Childhood Development

ID - what you are born with. It never changes. Works off the pleasure principle.

EGO - personality (what you present to people. Works off reality principle. (If it's not available, you can't have it.) Includes procreation (sexual energies). Negotiates between ID and SUPEREGO.

SUPEREGO - conscience. What comes from your upbringing. It is your value system. When SUPEREGO is out of balance you get depression. This happens when your SUPEREGO tells you that you are a bad person. SUPEREGO is also responsible for pride. It tells you when you've done a good job.

The balance between ID, EGO, and SUPEREGO results in self-concept.

I. Self-concept: The sum of an individual's beliefs and knowledge about himself and the relationship to his personal self.

A. Body image: internalized attitude and impression about self. Any threat to body image is a threat to self-esteem.

B. Self Ideals: individual's perception of how he should behave based on personal standards. How I see myself, how others see me, and how I really am should be close to the same.

C. Self Esteem: own worth and own value. Individual's self worth. Their feelings about strength, courage, worthwhileness and confidence. How others value you. We hope you have an optimistic view of the world. Need acceptance, praise and love during life cycle to develop a healthy self esteem. Anxiety occurs when self is threatened. There are 4 levels of anxiety. Mild anxiety helps you to achieve (i.e. it causes you to get up and come to class, go to work, etc.). Panic is the highest level of anxiety. People with high self-esteem are in self-actualization part of Maslow's Hierarchy much of the time. Low self-esteem correlates with poor interpersonal relationships.

D. Identity: who you are. Synthesizing everything you are and putting it into one piece. Should have realistic self-goals.

Healthy personality - positive and accurate body image, realistic self ideals, high self esteem, clear sense of identity, openness toward others.

Poor self concept - low self esteem, identity confusion, depersonalization (not all together - might draw a picture of themselves with their body parts scattered all over the place), disturbed body image, negative identity (don't like who you are).

Identity confusion - lack of continuity in their life (their whole being) uncertain about themselves, depersonalized.

II. Defense Mechanisms: we all use them. They can be overused and become pathological. They are unplanned and unconscious. If they were conscious and planned they would be lying and devious. They are specific intrapsychic defense processes, which are unconsciously used to obtain relief from emotional conflict and freedom from anxiety. They are unconscious or subconscious, not consistently pathological, a way to distort reality when overused, seen in normal and maladaptive behaviors, and not consistently clear cut and identifiable category. Some of the most common defense mechanisms are:

A. Fantasy: A means of gratifying frustrated desires in "imaginary" activities that accomplish "imaginary achievements". EXAMPLE: Harry tells his mom as he goes into the yard that he is going to "save Rover from the pirates that captured him this morning."
B. Rationalization: Retrospective justification which explains away behavior; provides justification for acceptable behaviors or crediting acceptable, worthwhile motives to thoughts, feelings, or behaviors which have unrecognized motives. EXAMPLE: John states, "I was late for class because my alarm didn't go off."
C. Substitution: Changes a goal. Replacing of an unattainable object or goal with one, which is attainable. EXAMPLE: Bill's GPA is too low to apply for entrance into Vet school, therefore, he has applied to Med school.
D. Repression: Unconscious forgetting of a painful thought, impulse, or memory that is unacceptable to the individual's self-concept. EXAMPLE: A married person finds another person attractive and involuntarily excludes this unacceptable feeling from the conscious level of thought and cannot understand why he/she continually forgets the attractive person's name.
E. Suppression: Conscious forgetting, voluntary exclusion from the conscious level of thought those ideas, feelings, and situations that produce discomfort and anxiety. This information is maintained at a subconscious level without a great deal of effort. EXAMPLE: Marie's date, Charles, was rude and obnoxious last evening. She told her friends, "I intend to forget what a horrible time I had with Charles."
F. Regression: Returning to a stage where they were more comfortable.
G. Introjection: Defense mechanism of depression where you actually "eat" the bad feeling and make it part of themselves. Hostility is directed inward.
H. Incorporation: figuratively ingesting. Take possession of another person. (i.e. "my patient")
I. Identification: unconsciously adopt characteristics of a person we really like.
J. Compensation: attempt to overcome imagined or real inferiority (small man syndrome)
K. Reaction formation: takes overt feelings and produce opposite reaction. (i.e. reformed alcoholic now preaches to others about the evils of alcohol.)
L. Isolation: physically removing oneself from the painful thing.
M. Insulation: emotional withdrawal
N. Displacement: redirecting pent up emotion from the original person to a 3rd person.
O. Symbolization: representation of an idea or object by another idea or object.
P. Projection: attribute to someone else your own unacceptable feelings or behaviors.
Q. Undoing: symbolically acting out undesirable behaviors in the reverse. These are atonement types of behaviors.
R. Denial: unconsciously disavowing a situation (i.e. I am not an alcoholic.)

A. Should have happened - newborn is all ID. ID provides us with energy. Instinctual, unconscious primary drives and psychic energy. Libido.

