Which psychologist developed a theory that includes eight stages of life and suggests personality is molded by responses to experiences in those stages?

Which psychologist developed a theory that includes eight stages of life and suggests personality is molded by responses to experiences in those stages?

• A. Carl Jung
• B. Sigmund Freud
• C. B.F. Skinner
• D. Erik Erikson

Answer: (D)

This item tests understanding of a theory that sees personality as developing through eight psychosocial stages across the entire lifespan, with each stage presenting a central challenge that shapes who we become based on how we respond to experiences in that stage. Erik Erikson proposed this view, arguing that development continues beyond childhood and is shaped by social and emotional conflicts encountered at different ages. The eight stages range from trust versus mistrust in infancy to integrity versus despair in old age. Successfully navigating each crisis builds a virtue and a healthier sense of self, while unresolved issues can influence later behavior and personality. This idea contrasts with Freud’s psychosexual model, which emphasizes five early-childhood stages centered on bodily drives, or with Skinner’s behaviorist focus on reinforcement and observable actions, and Jung’s emphasis on archetypes and individuation. Erikson’s framework specifically highlights the lifelong, socially influenced process of shaping personality. Erik Erikson.

This item tests understanding of a theory that sees personality as developing through eight psychosocial stages across the entire lifespan, with each stage presenting a central challenge that shapes who we become based on how we respond to experiences in that stage.

Erik Erikson proposed this view, arguing that development continues beyond childhood and is shaped by social and emotional conflicts encountered at different ages. The eight stages range from trust versus mistrust in infancy to integrity versus despair in old age. Successfully navigating each crisis builds a virtue and a healthier sense of self, while unresolved issues can influence later behavior and personality.

This idea contrasts with Freud’s psychosexual model, which emphasizes five early-childhood stages centered on bodily drives, or with Skinner’s behaviorist focus on reinforcement and observable actions, and Jung’s emphasis on archetypes and individuation. Erikson’s framework specifically highlights the lifelong, socially influenced process of shaping personality. Erik Erikson.