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sensation, with his philosophical novel Nausea being a highlight.

Epistemology and Sensation Naturalized?

Developments in the science of sensation have had an impact on analytic epistemology. Attempts to understand the senses from a purely philosophical perspective have been challenged on the grounds that any understanding of sensation is theoretically informed, and scientific studies are regularly revis- ing the concepts from which theories of perception are constructed. In philosophical terms, this means epistemology and sensation have become natural- ized; that is, the facts and descriptions generated by science are more accurate than logical deduc- tions based on observation.

For example, one of the long-standing ques- tions in the philosophy of the senses is, How many senses are there? A widely cited criterion for what counts as a sensory modality, offered by H. P. Grice, is the introspectable character of sensation-for example, first-person, inward reflection on how seeing differs from touching. However, according to Brian Keeley, there is growing evidence from science that people pos- sess a vomeronasal system, the ability to detect pheromones, without being consciously aware they are doing so.

In other words, pheromone detection has no introspectable character. This suggests that Grice's criterion has to be abandoned. However, it should be noted that Keeley's definition of a sensory modality is one that, as he admits, is useful to sci- ence, couched in terms of wired-up organs that facilitate behavior with regard to a specific physical class of energy. Against this, some argue that such science-friendly accounts are effectively changing the subject and defining the senses in such a way that they are no longer what they are commonly held to be.

It is a problem that is hard to avoid once it is recognized that knowledge is always structured by concepts. As soon as an instrument or definition or theory is applied, a commitment is made, a particu- lar section of reality is placed in a frame and given a meaning and value, and everything outside that frame is subordinated or dismissed. On the plus side, it means that the study served by the frame can go ahead, the meaning and value can be put to

Erikson's Theory of Psychosocial Development 297

work in a method, and conclusions can be drawn. On the minus side, a lot of reality is excluded that given a different frame, could have had a bearing, if not on the study in question, then on a related one.

The situation is pertinent to epistemology and sensation because the senses change depending on which epistemology is adopted. Sensation can enter discourse only through description, but the description, far from merely capturing what is there, imposes its own frame, and emphasizes a particular character within, or even assigns a char- acter to, sensation. This conundrum ensures that the relation between epistemology and sensation remains complex.

Clive Cazeaux

See also Auditory Perception; Culture and Cognition; Embodied Cognition; Extended Mind; Knowledge; Perception and Cognition; Perception and Epistemology; Visual Perception

Further Readings

Abram, D. (1996). The spell of the sensuous: Perception and language in a more-than-human world. New York, NY: Vintage.

Bernecker, S., & Dretske, F. I. (Eds.). (2000). Knowledge: Readings in contemporary epistemology. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Macpherson, F. (Ed.). (2011 ). The senses: Classic and contemporary philosophical perspectives. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Magee, B., & Milligan, M. (1995). On blindness. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.

Morgan, M. J. (1977). Molyneux's question: Vision, touch and the philosophy of perception. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

Sartre, J.-P. ( 1963 ). Nausea (R. Bal dick, Trans.). London, England: Penguin.

ERIKSON'S THEORY OF PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Erik Erikson proposed an eight-stage sequence of psychosocial tasks, identifying key issues that are important to resolve in each stage for opti- mal personality development across the life span.

298 Erikson's Theory of Psychosocial Development

Drawing on Sigmund Freud's work that empha- sized the roles of biological and psychological processes in personality development, Erikson added social factors to his theory of optimal development. He further proposed that the devel- opment of personality does not end in adoles- cence, as Freud thought, but rather evolves across the life span. This entry discusses the historical backdrop to Erikson's theory, key concepts, the theory itself, and practical applications.

Historical Context and Importance

Erikson immigrated to the United States from Vienna as Hitler rose to power. With training in psychoanalytic child psychology that emphasized psychological conflict and dysfunction, Erikson focused on the question of what constitutes healthy personality development over the life span. He developed his eight-stage sequence of psychosocial tasks basic to personality development, and in 1950, the White House Conference on Children and Youth adopted this scheme to serve as the template for improving the lives of children and youth across the nation.

Key Concepts

Personality development, in Erikson's view, occurs through resolution of a sequence of eight psychosocial tasks over the course of the life span. According to the epigenetic principle, the resolution of one developmental task depends on resolution of preceding tasks and also sets the foundation for the resolution of subsequent tasks. Each task is described in terms of a polar- ity, with the outcome being a dynamic balance between positive and negative ends of the pole. Finally, optimal resolution of each task results in what Erikson terms a virtue, or an attitude toward life.

