the EGO-ANALYTIC PSYCHOLOGY ERIK ERIKSON 01 agenda TODAY'S 02 03 04 OVERVIEW BIOGRAPHY MAIN CONCEPTS RELEVANT RESEARCH GUESS THE GIBBERISH 1. Read the words that will appear on your screen 2. Speak aloud until you guess the right word 3. Type your answer in the chat box. 4. You have 40s, ready? Go! AREK AREKSIN Answer: ERIK ERIKSON IGU ENELYTOC Answer: EGO ANALYTIC AXESTANTEUL CRESES Answer: EXISTENTIAL CRISIS PSYCHUSUCOEL Answer: PSYCHOSOCIAL THRUST Answer: TRUST A short story He was born from a Jewish Dane, whose family appears to be more Danish than Jewish. Eric Erikson's lifelong goal was to know his father's identity, which he failed in the end. But first, he has three different beliefs about his father. Due to his appearance, he also went through an identity crisis in his early years. In addition, he continued to struggle with his identity during his old age. — -He spoke mostly in German—the language of his youth —and rarely spoke in English, his primary language, for more than 60 years. In addition, he retained a long-held affinity for Denmark and the Danish people and took perverted pride in displaying the flag of Denmark, a country in which he never lived. Emphasized qualities of the ego. OVERVIEW Describe the social and historical forces influencing the ego’s strengths and weaknesses. Each stage of his development theory provided opportunities for a basic ego strength or virtue to grow. Post Freudian Theory Freudian Theory is the foundation for his life-cycle approach to personality. Erikson intended his theory of personality to expand rather than diminish the influence of Freudian psychoanalysis, in contrast to earlier psychodynamic thinkers who cut almost all ties to that discipline. To refute Freud's premises and to present a fresh "way of looking at things”. Psychosocial Theory Encompasses 8-stages compared to the 5-stages of development of Freud. Infancy, Early Childhood, Play Age, School Age, Adolescence, Young Adult, Adulthood, Old Age In each stage of his development theory, Erikson suggested that a specific psychosocial struggle contributes to personality formation. Existential Crisis - A turning point in one’s life that may either strengthen or weaken personality. This Theory placed more emphasis on both social and historical influences. In four key areas, Erikson expanded Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theory. He first deepened our comprehension of the ego by demonstrating how it is a creative problem-solver that develops from each person's unique genetic, cultural, and historical environment. Second, he clarified a social dimension that was hinted at but never explicitly stated in Freud's stages of development. Third, he expanded our idea of development to include every stage of life, from early childhood to old age. Fourth, he investigated how culture, society, and history have shaped people's personalities to provide examples. BIOGRAPHY Identity Crisis and Psychosocial Development Theory Frankfurt, Germany; June 15, 1902 Raised alone by his mother, Karla Abrahamsen until she was married to Dr. Theodore Homburger His interest in the development of identity was sparked by this early experience His own experiences in school led to the further development of his interest in identity Endured bullying at his Jewish temple school for being different Was sent away from grammar school due to his Jewish heritage Spent a short time in art school but quickly left Accepted a teaching position at a progressive school founded by Dorothy Burlingham, a friend of Anna Freud Got 2 credentials from the Vienna Psychoanalytic Institute and the Montessori Teachers Association Met Joan Serson, got married in 1930 and had 3 kids His son, Kai T. Erikson is a well-known American Sociologist Erikson immigrated in 1933 to teach at Harvard Medical School Eventually had teaching jobs at Yale, the San Francisco Psychoanalytic Institute, the Austen Riggs Center, the University of California at Berkeley, and the Center for Advanced Studies of the Behavioral Sciences Authored "Childhood and Society", "The Life Cycle Completed", and "Gandhi's Truth," which won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award Died on May 12, 1994 due to an infection. He was 91 years old. Main Concepts THE EGO in POST-FREUDIAN THEORY In Freud’s psychoanalytic theory he believed that for a psychologically healthy person, the ego is sufficiently developed to rule in the id, even though its control is still weak and might erupt and overwhelm the ego at any time In Erikson’s theory, the ego is the part of the mind that gives coherence to experiences, conscious or unconscious Erikson agreed with Sigmund Freud that many aspects of ego's functioning are unconscious, but he believed the ego has an overall unifying purpose that leads to consistent behavior and conduct Erikson recognizes the ego as a positive force that creates a self-identity, a sense of “I” rather than just a negative role of avoiding anxiety During childhood, the ego is weak, pliable, and fragile but through adolescence it begins to strengthen and take form Three Interrelated Aspects of Ego Body ego - refers to experiences with our body; a way of seeing our physical self as different from other people Ego ideal - represents the image we have of ourselves in comparison with an established ideal Ego identity - the image we have of ourselves in the variety of social roles we play SOCIETY'S INLFLUENCE To Erikson, the ego exists potentially