Erik homburger erikson biography

If you're interested in the interactions between social psychology, individual model, politics, history, and culture, restore confidence need to learn the term "Erik Erikson." 

Who Was Erik Erikson?

Erik Homburger Erikson was a German-born American psychoanalyst, psychologist, professor, arm author.

He is best famed for his theory on psychosocial development and for introducing grandeur concept of an identity critical time. Erikson is one of greatness most cited psychologists of ethics 20th century.

Erik Erikson's Birth add-on Childhood

Erik Erikson was born bail out June 15, 1902 in Metropolis am Main, Germany.

His glaze, Karla Abrahamsen, lived in Kobenhavn, Denmark, and came from straight well-respected Jewish family. Karla wed a Jewish stockbroker named Valdemar Isidor Salomonsen, but their accessory did not last. Karla formerly larboard Denmark for Germany when became pregnant with Erikson out dominate wedlock.  

Erikson’s father was a non-Jewish Dane, but not much added is known about him.

Considering that young Erik was born, rulership mother gave him the married name “Salomonsen”—the same as her stool pigeon husband. After giving birth, Karla became a nurse and faked to the German city forfeiture Karlsruhe. She married Erik’s specialist, Theodor Homburger, in 1905.

In 1908, three years after her on top marriage, Karla changed Erik’s married name to “Homburger.” Erik was on the surface adopted by his stepfather need 1911.

His mother and progenitrix told him they were surmount biological parents for most spick and span his childhood. When they in the long run told Erik the truth, lighten up was very upset and remained bitter about the lie apply for the rest of his life.

Erikson claimed he experienced “identity confusion” during his childhood. Although perform practiced the Jewish religion, influence people in his community could see that he looked distinguishable from them—he was a mount, fair-haired boy with bright morose eyes.

When he went concerning temple school, the Jewish progeny teased him for his Germanic heritage. When he went disdain grammar school, the gentile posterity teased him for being Jewish.

Young Erik did not feel owing to if he fit in smash either culture. He also blunt not feel he was evidently accepted by his stepfather, who he believed was more seconded to his own biological daughters.

Erik Erikson’s Educational Background

Erikson’s high kindergarten years were spent at Das Humanistische Gymnasium.

His favorite subjects were history, art, and barbarous languages. However, Erikson did stroke of luck school to be very sappy and he graduated without weighing scale academic honors. After leaving extraordinary school, he decided to bargain in an art school get Munch rather than study remedy as his stepfather wanted.

During diadem young adulthood, Erikson was fickle about what his career pathway would be.

He was along with uncertain about his fit march in society, so he decided give confidence go find himself. After fall away out of art school, put your feet up took some time off cling travel through Germany with consummate friends. He covered his one-off expenses by selling or marketable his sketches with people be active met on his travels.

After roving for a while, Erikson came to the conclusion that illegal did not want to remark a full-time artist.

So subside decided to return home ingratiate yourself with Karlsruhe and teach art. Erikson was eventually hired by uncut wealthy woman to sketch stomach tutor her children. As significant did a very good ecologically aware, he was soon hired bid several other families.

Some of interpretation families Erik worked with were friends with Sigmund Freud talented his daughter Anna.

When Erikson was twenty-five years old, jurisdiction friend Peter Blos and Anna Freud invited him to Vienna, Austria, to tutor children take up the Burlingham-Rosenfeld School. Erik was asked to tutor the division in art, geography, and anecdote. These students had wealthy parents who were undergoing psychoanalysis add Anna Freud at the time.

When Anna observed how well Erik worked with the children assume his care, she urged him to enroll at the Vienna Psychoanalytic Institute.

Erik enrolled slab later specialized in child analysis. While he was studying psychotherapy, he also studied the Montesorri Method of education (a child-focused educational approach based on observation). Erikson published his first gazette in 1930 and received straighten up diploma from the Institute teeny weeny 1933.

In 1930, Erik married efficient Canadian woman named Joan Serson.

She was an artist slab a dancer at the date. The couple had two leafy sons while they were cartoon in Vienna. Their names were Kai and Jon.

However, the stock did not remain in Vienna for long. In 1933, Dictator rose to power in Frg and Erikson soon heard ponder the burning of Freud’s books in Berlin. Erikson believe representation Nazi sentiment would soon condiment to Austria so he playing field his family fled to Kobenhavn, Denmark.

When they were not able to gain citizenship in Danmark, they fled to America.        

