Psychosocial,

Psychosexual, and
Humanist
Theories of
Learning
CHAPTER 6
Erikson’s PSYCHOSOCIAL
Theory and Freud’s
PSYCHOSEXUAL THEORY
Lesson 1
 Psychosocial Theory

● Erik Erikson was a personality theorist and

identified that we go through eight stages of
development.
● He stressed the importance of interpersonal,
social, and cultural influences in the
development of the people.
 Psychosocial Theory

● Erikson’s theory is based on what he calls the

epigenetic principle, the notion that we develop
through an unfolding of our personality in
predetermined stages and that our environment
and surrounding culture influence how we
progress through these stages.
 Psychosocial Theory

● Each stage is characterized by a

psychosocial dilemma or conflict
which he called crisis.
● How the conflict is managed
ultimately shapes an individual s
personality.
 Psychosocial Theory

Psychosocial crisis of two opposing

emotional forces:

○ Syntonic – positive disposition

○ Dystonic – negative disposition
 Psychosocial Theory

● Too little of the positive and too

much of the negative aspect causes
malignancy.
● Maladaptation is also present if
there is too much of the positive and
too little of the negative causes
(Sokol, 2009).
Psychosocial Stages of Development
 Stage 1: TRUST vs MISTRUST

Infancy to 18 months

Fundamental question:
● “Is my world predictable and

supportive?”
 Stage 1: TRUST vs MISTRUST

● Infants depend completely on adults to take

care of their needs.
● If the needs are met, sound attachments
are formed and the child should adopt an
optimistic, trusting attitude to the world.
● If needs are not met, a more distrusting,
insecure personality will result.
Stage 2: AUTONOMY vs SHAME and DOUBT

2 to 3 years

Fundamental question:
● “Can I do things myself or must I

always rely on others?”

Stage 2: AUTONOMY vs SHAME and DOUBT

● The child must begin to take responsibility for

things like eating, bathing, and dressing.
● In this stage, they ask themselves if they can
stand alone or always need to rely on others.
● If they master this stage, they acquire a sense of
self-sufficiency or a feeling of autonomy.
● If parents have problems here and are never
happy with the child’s efforts, a sense of shame
and doubt may develop.
 Stage 3: INITIATIVE vs GUILT

3 to 5 years

Fundamental question:
● “Am I good or am I bad?”
 Stage 3: INITIATIVE vs GUILT
● Children at this stage are fond of doing things their
own.
● Exploration and play are crucial activities for them to
learn new ideas and apply in their lives.
● Children need to assert control and power over their
environment.
● Success in this state results to a sense of purpose. If
they exert too much effort and become too
authoritative, they will feel a sense of guilt.
 Stage 4: INDUSTRY vs INFERIORITY

5 to 13 years

Fundamental question:
● “Am I competent or am I worthless?”
 Stage 4: INDUSTRY vs INFERIORITY
● There is a shift from functioning socially within the
family to a wider community, such as school.
● Levels of maturity and self-awareness are increased.
● Children always ask themselves how they can be good.
● They are ensured to cope with the new social and
academic demands.
● Success at this stage results to a sense of
competence, whereas failure leads to feeling of
inferiority.
Stage 5: IDENTITY vs ROLE CONFUSION

13 to 21 years

Fundamental question:
● “Who am I and where am I going?”
 Stage 5: IDENTITY vs ROLE CONFUSION
● Social relationships play a vital role at this stage, when
their sexual identity is developed.
● Discovery of oneself comes with the thought of where
one should fit in a social circle.
● At this stage, too, adolescents develop their
framework of morality.
● Identity crisis, as a result of the transition from
childhood to adulthood, as a result of high
expectations from others.
 Stage 6: INTIMACY vs ISOLATION

21 to 39 years

Fundamental question:
● “Shall I share my life with another or

live alone?”
 Stage 6: INTIMACY vs ISOLATION

● Finding the right partner confronts the young

adult at this stage.
● Failure results to fear of spending the rest of
their lives alone or isolated.
● Because young people interact most
frequently with others, they are most
susceptible to feeling intimacy and loneliness.
Stage 7: GENERATIVITY vs STAGNATION

40 to 65 years

Fundamental question:
● “Will I produce something of real

value?”
 Stage 7: GENERATIVITY vs STAGNATION

● Adults, at this stage, are mostly attached to

their careers and professional journeys.
● They find life’s meaning by contributing
something to the community, taking
responsibilities and control, and leaving an
indelible legacy.
● Success leads to feeling of usefulness or
generativity, whereas failure causes inactivity
or meaninglessness.
 Stage 8: EGO INTEGRITY vs DESPAIR

