Erikson's Psychosocial Human Development Erikson is largely concerned with how personality and behavior are influenced after birth, not before, and especially during childhood, just like Sigmund Freud. Erikson argues that personality develops in a predetermined order and builds on each previous stage, which he calls the epigenic principle. He is interested in how children socialize and how this affects their self-esteem. Erikson's ideas were, to a large extent, influenced by Freud, although it is important to mention that Freud is an id psychologist while Erikson is an ego psychologist. According to Erikson, the ego develops as it successfully resolves crises of a distinctly social nature. It is about establishing a sense of trust in others and developing a sense of identity in society. Its main focus is the adaptive and creative characteristic of the ego. (http://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html) The first stage of Erikson's psychosocial theory of human development occurs between birth and one year of age and he considers it to be the most fundamental stage of the life. He refers to this as the stage of fundamental trust versus fundamental distrust (childhood). The development of trust relies on the reliability and quality of the child's caregivers, because the child is entirely dependent. Whenever a need arises or even one that causes discomfort, the child seeks security and care from the person caring for him. If trust is successfully developed, a child will feel secure in the world. If caregivers become inconsistent and emotionally unavailable, or even reject the child, this contributes to a feeling of distrust. Ultimately, the child fails to develop confidence, resulting in fear and the belief that the world is reckless ... middle of paper ... beyond the strict definitions of age or stage of the life. Each of the eight stages is characterized by a conflict between two opposing positions or attitudes; in other words, emotional dispositions or strengths. Erikson did not settle for a firm and recognizable description of the two components of each stage, although in later work the first arrangement is now called "adaptive force". Erikson suggests that there is still room for continued growth and development throughout life and that personality is not formed exclusively during early childhood.REFERENCES1. Nash, Stoch, Harper. (1992). Human behavior. Cape Town, South Africa, Juta2. Shaffer, David R. (1994). Social and personality development. University of Georgia. United States3. http://www.businessballs.com/erik_erikson_psychosocial_theory.htm4. http://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html