According to Eric Erikson, there are eight different social stages that a person must go through as they mature. Each phase has a positive characteristic and a negative characteristic. If the positive characteristics are fulfilled, their future will be good. So how much might a lack of reinforcement of the positive characteristics of Erikson's stages of psychosocial development affect you? The effects can be truly terrifying. Especially if in all phases the only characteristics satisfied are the negative aspects. Erikson's first stage was trust versus distrust and occurred from zero to 18 months of age. The purpose of this phase is to establish trust. Erikson believed that this was the most important period in a person's life. Since a child is entirely dependent on his parents, care plays an important role in the formation of this stage (Cherry, 2011). If the child successfully develops trust, he or she will feel safe and secure in the world, but the lack of it can lead to thoughts of an inconsistent and unpredictable world (Cherry, 2011). In the business world, a lack of trust can create a whole new problem. Lack of trust can lead to “…invisible costs in life and business…” as stated by Stephen Covey (2006). Lack of trust creates “…hidden agendas and cautious communication, which slows decision making” (Covey, 2006). When there is no trust in a situation, it hinders productivity and innovation (Covey, 2006). The second phase is autonomy from shame and doubt. This occurs from approximately 18 months of age up to 3 years. The fundamental virtue of this phase is will; Can they do things on their own or do they need help from others? Erikson believed that children of this age wanted to develop a greater sense... middle of paper... of the past with little or no regrets and that overall they would be satisfied. If a person is not successful at this stage, he will feel that he has wasted his life and will only think of regrets. They will feel desperate (Cherry, 2011). Erikson's stages of psychosocial development were complex, yet simple. It's something that everyone will experience and the experiences will always be different. Lack of reinforcement to the positive aspects of its phases can lead to a real disaster. Surprisingly, the preceding phases greatly influence the unfolding phase. The lack of reinforcement of the positive aspects of its psychosocial phases can have a very devastating effect on a person. This is because the effects accumulate instead of substituting for each other. The effects are quite terrifying, but with the right environment, experiences and beliefs, anything can be okay.