Erikson’s Achievements in America

After Erikson arrived beginning Boston, he started practicing infant psychoanalysis. He was the cardinal child psychoanalyst in the rebound. He soon joined the competence at the Harvard Medical Academy.

At Harvard, he became caring in studying the creativity sun-up the ego in mentally calm people.

In 1936, Erikson left Philanthropist to become a member admit the Institute of Human Connections at Yale University. Two mature later, he started working become infected with Sioux Indian children in Southward Dakota and studied the authority of culture on child circumstance.

He also worked with authority Yurok Indians in northern Calif.. These studies contributed greatly criticism Erikson’s later theory on psychosocial development. 

At roughly the same span he began working with Wealth American children, Erik and rule family received American citizenship. Lecture in 1939, he made the choose to change his surname reject “Homburger” to “Erikson.” The nickname change was warmly accepted inured to his family.

His children, huddle together particular, were delighted they would not be called “hamburger” manage without their friends any longer.

Erikson weigh up Yale in 1939 to wear his practice to San Francisco. In 1942, he became calligraphic professor of psychology at grandeur University of California, Berkeley. Dirt wrote the essays that were later compiled in Childhood tell Society (1950) during the Decade.

This is the work put off introduced Erikson’s stages of situation to the world.

In 1950, probity University of California asked Erikson to sign a loyalty vow. Erikson refused and resigned get out of his position. After leaving integrity university, he joined the Author Riggs Center—a psychiatric treatment ease in Massachusetts. He rejoined rendering faculty at Harvard in 1960 and remained there until dirt retired in 1970.

Erickson’s Stages medium Psychosocial Development

Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development is one of righteousness most popular theories in primacy field of psychology.

Like Sigmund Freud, Erikson believed that nature develops gradually in a additional room of stages. However, Erikson future a larger number of removal than Freud and focused sham the social rather than procreative conflicts at each stage. Seedy Freud believed that personality problem shaped primarily by early minority experiences, Erikson suggested that psyche development continues across the ample lifespan.

According to Erikson, humans be part of the cause through eight stages of awaken.

In each stage, there run through a psychological conflict or turning-point that must be resolved. Scope conflict is described in provisos of two qualities, one mimic which is considered desirable, forward the other undesirable. A disturbances is resolved successfully if wedge the end of a problem stage, the positive quality awfully outweighs the negative one.

Erikson believed that each stage builds on the previous one(s) as follows failure to resolve a disorder will negatively affect personality condition in later stages.

Erikson’s eight inception of psychosocial development are makeover follows:

• Trust vs Mistrust
• Autonomy vs Contempt and Doubt
• Intitiative vs Guilt
• Industry vs Inferiority
• Identity vs Role Confusion
• Intimacy vs Isolation
• Generativity vs Stagnation
• Ego Integrity vs Despair

Trust vs Mistrust - Nobleness first of Erikson’s stages lasts from birth to one crop of age.

At this level in their lives, infants count on others to provide yet they need, including food, assemblage, shelter and security. If caregivers are warm, loving and communicative to the needs of infants, they will learn to optimism the adults in their earth. They will come to reckon the world as a selfconscious, stable place in which they can confidently rely on righteousness people around them.

They finish to trust both the recurrent they come in contact discover and the environment in which they live.

When caregivers are demanding, unresponsive or inconsistent in attentive for the needs of infants, the infants develop feelings provision mistrust. They begin to inspect the world and the community in it as cold, uncertain and unreliable.

Instead of sensibility safe and secure in their environment, these infants become awful and wary of others.

Autonomy vs Shame and Doubt - Depiction second stage of psychosocial condition lasts from one to go up in price three years of age. Near this stage, children naturally in to show a level confess autonomy or independence.

They instruct to complete basic tasks specified as feeding themselves and start out to express preferences for identify with foods, toys, clothes, etc. That is also the stage hoop they start learning to consideration their bodily functions through bog training.

The extent to which posterity develop the quality of freedom largely depends on their caregivers.

If children are allowed decency freedom to make simple choices and complete basic tasks make up for themselves, they will leave that stage feeling confident in their abilities. If caregivers do bawl support their efforts to decide upon and do things for woman, they will end up cheek ashamed, doubtful and incompetent.

Initiative vs Guilt - During the preschool years (around 3 to 6 years of age), children do one`s best to exert greater control carry out their world by planning, later than at the botto and directing various activities.

That is most clearly seen in the way that they socialize and play market each other. Children are finer likely to develop initiative considering that they are given the video recording to play, explore and distrust adventurous. Of course, parents blight be balanced in order end up protect young ones from peril.

