Sigmund Freud vs Erik Erikson - Term Paper Example

Sigmund Freud vs. Erik Erikson Introduction Psychologists have long been interested in developing theories about humans develop cognitively and develop their ability to both assimilate with and interact the rest of society. While there are certainly numerous theories of development that have been developed throughout the decades, each with varying degrees of relevancy and accuracy, perhaps none are more widely renowned and studied to this day as that of Sigmund Freud and Erik Erikson. Freud based his ideas largely on a psychosexual theory relating to human development, while Erikson’s theory was largely psychosocial in nature. Erikson’s theory, in the end, was heavily influenced by the ideas that Freud introduced, but he began to diverge into the psychosocial arena in order to explain how the personality of any individual tends to develop via a series of predetermined stages. While Freud’s theory is more broad in scope and explains in more detail the sexual nature of humans and how they bond with various members of society in order to develop their true identity, Erikson supports the notion that development is more the result of a series of social interactions and experiences that work to create they true personality of the individual (Goodwin, 2008). These social interactions and experiences occur throughout one’s lifespan, so personality can gradually change and be adapted based on different circumstances. This one of the main points of divergence between Erikson and Freud, which forms the basis for a premise that Freud’s contribution to the school of psychology are much more relevant today than those presented by Erikson. Freud’s Positive Contribution to Psychology Freud spent much of his career studying the psychosexual nature of human development. He developed his theory around the idea that even infants, from the time they are born, begin to develop a certain pleasure through their own body. During the oral stage, for example, infants realize a sense of pleasure through the use of their mouth. They are frequently found to be sucking, eating, or tasting nearly everything in sight. This occurs from the time they are born through the first year of development. It is at one year of age that Freud noticed most children begin to develop a sense of awareness over their own bladder and bowel movements. Freud termed this the anal stage of development, and it illustrates how children can begin to develop a sense of self-control over their own body and various functions thereof. While many take this to be purely sexual in nature, Freud’s idea carries extreme relevance to human development as a whole by illustrating the path by which children can begin to understand and be aware of their own body, so they can also develop the keen awareness of what is happening around them. This continues until the child is three years of age and they enter into the phallic stage of development. At this time, children become aware of their genitals. While not necessarily being attracted to other individuals during this stage, they develop an identity with parents or caregivers of the same sex. They remain more attached to adults until about 7 years old, when their sexual and social development begins to become more aligned with other children. The Latent Period of develop begins about seven years of age and continues until a child is about 11 years old. At this time, children begin to become more independent of their parents, and they use that independence to begin to focus on children their age be engaging in age-related activities, such as attending school, playing with friends, and developing various hobbies and interests. Freud noted that the infatuation with their sexual being that was evident up until the age of 7 becomes suppressed. They put aside their own libido in exchange for more social activities, hence the term latent period. After the age of 11, the libido becomes to come back into play and adolescents enter into a prolonged genital that stage that lasts until adulthood. It is at this stage that children begin to explore romantic relationships. This is a demonstration of the relevancy of Freud’s theory because, as we know, the basis of modern society is predicated around the formation of certain bonds and relationships. Through the use of psychosexual analysis, Freud demonstrates how this happens via a series of stages of development that start at infancy and continue into adulthood. In fact, Freud did not stop his theory at adolescence, but rather he purports that the basis of development is already defined as an individual passes from adolescence into adulthood. It is throughout the remainder of life, then, that humans continue to develop through the genital stage. The relationships that are formed, then, serve as an explanation of how humans develop a balance between all of the various areas of life that give us fulfillment and cause society to progressively move forward. Again, by focusing on the sexual nature of human beings, Freud demonstrates how individuals develop their personality over time and how they define their own respective and individual roles within society. This is in contrast the main premise of Erikson, which on its surface appears to be sound, but lacks the true means of explaining how exactly humans develop during the course of their entire life (Anthis, 2005). Erikson’s Lack of Relevance to Modern Day Psychology While few discount the merits of Erikson theory of psychosocial development, it is noted the Freud simply discussed life stages in terms that are more relevant and applicable to modern society and its development. To begin, rather than focusing on oral development and find pleasure through the mouth, Erikson stipulates that infants from and early age, throughout to age 1, learn to either trust or mistrust their caregivers. His concept, if carried further, would stipulate that infants learn to either trust or distrust various members of society based on their own experiences from an early age. This discounts the notion, for example, of infants who end up in a loving foster care home from early childhood and go onto live emotionally healthy and productive lives, as a sexual being that develops their own ability to trust those who are worthy of trusting, and discounting others. The second state that Erikson proposes that the typical child goes through is autonomy vs. doubt. This is when a child begins to develop their own independence and self-sufficiency that they then use to control their own bodily functions. This is also when language development occurs. This is similar in scope to that of Freud, but the connection is not really made about how such activities lead to their ultimate independence and freedom over their own body later in life. In the third stage of development, the child begins to develop either their initiative or a guilt over their actions. This does not explain the reality that children at this age typically identify more with adult caregivers and they begin to develop much of their self-awareness through their own body and that of adults. Freud would contend that this is why young children typically idolize adults and develop a sense of infatuation with those closest to them, while Erikson contends that at this age children are more interested in becoming their own master and taking control of their own environment (Edumundson, 2010). During the years leading up to adolescence, Erikson claims that humans enter in a period of industry versus inferiority. This is when a typical child would begin to develop their own sense of skills and talents that will end up defining who they are. While certainly a valid point, Freud went further to dictate that children enter a period by which they become much more focused on other people than they are on themselves. It is during this period that they put aside their preoccupation with the human body and begin to focus on what they learn from their social surroundings. Again, this does more to explain the process by which humans develop, both sexually and socially, than does the theory presented by Erikson. Conclusion In the end, both theories of development have been support by numerous scholars in the field of psychology. The reality is, however, that Freud did more to connect our sexual nature with our desire to fit in and be assimilated within greater society. By focusing on the sexual development of humans, Freud demonstrates how the human body, more so than social experiences, typically define who we are and how we develop both cognitively and emotionally. Our sense of morals, for example, comes from the bonds and relationships that we attached ourselves to throughout our lifespan. These are not typically learned independently of others within society. Within that realm alone, Freud was a master at making connections that make sense and serve to explain how individuals function within any given society. To that end, Freud’s theory, while controversial to some, are still endeared by many and will remain as fuel for any discussion related to human development. References Anthis, K. (2005). From Freud to Erikson to Marcia: Concept maps in personality psychology courses. Teaching of Psychology, 32(4), 263. Edumundson, M. (2010). Identity’s architect: A biography of Erik Erikson. Biography, 23(1), 276. Goodwin, A. (2008). Freud and Erikson: Their contributions to the psychology of god-image formation. Pastoral Psychology, 47(2), 97-117. Read More