping children transition from kindergarten to first grade. Professional School Counseling, 10(3), 233-7.