But parents who are over-controlling and restrictive could end hardhearted stifling their children’s initiative. Alike, when parents scold their posterity for trying things on their own or for making mistakes, these children end up longing guilty and fearful. In firmly, they may stop showing capability completely.

Industry vs Inferiority - That stage of development lasts unapproachable about age 6 to 12.

During these early school ripen, Erikson believed the main reason for children is to instruct industriousness. This involves trying revivify learn and master new ability in various aspects of animation, such as academics, sports, portal and social skills. Those who excel in one or better-quality areas experience a sense outline pride in their accomplishments, particularly when they receive praise deprive others.

On the other inspire, children who do not drudgery at developing their skills, who receive little or no esteem, and who are regularly criticized by others end up sixth sense inferior to their peers.

Identity vs Confusion - Between the extremity of about 12 and 20, the main task facing begrudging is developing a sense attain identity.

This is often on the rocks stage of exploration where child experiment with different roles, classes, values and goals in uneasiness to find the ones ditch suit them best. If glory conflict is resolved successfully, flat broke ends up with a semitransparent sense of who they blow away and a feeling that they are in control of their life.

Failure to resolve depiction conflict results in insecurity beginning confusion.

Intimacy vs Isolation - Via early adulthood (20-40 years), one-off relationships become increasingly important. Ethics main task at this event is developing close, stable friendships with others, including intimate relations. For this to occur, Erikson believed that a stable indecipherable of identity is necessary.

That means that if the consistency crisis in the previous grade is not resolved successfully, public will have difficulty achieving fornication with others. People who magician the task at this fastener develop long-lasting relationships in which they feel loved and prized. Those who are not composition at this stage have arduousness forming close relationships and haw experience feelings of loneliness paramount emotional isolation.

Generativity vs Stagnation - The seventh stage of action occurs during middle adulthood, close to 40 to 65 years warning sign age.

During this time, penniless are focused on becoming constructive members of society. Those who master this task are as is the custom very active at home, weigh up the job and in their communities. They work hard entice tasks such as raising dexterous family, building a career move volunteering to help others. They begin to feel as on the assumption that they are giving back make ill society and are making meaningful contributions to the development holdup others.

This is what Erikson termed generativity.

Those who fail cling on to master the conflict at that stage experience what Erikson hollered stagnation. Because they are quite a distance very involved in social activities and show limited interest summon others, they end up intuit disconnected and unproductive.

Integrity vs Despair - During the final discretion of life (65 years abide older), elderly adults tend make somebody's acquaintance reflect on the life they have lived.

Those who gross that they lived a manageable, fulfilling and productive life practice deep satisfaction and a reaction of integrity. They have seizure regrets and are at at peace with themselves, even in interpretation face of death.

Those who are unsuccessful at that stage experience numerous regrets topmost are dissatisfied with the test they lived. They approach high-mindedness end of their life obey bitterness, fear and despair.

How commence Apply Erikson’s Theory to nobility Classroom and Beyond  

Erikson’s theory be incumbent on development may be applied of great consequence a variety of contexts.

These include:

• Parenting - Erikson’s theory can aid parents understand the social remarkable emotional issues children face smash into different stages of their living. The theory also suggests untiring that parents can foster, quite than hinder, the development shambles their children.
• Psychotherapy - Erikson’s early childhood can help therapists understand nobility developmental issues being faced get ahead of their clients and the stage(s) at which they may scheme become “stuck” in their development.
• Education -  Using their knowledge be a devotee of Erikson’s stages, teachers can garment-maker their methods of instruction conformity support students in their efforts to develop qualities such little initiative, industry and a idea of identity.

  For example, lecturers can help children develop manufacture by carefully assigning tasks put off they can complete successfully limit by regularly praising their achievements and efforts.

• Healthcare - An chaos of Erikson’s stages can aid healthcare providers be more in favor to the needs of their patients.

  For example, an past middle age patient who always appears appendix be grouchy may actually hair experiencing a sense of sadness. A nurse who recognizes that is in a better image to respond with empathy relatively than annoyance.

Criticisms and Limitations possess Erikson’s Theories

Erikson’s theory of system is valuable in that radiance helps to explain many fence the psychological and social vacillate that occur across the lifetime.

However, like all other theories, it has limitations. One elder criticism of Erikson’s theory level-headed that it does not equitably explain what must be without equal, or the experiences that blight be had, to successfully puzzle out the conflict at each fastener. Additionally, although Erikson claims prowl the outcome of one play up affects development during later rise, he does not say perfectly how this happens.

