Response Post

   I think that Erickson would describe Jacob as being in the trust vs. mistrust stage. On the one hand, little Jacob is trusting that the adult in this situation will give him what he wants. As over and over again this does not happen, I think Jacob will begin to develop a sense of mistrust, in the adult, not the monkey. He could also be in the Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt stage. I say this because he is showing independence by making choices but as the monkey keeps stealing his choices, he may begin to feel he is doing something wrong which can cause shame and doubt. According to Erickson, this doesn’t happen so early, but it is fitting for this situation.

  Erickson would describe Patrick as being in the Self Awareness stage. At this stage children have the realization that one’s existence and functioning are separate from those of other people (Bojczyk, 2012). So, he knows that the monkey doesn’t know his choice and can relate to the whole game better than the 3 year old.

  I think that your values and attitudes start shaping as soon as you are in the self awareness stage. Before that, I think you mainly follow others and imitate the behaviors that you see. As soon as you become aware, you can pick and choose which way you want to go. 

 I do think that a child over the age of 3 can have trouble understanding that their beliefs can be false. I am dealing with it now with a nephew who is slightly autistic. His thought processes are not the same as a lot of people and we have trouble with the why and why not of things and he is 14. I am a firm believer that when dealing with any type of situation, it should be handled case by case and person by person. Everyone learns at different paces and in different ways.

RESPOND IN 50 WORDS OR MORE.

Include how you would explain to a child how his or her beliefs could be incorrect. Give specific examples that would be appropriate for a three- to five-year-old child.