Erickson

Out of the people that we learned about, the person that I found most interesting was Erickson. The reason that I found him most interesting because he talks about how people are always changing throughout their life and as a child, sometimes you have to do that without the help from your parents. Autonomy vs Shame and Doubt is a good example of this. It explains that through the stage of age 1-3 years old. He explained that to be successful through this stage children need to be able to figure and work things out on their own to get a sense of mastery and excitement when the task is accomplished.
Above I mentioned a stage of where you really don't want your parents help with much, but there is a stage where your parents are very important. In the stage Trust vs Mistrust, dealing with the age 0-1, it is very important that your parents or any care giver to meet the babies needs so that they gain a sense of trust in them, and have a good outlook on life and go into the world having a good outlook on life and also having that feeling of trust with them. 

Discussion week 5

Erikson's Theory of Development

So far throughout this course we’ve learned about developmental theories from Montessori, Freud, and Erikson. Though I’ve been most curious about Erikson and his conflict theories and 8 steps of human development. The fact that he drew just enough information and ideas from Freud’s theories and discoveries but also expanded upon them and formulated his own new ideas is incredible and a fundamental part of psychology. He focused not only on males between the ages of 0-16 but males and females alike, all the way through their adulthood stages. Those stages are what are interesting to me. Young Adulthood (intimacy vs isolation) and Middle Adulthood (generativity vs stagnation). These stages are particularly intriguing because they address things that Freud didn’t get a chance to. They address that even after childhood, the way that you were raised can still have an effect on you as an individual. Erikson didn’t disregard Freud’s teachings but rather expanded upon them and furthered the research and learning necessary to honor him and his contribution to the science of developmental psychology. 

Insights and Applications

  According to Freud,without satisfaction in each developmental stage, certain drives will bounce around inside of a person until satiated. Thus, the energy becomes a constant itch to be scratched. In order to prevent oral obsessions, according to Freud the nature of oral drives must be satisfied at infancy. So on and so forth. How fascinating that a lack of oral satisfaction in infancy may contribute to nail biting, obesity, smoking, etc. which in turn could lead to the spread of disease, worms, or overly explicit behaviors. New parents or care-givers should allow their new child to nurse (or carry out the act of nursing) until they are ready to move forward (cease on their own) because a disturbance in the nature of weening could prove orally deter-mental down the line, i.e. nail biting, oral fixations, etc.

As for Montessori, the very nature of the child is what is being encouraged in an almost implicit and voyeuristic way. With this concept the child will become all they are to be- naturally. What becomes of them as adults, though? Montessori's view that children are simply different thinkers than adults and find their own satisfactions in their own ways may lead to obsession. Perhaps Freud would argue that lack of satisfaction begets obsession. One way to ensure progress to the next normalization phase would be to have the children repeat older subjects later in life because then the accuracy at which they accomplish certain subjects could be ranked...not really a test, right?

 Basically the more you know the better off your kids will adjust. Hopefully. In turn, Utopian society. Beginning in grade school, future new parents and care-givers should know about the varying stages of infancy throughout adolescence in a comprehensive way, say a chart with the top theories and tested models, so they better the chances our species has of coexistent survival.

Erik Erickson's Eight Stages of Man

            Erickson’s Eight Stages of Man theory is what I have chosen for this discussion. The aspect of his work that caught my eye is the fact that his theory includes both sexes, whereas Freud was primarily focused on his male patient population. And for parents, Erickson’s theory may be more helpful to them because it has more detailed and specific characteristics for each age group, allowing the parents to be able to have a “reason” their kid/kids actions. As well as giving them an idea on the issues that they may be able to help their kids get through versus the ones that they maybe should let their kids handle on their own. For instance, maybe the parents of a child avoid directly telling their child “no” when they are doing something they shouldn’t be doing. Avoiding this type of direct, negative language may allow their child to stop doing what they are doing without dwindling their curiosity.

