Ego's and social health

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Psychosynthesis Essay - Ego Development and the Self

Write a paper showing your understanding of the basics of developmental psychology from a psycho-spiritual point of view.

When considering developmental psychology many questions come to mind when trying to explain human development. Maturity can form many guises - in the form of physical, social, psychological and cognitive changes within the individual. Are these developments independent of one another or is the progression of maturity inter-linked? In attempt to answer these questions one must consider if development is a conscious or unconscious process. A great body of evidence suggests that both levels of consciousness are present throughout human life. Whether these changes are physical, social, psychological and cognitive, these changes may represent conscious or unconscious growth. An element of understanding one's own personal growth is to have an awareness of how the 'Self' is perceived and developed. The self is essential to the representation of one's personality - for example how one subjectively sees themselves in relation to the world around them. The self is built up of unconscious and conscious elements - the Id, the Ego and the Superego (Freud). The Id represents the self's impulsive and unconscious part to personality. The Superego is also unconscious and plays the opposing role of the id, with high morals to control the individual's impulsive behaviour. It is the ego that plays the conscious part of personality and acts as a mediated version between the id and superego's demands. The ego is what is presented to the outside world. Therefore, a good understanding of ego development is essential for any psychosynthesis counsellor to have, in the presence of a client that is struggling with issues or concerns affecting or influencing the perception of themselves in relation to others. A psychosynthesis counsellor may see clients with self-esteem issues, low self-confidence or personality disorder traits. An understanding of how these circumstances may have arrived is vital to understanding how the professional can help resolve the client's worries. This essay will discuss the development of the ego, its functions and the formation of the self. In addition, the discussion will be lead into an evaluation of how positive and negative influences from the family and other social surroundings can have an impact on ego development. It is intended by the close of the essay that a better understanding will be gained as to how these theories can be applied to the real world and practiced in a psycho-spiritual clinical setting.

The ego is the basis of how the individual expresses their personality. This conscious element of personality is referred to as the 'Self'. The self is considered to be partial, impermanent and changeable. Therefore, this implies that external world can influence and affect its position. However, the self is also believed to be whole, permanent and absolute. However, we must be careful not to assume that the ego is simply a unified collection of perceptions, cognitions and effects rather it is an organised cluster or patterns of what are referred to as ego states (Federn, 1952). The contrast in states is caused by the existence of conscious and unconscious elements.

The importance of the ego - is that it represents the conscious part of an individual's personality. Therefore, the ego represents a vehicle for the self to manifest in the social world. Referring back to the notion of ego states - Erickson (1950) argues that there are eight stages of psychosocial growth in the normal human being. An extension of Freud's psycho-sexual stages - Erickson believes that instead of the human being motivated by sexual urges, we are motivated and influenced by social situations that affect our psychological well-being. Like Freud, Erickson believes that we progress through these eight stages from childhood to adulthood- and if we get frustrated or fails to complete a particular stage, we will get fixated and stuck in that stage, thus unable to move through to the next stage.

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A brief description of Erickson's eight psycho-social stages of human development will help to understand how the individual progresses through life and why the ego is important in this process of progression. Knowledge of these stages will also provide a platform for the counsellor to interpret their clients behaviour or personality difficulties. The first stage, starting from conception to 6 months old is characterised by bonding activities-and the seeking of trust-vs.-mistrust and healthy co-dependence. Healthy parenting skills show the child that they can rely on their primary caregivers for a sense of worth and trust. This is what Jung ...

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