Loevinger's Stages of Ego Development Jane Loevinger's

Loevinger's Stages Of Ego Development Jane Loevinger's Stages of Ego Development Jane Loevinger's theory about the stages of ego development builds upon Harry Stack Sullivan's earlier theory of ego development stages such as Impulsive, Conformist, Conscientious, and Autonomous. Loevinger's theory is a more complex one, describing how ego organizes and directs the activities of the person as subject. Each development stage, in Loevinger's theory, is characterized by a psychic structure that defines the form in which one's self and others are experienced.

In Loevinger's conception, each stage may be classified as preconformist (characterized by needs and immediate gratification), conformist (the stages of acceptance of others), and postconformist (the stages where one is aware of complex individual differences and separateness). The earlier stages characterize children and the latter characterize adults, though adults may express the stages of early development as well (Kirshner, 1988). Loevinger describes the first stage of ego development as The Presocial Stage.

In this stage, infants' "thinking is characterized by primary process and delusional projection," while the ego is dominated by "the process of differentiating self from the non-self," and the baby retains basic "symbiotic relation with his mother" (Loevinger, 1976, pp. 15-16). In the Impulsive Stage, the child is preoccupied with sexual and aggressive bodily impulses, and also experiences a sense of a separate identity. The other at this stage is considered to be good or bad depending on the other's offer of reward or punishment.

In the next stage, described as the Self-Protective Stage, the individual starts to demonstrate early steps toward self-control of impulses, understanding "the existence of rules as a guiding standard for behavior, although the framework remains largely external." A child or a young adult at this stage is characterized by what Loevinger calls "opportunistic hedonism": the individual disclaims responsibility while trying to take control and advantage over others (Kirshner, 1988, pp. 20-21).

At the Conformist Stage, the person begins to identify him/herself with rules and see oneself as a member of a group. According to Loevinger (1976) "most children around school age" progress to the stage of conformity (p. 17). At this stage, the person starts to value cooperation, emphasize with others and their feelings, though a significant element of trust is required. These feelings, however, are limited to a reference group; outsiders are still mistrusted and tend to be rejected.

The next stage is the Self-Aware Stage which Loevinger describes as a modal for adults in the society. Here, the individual begins to see alternatives to behavior, becoming more self-conscious about the limits of idealized group standards. The person expresses greater appreciation of differences within the society. The latter features is more fully developed in the Conscientious Stage "where inner standards and moral values prevail over rules or group norms.

This stage stresses control over one's own life and responsibility toward others, as opposed to feeling controlled by fate, external rules, or group pressures" (Kirshner, 1988, p. 221). "To proceed beyond the Conscientious Stage a person must become more tolerant of himself and others," Loevinger says, describing the Individualistic Stage, "out of the recognition of individual.