Chapter 5*

In this chapter I found a lot of the information to be really interesting. One part was Kohlberg's stages of Moral Development that go along with different ages in your life.

The first is preconventional morality: this is before age 9 when most children have a preconventional morality of self-interest: They obey either to avoid punishment or to gain concrete rewards.
*For example this is like cleaning your room because you know you will get a bag of candy if you do.
The second is conventional morality: this stage is early adolescence, morality usually evolves to a more conventional level that cares for others and upholds laws and social rules simply because they are the laws and rules.
*For example this is like a new driver not speeding because they know it could result in a ticket.
The third is postconventional morality: this is a stage where some develop the abstract reasoning of formal operational thought. This affirms people's agreed-upon rights or follows what one personally perceives as basic ethical principles.
*For example this could involve something such as a court case where there may be a law against prosecuting someone for something, although everyone (or some) know that it is the right thing to do.

I thought that these ideas were really interesting because they pretty much describe people down to a tee. When you are young, you do things because you know that is what "mommy or daddy" said you should do. When you are a teenager you do the right thing because you have realized that trouble with the law comes for those who don't follow the rules. When you are an adult you gain more of a personal opinion and you don't necessarily have to agree with the law if it goes against what you think is right. This does not mean that you can break the law because you don't agree with it, but it does give you the freedom to have your own opinion or possibly fight the law in court if you strongly disagree with it.

Another thing that I found interesting was Erikson's stages of psychosocial develepment. He believed that every stage of life has its own psychosocial task, like a crisis that need resolution.

Infancy to 1 year: Trust vs. mistrust
(When needs are met, infants develop a sense of trust)
1-2 years: Autonomy vs. shame
(If toddlers don't do things for themselves, they doubt their ability)
3-5 years: Initiative vs. guilt
(Learning to initiate tasks and carry out plans, or a sense of guilt comes about)
6-puberty: Competence vs. inferiority
(Learning to apply yourself or feel inferior for not doing so)
teen years-20s: Identity vs. role confusion
(Testing roles to form a single identity, or otherwise becoming confused about"who you are")
20s-early 40s: Intimacy vs. isolation
(Forming close relationships in the search for love, or otherwise feeling isolated and alone)
40s-60s: Generativity vs. stagnation
(Sense of contributing to the world through family or work, otherwise feeling a lack of purpose)
late 60s and up: Integrity vs. despair
(Reflecting on your life and either being satisfied or feeling a sense of failure)

All these things are interesting to reflect on because they tell a lot about the different stages of life and what people are aiming to accomplish at different points.

This goes along with another point that I found pretty interesting. Forming your own identity. Most kids form into a personality that is closely related to their friends. Your peers and social groups shape who you are by the sharing of ideas and the experiences you share.

So who are you? This chapter really made me think more closely about the different aspects of your life and all the factors that go into it. So make a positive change if who you are is not who yo really want to be. :)