The field of psychology has grown to be a respected, however, even the greatest psychologists can only theorize about what makes human beings act the way they do. Absolutes are not part of psychology, and everything is relative and open to speculation.Human development is one of the most popular areas of interest for those who study psychology with Freud and Erikson as the great theorists with differing ideas concerning human development. Each theorist developed ideas and stages for human development in which human beings pass through different stages of life. Each theory differed on what these stages were and also differed with their respect towards paradigmatic assumptions, learning ...view middle of the document...
This usually occurs at about three years of age and the erogenous zones moves to the genital organs. During this stage children take interest in their sexual organs and notice differences and similarities between themselves and their parents. Each sex wants to be with the parent of the other sex, but once the children realize they cannot be with their mother or father, they identify with the parent of the same sex.The next stage is called the stage of Latency and is characterized by a lack of change or absence of erogenous zones and boys will shift their sexual urges and drives to something acceptable, such as sports. The last stage is the Genital Stage, when the erogenous zone returns in a very powerful way in the genital organs. This stage takes place from puberty into adulthood and is marked by true sexual desire and sexual relationships.Erikson took Freud's ideas and enhanced them. He added stages for the adult years and shifted his attention to identity rather than sexuality. Erikson developed eight psychosocial stages of development.The first stage is during infancy and deals with trust versus mistrust, with the child developing an outlook on life and whether the world can be trusted or not. The next stage is during early childhood and is known as autonomy versus shame and doubt, in which the child becomes autonomous and realizes he can say yes or no.The third stage takes place during the ages of three to six years and is marked by initiative versus guilt. This stage is important in developing the child's sense of enterprise. The fourth stage takes place at about six years of age and lasts till puberty. This stage deals with industry versus inferiority and the child learns skills of the culture and must deal with feelings of inferiority.Adolescence brings about the next stage known for identity versus identity confusion during which Erikson believes adolescents must develop a sense of self and who they are. The sixth stage is known for intimacy versus isolation. This stage takes place during young adulthood when the person seeks commitments from others. If he is unsuccessful, he may take on isolation and Erikson believes this stage is important in learning love.The seventh stage for takes place during adulthood and is marked by generativity versus stagnation. During t...
