Freud’s theory emphasize on the three structures of the mind. They include the ID, which is the primitive mind and contains the basic needs. He also discussed about the EGO which operates through the reality principle by denying instant gratification of the ID negotiate between the ID and the SUPEREGO. The SUPERGO instills morality to the child in accordance to the values of the society and persistently strives for faultlessness (Manis & Meltzer 12). The advantage of Freud’s theory is that it emphasizes on the unconscious mind. The conscious behavior has unconscious thoughts behind it and strange behavior can be as an effect of unconscious troubles made observable through symptoms. The disadvantage is that Freud theory brings about bias because he used women for his study, emphasized on the experiences but not on other factors such as the environmental factor in his psychological analysis.
Erickson and Mead discussed the psychosocial stages that human beings encounter in their lives. The stages include Trust vs. Mistrust where trust is an essential trustfulness of others and themselves. Independence vs. Shame and reservation, idea vs. Guilt is where parents are supposed to create a caring atmosphere for children to develop self-control. Industrious vs. lowliness is where a child wants to get in to a world of knowledge. The child goes to school where he is exposed to technology such as books, arts maps, microscopes and tape recorders. Individuality vs. role Confusion occurs in adolescence stage where the adolescence identifies their true selves regarding to their gender. Closeness vs. loneliness takes place in young adults during early adulthood. Closeness with other people in the society is feasible if a sensibly incorporated identity comes forward from stage five. Generalization vs. Stagnation is a stage that assists the younger people in leading useful lives. An individual experiences stagnation he does nothing to assist the next generation. Advantages of Erickson theory is that it helps families to make decision, policy making and assist professionals to provide clinical services to families. The disadvantage of Erickson theory in relation to socialization is that there is Intra-family relationship stress and matters of confidentiality.
Paige’s and Kohlberg theory suggests that children are unable to understand the world until they get to a particular level of cognitive development. In Cognitive development, a child is able to understand the world’s dynamics as a role of age and experience. Piaget recommended that children undergo four distinct stages in a fixed category that is general in all children. He stated that these stages differ in the measure of information obtain at each and in the quality of information and consideration at that stage. The movement from one stage to another takes place when the child reaches a suitable stage of maturation and gets exposed to pertinent types of experiences (Mitchell, 1995). Without experience, children are presumed to be incapable of attaining their highest cognitive aptitude. The four stages of Piaget are concrete operational, preoperational sensorimotor and formal operational stages.
Advantages of Piaget theory is that he focused on qualitative improvement had a significant impact on education. Many educational plans are based on the belief that children ought to be trained at the stage, which they are mentally prepared. This theory has strategies that provide supportive surroundings, use social interactions and peer education, and assisting children see misleading notion and inconsistencies in their thinking. Disadvantage is that it is difficult to generalize his findings to a larger population. This is because his major source of motivation for the theory was the observations of his own three children and children from learned professionals of high socio-economic status.
In Gilligan’s theory, the transition from one stage to another is influenced by the transform in the sense of oneself relatively to the changes in cognitive ability.
The advantage of Gilligan’s theory is that it supports women’s right to choose.
Kohlberg’s Theory deals with stages of moral development, which include the Preconventional morality whereby the regulations are enhanced during childhood. The outcome of a choice contributes to whether it is good or bad (Huxley 22). A child who is punished for an act will consider it bad and will not repeat it again. Conventional morality is the second stage in which the regulations are set for the better good. A person who understands the feelings of others and maintains by rules set by them. Post conventional morality is the third stage in which an individual describes what is correct in terms of broad values of justice that have strength other than following the rules of particular authorities.
The advantage of Kohlberg’s theory is that it contributes to psychology as the introduction to indirect testing and analysis of right reasoning (Huxley 26). This has permitted the sustained investigation of this field leading the cognitive-development model of decency, which assumes the concept of mental domains.
The disadvantage of Kohlberg’s theory is regarded as reflecting a male, rationalist, distinctive unfairness. In addition, the moral theory that is based on concepts not yet openly proved, but amicable from an oblique tack.
Work cited
Huxley, J. The distinctiveness of Man: In Man in the contemporary World. New York: Mentor. 1948 Chapter 1, pp. 7-28.
Mitchell, S.A. & M.J. Black Sigmund Freud and Beyond: A History of contemporary Psychoanalytic notion. New York: Basic Books 1995
Manis J. G. & B. N. Meltzer Interaction: A Reader in Social Psychology. Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 1978. pp. 1-27.