Discussion #4: Montessori

I think that Montessori’s theories are the best to relay to parents. Her theories describe sensitive periods when children are interested in learning. Montessori described these sensitive periods as windows of learning when a child is interested in one topic and mastering that topic. For example, when a child first begins to learn to walk, it will be the only thing they are focused on and they will work until they have mastered it. In this case, to be able to walk. These sensitive periods will continue as a child ages and continues to learn. Montessori designed a school where children were allowed to focus on their sensitive areas of learning. They were allowed to move freely and study whatever they were interested with at the time. Teachers were only there as an aid if the child needed help or had any questions. Montessori believed the best way for children to learn was allowing them to work at their own pace on topics that interested them at the time. Although this method may have flaws, its general principle can be related to parents. When their children become interested in a topic, they should be allowed the freedom to study it. They will learn more when they are genuinely interested in learning. This can be applied when children are very young also. As infants, children will study tiny details to learn about their surroundings. Parents should allow their children to study the things they find. Montessori’s theories can be very insightful to parents about how their children learn and what they can do to ensure that their children are learning to the best of their abilities.   

Erikson

I enjoyed learning about the theories of Montessori, Freud and Erikson.  For this post, my thoughts gravitated to Erikson and his eight stages of human development.  His concept that stages continue through life makes sense to me.   As an older returning student, life and perspectives are ever changing.  The one question that I have, though, are these stages linear? It seems to me like these stages start parallel one might be in multiple stages at the same time.  Thoughts?? 

Contemplating Erikson’s theory stages, the first one I would focus on would be stage one-Trust vs Mistrust.  It’s an interesting time because your baby brand new.  It is exciting yet exhausting.  The child relies on parents for EVERYTHING, and yet the new parents at times feel helpless, not knowing what to do when the baby keeps crying.  They don’t want their child be the one who cries every time you put him/her down or cries when you walk out of a room, but they don’t want to neglect them either to the point of ‘passing out’ from crying so much because what if there is something else wrong.  To compound this issue, most children these days are brought to day care facilities around 3 months, when moms have to return to work. The child remains there  for about 9 hours a day.  According to Erikson’s theory, the child needs to have consistent and reliable care to develop trust.  For new parents, I would tell them if daycare is what you decide, visit the daycare and make sure they align with your values of raising children.  Don’t just jump to one because they have an opening or your friend recommends it.  Unfortunately, the daycare providers are with the child than parents in a lot of cases.  Make sure there is an open door policy so you can check in any time. and job allows it, take the time to check in on your child every so often.  If the right daycare is picked, you are laying a great foundation of trust for the child.  

The second stage I find important is stage five, Identity and Role Confusion.  This is from ages 12-18ish.  This stage is where the individual starts to question, “Who am I?”   In this stage, children expand on things they know, or experiment with new things.    They start to set goals, figure out where they want their life to go.  Some become leaders, and some become followers.  My suggestion to parents and teachers is be encouraging and expose them to new things.  Make suggestions on things they might enjoy like a certain sport or an art class.  Keep them safe, but give them latitude to explore.  If they make a poor choice, help them through it, don’t fix it for them.  

The Practical Application of Montessori's Theory.

Montessori's theory on sensitive periods of learning provides a basis for education that she believed would help anyone to learn. She even succeeded in teaching children deemed to be unteachable. The two most impactful insights that I can gather from Montessori's theory are that children may never properly develop a skill outside of its sensitive period, and that the drive for these children to learn in these periods is much stronger than just getting simple enjoyment out of learning. While Montessori was mainly concerned with education away from home, parents can benefit from this knowledge. Considering the portion of the theory addressing the loss of skills by missing a sensitive period, I would tell parents that they should not try and remove their child from an activity that they are engrossed with as long as they are safe. You should let your children stay up late to read a book if they cannot put the book down. Otherwise, you risk harming their mastery of reading. Addressing the difference in importance between child and parent, parents should not pass judgement onto what a child wants to learn. You should let your child walk places on their own because, to them, it is imperative that they do so.

Discussion 4

I found Montessori’s method most interesting.  This method proposed that “children learn best when the environment supports their natural desire to acquire skills”.  My schooling was all about asking the teacher for help, the teacher teaching every little detail, and rarely doing things on my own.  In Montessori’s method of teaching, she was all about independence and working at the students pace.  What I like best about Montessori’s’s method, is that if the student didn’t understand something, they would stick to that subject and not move on.  For example, if I didn’t know something, teachers didn’t really wait for you to figure it out.  This method of teaching helped students excel in school that  maybe wouldn’t have normally excelled in a normal teaching environment.  This method should be done because it gives children a great amount of confidence.  The feeling of actually doing something on your own, working at your own pace, and actually understanding it, is key to learning.