65 years onwards

Fundamental question:
● “Have I lived a full life?”
 Stage 8: EGO INTEGRITY vs DESPAIR
● The challenge is to avoid dwelling on the mistakes
of the past and on one's imminent death.
● It is also the time to reflect on and review one's life.
● Success at this stage has people finding meaning
and satisfaction with life as they look back.
● Those who are unsuccessful reflect back and see
the problems they struggled to deal with. They tend
to wallow in bitterness, regret, despair and
resentment.
Stage Psychosocial Basic Virtue Age Characteristics
Crisis

1 Trust vs. Mistrust Hope Infancy (0 to 1 ½) If needs are dependably met, infants develop a sense of
basic trust.

2 Autonomy vs. Will Early Childhood (1 Toddlers learn to exercise will and do things for
Shame ½ to 3) themselves, or they doubt their abilities.

3 Initiative vs. Guilt Purpose Play Age (3 to 5) Preschoolers learn to initiate tasks or they feel guilty
about efforts to be independent. Children feel
irresponsible and anxious.
4 Industry vs. Competency School Age (5 to Children learn the pleasure of applying themselves to
Inferiority 12) tasks, or they feel inferior.

5 Ego Identity vs. Fidelity Adolescence (12 to Teenagers work at refining a sense of self by testing
Role Confusion 18) roles, or they become confused about their identity.

6 Intimacy vs. Love Young Adult (18 to Young adults struggle to form close relationships, or
Isolation 40) they feel socially isolated.

7 Generativity vs. Care Adulthood (40 to The middle-aged discover a sense of contribution to the
Stagnation 65) world, or they may feel a lack of purpose.

8 Ego Integrity vs. Wisdom Maturity (65 up) When reflecting his/her life, the older adult may feel a
Despair sense of satisfaction or failure.
 PsychosexualTheory
● Psychosexual Theory of Sigmund Freud states
that human beings have basic biological urges
or drives that must be satisfied.
● His theory is also known as the theory of
libidinal development.
● According to Freud, psychic energy (libido)
fuels human behavior, thoughts, and feelings it
focused on the different erogenous zones,
areas of the body that become erotically
sensitive in successive stages of development.
Personality Structure
 Id, Ego, and Superego
● Id is the impulsive, irrational part of the
personality whose entire mission is to satisfy the
instincts.
● It obeys “pleasure principle,” seeking immediate
gratification, even when biological needs cannot
be realistically or appropriately met.
 Id, Ego, and Superego
● Ego the rational side of the individual that
operates according to the “reality principle” and
tries to find realistic ways of gratifying the
instincts.
● Superego, the individual’s internalized and moral
standards. Strives for perfection rather than for
pleasure or realism. It insists that we find socially
acceptable or ethical outlets for the id’s
undesirable impulses.
 Id, Ego, and Superego
● Even though the superego and the ego may reach
the same decision about something, the
superego's reason for that decision is based
more on moral values, while the ego's decision is
based more on what others will think or what the
consequences of an action could be on the
individual.
 Id, Ego, and Superego
An example of the id, ego, and superego interaction:
● a person on a strict diet who is tempted by a box of delicious
donuts at work. The id impulsively desires immediate
gratification by indulging in the donuts.
● At the same time, the superego reminds the person of their
commitment to a healthy lifestyle and instills feelings of guilt for
considering breaking the diet.
● The ego mediates between the id’s cravings and the superego’s
moral standards, potentially allowing the person to eat just one
donut as a compromise, demonstrating its role in maintaining
psychological balance amidst conflicting desires.
Stage Description
Infants find pleasure on doing oral activities like sucking, chewing, and biting; hence,
Oral: 0 – 1 years feeding activities are vital. In effect, infants weaned too early or abruptly may later
crave close contact and become overdependent on a spouse.
Gratification is primarily caused by voluntary urination and defecation. Thus, toilet-
training procedures major conflicts between children and parents. The emotional
Anal: 1 – 3 years
climate that parents create can have lasting effects. For example, children who are
punished for toileting accidents may be messy, or wasteful.
Genital stimulation causes gratification at this stage. Children develop incestuous
desire for the opposite-sex parent (Oedipus complex for boys and Electra complex
Phallic: 3 – 5 years
for girls). Anxiety stemming from this conflict causes children to internalize the sex-
role characteristics and moral standards of the same-sex parental rival.
Traumas of the phallic stage cause sexual conflicts to be repressed and sexual urges
Latency: 6 – to be rechanneled into school work and vigorous play. The ego and superego
Puberty continue to develop as the child gains more problem-solving abilities at school and
internalizes societal values.
Puberty triggers a reawakening of sexual urges. Adolescents must now learn to
Genital: After
express these urges in socially acceptable ways. If development has been healthy,
puberty
the mature sex instinct is satisfied by marriage and raising children.
 Kohlberg’s Moral
Development Theory
Lesson 2
 Lawrence Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral
Development
● Kohlberg's theory of moral development is a theory
that focuses on how children develop morality and
moral reasoning.
● Kohlberg's theory suggests that moral
development occurs in a series of six stages and
that moral logic is primarily focused on seeking
and maintaining justice.
 Stages of Moral Development
● The Preconventional Level – applies to most children
through the age of nine. Children base their moral
judgments on the consequences of behavior

