Loevinger's Ego Development
Brief Background
The 9 Stages of Ego Development
- describes ego as a process rather than thing
- the conformist, self-aware, and conscientious stages—are the most common for adults
1st Stage: Pre-Social Stage/Symbiotic Stage
- Infancy
- Focused on gratifying immediate needs.
- Attached to the primary caregiver (usually mother)
- Loevinger believes infants in their earliest state cannot have an ego because their thinking is autistic or delusional
- The Symbiotic stage is where the infant’s ego begins to develop. Grasps the idea of objects and relationship towards caregiver.
2nd Stage: Impulsive Stage
- Toddlers
- Ego continues to be focused on bodily feelings, basic impulses, and immediate needs
- They are too immersed in the moment and in their own needs to think or care much about others
- If something or someone meets their needs, it is good; if something or someone frustrates their needs, it is bad.
- Thinking is very simplistic and dichotomous.
3rd Stage: Self - Protective Stage
- Early and middle childhood
- More cognitively sophisticated
- Tend to be exploitative, manipulative, and opportunistic
- Blaming others when anything goes wrong “don’t get caught”
4th Stage: Conformist Stage
- Five or six years of age
- Invested in belonging to and obtaining the approval of important reference groups, such as peer groups
- They tend to view the world in simple, conventional, rule-bound and moralistic ways. What is right and wrong is clear to them—namely, what their group thinks is right or wrong
- Shame peaks because they are so concerned about approval from their group; consequently, the threat of shame is a powerful tool that groups can use to control individuals at this stage.
- On the other hand, as long as their place in the group is not threatened, conformist egos are quite happy
5th Stage: Self-aware
- Adults
- The begin to wander “what do I think” as opposed to “what my parents and peers think about”
- They are appreciating themselves and others as unique
- Creates tension between the “real me” and the “expected me”, which can lead to increased conflicts with family and peers
6th Stage: Conscientious
- Tendency towards self-evaluation and self-criticism continues
- Ego values responsibility, achievement and the pursuit of high ideals and long-term goals
- Violating one’s standards induces guilt
- Experiences one’s own feelings and motives in more accurate and differentiated ways and expresses them in more unique and personal terms
7th Stage: Individualistic
- Relationships tend to be more valued even more
- Heightened sense of individuality and self-understanding can lead to vivid and unique ways of expressing the self
8th Stage: Autonomous
- The autonomous ego cherishes individuality and uniqueness and self-actualization
- Relationships are appreciated as an interdependent system of mutual support
- Both inner conflicts and conflicts between people—are appreciated as inevitable expressions of the fluid and multifaceted nature of people and of life in general; and accepted as such, they are more easier faced and coped with
9th Stage: Integrated
- Wisdom, broad empathy towards oneself and others
- Reconcile a number or inner conflicts and make peace with those issues
- Ego finally has a full sense of identity
- Seeking to understand and actualize ones own potential