Stages of Faith and Spiritual Development

In college I majored in Human Development. I had already started working in ministry and I thought I might pursue a graduate degree in counseling. So, instead of majoring in Bible or Christian ministry, I chose Human Development (a program that focused on lifespan/developmental psychology). Then, I did continue with a graduate program in counseling. And, my favorite class in grad school was Adult Development & Transitions. I've always found the human potential for growth and development fascinating. Physical development is very interesting. I remember learning about critical periods of development for physical functions like sight. If an eye is inhibited from developing sight during a critical period of development, the eye may never develop sight. The stages at which an infant develops strength in her bones or begins to fine tune her motor skills is also very interesting. But, for me, the most interesting part of studying human development was intellectual and cognitive development. It is an amazing process that can go on well into later life. Jean Piaget's stages of cognitive development were crucial to my understanding of how people grow or fail to grow intellectually. But, there is also Social and emotional development. This part of human development is probably more important to a person's overall well-being than physical or intellectual development, and the complexity in this area is astonishing. Erik Erickson's eight stages of psychosocial development are also foundational. But, I believe we are not merely physical beings. Nor are we merely intelligent or social beings. At the core, we are spiritual beings. As a pastor and counselor, I find that understanding the ways we grow and develop spiritually to be among the most important considerations in understanding ourselves and others.

Consider the following stages of cognitive and pyschosocial development and think about how these developmental stages might mirror or complement spiritual development.

Piaget's Cognitive Development Stages:

1. Sensorimotor Stage - Birth to 2 - Infant knows the world through their movements and sensations

2. Pre-operational Stage - 2 to 7 - Children begin to think symbolically and learn to use words and pictures to represent objects. Also, in this stage, children are typically egocentric and see things only from their point of view.

3. Concrete Operational Stage - 7 to 11 - During this stage, children begin thinking logically about concrete events. Able to use symbols for concrete things and events, but not adept at abstract reasoning.

4. Formal Operational Stage - 12 and up - At this stage, the adolescent or young adult begins to think abstractly and reason about hypothetical problems.

Erikson's Psychosocial Stages:

1. Trust vs. Mistrust - birth to 18 months - Children develop a sense of trust when parents/caregivers provide reliability, care, and affection. A lack of this will lead to mistrust.
2. Autonomy vs. Shame - 2 to 3 - Children need to develop a sense of personal control over physical skills and a sense of independence. Success leads to feelings of autonomy, failure results in feelings of shame and doubt.
3. Initiative vs. Guilt - 3 to 5 - Children begin asserting control and power over the environment. Success in this stage leads to a sense of purpose. Children who try to exert too much power experience disapproval, resulting in a sense of guilt.
4. Industry vs. Inferiority - 6 to 11 - Children need to cope with new social and academic demands. Success leads to a sense of competence, while failure results in feelings of inferiority.
5. Identity vs. Role Confusion - 12 to 18 - Teens need to develop a sense of self and personal identity. Success leads to an ability to stay true to yourself (adequate self-awareness and integrity), while failure leads to role confusion and a weak sense of self.
6. Intimacy vs. Isolation - 19 to 40 - Young adults need to form intimate, loving relationships with other people. Success leads to strong relationships, while failure results in loneliness and isolation.
7. Generativity vs. Stagnation - 40 to 65 - Middle adults need to create or nurture things that will outlast them, often by investing in children or creating a positive change that benefits other people. Success leads to feelings of usefulness and accomplishment, while failure results in shallow involvement in the world.
8. Ego Integrity vs. Despair - 65 to death - Older adults need to look back on life and feel a sense of fulfillment. Success at this stage leads to feelings of wisdom, while failure results in regret, bitterness and despair.

I look forward to engaging with you on this topic. After some discussion on the relationship between intellectual/cognitive development and psychosocial development with spiritual development, I'll begin a blog post on Fowler's Stages of Faith development.

thanks!