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Theories on Psychoanalytic Child Development Cindy Giron PSY 104 Sonya Malphus January 11, 2010 Theories on Psychoanalytic Child Development I. Thesis: Child development was ignored for many years and it was not until the 20th century that interest in the child development began and focused on abnormal behavior. It is important to pay attention to the cognitive abilities, language usage and physical growth a child develops from birth to adulthood. II. Explanation and stages of the following three developmental theories: a. Erik Erikson's stages of psychosocial development b. Sigmund Freud's Psychosexual stages c. Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development III. Three key concepts of each of the theory IV. Strength & weaknesses of each theory. V. How cognitive, physical, and emotional development work together in the overall child development. VI. Details of why the understanding of normal child and adolescent development is essential in supporting children to reach their full potential. VII. Conclusion Introduction The way the child develops is essential in making sure that they lead a healthy and normal life. Child development was ignored for many years and it was not until the 20th century that interest in the child development began and focused on abnormal behavior. It is important to pay attention to the cognitive abilities, language usage and physical growth a child develops from birth to adulthood. In this paper I will provide information on the different psychoanalytic theories of development that is involved in a child’s growth: Erik Erikson's stages of psychosocial development, Sigmund Freud's psychosexual stages and Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development. These are only three of many theories that have been proposes by theorists and researchers. I will also discuss the key concepts along with their differences and similarities. Information on psychoanalytic theories of development The three major theories on psychoanalytic child development are Erik Erikson's stages of psychosocial development, Sigmund Freud's psychosexual stages and Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development. All three theories are in conjunction with one another when it comes to the study of child development. Erik Erikson’s stage of psychosocial development theory explains that the ego exists from birth and that behavior is not totally defensive (Harder, A., 2009). He believes that the course of development was determined by the interaction of the body, mind and cultural influences. To prove his theory he structured life into eight stages across a lifespan (birth-death) and each phase is characterized by a crisis, which is based on physiological development and also on demands put on the person by parents and society, which balances a positive and a negative trait. For example, in many cases an individual who had to deal with horrendous circumstances as a child may be unable to discuss later stages as easily as someone who didn't have as many challenges early on. In his theory he states that humans continue to change and develop throughout their lives, and that personality is not exclusively formed during early childhood years. On the other hand, Sigmund Freud’s psychosexual theory explains that what we do and why we do it, who we are and how we became this way are all related to our sexual drive (Papalia, D., Olds, S., & Feldman, R., 2008). Differences in personalities originate in differences in childhood sexual experiences. In his model, child personality development is discussed in terms of psychosexual stages. Freud summarizes five stages of expression of the sexual drive: Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency, and Genital. At each stage different areas of the child's body become the focus of their pleasure and the main source of sexual arousal. Variation in satisfying the sexual urges at each stage will inevitably lead to differences in adult personalities. Conflicts between the sex drive and rules of society are present at every stage. An appropriate resolution of the conflicts will lead the child to progress past one stage and move on to the next. Failure to achieve a proper resolution will make the child obsessed in the present stage. The latter is believed to be the cause of many personality and behavioral disorders (Stevenson, D., 2004). Moreover, Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development explains that children go through four separate stages: sensori-motor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational. Children go through the different stages in a fixed order that is universal to all and that stages change not only in the quantity of information acquired at each, but also in the quality of knowledge and understanding at that stage (Atherton J S, 2009). In his theory he suggests that movement from one stage to the next takes place when the child reaches an appropriate level of maturation and has been exposed to important types of experiences. Without experience children are understood as incapable of reaching their highest cognitive ability. Key concepts of theories In this section I will define three main concepts from each theory to give a better understanding of their point of view. The three keys concepts for Erikson’s psychosocial development theory are foreclosure, moratorium and achievement: • Foreclosure is where an individual has developed commitments