Lifecycle Development: Analysis of Karl's Development and Needs

LIFECYCLE DEVELOPMENT 1
LIFECYCLE DEVELOPMENT
Name of student:
Registration number:
Unit Title:
Unit Code:
Name of supervisor:
Date due:

LIFECYCLE DEVELOPMENT 2
LIFECYCLE DEVELOPMENT
Introduction
The responsibility of personal advisor for Looked after Children is to support the
child/ young adult in transitioning from adolescent to adulthood. The particular
advisor is required to ensure coordination of practical, personal, psychological, social
and financial advice to the young adult (Dunkel and Harbke, 2017). This helps the
care leavers to achieve a successful transition to become adults and to promote their
independence. This report, therefore, analyzes the case of Karl who has been at Foster
home for more than ten years. The report discusses the stages of Karl`s development
in his lifecycle. The paper also discusses the factors that influence Karls development
as well as the influence of nature on his development. This paper also discusses Karls
needs at each stage of his lifecycle. Any adolescent has very many physical,
psychological and social needs that need to be met so that they can develop positively.
Karls needs are discussed using Maslow`s hierarchy of needs theory. Peer
relationships are also considered as well as the impact that they have on the
development of an adolescent. The aspects of risk-taking among young adolescent’s
people are evaluated. Mr. Karls future needs are also discussed in this article. In
addition to this, the paper discusses how Health and Social care staff may use their
knowledge of life cycle development theories to understand the problems of an
individual and assist them. Several theories of development such as Attachment
theory and Erikson`s Stages of Psychological Development are discussed in this
paper. The weaknesses of each of the evaluated theories are also outlined in this
paper.
Task one

LIFECYCLE DEVELOPMENT 3
There are various stages that a person undergoes in their lifecycle. Human
lifecycle development can be defined as the stages that a human being undergoes
from the point of birth to the point of late adulthood. Human development can be
described as the process of psychological and physical development that continues
throughout their lives (Duerden, Widmer, Taniguchi, and McCoy, 2009). There are
various theories which define lifecycle stages. According to Erikson model of human
development, the lifecycle of a human being is divided into eight stages. Each stage of
the cycle has a psychosocial crisis which must be overcome by an individual to move
to the next stage successfully. There is a favorable and unfavorable outcome for each
stage in the process. The first stage according to this model is the Trust vs. Mistrust. It
occurs between period one is born and one year of age (Robinson, 2013). It is the
most fundamental stage of the human cycle. At this stage, a child is entirely
dependent, and the development of the child depends entirely on the quality of the
caregiver. If a child develops trust in the caregiver, they feel safe and secure (Cooke,
Chung and Grant, 2011).Karl`s mother was using drugs when she was at this stage,
and hence they ended up developing mistrust. Failure to develop trust results to fear
and belief that the world is unpredictable. The second is the stage of Autonomy vs.
shame and doubt. This stage takes place during the years of early childhood. It
focuses on children developing a great sense of personal control. Erikson model
emphasizes the importance of toilet training and other activities such as choice of
food, toy preferences as well as clothes (Parent, McKee, Rough and Forehand, 2016).
Karls parents were still drug users during this stage and hence were not able to give
her excellent care. He, therefore, ended up developing a sense of self-doubt and being
inadequate.

LIFECYCLE DEVELOPMENT 4
The third stage in the lifecycle is Initiative Vs. Guilt. This occurs between the
ages of 4-5 years. During this time, most children join preschool where they begin
developing their power and control through play and interacting socially with other
kids. (Kane, 2012 )A child at this stage feels capable and is confident and brave. Karl
was not able to undergo this stage successfully. He, therefore, ended up losing
confidence in himself and did not believe he could do well in school. His social life
was also interrupted. Stage 4 of the lifecycle is Industry Vs. Inferiority. This stage
occurs when a child is between the age of six and eleven years. Social interactions
inside and outside school help children to develop sense of pride in their
achievements. It also helps them to develop a belief in their abilities. (Beyers and
Seiffge-Krenke, 2010) Karl experienced challenges at this stage since teachers at his
class discouraged him and made him believe that he was not bright enough to be at
school. His peer pressure, therefore, went down and he lost belief in himself.
Stage five of the cycle is the adolescent stage. This takes place between the age of 11
and 18 years. This is the stage, the child's confidence should be very high, and they
should begin exploiting their talents. This stage helps a child discover their ambitions
and the things they want to do in their adult life. Children at this stage often take a lot
of risks. Karl underwent this stage while at Foster family. His foster parents
encouraged him, and he managed to complete GCSE and performed beyond his
expectations. He found teachers who were more encouraging and they advised him to
join the university, but he had become rebellious just like any other teenager. He
needed a lot of guidance, but there was no one to offer him guidance. He then decided
to move out of foster care and live alone, but he found it difficult because he did not
have an excellent social life. The final stages of the lifecycle are; young adulthood,