1. Mother has maternal feelings for infant.
2. Infant's life focuses upon feeding and oral pleasures.
3. Infant responds to the mother's caring encouraging maternal feelings.
4. Love and security are primary emotional needs of infant.
5. Methods of gratification in infancy influences person throughout lifetime.
6. Infant communicates needs (nonverbally) to mother.
7. Mother understands the communication. (empathy)
8. Mother's response to infant communication develops "feelings" of trust in mother "who symbolizes all human beings).
9. Baby now has trust that communication (crying) will cause something to happen (food, dry diaper) and therefore other humans can be trusted for help and comfort.
10. Baby learns to distinguish me from not me.

B. Ego Defense Mechanism originating in this stage

1. Compensation
2. Substitution
3. Introjection
4. Projection
5. Fixation

II. Age 1 ½-3 years STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (Anal Stage)

A. Should have happened: Basic task/ideal outcome: sense of self-control without a loss of self-esteem. Autonomy is expressed by holding on and letting go.

1. Mother to make gradual demands on the child initially, to give up the pleasure of obeying his own impulses (don't throw your food, don't play in the toilet, etc.)
2. Mother later requests more mature types of behavior (potty in the potty, say thank you and please)
3. Mother is careful not to demand too much too soon or to frustrate the child beyond his tolerance.
4. Child is willing to undergo this training only because she/he has learned to trust and depend on mother and her love. Child will do anything to perpetuate this love relationship.
5. Child can name 6 body parts.
6. Talks in sentences and uses correct pronouns.
7. Learns she/he has power over parents.
8. Reality testing characterizes this period.
9. Super ego begins to develop because of autonomy and shame and doubt.
10. Sibling rivalry is evident in the child.

B. Ego defense mechanisms originating in this stage:

1. Condensation
2. Identification
3. Reaction Formation
4. Sublimation
5. Suppression
6. Substitution
7. Symbolization
8. Introjection (if not developed in the Oral stage)

III. 3-6 years STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT: Initiative vs. Guilt (Phallic Stage)

A. Should have happened: Basic task: Achieve a sense of initiative normally experienced. Normally experiences and resolves feelings of rivalry with the parent of the same sex.
1. Child becomes more autonomous.
2. Behavior modification continues; child becomes more socialized.
3. Child is able to tolerate increasing periods of separation from mother.
4. Child begins to be interested in play with other children.
5. Child begins to internalize parent's values. (Super ego begins to develop.)
6. Child notes sex differences and manifests curiosity.
7. Begins to develop own sexual identity and sex role.
8. Begins to look to parent of the same sex as a role model.
9. Forms impressions about the safeness of growing up.
10. Methods used to successfully resolve this stage include fantasy exploration and development of a sense of self.
11. Male identifies and competes with parent of same sex.
12. Unresolved conflicts with parent = oedipal complex.
13. Female identifies and competes with the parent of the same sex.
14. Unresolved conflicts = electra complex.

B. Defense mechanisms originating in this stage:

1. Displacement
2. Rationalization
3. Regression
4. Repression
5. Projection
6. Identification
7. Sublimation - takes libido energy out of ID and uses it elsewhere. This is normal.

IV. 6-12 years STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT: Industry vs. Inferiority

A. Should have happened: Basic Task: Learning the art of competition, compromise, and cooperation.

1. Child starts school.
2. Leaves home and family for daily fixed time periods.
3. Tolerates other (non-family) adults; peer group, structured school situations (teachers, children, classrooms).
4. Peer group rapidly becomes extremely important.
5. Role models outside of the family are found (athletes, movie star, etc.)
6. Fields of interest increase.
7. Learns to encompass abstract, objective or general events.
8. Outside contacts i.e. peer groups begin to modify value system (super ego/conscience).
9. May lead to conflicts in child's relationship with family and/or peer group.
10. Learns to perceive right from wrong; fantasy from reality.
11. Can define abstractions such as grief.

B. Ego defense mechanisms originating in this stage:

1. Projection (if not developed in previous developmental stages)

V. 12-18 years STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT: Identity vs. Role Confusion

A. Should have happened:

1. Normal hormonal changes occur.
2. Hormones cause rapid growth.
3. Hormones cause development of secondary sex characteristics.
4. Hormones cause increased intensity of sex drive and feelings.
5. Concerned with appearance.
6. Ready to install a lasting idol or ideal as the guardian of a final identity. THEREFORE:
7. Adjusts to a new and rapidly changing body.
8. Adjusts other people's response (especially opposite sex) to secondary sex characteristics.
9. Comes to terms with new sex drive and interest. ALSO:
10. Must become emancipated from parents (rebellion and general disdain will emerge because of unresolved conflicts from previous stage).
11. Develops a pattern for relating to opposite sex.
12. Maintains strong peer relationship and feeling of group belongingness to feel secure during physical and sexual adjustment and during emancipation from parents.
13. Makes decision and plans about career choice.

These notes are provided by Donna, Thanks

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