Middle childhood is the second developmental phase in the life course. This stage is typically defined in children from ages six through twelve. Like most stages, especially during childhood, there is biological, psychological and sociological development. A key skill acquired at middle childhood is the continuation of forming a sense of self through the relationships with others. During early childhood, the growing infant learns that he or she is no longer attached to their mother and they are an autonomous being. In middle childhood, the child is less influenced by their parents and family as school and community relationships form. Erik Erickson, the psychologist and psychoanalyst, identified this stage of development as the time of industry …show more content…
By middle childhood, these stages are mastered and there is rapid cognitive development as awareness of self and others. The concept of self also becomes impacted by the friendships and relations with their peers. Children inhabit new roles, which aids in forming the personality and provides opportunities for responsibility. It is a period of socialization and internal awareness. This is also a crucial time as children are susceptible to peer isolation, bullying, deviations in personality formation and symptoms of mental illness. Middle childhood like Eric Erickson’s understanding of the stages of development, is influenced by the previous life course stage. Elizabeth Votruba-Drzal’s piece on the economic disparities highlights economic factors in early childhood development affecting …show more content…
However, some people are better at this skill than others. Certain personality types are better suited for interaction with people while others are more internalized. Personality types are seldom discussed in middle childhood, yet are evident in this stage of the life course as temperament and attachment do not play the active role it previous held in early childhood. There is expansive physiological development in middle childhood, that indicates characteristics of the personality. While there are no current personality assessments that are directed toward children in middle childhood, Shiner’s How shall we speak of children's personalities in middle childhood? A preliminary taxonomy, concludes that there are a few inventories that can be used in this stage. In using the Big Five as an example, children who place high on extraversion and low neuroticism would have less challenges making relationships with their peers and forming friendships. However, children who are introverted or high on neuroticism may face difficulties and may not meet their social goals. Schwartz, Gorman, Duong and Nakamoto study of peer relation stresses it’s importance as depressive symptoms are more likely in those who do not believe they have connected with others. School counselors and other professionals can use these assessments and inventories to identify personality traits in students. Those that
Eric Erikson developed eight different psychosocial stages which emphasize the lifespan development during the major periods in life. The first psychosocial stage is infancy and it embraces the age of birth to one year old. The infancy crisis is trust versus mistrust which emphasizes that if children are taken care of; they will be able to gain confidence as well as trust. In the other hand, if they developed mistrust they will develop a sense of insecurity. Erickson’s second stage is toddlerhood which embraces the ages of one to three and deals with the stage crisis of autonomy versus shame and doubt. In the toddlerhood stage, toddlers are able to use mental skills and are able to start deciding for themselves. The third stage is early childhood, and it embraces the ages of three to six with the stage crisis of initiative versus guilt. During the early childhood stage children are able to gain the characteristics of ambition and responsibility and it is developed through the parent’s support. On the other hand if parents are too demanding children will develop guilt. The next stage is middle adulthood which ranges in the ages of six to eleven; children are able to develop the characteristic cooperation but, inferiority can also arise with negative experiences which can cause a stage crisis of industry versus i...
Every single person on earth has gone through the stage of middle childhood in their lives; it is inevitable. This stage is an important time in an individual’s life as it provides them the opportunity to experience new challenges and to make new friends and relationships. Middle childhood is a time of slow yet steady growth of a person in the aspects of physical, mental, and emotional development. In the movie The Sandlot, the young boys show visible signs of school-age development which include the concept of self-esteem, showing interests in the opposite sex, and overcoming challenges. While there are many other things that imply development in school-age children, these three topics are the most prominent in the film.
In J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, the main character Holden Caufield believes that innocence is corrupted by society. He exposes his self-inflicted emotional struggles as he is reminiscing the past. For Holden, teenage adolescence is a complicated time for him, his teenage mentality in allows him to transition from the teenage era to the reality of an adult in the real world. As he is struggling to find his own meaning of life, he cares less about others and worries about how he can be a hero not only to himself but also to the innocent youth. As Holden is grasping the idea of growing up, he sets his priorities of where he belongs and how to establish it. As he talks about how ‘phony’ the outside world is, he has specific recollections that signify importance to his life and he uses these time and time again because these memories are ones that he wont ever let go of. The death of his younger brother Allie has had a major impact on him emotionally and mentally. The freedom of the ducks in Central Park symbolize his ‘get away’ from reality into his own world. His ideology of letting kids grow up and breaking the chain loose to discover for themselves portrays the carrousel and the gold ring. These are three major moments that will be explored to understand the life of Holden Caufield and his significant personal encounters as he transitions from adolescence into manhood.
Papalia, Diane E, Sally W. Olds, and Ruth D. Feldman. A Child's World: Infancy Through Adolescence. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2004. Print. The author is a child development and psychology professor. This is an anthology with strictly objective information. The content is broken down into physical, cognitive, and psychosocial developments of different stages of childhood.
