Memorize Erik Erikson’s Eight Stages of Psychosocial Development once and for all! In this video episode I have a little fun using the peg word mnemonic device and ordinary household objects to show how mnemonics work and how to apply them to the challenge of memorizing Erikson’s eight stages.
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Need more mnemonics for psychology? Here’s how you can memorize the parts of the brain:
Here are the mnemonics I used in the video:
- Bun (Trust vs. Mistrust) a "rust" colored bun
- Shoe (Autonomy vs. Shame) an "auto" shoved inside of a shoe. The auto is driven by "shane"
- Tree (Initiative vs. Guilt) Shia Leboef, or an Inn are sitting in a tree, which is wrapped with a quilt
- Dinosaur (Industry vs. Inferiority) picture a dinosaur with dust (in"dust"try) sprinkled all over it. The dinosaur feels inferior because of the dust all over it.
- Sky dive (Identity vs. Role Confusion) a skydiver's chute doesn't open and he falls on top of a car denting it. He is also very confused after hitting the car.
- Sticks (Intimacy vs. Isolation) picture two sticks in love and one stick all by himself.
- Heaven (Generativity vs. Stagnation) picture a generator up in heaven that died because it ran out of gas and a male deer (stag) pulling the cord to try to get it started again.
- Plate (Integrity vs. Despair) picture grits and a pear on a plate.
You can also download this list in PDF format by clicking here.
Episodes on Mnemonics and Erik Erikson
- Episode 32 on Mnemonics
- Episode 20 on Erik Erikson’s Eight Stages of Psychosocial Development
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I just wanted to tell you I am studying for my nursing boards and was struggling with trying to remember all the stages. This helped so much!!! I wanted to say it was awesome, entertaining and thank you : )
Lisa,
Thanks so much! It’s interesting – I’ve had a number of nursing students either leave comments or email me about how this episode and the brain mnemonics have been helpful. I didn’t anticipate this, but I’m glad to see it.
Thanks again,
Michael
Thank you so much. I am a graduate nurse who is preparing to take my nursing N-Clex exam. I have such a hard time remembering Erikson’s stages. This really helped. I remembered this within a matter of a few minutes. Thanks again.
Pennie,
Eriksons’ stages can be a pain in the neck to remember so glad to hear that this helped. Good luck on the NCLEX!
Michael
It was interesting to read all of your comments. I am also a nursing student trying to remember these stages… Well done, I’ve studied these many times and for what ever reason I can never remember them, I watched this once and now I’ve got it! Thanks
Holly,
Another nursing student on The Psych Files. Glad to hear that you found this useful. There’s more crazy and – hopefully – memorable mnemonics for additional parts of the brain on my brain mnemonics PDF. Check it out (click on the picture of Freud in the left side of the page).
Thanks!
Michael
I’m also a nursing student. I used this on my last test. Thanks for the great visuals. They have really helped me.
Erin – another nursing student, fantastic. Glad the episode helped.
I just wanted to say thanks for this episode. I have a interest in the medical and physiology field and this really speed up the process of me memorizing the 8 stages!
I’m so glad I stumbled across this site — as a social work student, I need to memorize not only Erikson’s stage theory, but also the parts of the brain. Your episodes about both are amazing — I watched them last night and reviewed them this morning in myhead, and I had retained almost everything!
A suggestion, however, if you will permit. The Four is a Dinosaur — the dusty (inDUSTry) dinosaur is fearful (inFEAR-iority) to remember the second half. Also, in Five is Sky-dive, the guy falls and dents the auto (iDENTity) and then rolls off the car and is knocked around so much, he is confused (ROLL/ROLE CONFUSION).
Those additions helped me remember the second parts to those stages.
But your presentations are wonderful — THANK YOU Mr. Britt.
Katherine – glad you found the episode helpful. I love your idea of the guy who dived into the car and then gets up and is confused – excellent!
Regarding the dinosaur: I said that the dinosaur was feeling inferior because of the dust on him (which, I admit, is not the best mnemonic for the second half of this stage) – but I’m not clear: why is your dinosaur fearful?
Thanks again for your comment!
Michael
Thanks so much for posting your method of memorizing Erikson’s stages (and the brain). I found it to be quite valuable. I think I have finally memorized it after years of attempting to do so for this or that test. I am a nursing student and would like to apply this method to other areas, such as cranial nerves. I have a question about creating the mnemomics for the numbers that are associated (like Erikson’s stages). Should we use bun, shoe, etc. and create new images, or change the rhyming words to eliminate confusion during recall?
Thank you for your presentations, they are gems!
Amy,
Interesting question. Let’s see. I would change the rhyming words myself. I think it’s kinda easy to get your mnemonics mixed up, so I’d change them. One is a nun perhaps? Nuns are an easy image. Two might be tougher. Hmm….Two is a…..screw? You might want to use a rhyming dictionary to help out. Here’s one: http://www.rhymezone.com/. Have fun and let me know if you get stuck.
