In Reply to: Regressing to a younger age posted by Curious on June 08, 2004 at 10:26:19:
Here's another link to Erikson's Stages of Development: http://psychology.about.com/library/weekly/aa091500a.htm
The hero worship thing around age 8-9 also coincides with competence (industry)/ inferiority stage of 6-12 year olds. The "stuckness" I see in Family people at this stage os tje "I won't work in the System at a job for money" thing that so many Family types state as a matter of "pride". The way I see it, there's got to be a strong sense of inferiority and lack of skills competence if a person actually prefers begging for a living and a hand-to-mouth existence over doing honest labour and having the confidence that you can take care of your basic needs and those of your dependents.
Family members can argue that being a missionary is their work, but if that is the case, where is the organization or foundation that employs and supports them as missionaries? And why is working in the System at a job such a terrible thing? Wasn't Jesus a carpenter, Peter a fisherman, Luke a physician, and Paul a tentmaker? Why was Berg able to convince so many of our generation that having a skilled trade or profession is unspiritual?
I really do believe a lot of ppl are stuck in TF because they have a great sense of personal inferiority, and they basically believe they can't compete in job market and find satifying employment. Ppl in TF seem like they're stuck in gradeschool, and they keep going over the same lessons day after day without advancing to high school, graduation, and a job. It's kind of like they're in that movie "Groundhog Day," where the protagonist wakes up each morning to the same story, same characters, and cannot escape the plot until he learns a fundamental lesson about love.
Family ppl keep doing the same things over and over and never develop a skill set that gives them confidence in their ability to compete in the economic system. Instead, they prefer to live on the fringes and be satisfied with whatever they can glean or rip off--kind of like an 11-year-old without an allowance who hasn't figured out how to mow lawns or babysit.
Finally, it is thought that by age 8 or 9, people have pretty much laid the foundation of their value system. If a 9 year old hasn't developed empathy--the ability to understand how other people feel and see the world--that kid is probably never going to get it, or get it well enough to avoid being a user and manipulator.
The interesting thing about Erikson's stage model is that early developmental stages have an impact on what occurs at later stages. For example, the competence/inferiority stage from 6-12 has a paralell in the generativity/despair stage of later life (50+). My guess would be we'll see a large number of ppl who are stuck in TF descend into self-absorbed despair as they advance into their 60s.