-
Molly as an Infant: Trust versus Mistrust
Molly was an infant with loving parents who not only provided the necessities of food, clothing and shelter, but were consistently warm and responsive to her needs. With lots of love and affection, Molly felt very safe and secure in her home. In Erikson's first stage, trust versus mistrust, the crisis is learning to trust and feel safe from loving and sensitive caregivers versus developing mistrust from inconsistent, uncaring or unresponsive parents. -
Molly as a Toddler: Autonomy versus Shame and Doubt
Molly was a happy toddler who loved to feed herself her favorite foods of berries and corn on the cob. She liked to pick out her clothes and dress herself, but she didn't like girly clothes or dresses, except for pretend play. In Erikson's second stage, autonomy versus shame and doubt, the crisis is parents supporting and encouraging the child to complete basic tasks by themselves to gain confidence and parents not allowing the child to do things independently and then feeling incompetent. -
Molly in Middle Childhood: Industry versus Inferiority
Molly was doing really well in school, loved to read books and was enjoying playing on basketball teams. Both Molly and her parents were very proud of her. In Erikson's fourth stage of industry versus inferiority, the crisis is between a child feeling proud for doing well or learning new skills with their parent's encouragement versus a child being criticized and not having the confidence to try new things or work on new skills.