From the very beginning Stacy portrays herself as an overachiever. She is driven by a strong personal sense that was built by the words and teachings of those close to her during her early development. She stays committed to her goals through junior high school and high school fighting against whatever negative input she receives as she begins to rely on support from her mother and boyfriend. These special relationships connect with Marcia's expansions on the theory of identity formation. Stacy is still young during this time of her life, and has yet to create an identity for herself. Being unaware of suc

itment to goals, values, and beliefs... However, the commitments that emerge- in contrast to the commitments of identity achievement- are not the result of any truly personal searching and exploring." . The difficulties and battles Stacy undertakes in school aren't connected with her personal life. Though she seems to have a clear set of crises in the form of certain academic difficulties she seems to overcome them quite simply through a commitment easily made to engage in hardened studies. The real crises she encounters with her personal life doesn't truly develop until her senior year of high school when she begins to realize her lack of faith in God. This is when her personal life and development begin to take hold.

Erikson's Theory revolves around the notion that "Life is a sequence not only of developmental but also of accidental crises" and "It is hardest to take when both types of crisis coincide." . This notion applies directly to Stacy's sudden realization that her personal relationship with God was not up to par. She finds herself haunted by a reoccurring dream that depicts her struggles in life and her boyfriend Jason's words of the need to have God in her life. This is the beginning of Stacy's advancement into personal development. It is here where she begins to find conflict with who she is, which is the direct definition of Erikson's fifth stage of the Life Cycle: "Identity vs. Identity Diffusion": "There came a time when I could not merely rely on my family's opinion or views of God. I began to search to find out who God was for mys

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Approximate Word count = 1052
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)