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Timothy Chooses His Outfit: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt
Timothy (age 3) decides to choose his own outfit for the day instead of his mother choosing because he wants to start making his own decisions. In Erikson's second stage, autonomy vs. shame and doubt, toddlers will either learn to make their own decisions with encouragement or they will feel shame and doubt about their choices when discouraged. -
Timothy's Lack of Friends: Identity vs. Identity Confusion
Timothy had always struggled to make friends or commit to a friend group in all of his years of education which had affected his sense of identity since he was confused about who he was and where he belonged. In Erikson's fifth stage, identity vs. identity confusion, the crisis is between knowing one's self and what position in society they will take in the future and being lost and confused about one's self due to a lack of awareness about their identity. -
Timothy Provides for his Grandchildren: Generativity vs. Stagnation
After being married, having children, and grandchildren, Timothy decides to spend lots of time with his grandchildren and providing them with whatever they wanted so that his grandchildren are well taken care of. In Erikson's seventh stage, generativity vs. stagnation, the individual in their late adulthood either focuses on providing for the next generation through different types of contributions, which displays generativity, or they will focus on themselves instead, which displays stagnation.