Erikson

I have chosen Erikson because his 8 stages of man seemed the most realistic for this day in age. Erikson used Freud's theory of psychosexual development and created these 8 stages that range from birth to death. Erikson believes that no matter your age you are going through a stage in your life. These stages can not be forced and have to go in order (can't jump from one stage to another). In the early stages a parent or care provider is necessary for success in the stage. For example, the Trust vs Mistrust stage ages 0-12 months this is the time of life where the infant learns to trust. The infant relies purely upon the parent or caregiver to meet their needs in order for this stage to be considered successful. If this stage is successful the infant will have a hopeful attitude towards life essentially. If this staged is handled wrong, the child will grow up and have the feeling of mistrust follow them. You should take this stage and all stages with your child very seriously because it quite literally with follow them forever according to this theorist. Provide a loving environment for you child.

Another stage, one that is in early adulthood is Intimacy vs Isolation. Around this time it is said that we now should be ready to share our lives with someone else. If the stages before this did not result in a successful passage, people in this stage might run into problems. For example you need to have a sense of fidelity of oneself before you can be fully intimate with others. People can be stuck in this stage and feel very lonely.  You should have a strong sense of identity before this stage in order to have success later.

Week Feb. 4 - Erikson

I’ve chosen the theorist Erikson because “the 8 stages of man” are applicable to almost every child unlike Freudian theory and Montessori whose populations were focused on either males/patients or Montessori's that looked at children who had learning disabilities. Erikson is very conflict based and believes that throughout the development of a child they are experiencing different conflicts at each stage that must be DEALT with while also requiring the help of parents/care providers in order to properly deal with each stage. With this being said, a suggestion for parents based on this theory is to be with there child where they are at, and not to try to insert themselves into stages they don’t belong in. For example, the child is very dependent on the parent between the stages 1-3, (trust vs. mistrust through initiative vs. guilt) therefore as a parent, it is important to be nurturing, trusting, and avoid giving shame to things that are NATURALLY occurring. Furthermore, knowing when your influence is no longer necessary as a parent is equally important. In order for your child to develop normally based on Erikson’s theory, in stages 4-8 the child must gain a sense of independence in order to mature and form healthy relationships outside of the family unit.

The second “nugget of wisdom” is that rather than making his theory a black and white model, he essentially says that these developmental stages are biologically normal and that parents have to trust these conflicts are crucial in healthy development. Based on this, advice to parents would simply be to use this as a guideline, and  avoid trying to tackle conflicts for there child, instead support them as they navigate these challenges by themselves.

Week 4 discussion

Montessori believed that children should learn at their own pace and at the time that they are interested in learning each specific aspect of learning. She proclaimed that by letting children be independent and develop a sense of order, children will learn better and actually be interested in what they learn. Teachers will be there to assist when the child gets confused or has questions. Montessori had stages of the times in a child’s life that they want to learn specific things. Theses stages are called sensitive periods. 

Another Insight that Montessori brought to light was how the school system was not teaching kids correctly. The sensitive periods is how she explained this. Dr. Montessori said that the times when a child wants to learn is when they will grasp concepts and be interested in them. Being interested in what they are learning will help their knowledge on the subject. 

There are Montessori schools all over the nation that implement Maria Montessori’s methods. There is quite a bit of criticism about these schools, because of the risk that children could possibly fall behind If they do not experience the sensitive periods at the right times. You should use the Montessori developmental theories, because children learn for their own enjoyment and it makes education an individual experience. 

Freud - Child Development Theorists

I am most curious about Freud’s Psychosexual Development.  It focuses on the classic mother and father relationship. But what happens when children have same-sex parents?  Freud claimed that you need a mother and a father to develop correctly.  To test this theory, I would find the classic “mother and father” relationship and see how those children developed.  While doing this, I would also study a family that is comprised of same-sex parents and compare the children of the two groups and see if they are different at all.  I would see if there were any noticeable differences in children who have two mothers or two fathers and the children who have both a mother and a father.