Erik Erikson developed eight psychosocial stages that occur through life. These stages help parents of younger children understand what the child is thinking and why they are acting the way that they do. For a person to become a well-rounded adult they need to succeed in each level. This essay will discuss the first six stages into young adulthood.
Erik Erikson’s psychoanalytic theory of development is made up of eight stages that span the lifetime. The stages correspond to a specific age and provide a blueprint for what to expect universally from someone in that stage in terms of social development. Erikson believed
Mistrust stage occurs at infancy and at this stage, Infants learn to trust others depending on the response of their caregivers who are usually parents. The Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt occurs between the ages of 18 months and three during which time children begin to emphasize their independence. This is done by exploring the world around them. Erikson, E. H. (1993). The Initiative vs. Guilt stage generally, occurs between the age three and five and at this time children assert themselves more frequently and are particularly lively. Industry versus inferiority stage occurs between the ages of five and twelve. As children grow in independence, they become increasingly aware of themselves as individuals. Erikson, E. H. (1993). The identity vs. role confusion stage, occurs during adolescence, between the ages of 12 and 18 years. At this stage the adolescents undergo an identity crisis during which they must establish an identity, goals, and a purpose. Erikson, E. H. (1994). The Intimacy vs. Isolation stage occurs in young adulthood ages 18 to 40 years. During this time the young adult begins to share themselves more intimately with others and explores significant relationships with others especially in marriage. The seventh stage is Generativity vs. Stagnation and occurs during middle adulthood, ages 40 to 65 yrs. This is the stage of development during which most people have children and provide guidance or a legacy to the next generation and in so doing
He implemented eight psychosocial stages which includes trust versus mistrust. One example of the specified inclusions are infants. In order to come to a resolution for these feelings of insecurity, infants look towards their care givers for care and stability to fulfill their desired needs. With autonomy versus shame stage, children begin to assert their independence, utilizing their skills otherwise they will end up doubting their abilities. Initiative versus guilt is another stage where pre-scholars develop initiative by devising and carrying out bold plans. These people plan activities, developing a sense of initiative with others therefore feeling secure in their ability to lead and make decisions. The identity versus role confusion stage is noted as Erikson’s most popular. He characterized adolescence as a crucial and critical time of identity development. To achieve a sense of identity some adolescents attempt to define and explore who they are regarding their career choice, religion, political views, sexual orientation etc., figuring out a way to fit into society. According to Erikson, “the adolescent mind is essentially a mind or moratorium, a psychosocial stage between the morality learned by the child, and the ethics to be developed by the adult” (Erikson, 1963, p.245. As they go through the different sexual and
Stage 4 of Erickson's theory of personality development lasts from age 6 to the beginning of adolescence. The main theme of this stage is industry versus inferiority. Here is where the child learns to function ...
Middle childhood brings many changes to a child’s life. Middle childhood is the developmental phase that leads from the period before commencement of the physiological processes and changes associated with puberty ...
“In middle childhood, 30% of a child’s social interactions involve peers, compared to 10% in early childhood” (Blume, 2010). Children place a large importance on friendship more when they grow older. In early childhood, friendships are associated with a particular activity. During middle childhood, children focus more on bonds and trust when it comes to making friends. Children start to use selective association meaning that children start to pair off with people that have the same interests as them. Sociable kids are attracted to other sociable kids and children who are shy tend to get left behind.
In electing to observe a kindergarten class, I was hoping to see ‘real world’ examples of the social development, personality types and cognitive variation found within the beginning stages of “Middle Childhood” as discussed within our text.
Influence plays a major role in their overall development. Promoting social and emotional skills and intervening in cases of difficulty very early in life will be effective for promoting positive experiences among children. Peers play important roles in children’s lives at much earlier points in development. Experiences in the beginning of life have implications for children’s acceptance by their classmates in nursery school and the later school years. When I was in the fourth grade a really wanted to be accepted by people around me. I would switch my friends a lot looking for people’s approval. For example, if I was friends with a girl on Tuesday but I heard someone say she was weird I would abandon the friendship in order to gain peer approval. Early friendships and positive relations with peer groups appear to protect children against later psychological
During an individual’s progression from childhood into adolescence researchers suggest that agreeableness and conscientiousness increased, while extraversion, neuroticism, and openness dropped (Srivastava, John, Gosling, and Potter, 2003). The fall in extraversion, neuroticism, and openness can be due to an individual’s increased responsibilities and time constraint. Individuals later in life tend to be more mature and experienced with emotional feelings and are able handle themselves well in emotional settings, hence getting a low score on
Childhood is the most unforgettable period of my life. Everyone has childhood memories. My childhood memories took place in Eritrea. These memories that are happiest and saddest memories are still in my mind. Sometimes I remember things that have happened in my childhood period and they just make me laugh. Childhood memories can be bad or good, but we can’t forget them. For these reasons, childhood memories are the most important parts of my life. Specifically, also I have some good memories of childhood.