Theory paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Theory paper - Essay Example The cultural and historical development that influenced the development of the theory was Freud’s theory of psychosexual stages (Heffner, 2015). Whereas Freud analyzed human developmental stages through the prism of sexual orientation and social behavior drives, Erickson analyzed the crisis at each stage. That is not to imply that psychosocial theory was developed because Erikson disagreed with Freud’s approach, but that he perceived human developmental stages through a distinct prism that speaks volumes about each stage. The society was trying to find out factors influencing human behaviors during that time. Many psychologists attempted to provide answers to the wide array of unanswered questions. Therefore, it may be seen that psychosocial theory was found in response to shed more light on the role of nature and nurture in human development. For a long time the two concepts had not been addressed elaborately. Whereas Freud’s theory observes the perceived normal path, Erikson’s theory ventures deeply into analyzing non-conformity to the expected normal adjustment. In psychosocial theory, Erikson’s infancy stage takes place from the time a child is born until the child is one and half years. That is the stage when a child progressively learns how to walk. During this stage, the child faces a psychosocial stage called trust versus mistrust (Berk, 2013). During this stage, a child will trust people depending on how well they handle him/her. The child will allow some people to carry him/her during this stage but cry when others attempt to handle him/her. The crying is usually a rejection. The next stage, autonomy versus shame (1-3 years) is marked with confidence or fear. A child that has been nurtured well has a high self-esteem whereas some children may show shame when socializing in the public. At ages 3-6, a child goes