Cognitive Scaffold

Preparing your thinking workspace

arrow_back_ios_new
MENTAL MODEL · M9551

Psychosocial Development Stages

Psychosocial Development Stages
BehaviorHigh supportDevelopmental Psychology
Included
account_tree

Updated 2026-08-15

Loading revision record…

INTRODUCTION

English translation pending.

CORE DEFINITION

Erik Erikson's psychosocial theory divides the lifespan into eight stages from infancy to old age, each defined by a core conflict such as trust against mistrust or intimacy against isolation. The core proposition is that development continues throughout life rather than ending in childhood, and that resolution of each stage shapes the resources available for the next. The key qualification is that the stages are not a rigid timetable, since people revisit earlier conflicts and cultural and individual variation in timing is substantial.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

- Locate The Conflict: identify which core tension the person is currently working through. - Trace The Source: check whether a present difficulty reflects an unresolved earlier stage. - Plan Accordingly: design support or intervention that matches the stage rather than a generic standard.

anchor

Anchor fast decisions

Each stage presents a tension that must be handled with the resources the person has at that point. Handling it successfully builds a capacity that later stages depend on, while an unresolved tension keeps consuming attention when similar situations arise. Because the stages are sequential in dependency rather than in schedule, an unmet earlier conflict can resurface at any age.

MINIMUM ACTION

In progress 0/1

Practice this model in one real situation:

Check to track your progress (stored locally)
Learning progress0%
account_treeGenealogyexpand_more
menu_bookReferencesexpand_more

Source support: Explicit

  • link
    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erikson%27s_stages_of_psychosocial_developmentZH · Explicit
    verified

RELATED MODELS

Related model

Delay of Gratification

The famous 'Marshmallow Experiment' (Walter Mischel)

arrow_forwardRelated model

Identity Politics

Identity politics refers to political activities in which people engage based on collective interests defined by gender, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and other group identities. The concept emerged in the late 20th century, particularly during the American civil rights movement. Critics argue that identity politics leads to social fragmentation, as voters may judge a candidate's reliability solely based on shared identity, hastily assuming ideological alignment without deeper consideration. Furthermore, identity politics can also perpetuate discrimination against other groups within its own ranks.

arrow_forwardRelated model

Object Permanence

Object permanence is the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they cannot be perceived through the senses. This is a fundamental concept in developmental psychology, a subfield of psychology that studies the social and psychological development of infants and children. Currently, there is no consensus in the scientific community regarding the concept of object permanence in human development. Jean Piaget was the first Swiss psychologist to study object permanence in infancy. He considered object permanence to be one of the most important developments in infancy, because without this concept, objects cannot exist independently and permanently.

arrow_forward