Sigmund Freud, Erik Erikson and Ivan Pavlov

Paper Summary:

This paper reviews the theories of Sigmund Freud, Erik Erikson and Ivan Pavlov in relation to child and adolescent development and supports the thesis that learning cannot take place until the child has reached the necessary physical, psychological and emotional milestones to do so. The paper concludes that the theories of Freud and Erickson support this thesis by directly acknowledging that development takes place in an ordered and pre-defined manner. Pavlov also feels that development progresses from simple to complex and that complex learning is the result of simple ordered learning steps. However, he does not define them as rigidly as Freud and Erickson.

Outline:
Freud's Theories and the Child
Erickson: Freud's Adversary
Pavlov's Theories on Development
A Comparison of These Three Theories
The Connection between Cognitive, Physical and Emotional Development
Understanding Child and Adolescent Development in Connection with Learning

From the Paper:

"Erik Erickson was a key critic of Freud's psychoanalytic theories. Erickson stressed the social component and influence upon human development, and advocated a multi-stage process of human development, in contrast to Freud's emphasis on infant sexuality (David & Clifton 2008). Eriksson's first key concept stressed that human conflict was never-ending, and suggested that rather than focusing on the conflict of personal identity. Erickson's second key concept is that each stage of development was marked by a more general conflict of, for example, "trust versus mistrust" (David & Clifton 2008). The third concept is that not only the family was involved in these conflicts, but that other relationships played a key role in social development. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Ciccheti, D. (2002) "How a Child Builds a Brain: Insights From Normality and Psychopathology." In Retrospect and Prospect: In Celebration of the 75th Anniversary of the Institute of Child Development. Willard W. Hartup & Richard A. Weinberg (Ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
• David, D. & Clifton, A. (2008). "Psychosocial Theory: Erikson." Haverford College. Retrieved 5 Aug 2008. http://www.haverford.edu/psych/ddavis/p109g/erikson.stages.html
• "Ivan Pavlov." (2008). PBS.org. Retrieved 5 Aug 2008. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/bhpavl.html
• Stevenson, D. (2004). "Id, Ego, and Superego." The Freud Web. Retrieved 5 Aug 2008. http://www.victorianweb.org/science/freud/freud_ov.html
• Yingling, J. (2004). A Lifetime of Communication: Transformation through Relational Dialogues. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

More papers on Sigmund Freud, Erik Erikson and Ivan Pavlov:

• Comparison Essay # 114041 : "Freud, Erikson, and Pavlov: The Stages of Human Development"
• Analytical Essay # 123965 : "Theories of Erik Erikson and Karen Horney"
• Book Review # 106568 : "Sigmund Freud's "Civilization and Its Discontents"

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