Saturday, September 22, 2012

Trust Backwards is Untrust

Erikson's first stage of psychosocial development is trust versus mistrust. It lays forth the idea that a child who successfully develops trust between birth and one year of age, will feel safe and secure in the world they live in. On the flip side, failure to develop trust could result in a person bound with the belief that the world is inconsistent  Unpredictable.

In all honesty though...when does this stage really end? Does one ever cease to be tested on the development of trust?
It can be assumed, perhaps, that Erikson didn't define trust in the way a majority of people do. rather, he seemed to refer to trust as a general reaction. a reaction to an event which is based on an instinct learned from experience(s) early in life.

Oxford dictionary defines trust as; a firm belief in the reliability, truth, or ability of someone or something. To trust someone (or something) is to commit to the safe keeping of: [a valuable], [a secret], [a promise], [a heart].

It seems the stage of trust vs. mistrust is perpetual. Ever changing, moving, developing. There will forever be a constant string of events that will test us. That will decide which side of  Erikson's stage we will fall on.

Rock. Paper. Scissors. Trust.
Choose wisely.

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