👤 By the CinnaRN Clinical Content Team🕐 Updated 2026-08-23🏷️ Health Promotion & Maintenance🔖 Free to read, print, and share
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Use this quick-reference guide to spot, treat, and prevent Erikson's Psychosocial Stages on the NCLEX. Keep it handy during review and on exam day!
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📒 The 1-minute cheat sheet
📌 Early
Infant — Trust vs Mistrust
Toddler — Autonomy vs Shame
Preschool — Initiative vs Guilt
📌 School/Teen
School-age — Industry vs Inferiority
Adolescent — Identity vs Role confusion
📌 Adult
Young adult — Intimacy vs Isolation
Middle — Generativity vs Stagnation
Older — Integrity vs Despair
📚 Erikson's Psychosocial Stages — full study notes
The cheat sheet above is your quick recall card. These notes go deeper — what it is, what to do first, what must be reported, and what to teach.
Erikson describes eight lifespan stages, each a developmental conflict to resolve. Knowing the age-appropriate task guides teaching and anticipatory guidance.
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Key points
Understand these first
Infant — Trust vs Mistrust
Toddler — Autonomy vs Shame
Preschool — Initiative vs Guilt
School-age — Industry vs Inferiority
Adolescent — Identity vs Role confusion
Young adult — Intimacy vs Isolation
Middle — Generativity vs Stagnation
Older — Integrity vs Despair
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Patient teaching
What patients must know
Match interventions to the stage — e.g., allow a toddler choices (autonomy), let a preschooler play (initiative).
A hospitalized child regresses to earlier tasks; support, don't shame.
❓ Erikson's Psychosocial Stages: NCLEX FAQs
What do I need to know about Erikson's Psychosocial Stages for the NCLEX?
Infant — Trust vs Mistrust. Toddler — Autonomy vs Shame. Preschool — Initiative vs Guilt. School-age — Industry vs Inferiority.
What patient teaching is important for Erikson's Psychosocial Stages?
Match interventions to the stage — e.g., allow a toddler choices (autonomy), let a preschooler play (initiative). A hospitalized child regresses to earlier tasks; support, don't shame.