Week 4 - Child Development Theorists

             For this week’s discussion, I have chosen Erik Erickson. I enjoyed the fact that his theory spans the entire lifespan. As a 25-year-old, I do not believe that I have fully developed psychologically. Although I feel Montessori and Freud have valid theories, Erikson’s theory has legitimate and easy to understand stages with concrete results to move to the next stage of development all the way to end of life. His approach is gender neutral and focuses on normal development. Both Freud and Montessori focused on developmentally delayed or troubled individuals, mostly males. I feel like Erikson's theory is readily tangible for both parents and teachers to interpret and utilize as a guide aiding in the developing infant, child, adolescent, or young adult. 

The first insight that stuck out to me for the eight-stage theory of development is the 4th Stage- “School age” which focuses on the internal conflict “industry vs. inferiority”. The stage focuses on ages 5 to 13* developing one’s self-esteem and ambition to be utilized for the rest of the individual’s life. During the stage peers, parents, and teachers play critical roles in the development of one’s self-esteem and drive to compete as an individual. Unconditional positive regard from parents and teachers will aid the child’s self-esteem and drive to perfect/achieve goals. Erickson leaves everything ambiguous; ideally, the positive regard and the child’s goal/achievement should be realistic/achievable and have counseling/parental support. What I mean by this is children shouldn’t get a trophy for participating, nor be left to psychologically devour their own aspirations through neglect instead of encouragement. The balance would depend on the individual's needs. This balance would hopefully orient the developing child of their ambition/drive that they will utilize for the remainder of the child’s life. Providing the life lesson to the child that life isn’t always fair, but also give the life lesson that if one fails, they still have support to try again or find something different.

The second insight that struck me was the 6th Stage- “Young adult” which focuses on the internal conflict “intimacy vs. isolation”. This stage focuses on ages 21 to 39* obtaining true intimacy focused on trust, unselfishness, and self-awareness. Overall this stage seems to be problematic to many people my age. One could interpret that the reason causing this is the individual’s unsuccessful completion of prior stages such as a sense of purpose, a sense of competence, social conformity, or trust. Erickson's eight-stage development theory gives someone the ability to ask themselves (introspection) why they may have difficulty retaining a happy/healthy relationship and friendships. Ericsson also leaves the stage ambiguous, leaving it open to interpretation for the individual. All of the stages can connect to insecurities we all overcome or battle with ourselves through life’s journey to achieve companionship, and contentment with one’s experience. For this stage, however, parents, peers, and teachers can provide little aid in helping complete this stage, yet parents and peers aid/influence in previous steps will likely contribute to the length someone might be in this stage. 

*The age intervals are not concrete, just a generalized range for when the stage will likely occur.    

Discussion 4- Feb 4 to Feb 8

One of the theories that interest me is Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory. This is where Freud states that every child needs a father and a mother to grow up “normal”. I am curious what would happen if the parents got a divorce when the child was at a young age, how would it affect the child? For example, if the child switched off from mom’s house to dad’s house every other week, does that affect the child’s stages growing up? I would test this by surveying families. I would take samples of families with divorced parents and parents that are together. Also making a note about how old the children were when the parents separated.  I would ask questions referring to how the child acted at certain ages, referring to the stages Freud wrote to compare the child I’m surveying to a “normal” child. According to Freud parents should not get a divorce to help the child go through the stages easier. For example if a mother figure was not present in a child's life, the child would not be able to keep the primary focus of loving their mother in the Phallic Stage.

Prompt for the Week of Feb. 4th

Now that we have talked about a few developmental theories, we can also think about their application. Take Montessori, Freud, or Erikson and provide two insights from their theories for either parents, teachers, or law-makers. After each "nugget of wisdom" or insight taken from one of these theorists, provide a concrete recommendation ("you should do this....because....") from that theory.

Disscution 4

The phenomenon I am very curious about is Freud's Development. The thing I'm most curious about is how the development of kids with same sex parents develop. The reason I'm curious is because Freud makes the argument that you need a Mother and a Father. I would study this by finding children of same sex parents of different ages. I would do an interview with each group to see how far along the development has come. I would also interview parents and teachers to see how their social behavior is. The groups I would interview would be young children all the way up to adulthood. This could also be done with an longitudinal study but if you just did an interview with multiple groups it would save time and money.