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Human Development · Chapter 7

Initiative, Guilt & Emotional Regulation

In early childhood a child becomes a planner — "I have an idea, and I can make it happen." Erikson called this the crisis of initiative vs. guilt. At the same time, preschoolers slowly learn to manage big feelings, first by borrowing a caregiver's calm and later on their own. Tap a preschool moment, then flip the caregiver's response to watch the self and the emotion take shape.

The preschool self

Erikson · stage 3 of 8 · Initiative vs. Guilt · about ages 3–5 · virtue: Purpose
Five preschool momentstap one to begin
The caregiver responds…
The preschool selfBetween about 3 and 6, children take on self-chosen projects, invent games, and ask endless questions. Encouraged, they gain a sense of purpose; harshly criticized, they learn to feel guilt for wanting to act at all. Alongside this, they begin to regulate emotion — the great social-emotional task of the preschool years.
Tap a moment above, then flip the caregiver's response.