How we change what others think, feel, believe and do

Learning stage theories

Explanations > Learning Theory > Learning stage theories

Stage theory is the idea that when we develop, particularly as children but also in our development of maturity as adults, we go through a number of stages during which we learn in different ways.

Erikson's Developmental Stage Theory: learning self-esteem and trust.
Devito's Relationship Stages: Making and breaking relationships.
Fowler's Faith Stage Theory: of different levels of religious belief.
Freud's Psychosexual Stage Theory: sex images in early life.
Piaget's Stage Theory: of a child's thinking, from 0 to 15.
Kohlberg's Stage Theory: of how morals and values develop.
Winnicott's development stages: Of early childhood.
Values development: Massey's three periods of child development.

So what?

Use stage models as guidelines to help you decide how to talk with children or developing adults.

Rather than use these theories slavishly, it is better to use them as probabilistic indicators and to calibrate where the individual is, perhaps by offering them things from above and where you think they might be.

The bottom line is to use what works, of course.

Learning stage theories

So what?

See also