Question

Mike is 14 years old. When asked what he wants to be when he grows up, he promptly replies that he wants to be a lawyer and begins to speak about a recent case and how well the lawyers handled the case. However, his mother casually mentions that Mike's interests change almost every few weeks and that she feels that Mike should attend some career guidance sessions to decide what he wants to become. In the context of Erik Erikson's fifth developmental stage, this period of Mike's life is referred to as a _____.

Answer 1

Answer:

"identity vs. Role confusion" crisis. Right now, Mike is more inclined towards the "role confusion" side of it.

Explanation:

Erik Erikson proposed a theory about social and emotional development along people's lifespan. According to him, people go through different stages in life that are manifested as "crisis" where two different options present to the people and they create anxiety. Eventually, the person is inclined towards one of the two options available and solves the crisis and moves on to the next stage.

The fifth developmental stage in this theory is "Identity vs. Role confusion"

This stage occurs from about 12 to 18 years of age. During this stage, adolescents search for a sense of self and personal identity through the exploration of values and beliefs. It is during this stage that adolescents question themselves who they are and who they want to become.

If the adolescent fails to establish a sense of identity within society it can lead to role confusion which means not knowing what their place in society is.

In the example, we can see that Mike says he wants to be a lawyer, however, her mom says that his interests change almost every week and she feels like he should attend some career guidance sessions.

From Erik Erikson perspective, Mike is going through the "identity vs. Role confusion" crisis, which is a normal stage of exploring, since he is only 14 years old he still has time to decide what he wants to be.