The effects of Erikson's eight life stages on personalityAn individual's personality changes and develops throughout life, and these changes can help or prevent you from achieve their goals. Getting stuck in a certain stage of development can affect you mentally and socially. According to Erikson (1963) a stable and functional individual progresses successfully through each stage and forms a unique and stable personality. This article investigates the possible effects of regression to an earlier stage on personality: it is hypothesized that individuals who do not develop through the eight life stages will have detrimental personality problems. Erikson's eight stages of life are as follows; Trust versus mistrust, autonomy versus shame and doubt, initiative versus guilt, industry versus inferiority, identity versus role confusion, intimacy versus isolation, generativity versus stagnation, and integrity versus desperation (Erikson, 1963). In the first stage children depend on others so it is necessary to establish trust between the child and the adult. In the second stage, children need to develop a sense of independence from the adult caregiver since they were so dependent in the previous stage. In the third stage children need to experience a sense of power but this cannot be overwhelming because guilt will come into play. The fourth stage is where the child needs to develop coping mechanisms to deal with new social and academic commands. The fifth stage is when adolescents need to develop a sense of self and personal identity to stay true to themselves. In the seventh stage you learn to form intimate, loving relationships with others. The eighth stage is where adults must create and cultivate the... center of the card... the next in the given order. Finally, determining which factors are related to personality affects depending on the life stage can have effects. Works Cited Domino, George; Affonso, Dyanne D. (1990). Journal of Personality Assessment, 54(3/4), p576,13pErikson, E.H. (1963). Childhood and society (2nd ed.). NY: Norton.James, Jacquelyn Boone; Zarrett, Nicole. (2005). Journal of Adult Development, 12(4), p155-167, diagram 13p1, 5 graphs; DOI: 10.1007/s10804-005-7084-yRoseborough, David. (2003). Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 8(2/3),p29-53, 25p DOI: 10.1300/J137v8n02_03Singer, Jerome L.; Singer, Dorothy G. (1972). Annual Review of Psychology, 23(1) p375, 38pSneed, Joel R.; Whitbourne, Susan Krauss; Culang, Michelle E. (2006).Journal of AdultDevelopment, 13(3/4), p148-157, 10p DOI: 10.1007/s10804-007-9026-3