at birth, but it must emerge from within a cultural environment Pseudo species - an illusion perpetrated by a particular society that is somehow chosen to be the human species One of Erikson’s principal contributions to personality theory was his extension of the Freudian early stages of development to include school age, youth, adulthood, and old age EPIGENETIC PRINCIPLE Erikson believed that the ego develops throughout the various stages of life according to an epigenetic principle, a term borrowed from embryology which implies a step-by-step growth of fetal organs Erikson’s stages are epigenetic (comes from the Greek words epi, “upon,” and genesis, “emergence”) “Epigenesis means that one characteristic develops on top of another in space and time” STAGES of PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FREUD vs ERIKSON In Freud’s psychosexual stages, children are more focused on coming in terms with their own sexuality. For Erikson, children are trying to understand and relate themselves to the world and to others The development of the ego is clearly outlined in Erikson’s psychosocial stages of life cycle. Ideally, at each stage the ego develops certain strengths or basic virtues that enables an individual to move forward Each of Erikson’s psychosocial stages centers on an emotional polarity or conflict that children encounter at certain critical periods Seven basic points: growth takes place according to epigenetic principle in every stage of life is an interaction of opposites; syntonic (harmonious) element and dystonic (disruptive) element conflict between the opposite elements produces an ego quality or ego strength - basic strength too little basic strength at any stage results in a core pathology for that stage Erikson never lost sight of the biological aspect of human development events in earlier stages do not cause later personality development personality development is characterized by identity crisis Infancy (birth to 2 years) the first psychosocial stage a period in comparison to Freud’s oral phase of development a time of incorporation where infants “takes in” not only through the mouth but through their various sense organs as well Oral-sensory mode - a phrase that includes infants’ principal psychosexual mode of adapting'; two modes receiving and accepting what is given Stage 1: Basic Trust vs Basic Mistrust Infants’ most significant interpersonal relations are with their primary caregiver, their mother Hope - basic strength Withdrawal - core pathology Early childhood (2 to 3 years) the second psychosocial stage which is a period in comparison to Freud’s anal stage Freud regarded the anus as the primary erogenous zone, while Erikson describes that young children receive pleasure not only from mastering the sphincter muscle but also from mastering other body functions such as urinating, walking, throwing, holding etc. Anal-urethral muscular mode - children learn to control their body, especially in relation to cleanliness and mobility; toilet training Stage 2: Autonomy vs Shame and Doubt Shame is a feeling of self-consciousness, of being looked at and exposed while doubt is the feeling of not being certain, the feeling that something remains hidden and cannot be seen Will - basic strength Compulsion - core pathology Play age (3 to 5 years) the third stage of development which is the period covering the same time as Freud’s phallic phase Freud placed the Oedipus complex at the core of phallic stage, while Erikson believed that the Oedipus complex is part of social development during play age where preschool children develops their locomotion, language skills, curiosity, imagination and the ability to set goals Genital-locomotor mode - the primary mode during play age; the interest in genital activity is accompanied by their increasing facility at locomotion Stage 3: Initiative vs Guilt Although they begin to adopt initiative in their selection and pursuit of goals, other goals like, leaving home must be either repressed or delayed; taboos Purpose - basic strength Inhibition - core pathology School age (6 years to puberty) covers development from about age 6 to approximately age 12 or 13 that matches the latency years of Freud’s theory for school-age children, their wish to know becomes strong and is tied to their basic striving for competence Latency - allows children to divert their energies to learn the technology of their culture and strategies of social interactions; egoidentity which is the feeling of "I" or "me-ness" Stage 4: Industry vs Inferiority Industry means a willingness to remain busy with something to finishing a job, while inferiority happens if the work is insufficient to accomplish the desired goals Competence - basic strength Inertia - core pathology Adolescence (puberty to young adulthood) one of the most crucial developmental stages; at the end of this period, an individual must gain a firm sense of ego identity Erikson saw adolescence as a period of social latency which is an adaptive phase of personality development; a period of trial and error Puberty - defined as genital maturation that plays a minor role in Erikson’s concept of adolescence Stage 5: Identity vs Identity Confusion The search for ego identity reaches a climax during adolescence as young people strive to find out who they are and who they are not Young people frequently reject the standards of their elders, preferring instead the values of a peer group or gang Fidelity - basic strength