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Industry vs. Inferiority: Piano lessons
Daniel (age 8) starts piano lessons. He begins to dedicate a lot of his free time to practicing, and feels a lot of pride and accomplishment when he performs at his piano recitals.
In Erikson’s fourth stage of industry vs. inferiority, the crisis is between developing an enthusiasm for learning and confidence in mastering the skills required (industry) or being unsuccessful at learning what is demanded and insecure in one’s abilities (inferiority). -
Identity vs. Confusion: Coming Out
Daniel (age 17) comes out as gay. He is comfortable with his sexuality, he feels that he is a kind and creative individual, knows that he does best in math classes, and is starting to think about what careers would be a good fit for his strengths and interests.
In Erikson’s fifth stage of identity vs confusion, the crisis is between developing an awareness of who oneself is and what one’s capacities are (identity), or becoming insecure and confused regarding one’s identity (confusion). -
Generativity vs. stagnation: Teaching his child
Daniel (age 43) teaches his five-year old-daughter Katie to ride a bike. Daniel also focuses less on putting in unnecessary overtime at work and more on helping Katie learn how to read and write.
In Erikson’s seventh stage of generativity vs. stagnation, the crisis is between contributing to the well-being of the next generation through providing for and caring for others (generativity) or focusing on one's own needs at midlife (stagnation).