Erikson's Theory Of Adolescence

Adolescence (12-18 years old)
Turning 13, I found myself starting in the world of high school, where the biggest bullies were the teachers, and your only solitude, a book. Despite my rough start to this particular stage, of which derived from my middle childhood, I was to find a small group of like-minded friends with the same appreciation for education and a reserved outlook on life. This can be attributed to the theory of ‘Niche-picking’, where someone is drawn to people and environments in which acceptance and comfort is guaranteed due to the similarity in thinking and goals (McElhaney & Antonishak, 2008). As I am an introvert by nature, I found social occasions daunting. But, despite this, I found myself being subconsciously attracted

I had found a career path that suited me just right, and had fallen in love with someone I perceived to be my ‘one and only’. This someone would turn out to be my future husband. After the betrayal sustained at the hands of my earlier boyfriend, I found it hard to trust people and open up intimately, leaving me feeling alone and isolated. Erikson’s theory established that in this stage of life, the crisis of intimacy verses isolation emerges, where it is typical for those in this stage to explore the possibilities of long term relationships and what benefits they can bring (Batra, 2013). When love or intimacy is not found, the result is isolation, leaving the person involved to feel secluded and alone (Zhang, 2015). I felt this way until my current partner and I formed a life together, where I no longer experience isolation, but am overcome by love and

Growing up, I belonged to the middle class, with a great moral standing and an Anglican religion. Vygotskys socio-cultural theory proclaimed that aspects of ones behaviour are directly derived from the culture in which they belong (Burkholder &Palaez, 2000).In my Christian upbringing, I was constantly told that lying was not a good trait to have, leaving me to be honest whenever I had misbehaved or asked a question. This particular example agrees with Vygotskys theory as it shows my behaviour was related to the culture in which I belonged. Even though my culture has some what changed, this is still true today. Although I still uphold Christian morals, at times, the culture of military life has led me astray. The army is commonly renowned for its drinking culture, and as a soldier exposed to this, I have found myself drinking in excess on nights in which I should not. This, too concurs with Vygotskys theory, where it is evident I am a product of my