Which of the following would be considered an example of Eriksons concept of integrity?
How do people cope with old age? According to Erikson, the last psychosocial stage is Integrity vs. Despair. This stage includes, “a retrospective accounting of one’s life to date; how much one embraces life as having been well lived, as opposed to regretting missed opportunities,” (Erikson, 1982, p. 112). Those in late adulthood need to achieve both the acceptance of their life and the inevitability of their death (Barker, 2016). This stage includes finding meaning in one’s life and accepting one’s accomplishments, but also acknowledging what in life has not gone as hoped. It is also feeling a sense of contentment and accepting others’ deficiencies, including those of their parents. This acceptance will lead to integrity, but if elders are unable to achieve this acceptance, they may experience despair. Bitterness and resentments in relationships and life events can lead one to despair at the end of life. According to Erikson (1982), successful completion of this stage leads to wisdom in late life. Show Erikson’s theory was the first to propose a lifespan approach to development, and it has encouraged the belief that older adults still have developmental needs. Prior to Erikson’s theory, older adulthood was seen as a time of social and leisure restrictions and a focus primarily on physical needs (Barker, 2016). The current focus on aging well by keeping healthy and active, helps to promote integrity. There are many avenues for those in late adulthood to remain vital members of society, and they will be explored next. Staying Active: Many older adults want to remain active and work toward replacing opportunities lost with new ones. Those who prefer to keep themselves busy demonstrate the Activity Theory, which states that greater satisfaction with one’s life occurs with those who remain active (Lemon, Bengston, & Peterson, 1972). Not surprisingly, more positive views on aging and greater health are noted with those who keep active than those who isolate themselves and disengage with others. Community, faith-based, and volunteer organizations can all provide those in late adulthood with opportunities to remain active and maintain social networks. Erikson’s concept of generativity applies to many older adults, just as it did in midlife. Definition/IntroductionErikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development is a theory introduced in the 1950s by the psychologist and psychoanalyst Erik Erikson. It built upon Freud’s theory of psychosexual development by drawing parallels in childhood stages while expanding it to include the influence of social dynamics as well as the extension of psychosocial development into adulthood.[1] It posits eight sequential stages of individual human development influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors throughout the lifespan. This bio-psychosocial approach has influenced several fields of study, including gerontology, personality development, identity formation, life cycle development, and more.[2][3] Issues of ConcernFunction Stages arise as individuals grow and face new decisions and turning points during childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Each stage is defined by two opposing psychological tendencies – one positive/syntactic and negative/dystonic. From this develops an ego virtue/strength or maldevelopment, respectively. If the virtue is adopted, it can help to resolve the current decision or conflict. It will also help subsequent stages of development and contribute to a stable foundation for core belief systems in relating to the self and the outer world.[3] The opposite is true with the adoption of the maldeveloped quality. As an example, the ego identity crystallizes in stage 5, during adolescence. The two opposing qualities are ego identity and confusion/diffusion. Those who develop ego identity yield the virtue of fidelity, while the inability to do so – ego confusion – creates a quality of repudiation. With a stronger sense of ego identity, the interaction with the outer and inner world is of rejecting incongruent evaluations of self and a decreased level of anxiety, respectively.[4] While adopting the syntonic attribute is clearly beneficial in this example, doing so should be done within reason. Extreme ego identity can become fanaticism, which can create unhealthy interactions with the self and others. One must navigate the two opposing values in each stage to find a balance, instead of only striving for the positive quality. Straying too far towards the positive tendency can be maladaptive, while leaning too far toward the negative can be malignant.[3] Components Some scholars have attempted to confine stages to specific ages, but Erikson did not initially define this. Instead, there are periods within childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Each stage provides an example in which the positive attribute may be furthered. Stages of Childhood Stage 1 – Infancy period: Trust vs. Mistrust