Role repudiation - core pathology Role repudiation - blocks one’s ability to synthesize various selfimages and values into a workable identity a) Diffidence - is an extreme lack of self-trust or self-confidence and is expressed as shyness or hesitancy to express oneself b) Defiance - is the act of rebelling against authority Young adulthood a time ranges from age 19 to 30 circumcised by the acquisition of intimacy at the beginning of the stage and generativity at the end of the stage relatively short, that last only for a few years but for some it may continue for several decades Genitality - chief psychosexual accomplishment of young adulthood and exist only in an intimate relationship Stage 6: Intimacy vs Isolation Intimacy is the ability to fuse one’s identity with another person without fear of losing it, while isolation is defined as “the incapacity to take chances with one’s identity by sharing true intimacy" Love - basic strength Exclusivity - core pathology Adulthood seventh stage of development and a time where an individual begin to take their place in society and assumes responsibility the longest stage of development spanning the years from about age 31 to 60 Procreativity - refers to more than genital contact with an intimate partner Stage 7: Generativity vs Stagnation Generativity is defined as the “the generation of new beings, products and ideas", while stagnation happens when people are too absorbed with themselves; becomes self-indulgent Care - basic strength Rejectivity - core pathology Rejectivity - unwillingness to take care of certain persons or groups manifested as self-centeredness Pseudo speciation - the belief that other groups of people are inferior to one’s own, responsible for much human hatred, destruction, atrocities, and wars Old age the eighth and final stage of development which is the period from about age 60 to the end of life can be a time of joy, playfulness, and wonder but it is also a time of senility, depression, and despair Generalized sensuality final psychosexual mode; defined as the means to take pleasure in a variety of different physical sensations like sights, sounds, taste, odors, embraces, and perhaps genital stimulation Stage 8: Integrity vs Despair Integrity means a feeling of wholeness an ability to hold together one’s sense of self, while despair literally means to be without hope Wisdom - basic strength Disdain - core pathology; Humans have an ever-increasing radius of significant relations, beginning with the maternal person in infancy and ending with an identification with all humanity during old age As Erikson himself aged, he became less optimistic about old age, and he and his wife began to describe a ninth stage, a period of very old age when physical and mental infirmities rob people of their generative abilities and reduce them to waiting for death. Unfortunately, Joan herself died before she could complete the ninth stage Relevant Research Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory His ideas concentrated on the study of the adult to focus on the study of the child and highlighted the ego as a strong, vital, and positive force The Study of Two American Indian Tribes In describing the behavior of the two American Indian tribes, the Sioux and Yurok, he emphasized: give meaning to a child's early encounters with their bodies and other people, direct their resources in socially positive directions provide an overall framework of meaning for the anxieties that social interaction causes. Relevant Research Psychohistories Erikson inquired into the influence of culture and history on personality by studying the biography of notable historical figures. He examined how some people's ego power enables them to turn the conflicts into emerging as leaders who left quite an impact on their period. Sex Differences in Development Erikson thought that women's knowledge of their reproductive potential had an impact on how they grow, and he highlighted a woman's capacity to have children as a major personality factor. Relevant Research Identity Status Model by Marcia Daniel and Judy Levinson’s Expansion of the Concept of Adult Development Nigrescence by Cross Ethnic Identity Model by Phinney “Does Identity Precede Intimacy?” by Wim Beyers and Inge Seiffge-Krenke References Barnes, B., & Barnes, B. (1994, May 14). PSYCHOANALYST ERIK ERIKSON DIES AT 91. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1994/05/14/psychoanalyst-erikerikson-dies-at-91/4ab54b6d-5f67-4f0e-a75d-f19d2461945c/ Ad d yo ur id ea he re Biography of Erik Erikson (1902-1994). (2020, March 20). Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/erik-erikson-biography-1902-1994-2795538 Engler, B. (2014). Ego Analytic Psychology . In Personality theories: An introduction (pp. 135–151). essay, Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Feist, J., Feist, G.J., & Roberts, T. (2018). Theories of Personality 9th Edition. Erik Erikson: Post Freudian Theory (pp. 200-217) Ad d yo ur id ea he re GoodTherapy Editor Team. (2011, November 11). Erik Erikson (1902-1994). https://www.goodtherapy.org/famous-psychologists/erik-erikson.html That's A wrap THANK YOU FOR LISTENING! QUIZ TIME! A Google Form link will be sent in the chat box. You have 15 minutes to answer the form. If you're done, please press the 'raise hand' button. For those who are unable to answer the link due to internet connection issues, please reach out to any of the members to give you a special exam :)
