Erik Erikson and Adult Learning Essay

Born on June 15, 1902 in Frankfurt, Ger human existencey, Erik Erikson was regarded as a major sour in contemporary psychoanalysis. Erikson was interested in arts so he moved to Florence after finishing high cultivate. In 1927, he taught arts in a school psychoanalytically influenced electric razorren school spearheaded by Dorothy Burlingham and Freuds daughter, Anna, in Vienna (Erikson Institute, 2003).This move would have a major influence in the life and works of Erik Erikson. Upon recognizing that he has skills with children, Anna Freud, Sigmunds daughter, focalised him under her wings and began teaching him. Eventually, he trained and eventually received certification from Vienna Psychoanalytic Society. After getting certified by Maria Montessori School, he underwent training in psychoanalysis at the Vienna Psychoanalytic Institute. In 1936, he became a member of the Institute of Human Relations, which is a branch of the Psychiatry Department of Yale University (Erikson Ins titute, 2003).Major plowshare in PsychologyErik Erikson became famous because of his eight stages of development. According to him, every stage in a mans life is accompanied by certain psychological conflicts. He theorized that the development of personality of an mortal is a life long process. The events they encounter in the latter stages of life keister treat early on childishness problems. His eight stages of development explained why an individual who was not able to resolve a childhood problem finds it difficult to resolve it during adulthood (Erikson Institute, 2003).Each stage of life is important because how well the child performed during the previous phase determined how they can cope with the next stages. Erikson called this the epigenetic principle (Boeree, 2006).Erik Erikson authored several handwritings that explained his theory, the most remarkable of which is Childhood and Society which was released in 1950. In 1969, Erikson won the Pulitzer Prize and Nationa l Book Award for his book Gandhis Truth, which delved on the application of the eight stages of development in the latter portion of an individuals life cycle(NNDB, n.d).Stage Six Intimacy vs. IsolationThis is the sixth stage in Erik Eriksons stages of psychosocial phases of development. It takes place from 18 to 30 years old. In general, the child faces the dilemma of achieving intimacy or staying isolated. This stage withal involves a struggle for promiscuity, which is a trait of being too close for comfort and not being able to follow through with the momentum, versus exclusion, which is characterized by rejection of relationships (Boeree, 2006).Intimacy, according to Erikson, is the ability to develop social relationships with some other pot either as a partner, friend, or member of a community. If the child was able to develop a clear picture of themselves during the early stages, they should no longer be intimidated by other state (Sante Fe Community College, n.d).Accordin g to this stage, when an individual has established a strong sense of identity, they can first gear expanding to the people around him. Intimacy is best seen in a persons capacity to bring in relationships, making friends, getting married, and finally settling down. An individual who successfully pass through this stage can experience feels well-situated with relationships and has a strong sense of commitment (Santa Fe Community College, n.d).On the other hand, the consequence of being unsuccessful in completing this stage of development is isolation. The individual is not comfortable with being with friends, entering relationships, or being intimate with another person. Isolation results from the failure to establish self-identity (Niolon, n.d).A child who experiences isolation prefers to be alone excludes themselves from the company of others. The end result of isolation, in the context of Eriksons stages of development, is loneliness, despair, or depression. People who are unab le to successfully pass this stage prefer working on lowly jobs which offer below minimum wage (AllPsychOnline, 2004).ReferencesAllPsychOnline(2004 March 21). Eriksons Stages of Psychosocial Development. Retrieved June 26 2008 from Boeree, G. Erik Erikson. Retrieved June 26 2008 from Erikson Institute(2003 may 1). Erik Erikson(1902-1994). Retrieved June 26 2008 from NNDB(n.d). Erik Erikson. Retrieved June 26 2008 from Niolin, R(n.d). Eriksons Psychosocial Stages of Development. Resources for Students and Professionals. Retrieved June 26 2008 from Santa Fe Community College(n.d). Self-Reflections on Young Adulthood utilise Eriksons Theory of Psychosocial Development. Retrieved June 26 2008 from