Erikson's Theory of Psychosocial Development

Erikson proposed the following series of psychoso- cial tasks in describing optimal personality devel- opment over the life span.

Trust Versus Mistrust

The first psychosocial task occurs in infancy. Through the minutia of everyday interactions between caretaker and child, the child ideally learns that most of his or her needs will be met most of the time. At the same time, the child learns to trust selectively. The virtue of hope emerges through optimal resolution of this task. Erikson believed nonoptimal resolution of the trust versus mistrust stage underlies many adolescent and adult psychopathologies.

Autonomy Versus Shame and Doubt

This stage emerges in toddlerhood as the child develops motor skills sufficiently to move in self- determined directions and the linguistic ability to say "no." Recognition of and respect for the child's developing "I" by those in the social context are critical for optimal resolution of this task. However, the child must learn that he or she is not omnipo- tent. Thus, an optimal balance between autonomy and shame or doubt promotes self-regulation. The virtue of will emerges from this resolution.

Initiative Versus Guilt

The virtue of purpose results from this stage in which the preschool child can imagine and initiate activities, although commonly there is little follow- through. The child also becomes cognizant of sex differences. A social context that fosters the child's initiative while setting limits to certain activities is most likely to instill a sense of purpose, enabling some childhood dreams to become eventual adult goals.

Industry Versus Inferiority

This stage emerges during the primary school years. A sense of industry enables the child to prac- tice skills and carry activities through to comple- tion. Ideally, social recognition and reward, with limited experiences of fallibility, help the child emerge from this developmental stage with the vir- tue of competence. Erikson believed that identifying with role models who are knowledgeable and profi- cient is crucial for optimal resolution in this stage.

Identity Versus Role Confusion

Developing a sense of personal identity arises in the face of the biological changes in puberty, where newfound psychological desires and social expecta- tions prepare the adolescent to assume adult roles. Erikson stressed the importance of role experimen- tation and role confusion in achieving resolution. The virtue of fidelity-that is, the capacity to make and keep commitments-is the result.

Intimacy Versus Isolation

Balancing the need for intimacy with isolation is the psychosocial task in young adulthood. For Erikson, intimacy involves sexual fulfillment but also committing oneself to a relationship of mutual- ity that cherishes identity. In Erikson's view, genuine intimacy is not possible before an identity is in place. Experiences of isolation ultimately deepen one's capacity for intimacy. The virtue of love emerges.

Generativity Versus Stagnation

This mid-adulthood task involves the struggle between the desire to care-for one's children, pro- fession, community, and the world at large-and the desire for self-absorption. Here, one must learn to care for both oneself and others to achieve opti- mal resolution and the virtue of care.

Integrity Versus Despair

This is the task of late adulthood. Integrity is the capacity to accept one's life cycle without major regrets and to accept one's own mortality. It also involves a feeling of comradeship with others liv- ing in distant places and times. A favorable balance results in the virtue of wisdom-the capacity for mature judgment and an understanding of one's accidental place in the historical scheme of life.

Applications

Erikson provided numerous examples of how the psychiatric, educational, and legal professions might benefit from this theory. Clinically, the therapist first must identify the psychosocial task at which the client's difficulty arose. Therapeutic

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work then involves the provision of a context of astute, age-appropriate interventions to facilitate optimal task resolutions to earlier psychosocial challenges. Educational systems should provide experiences primarily supporting a task's positive pole and distancing the negative. The youth justice system can play a critical role in facilitating iden- tity development during adolescence by avoiding negative labels that an adolescent in search of his or her identity may only too willingly accept.

Jane Kroger

See also Adolescent Development, Theories of; Adulthood; Childhood; Personality Development; Self

Further Readings

Erikson, E. H. (1963). Childhood and society. New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity: Youth and crisis. New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

ETHICS OF THERAPY

The therapy relationship is a unique relationship, a one-of-a-kind relationship for the client and differ- ent from other types of professional relationships. It is powerful and delicate at the same time. Clients typically meet with psychotherapists to grow in and improve an area of their lives. At the same time, the relationship calls for a unique type of car- ing and concern for the client. Although the rela- tionship may feel like a "friendship" to the client or have attributes of a close, emotionally intimate relationship, it is a complex professional relation- ship that requires special handling by the therapist. Most psychotherapists have proper motives and positive character traits to draw on, but there is still a need for sound ethical guidelines that uphold the work of psychotherapy.

The ethics of therapy work toward two goals in psychotherapy: (a) to establish important, unique aspects of the professional relationship, and (b) to provide a foundation for the work that occurs between a therapist and a client. At a minimum,