Please Wait: Psychosocial Development in Progress

I'm not such a fan of Erikson's stages of psychosocial development. He says there are 8 stages people go through, each with an associated conflict that characterizes that stage. If we do not resolve that conflict while we are in that stage, we do not develop properly. I get that what he means is each conflict is most prominent during the ages he specifies, but I don't think every persons life is that similar. Even if Shawn has great parents and all of his needs are met at age 6 months, but then when he turns 2, his parents (chas v'shalom) die and he is placed in a foster home. By the time he is 10, he has lived in at least 6 different foster homes. Just because he had all his needs met before he was 1 doesn't mean Shawn won't experience attachment problems. He probably won't develop a sense of basic trust and that is not because he did not resolve the trust v mistrust conflict before he was 1. Also, what happens if Shawn successfully passes the identity vs isolation stage and develops his true identity. Then, he hits 30 and he has an epiphany. He totally changes his identity--does that mean he did not actually resolve the conflict in the designated stage? Will he have psychosocial problems?

Anyway, speaking of psychosocial problems, I found a few causes of psychosocial problems that I found interesting. Actually, I guess they aren't that interesting..they seem obvious, but hey, hindsight bias, right?

1) Poverty-Studies have proven that the health, cognitive development, and school achievement of children who are exposed to poverty for an extended period of time are negatively affected. Since cognitive development has a direct impact on psychical development, poverty is known to also impact a child's psychosocial development. Children are more often affected when they are exposed to poverty at a young age. If a child does not have the necessities (food, shelter, clothing) at a young age, they will likely experience psychosocial problems as they grow.

2) Disabilities-- Studies have shown that learning and physical disabilities often have a negative correlation with self esteem and interpersonal relationships. Disabilities often leave the child frustrated and they might turn to crime or some other inappropriate behavior to satisfy their unmet needs or let out their frustration.  

3) Family dynamics-- A study done by Oshman and Manosevitz shows that having a strong male presence in the house, such as a father or brother, can have a positive impact on a child's psychosocial development. This presence could negatively affect them if this male presence is abusive or is in an abusive relationship. According to other studies, children with authoritative parents were more competent and psychotically mature than peers with more permissive parents. Apparently, more authoritative parents may even be able to lesson the impact of any bad influences.