Michael
Hey,
I’m studying for a pre-school/kindergarten teacher exam here in Germany, and I found this incredibly useful. After watching your video I tested myself right away and I was able to write out all eight stages without any difficulty at all. Thanks a lot!
I found out some time ago that mnemonics are a great study aid, at first they seem like an awkward detour (and MORE to remember) but the system really works (as long as you conjure up bizarre enough images).
This video made me subscribe to your podcast!
Kay,
Fantastic! I’m really glad you liked this video. It was a lot of fun to make and I’m glad it’s helpful to a lot of people. Good luck on that test!
Michael
This video was incredibly helpful, as I am studying for my Psychology AP test which I am taking tomorrow. I find your mnemonics very helpful and your videos very entertaining. Thank you again!
Thanks, Michael! I’m also studying for my nursing boards & this really helps =]
I read your comments & they’re mostly in the nursing field! That’s awesome!
Your video is waaaay better than memorizing the Erikson chart. =]
Thanks Maria. What else do nursing students have to memorize? Guess I better work on another mnemonic for that since I have so many nursing fans.
Michael
you are a champion. thank you so much for this!
Hey Michael,
just a quick update. I passed all three of my exams! I didn’t have to write anything about Erikson’s stages after all, but I had memorized a lot of other stuff I did indeed need by making up my own “mnemonic devices” — and that came in very handy.
So, Thank You for reminding me what a great study aid mnemonics are!
Kay – fantastic! Congratulations! Three exam? Geez – that’s a killer. Glad you made up your own mnemonics – the ones we make ourselves can be the most powerful because only we know what will “stick” in our heads. Thanks for letting me know about your success on the tests.
Thank you so much for your help!! I have a B.A. in psychology and a minor in sociology and now I am working on my masters. I’ve had many classes that cover these stages and I still can’t keep them straight! I take a huge test tomorrow and am so lucky to have found this site. Psych files is now saved to my favorites!
Courtney: thanks and good luck on that test!
Heya Michael! Thanks a lot! I’m a Nursing student in Singapore. It really helped me a lot! Rock on! =)
Thanks Emerson. I’ve gotten so much positive feedback to this and my other mnemonics episodes. Guess it’s time to do another one on some other part of the body, or some other hard-t0-remember theory in psychology. Hmm….
Thanks Michael,
I just happened upon your site here even though I have been listening to your podcast for a while. Thank you so much for this mnemonic I have a test next week and the rogue memorization just isn’t my thing.
Matt
This helped me so much! Thank you, I am in tenth grade and in AP Psychology and I already have enough on my plate. This was actually a nice break from work and helpful. Thanks again! (:
Glad to hear it Lauren! Thanks for the note.
Thanks for taking the time to show us the 8 Stages in menomics. It was super fun to watch and very helpful.
I’m impressed. I’m not usually into memorizing per se, but felt a little desperate since not only do I need to remember these 8 stages of psychosocial development (& their virtues), but also the 7 parts conflict theory, ID status & 3 areas of importance for my psych exam tomorrow. I’m happy to report that I have at least the 8 stages down.
Thank you for your hard work & help… now on to all the rest!
thank you i have learned somathing from you
Thank you Nancy, Vickie and Joyce. Glad you enjoyed this episode. If you need more mnemonics don’t forget to check out the one on the parts of the brain. Just put “mnemonics” into the search field on the site. Thanks again for your comemnts – Michael
omg i was using this to study for AP psych, and the whole time watching it I was thinking how lame it was and how it would never help me, but it helped me sooooooooo much
thank you thank you thank you
Just – mnemonics HAVE to be weird and silly in order to work. Glad they worked for you. Thanks for the comment.
What a HUGE help!! I have them memorized now. THANK YOU!!!!
Wow, I got it the first time. I’m taking the winter psych into class its only 13 days long. Professors first thought shared is that we (the students) must be crazy to have put ones self in this situation, we test on ch1 and ch6 this week- know I know Eriksons stages (great!!!!). Thank You!!!!
Jonatah: glad to hear that these mnemonics were helpful. Don’t forget to check out the mnemonics I created to help students memorize the parts of the brain (http://www.thepsychfiles.com/episode-72-video-memorize-the-parts-of-the-brain/). I can’t guarantee to get back to you as quickly as you might need it, but let me know if there are other mnemonics you might need. Thanks for the comment! – Michael
Rather than shoving the AUTO into the shoe, I just imagined the old Disney film about “Mr. Leadfoot” (portrayed by Goofy, of course). Half the film is his foot pushing down on the gas pedal, so it’s easy for me to associate AUTO with SHOE. : )
Sheldon: I am not familiar with “Mr. Leadfoot”, but I like your association. Mnemonics always work better when you use your own imagery. Great.