What motivated Erik Erikson to achieve in life? Would his own personal experiences in life be considered a motivation? Example: Changing his last name to make his own identity, his 8 phychosocial stages...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Erikson
http://psychology.about.com/od/profilesofmajorthinkers/p/bio_erikson.htm
http://www.muskingum.edu/~psych/psycweb/history/erikson.htm
How did Erik Erikson progress through the hierarchy of needs difined in Maslows theory.
So for physiological needs-These include the most basic needs that are vital to survival, such as the need for water, air, food, and sleep. How/what would be an example of Eriks process in this stage?
To understand what motivated Erik Erikson to achieve in life, we can look at his personal experiences and how they influenced his work. Erikson was a renowned developmental psychologist who is best known for his theory of psychosocial development, which consists of eight stages that individuals go through from infancy to old age.
Erikson's own life experiences undoubtedly played a significant role in motivating his achievements. One notable aspect of his personal journey was his struggle with identity. Born in Germany in 1902 to Danish parents and raised as Jewish, Erikson faced identity challenges due to his multicultural background. This struggle ultimately motivated him to explore questions of identity and influence his later work.
In his early adulthood, Erikson decided to pursue a career in art. During this time, he changed his last name from Erik Salomonsen to Erik Homburger Erikson, which can be understood as an act of forging his own identity and breaking away from his past. This process of self-discovery and self-construction likely influenced his research and understanding of identity development in his psychosocial theory.
Furthermore, Erikson's work as an art teacher in Vienna led him to develop an interest in child psychology and psychoanalysis. He eventually studied under renowned psychoanalyst Anna Freud and became interested in the impact of social and cultural factors on human development. This interest, combined with his personal experiences, shaped his focus on psychosocial development and the integration of individual and societal influences.
In summary, Erik Erikson's personal experiences, such as his struggles with identity and pursuit of art, likely played a significant role in motivating his achievements. These experiences influenced his exploration of identity development and the interplay between individual and societal factors in his theory of psychosocial stages. By examining his own life, we can gain insights into the sources of his motivation and the foundations of his influential work.