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Erikson's Theory Of Attachment

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Theories, Key Concepts, Principles, and Assumptions Two theories that will be discussed in this paper is Erik Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development and John Bowlby’s Theory of Attachment. Erikson’s theory is considered psychosocial, emphasizing the importance of social and cultural factors within a lifespan, from infancy to later adulthood. Erikson’s theory is broken down into eight consecutive age-defined stages. During each stage, a person experiences a psychosocial crisis that contributes to their personality development. Erikson was highly influenced by Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalytical Theory of Development. Although, at first Freud was limited to childhood based on the phallic stage, Erikson focused on developing a lifespan theory. The eight stages are as followed: Trust vs. Mistrust (infancy): The basic and fundamental psychological task is for infants to develop a sense that their needs will be met by the outside world. Is their caregiver responsive, reliable, and willing to meet their needs? That basic trust is facilitated by a responsive caregiver once an infant gets hungry, injured, or needs to be changed. Failure to develop trust will result in fear and belief that the world is unpredictable and inconsistent. Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (toddlerhood): Following infants’ understanding of a predictable environment, toddlers are starting to realize if they can depend on others. At this stage, toddlers are a step towards developing as an individual, in other
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