Stage 2 – Early Childhood period: Autonomy vs. Shame, doubt
Stage 3 – Play Age period: Initiative vs. Guilt
Stage 4 – School Age period: Industry vs. Inferiority
Stage of Adolescence Stage 5 – Adolescence period: Identity vs. Identity confusion
Stages of Adulthood Stage 6 – Young Adulthood period: Intimacy vs. Isolation
Stage 7 – Adulthood period: Generativity vs. Stagnation/Self-absorption
Stage 8 – Old Age period: Integrity vs. Despair
A ninth stage was added by Erik Erikson’s wife, Joan Erikson. It considers new challenges experienced with continued aging and incorporates aspects from all previous eight stages of psychosocial development. The sequential layout of Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development might initially suggest that stage outcomes become fixed once the next stage is engaged. While there is a fixed sequence, resolution can be a life-long process, re-activated at various times depending on life events that affect the ego strength or maldeveloped belief pattern.[5] Resolution is not required to move on to the next stage. Additionally, with advancement to a new stage, preceding stages are questioned and must be reintegrated.[6] This is why his theory is sometimes referred to as an ‘epigenetic principle.’ Additional research suggests that the latter four stages are, to an extent, a repetition of previous stages.[7] As an example, the stage of intimacy can be considered a combination of autonomy and trust. Thus, the developmental stages and formation of identity is an ever-evolving process, as opposed to a rigid concrete system. Clinical SignificanceSeveral clinical tools and further research have emanated from and have undergone significant influence by Erikson’s Stages of Development:
Nursing, Allied Health, and Interprofessional Team InterventionsErikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development can be utilized by mental health providers when treating patients who are facing periods of adjustment or turning points in life. When taken in the appropriate context to social and cultural factors, it can be a means for the patient to augment awareness and understanding of themselves. While many stages focus on periods early in life, it can serve as a conceptual and possibly actionable guide for those later in life as well.[11] This area continues to be an active focus of research, as Erickson's developmental maturity in mid-life is studied alongside global cognitive and executive function, as well as emotional health.[12] This research was supported (in whole or part) by HCA Healthcare and/or an HCA Healthcare affiliated entity. The views expressed in this publication represent those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of HCA Healthcare or any of its affiliated entities. References1.Carrey N. The Two Ericksons: Forgotten Concepts and what Constitutes an Appropriate Professional Knowledge Base in Psychiatry. J Can Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2010 Nov;19(4):248. [PMC free article: PMC2962535] [PubMed: 21037913] 2.Kivnick HQ, Wells CK. Untapped richness in Erik H. Erikson's rootstock. Gerontologist. 2014 Feb;54(1):40-50. [PubMed: 24136991] 3.Knight ZG. A proposed model of psychodynamic psychotherapy linked to Erik Erikson's eight stages of psychosocial development. Clin Psychol Psychother. 2017 Sep;24(5):1047-1058. [PubMed: 28124459] 4.Stark PA, Traxler AJ. Empirical validation of Erikson's theory of identity crises in late adolescence. J Psychol. 1974 Jan;86(1):25-33. [PubMed: 4809739] 5.Gilleard C, Higgs P. Connecting Life Span Development with the Sociology of the Life Course: A New Direction. Sociology. 2016 Apr;50(2):301-315. [PMC free article: PMC4797195] [PubMed: 27041774] 6.Zock H. Human Development and Pastoral Care in a Postmodern Age: Donald Capps, Erik H. Erikson, and Beyond. J Relig Health. 2018 Apr;57(2):437-450. [PMC free article: PMC5854735] [PubMed: 28905275] 7.Logan RD. A re-conceptualization of Erikson's identity stage. Adolescence. 1983 Winter;18(72):943-6. [PubMed: 6229976] 8.Vogel-Scibilia SE, McNulty KC, Baxter B, Miller S, Dine M, Frese FJ. The recovery process utilizing Erikson's stages of human development. Community Ment Health J. 2009 Dec;45(6):405-14. [PMC free article: PMC2791471] [PubMed: 19533350] 9.Darling-Fisher CS. Application of the Modified Erikson Psychosocial Stage Inventory: 25 Years in Review. West J Nurs Res. 2019 Mar;41(3):431-458. [PubMed: 29676219] 10.Rosenthal DA, Gurney RM, Moore SM. From trust on intimacy: A new inventory for examining erikson's stages of psychosocial development. J Youth Adolesc. 1981 Dec;10(6):525-37. [PubMed: 24310543] 11.Osborne JW. Commentary on retirement, identity, and Erikson's developmental stage model. Can J Aging. 2009 Dec;28(4):295-301. [PubMed: 19925695] 12.Malone JC, Liu SR, Vaillant GE, Rentz DM, Waldinger RJ. Midlife Eriksonian psychosocial development: Setting the stage for late-life cognitive and emotional health. Dev Psychol. 2016 Mar;52(3):496-508. [PMC free article: PMC5398200] [PubMed: 26551530] |