Miley Cyrus And Stages Of Erickson’s Theory
As a child growing up, one of my favorite channels to watch was Disney Channel. In particular, Hannah Montana was one show I was the most interested in. We all know the story about the child actress gone wild, so I will be exploring the stages of Erickson’s theory on the personality of Miley Cyrus.
In this profile, we will explore Miss Cyrus’s childhood, adolescence, rise to fame, and her identity crisis, throughout the 8 stages of Erikson’s theory. Erikson’s stages consist of Trust v. Mistrust, Autonomy v. Shame, Initiative v. Guilt, Industry v. inferiority, Identity v. Role Confusion, Intimacy v. Isolation, Generative v. Stagnation, and Integrity v. Despair. Erickson believed that you continue to develop throughout life and don’t end until you die.
Destiny Hope Cyrus also known as Miley Cyrus was born November 23, 1992, in Franklin Tennessee to Tish Cyrus and singer Billy Ray Cyrus. She experienced the first stage of Erikson’s theory when she was born until the age of 2 or 18 months. During this stage Miley was mostly influenced by her mother and it was the Trust v. Mistrust phase which is similar to Freud’s Oral stage. During this stage Miley would be developing hope and the infant is unsure about the world they are living in and during this stage the infant clings onto the primary caregiver for consistency and stability of care. If this care is predictable, consistent, and reliable they develop a sense of trust which can be carried throughtout their relationships in life. Miley was very close to her mother and father which in turn helped her create helpful and consistent relationships.
In the next Stage called Autonomy v. Shame, which occurs betweent the ages of 18 months to aprroximately 3 years. During this stage Miley would be developing will, discovering that she has many skills and abilities such as putting on clothes and shoes, playing with toys, and becoming more mobile physically. The child is growing a sense of independence and autonomy. Miley during this stage started to assert her independence not just in singing but in dancing. She’s also comng into her own style and passion. During this stage children beign to assert their independence by walking away from their mother, and picking out their own toys, what to wear and what to eat. During this phase the child doesn’t want to have to need their primary caregiver but she doesn’t really have a choice because she’s not old enough to do things on her own just yet.
The third stage of Erik Erikson’s theory is Initiative v. Guilt which usually occurs between 3-5 years old. During the initiative versus guilt stage, children assert themselves more frequently and family plays the most important role of influence in this stage. During this period the child interacts with other children at school on a regular basis. Miley also will have started to play, not only physically but imaginatively, it provides the child with the opportunity to explore their own interpersonal skills and ideas through initiating activities. In this stage Miley would begin playing make up games, such as house or dress up, and having planned activites with friends from school. If given the opportunity the child can develop initiative and feel secure in their ability to lead others and be able to make their own decisions but if the child is criticized or controlled the child may develop guilt and not develop properly. Miley was able to develop properly and make decisions for herself. She started singing at her church and at talent shows in school. She developed into her own person and became more dependent on what she wanted to do.
The Fouth stage of this phase is Industry v. Inferiority which occurs between ages 5-12 years old and a child usually develops competancy and confidence. AT this stage Miley will start to learn how to teacher will be spending a lot of time with the child during school each day to help them learn reading, writing, and other activities they will need later on in life. During this stage Mileys friends not only at school but around her at home would’ve been very important to her as well. She would feel the need for approval or acceptance from them to gain confidence on were she needs to be and a sense of pride in her accomplishments but if she didn’t get this she might feel like she’s inferior to others and may not reach her full potential. Thankfully in this stage Miley had a lot of friends to help her gain confidence to continue singinig and performing. She became a child actor on the show Hannah Montana and was a full-time celebrity. This sense of approval from everyone helped her reach her full potential in adulthood.
The Fifth stage is Identity v. Role Confusion which is the transition from adolescences/childhood to adulthood. Children become more independent and are able to do things on their own with little to no help from others. They are establishing a future of their own by gettting a career, relationship and housing of their own. Miley had the most trouble with this stage because she didn’t want to do kid stuff anymore and wanted to transition into her own sassy self or her own person. She split from Disney, cut her hair, started making a different style of music than what she usually made of Disney Channel and went on the search for her new identity. At this time she was dating her now fiance and decided to take a break from him to find herself to make sure she knew who she wanted in her life and the role she wanted to play in her own life. In this stage the most important person to Miley was herself.
The Sixth stage of Erikson’s theory is Intimacy v. Isolation. The goal in this stage is to learn to love others and share emotional intimacy with another. This stage takes place relatively in the mid 20’s and it helps develop love. After Miley began to find herself she realized she really did love her then boyfriend and began dating him again and is now engaged to him. So she developed a lot in this stage because she has opened herself up to intimacy and trusting another with her heart.
Miley has not yet encountered stages seven and eight yet. Generativity v. Stagnation, which is from age 30ish-60ish is the goal to be productive, have kids, and establish roles in relation to others at work and in society. Integrity v. Despair, which is age 60 and onward is the goal to accept lifes’ choices and is the stage of reflection where wisdom is developed. At the rate Miley is going right now I have no doubt that she is on the right track of meeting the requirements for the upcoming stages and phases in her life.My profile on Miley Cyrus concludes that she has hit all of the stages of development according to Erikson’s psychoanalytical theory and completed them. She is developing a healthy ego according to the 8 stages and her cognititve processesing, that is important fot personality and self, is developing well but also still developing as life changes for her.
A lot of different factors have affected her life including society, her significant other, peers, fans and most importantly the people around her but I believe she has adapted and adjusted very well to the obstacles she has faced. She is an identity achiever meaning she has a clear, consistent personality that is productive for her. She has a consistent career and she seems to be on the right track to where she wants to go in life with her significant other.
