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Autonomy And Doubt In Erikson's Two Stage Of Development

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Erikson’s second stage of development is autonomy versus shame and doubt in which the ego strength of will is hopefully developed in the child. This stage occurs between two and three years of age and answers the question, “Can I be dependent and self-regulating?” Erikson (Evans, 1967) explains that once a child has developed a strong sense of trust with his mother he now has to explore his own self-will and take chances with what he himself can do. He further explains that this is the age when a child begins to blush as they are aware they are being watched trying to do things on their own for the first time. To further support earlier claims, it becomes evident that a child cannot move onto this stage healthily if they did not develop a solid sense of trust in the first stage of life. Erikson further supports his assertion that a ratio of both autonomy and shame or doubt is necessary to development in this stage, and that the ratio should be in favor of autonomy. If it was in favor of shame or doubt, then you would feel or act inferior all your life (Evans, 1967). Autonomy is developed if parents guide their children’s behavior gradually but firmly. If a child is being guided into success, then they will feel more autonomous and have a more refined sense of pride in what they can do themselves. Shame and doubt develop here if the parents are too harsh or too …show more content…
It is known that all people experience self-doubt periodically throughout their lives but this stage is crucial to making sure that the child is given enough freedom to try on things on their own with limited but

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