Difference between revisions of "Erik Erikson" - New World Encyclopedia
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Erik Erikson was born in Frankfurt, [[Germany]] on June 15, 1902. His biological father was a [[Denmark|Danish]] man who abandoned Erik's mother, Karla Abrahamsen, a young [[Judaism|Jewish]] woman. She married Erik's pediatrician, Dr. Theodor Homberger, when Erik was three years old. They then moved to Karlsruhe in southern Germany. | Erik Erikson was born in Frankfurt, [[Germany]] on June 15, 1902. His biological father was a [[Denmark|Danish]] man who abandoned Erik's mother, Karla Abrahamsen, a young [[Judaism|Jewish]] woman. She married Erik's pediatrician, Dr. Theodor Homberger, when Erik was three years old. They then moved to Karlsruhe in southern Germany. | ||
| − | Erikson grew up as an outsider, and his personal struggle to develop a sense of [[identity]] fueled his interest in psychosocial development. As a child he was Erik Homberger, a blond-haired, blue-eyed boy raised in a Jewish family and community. His [[Scandinavia|Nordic]] appearance caused him to be teased by his Jewish peers; at [[grammar school]], he was teased for being Jewish. As a young man, he traveled throughout [[Europe]] as a wandering artist. | + | Erikson grew up as an outsider, and his personal struggle to develop a sense of [[identity]] fueled his interest in psychosocial development. As a child he was Erik Homberger, a blond-haired, blue-eyed boy raised in a Jewish family and community. His [[Scandinavia|Nordic]] appearance caused him to be teased by his Jewish peers; at [[grammar school]], he was teased for being Jewish. As a young man, he traveled throughout [[Europe]] as a wandering artist. While in Vienna, he was trained in psychoanalysis by [[Freud, Anna|Anna Freud]], receiving a certificate from the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society. He also met and married Joan Serson, with whom he had three children. |
| + | Following the Nazi's rise to power they moved to the [[United States]], where he changed his name to Erik Homberger Erikson. He taught at major universities including Harvard, Yale, and the University of California at Berkely, without formal academic training. During this time he carried out studies of the [[Lakota]] and the [[Yurok]] native American tribes. Erikson published the results of these studies in 1950 in ''Childhood and Society'', his first account of his theory of psychosocial development. Refusing to sign the "loyalty oath" required of all professors in the [[McCarthyism|McCarthy]] era, Erikson returned to Massachussets to work in a clinic, and later to rejoin the faculty at Harvard. | ||
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| + | His works on [[Luther, Martin|Luther]] (1958), and [[Gandhi, M. K.|Gandhi]] (1969) for which he won a [[Pulitzer Prize]] and a National Book Award, combined his interest in historical figures and the influence of [[culture]] on [[personality]]. In 1970 he retired from teaching, remaining professor emeritus at Harvard and continuing to write and research with his wife until his death in 1994. | ||
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| + | == Influence == | ||
Erikson's greatest innovation was to postulate not five [[Developmental stage|stages of development]], as [[Sigmund Freud]] had done, but eight. Erikson elaborated Freud's genital stage into adolescence plus three stages of adulthood. | Erikson's greatest innovation was to postulate not five [[Developmental stage|stages of development]], as [[Sigmund Freud]] had done, but eight. Erikson elaborated Freud's genital stage into adolescence plus three stages of adulthood. | ||
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===Major works=== | ===Major works=== | ||
* Erikson, Erik ''Childhood and Society'' New York, NY: Norton. (1950) | * Erikson, Erik ''Childhood and Society'' New York, NY: Norton. (1950) | ||
| − | * Erikson, Erik ''Young Man | + | * Erikson, Erik ''Young Man Luther'' New York, NY: Norton. (1958) |
* Erikson, Erik ''Insight and Responsibility' New York, NY: Norton. (1964) | * Erikson, Erik ''Insight and Responsibility' New York, NY: Norton. (1964) | ||
* Erikson, Erik ''Identity: Youth and Crisis'' New York, NY: Norton. (1968) | * Erikson, Erik ''Identity: Youth and Crisis'' New York, NY: Norton. (1968) | ||
| − | * Erikson, Erik '' | + | * Erikson, Erik ''Gandhi's Truth'' New York, NY: Norton (1969) |
* Erikson, Erik and J.M. Erikson ''The Life Cycle Completed'' (1987) | * Erikson, Erik and J.M. Erikson ''The Life Cycle Completed'' (1987) | ||
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===Related works=== | ===Related works=== | ||
| − | * Identity's Architect: A Biography of Erik H. Erikson ( | + | * Lawrence J. Freidman and Robert Coles ''Identity's Architect: A Biography of Erik H. Erikson'' (1999) |
| − | * Erik Erikson, His Life, Work, and Significance ( | + | * Kit Welchman ''Erik Erikson, His Life, Work, and Significance'' (2000) |
==References== | ==References== | ||
Revision as of 00:35, 5 December 2005
Erik Homburger Erikson (June 15, 1902 - May 12, 1994) was a developmental psychologist and psychoanalyst known for his theory of psychosocial development of human beings, and for coining the phrase "identity crisis."