to ideals and goals without going through the identity crisis or without even considering alternatives. • Moratorium is when the individual reaches the crisis period; during this time the person is searching alternatives and is working on developing a stable personality in the transition of trying to become an adult and making a major decision in life. • Achievement is when the individual has established a stable, consistent and mature personality. The individual has developed opinions, attitudes, and goals that do not easily change. In addition, the three concepts to Freud's psychosexual theory are Id, ego and superego: • Id is the personality component made up of unconscious energy that works to satisfy basic urges, needs, and desires seen mainly on newborns. • Ego is the largely unconscious part of personality that represents reasons operating on the reality principal. The ego prevents us from acting on our basic urges but also works to achieve a balance with our moral and idealistic standards. • Superego is the component of personality containing the conscience, incorporating socially approved behavior into the child’s own value system. The superego works to suppress the urges of the id and tries to make the ego behave morally, rather than realistically. Furthermore, the three concepts to Piaget's theory of cognitive development are Schemas, Assimilation and Accommodation: • Schemas are organized patterns of behavior that a person uses to think about and act in a situation. They are categories of knowledge that help us to interpret and understand the world. • Assimilation is when an individual incorporates new information into previously existing schemas. • Accommodation is when an individual changes or alters existing schemas in light of new information or new experiences. Strength & weaknesses All three of these theories analyze the way a child develops through stages. They all have its strengths and weaknesses. The strength on Erikson’s psychosocial theory is that it helps explain the role of culture in personality development by using lifespan psychology and providing useful description of major themes of personality development at different ages. Its weakness is that it is oversimplified by describing each period in terms of single crisis. The strength on Freud’s psychosexual theory is that it emphasizes the importance of experiences in infancy and early childhood and provides psychological explanations for mental illness. Its weakness is that sexual feelings are not as important in personality development as he claims in his theory. The strength on Piaget’s theory is that it helps explain how children of different ages think about and act on the world. Its weakness is that stage concepts may cause adults to underestimate children’s reasoning abilities (Boyd, D., Helen, B., 2006). Overall child development Cognitive, physical, and emotional development all work together in the overall child development. The capacity to learn, remember and to solve problems exists at a simple level in young infants who can perform cognitive tasks such as recognizing small numbers of objects. The brain then starts developing as learning and information-processing increase in speed memory becomes increasingly longer until a near-adult level is reached by adolescence. Cognitive development becomes more representational and includes awareness of one's own thoughts, magical belief and the increased ability to understand and use symbols. Physical development varies as it has to do with genetic factors in determining the growth rate and particularly the changes in proportion characteristic of early human development. However, genetic factors can produce the maximum growth only if environmental conditions are adequate. Poor nutrition and frequent injury and disease can reduce the individual's adult stature, but the best environment cannot cause growth to a greater stature than is determined by heredity. Providing the child with a well balanced nutrition will help their physical development to evolve in a positive way. Emotional development also plays a big role in a child’s life as they need all the attention and love. When a child is raised with emotional affection it helps develop their self-esteem in a positive way. When a child is raised with neglect they grow with insecurity that affects the way they act in their adulthood. It is important to provide them with a healthy environment where they will have the ability to express their feelings. References Papalia, D., Olds, S., & Feldman, R., (2008). A child’s world: Infancy through adolescence (11th ed.). Burr ridge, IL: McGraw-Hill. Harder, A., (2009). The Development Stages of Erik Erikson. Retrieved January 6, 2010 From www.learningplaceonline.com/stages/organize/Erikson.htm Wagner, K., (2008). Stages of Psychosocial Development. Retrieved January 6, 2010 From www.psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/psychosocial_2.htm Stevenson, D., (2004). Freud’s Psychosexual Stages of Development. Retrieved January 6, 2010 from www.victorianweb.org/science/freud/develop Felluga, D., (2003). "Modules on Freud: On Psychosexual Development." Introductory Guide to Critical Theory. Retrieved January 6, 2010 from www.purdue.edu/guidetotheory Atherton, J S., (2009). Learning and Teaching; Piaget's developmental theory. Retrieved January 6,2010 from http://www.learningandteaching.info/piaget Boyd, D., & Bee, H., (2006). Lifespan Development (4th ed.). Ally Boston: Allyn and Bacon