Psychosocial Crisis Research Assignment Paper

Psychosocial Crisis
Name
Institution
Psychosocial Crisis
The psychosocial crisis suggests an inevitable tension between the competence the person has at the beginning of a stage and the demands and expectations of that stage. I largely agree and relate to this idea because during each stage, an individual faces psychosocial crisis that could have either positive or negative outcome on one’s personality development. For example, during infancy, the child is utterly dependent on the caregiver or the parent. This means that the development of the child depends on the quality of care that the caregiver provides to ensure that the child personality development is either positive or negative. If the caregiver provides crucial factors such as love and safety, the child is bound to develop trust towards the caregiver and towards the world or the surroundings in general. However, if the caregiver is inconsistent, emotionally detached, or rejecting, the child will definitely develop feelings of mistrust towards the people around and the environment. Such a child will grow in fear and develop a belief that the world is inconsistent and unpredictable. In this way, a tension or a conflict exists between the capability that an individual has at the beginning of each stage of personal development and the expectations of that stage. In every stage, the relationship of the individual with others and the environment contributes to development by learning or grasping attitudes, ideas, and skills. Mastering of such attributes helps an individual grow into a successful individual and a contributing member of the society. However, a conflict or tension develops when there is a problem in mastering of such attributes that an individual requires to develop physically, emotionally, and mentally. Such a problem would lead to negative outcomes such as shame, guilt, doubt, and lack of self-esteem among other negative attributes. For example, in my adolescence years, I received proper encouragement and reinforcement from my parents and tutors. This helped me master skills of self-confidence that enabled me develop a sense of self and a feeling of control over my life and the environment. Basically, there are many adolescents who do not get an opportunity to have proper guidance from a caregiver or role models leading them to feel unsure of their beliefs and desires. Such individuals may feel insecure and confused about themselves into the future. In this way, an inevitable tension exists between the capability of the individual and the expectations of each stage, which can only have a positive outcome depending on the relationship between the individual and the social and environmental factors. Further, the theory asserts that this tension is growth-promoting. Basically, when there is a conflict or tension between what one’s competence and the expectations of growth in each stage. An individual can learn from the conflict or tension to ensure that one recognizes what one needs to change and what needs to be improved. For example, in the case of an adolescent who does not have proper encouragement and guidance, he/she eventually realizes that lack of such...