➢ Stage One - Punishment–Obedience Orientation:

the physical consequence of an action determines
its goodness or badness. One is motivated by fear
of punishment. Thus, he will act to avoid
punishment or for the sake of following an
authority.
 Stages of Moral Development
➢ Stage Two - Instrumental Relativist
Orientation: here, an action is judged to
be right if it is instrumental or satisfying
one’s own needs or involve on an even
exchange. Obeying rules should bring
some sort of benefit in return.
 Stages of Moral Development
● The Conventional Level – right and wrong are judged
by conformity to conventional (familial, religious,
societal) standards of right and wrong.

➢ Stage Three – Interpersonal Concordance

Orientation: the right action is one that would be
carried out by someone whose behavior is likely to
please or impress others. One gives importance to
what people think or say about him or her.
 Stages of Moral Development
➢ Stage Four - Law and Order Orientation:
to maintain the social order, fixed rules
must be established and obeyed. It is
essential to respect authority. One is
motivated to act to uphold law and order.
 Stages of Moral Development
● The Postconventional Level – this is usually reached
only after the age of twenty and by only a small
portion of adults. It is called postconventional
because the moral principles that underlie the
conventions of a society are now understood.

➢ Stage Five - Social Contract Orientation: rules are

needed to maintain the social agreement. At the
same time, the rights of the individual should be
protected.
 Stages of Moral Development
➢ Stage Six – Universal Ethical Principle
Orientation: moral decisions should be
made in terms of self-chosen ethical
principle. Once principles are chosen,
they should be applied in a consistent
way.
 HEINZ DILEMMA
● A woman was near death from a special kind of cancer. There was
one drug that the doctors thought might save her. It was a form of
radium that a druggist in the same town had recently discovered.
The drug was expensive to make, but the druggist was charging ten
times what the drug cost him to produce. He paid $200 for the
radium and charged $2,000 for a small dose of the drug. The sick
woman's husband, Heinz, went to everyone he knew to borrow the
money, but he could only get together about $1,000 which is half of
what it cost. He told the druggist that his wife was dying and asked
him to sell it cheaper or let him pay later. But the druggist said: "No, I
discovered the drug and I'm going to make money from it." So Heinz
got desperate and broke into the man's store to steal the drug for his
wife.
 HEINZ DILEMMA
● Should Heinz have broken into the laboratory to steal the drug for his
wife? Why or why not?

● Stage one (obedience): Heinz should not steal the medicine,

because he will consequently be put in prison.
● Stage two (self-interest): Heinz should steal the medicine, because
he will be much happier if he saves his wife, even if he will have to
serve a prison sentence.
● Stage three (conformity): Heinz should steal the medicine, because
his wife expects it; he wants to be a good husband.
● Stage four (law-and-order): Heinz should not steal the medicine,
because the law prohibits stealing making it illegal.
 HEINZ DILEMMA
● Should Heinz have broken into the laboratory to steal the drug for his
wife? Why or why not?

● Stage five (social contract and orientation): Heinz should steal the
medicine because everyone has a right to choose life, regardless of
the law.
● Stage six (universal human ethics): Heinz should steal the
medicine, because saving a human life is a more fundamental value
than the property rights of another person. Or: Heinz should not
steal the medicine, because others may need the medicine just as
badly, and their lives are equally significant.
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