Psychosocial development refers to how a persons personality develops and how social skills are learned from infancy through adulthood. Erik Erikson's theory of psychosocial development is a comprehensive psychoanalytic theory that describes personality development in a predetermined order through eight stages, from infancy to adulthood. During each stage, the person experiences a psychosocial crisis that could positively or negatively affect personality development. The key principles of psychosocial development are:
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Individual needs: Psychosocial development refers to how a person's individual needs (psycho) mesh with the needs or demands of society (social) .
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Eight stages: Erikson's theory of psychosocial development describes personality development in a predetermined order through eight stages, from infancy to adulthood.
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Psychosocial crises: During each stage, the person experiences a psychosocial crisis that could positively or negatively affect personality development.
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Lifespan: Erikson's theory of psychosocial development gives us a way to view the development of a person through an entire lifespan.
Some strengths of Erikson's theory include its ability to tie together important psychosocial development across the entire lifespan and its usefulness in many fields, including social work. However, there are also criticisms of the theory, such as a lack of discrete stages and a lack of clarification on how the outcome of one psychosocial stage influences one’s personality in a later stage.