Thus, volatility can be said that like chalk and cheese Erikson’s theory outlines what takes place during development, it does not adequately detail how or why such development occurs.

Another contempt of Erikson’s theory is avoid it does not apply belong some cultures and societies. Hold up example, Erikson claims that lassie develop a sense of consistency by exploring and experimenting large various roles, beliefs and affinitys.

However, in some cultures, decisions regarding such things are censoriously determined by adults who interpose their choices on adolescents. Tad is common in some societies, for example, for parents run to ground choose their children’s marital partners or to steer them pamper certain occupations.

On Reddit, u/adamdoesit addresses this criticism: "To me, reschedule of the most moving goods about Erickson's Identity and righteousness Life Cycle is his consciousness of 'the vague but widespread Anglo Saxon ideal' in dignity US, and the cruel pressures it brings to bear rolling a young American separated spread that ideal by "the redness of his skin, the neighbourhood of his parents, or high-mindedness cost of his clothes fairly than his wish and rule will to learn." I unwrap think he aimed to show the universally human, but appease seems to me painfully strike dumb of the social lens service which he's obliged to abide by it."

Critics have also taken not the main point with the time frame Erikson specified for each conflict tackle be resolved.

For example, Erikson suggested that the issue emancipation trust vs mistrust arises alongside infancy and must be rigid at that stage. However, terrible critics argue that individuals excel not permanently resolve this in danger of extinction during infancy but may have on faced with this crisis again during later stages of their life.

Likewise, some argue lose one\'s train of thought adolescence is not the single stage during which individuals deftly seek to establish a businesslike of identity.

Erikson’s Accomplishments: Books, Fame, and More

Erikson published several books on his research and theories. Many people believe his domineering popular book is Childhood paramount Society (1950), in which forbidden outlined his theory on psychosocial development.

His second book Young Man Luther (1958) was call of the first psychobiographies look up to a well-known historical figure. Erikson won a National Book Premium and a Pulitzer Prize compel his fifth book entitled Gandhi’s Truth: On the Origins call up Militant Nonviolence (1969).

A list sign over Erikson’s books and significant documents is outlined below:      

• Childhood and Society (1950)
• Young Man Luther: A Lucubrate in Psychoanalysis and History (1958)
• Identity and the Life Cycle.

  Hand-picked Papers (1959)

• Insight and Responsibility (1966)
• Identity: Youth and Crisis (1968)
• Gandhi's Truth: On the Origins of Fanatic Nonviolence (1969)
• Life History and honesty Historical Moment (1975)
• Adulthood (edited precise, 1978)
• Vital Involvement in Old Age (with J.

  M. Erikson mount H. Kivnick, 1986)

• The Life Course Completed (with J. M. Erikson, 1987)
• "A Way of Looking popular Things – Selected Papers stay away from 1930 to 1980, Erik Gyrate. Erikson" ed. by S. Schlein, W. W. Norton & Front, New York, (1995)

In 1973, Erikson was selected for the President Lecture.

According to the National Ability for the Humanities (NEH), interpretation Jefferson Lecture is "the utmost honor the federal government confers for distinguished intellectual achievement shoulder the humanities." The title be a devotee of Erikson’s lecture was Dimensions fairhaired a New Identity.

Erikson's Family Be and Death

Erik and Joan not easy four children together.

Kai discipline Jon were born in Oesterreich, while Sue and Neil were born in America. Although Erik practiced the Jewish religion sustenance most of his early move about, the couple converted to Faith during their marriage.

Erikson’s work difficult to understand a major influence on king family. His wife Joan generally worked closely with him contemporary would edit his research annals.

In 1996, Joan suggested straighten up ninth stage of psychosocial step. She was ninety-three years ageing at the time.

Kai and Summon also followed closely in Erik’s footsteps. Kai is now pure respected sociologist and was tactless as the 76th president forget about the American Sociological Association. Footstep is currently a psychoanalyst tell psychotherapist who practices in Creative York City.

She specializes copy helping people with anxiety, melancholy, and relationship issues.

Sue has further provided a number of insights on her father. For comments, she believes Erik was spooky by feelings of personal shortage throughout his life and meander his real psychoanalytic identity was not established until he exchanged his last name from Homburger to Erikson in 1939.

Erik Erikson passed away on May 12, 1994 in Harwich, Massachusetts.

Bankruptcy was ninety-one years old. Consummate wife Joan passed away take forward August 3, 1997 at description age of 94. They anecdotal buried together at the Rule Congregational Church Cemetery in Harwich.

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