Biography
Erik Erikson was born in Frankfurt, Germany on June 15, 1902. His biological father was a Danish man who abandoned Erik's mother, Karla Abrahamsen, a young Jewish woman. She married Erik's pediatrician, Dr. Theodor Homberger, when Erik was three years old. They then moved to Karlsruhe in southern Germany.
Erikson grew up as an outsider, and his personal struggle to develop a sense of identity fueled his interest in psychosocial development. As a child he was Erik Homberger, a blond-haired, blue-eyed boy raised in a Jewish family and community. His Nordic appearance caused him to be teased by his Jewish peers; at grammar school, he was teased for being Jewish. As a young man, he traveled throughout Europe as a wandering artist. While in Vienna, he was trained in psychoanalysis by Anna Freud, receiving a certificate from the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society. He also met and married Joan Serson, with whom he had three children.
Following the Nazi's rise to power they moved to the United States, where he changed his name to Erik Homberger Erikson. He taught at major universities including Harvard, Yale, and the University of California at Berkely, without formal academic training. During this time he carried out studies of the Lakota and the Yurok native American tribes. Erikson published the results of these studies in 1950 in Childhood and Society, his first account of his theory of psychosocial development. Refusing to sign the "loyalty oath" required of all professors in the McCarthy era, Erikson returned to Massachussets to work in a clinic, and later to rejoin the faculty at Harvard.
His works on Luther (1958), and Gandhi (1969) for which he won a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award, combined his interest in historical figures and the influence of culture on personality. In 1970 he retired from teaching, remaining professor emeritus at Harvard and continuing to write and research with his wife until his death in 1994.
Influence
Erikson's greatest innovation was to postulate not five stages of development, as Sigmund Freud had done, but eight. Erikson elaborated Freud's genital stage into adolescence plus three stages of adulthood.
Works
Major works
- Erikson, Erik Childhood and Society New York, NY: Norton. (1950)
- Erikson, Erik Young Man Luther New York, NY: Norton. (1958)
- Erikson, Erik Insight and Responsibility' New York, NY: Norton. (1964)
- Erikson, Erik Identity: Youth and Crisis New York, NY: Norton. (1968)
- Erikson, Erik Gandhi's Truth New York, NY: Norton (1969)
- Erikson, Erik and J.M. Erikson The Life Cycle Completed (1987)
Collections
- Erik Erikson, Identity and the Life Cycle (1959)
- S.P. Schlien (Ed) A Way of Looking at Things: Selected Papers 1930-1980 (1995)
- Robert Coles (Ed) The Erik Erikson Reader (2001)
Related works
- Lawrence J. Freidman and Robert Coles Identity's Architect: A Biography of Erik H. Erikson (1999)
- Kit Welchman Erik Erikson, His Life, Work, and Significance (2000)
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Boeree, C. George (1997). Erik Erikson http://www.ship.edu/~cgboeree/erikson.html
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Comments
This is an unfinished work in progress.—Jennifer Tanabe 16:07, 20 Sep 2005 (CDT)
