View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by South East Academic Libraries System (SEALS) AN ERIKSONIAN PSYCHOBIOGRAPHY OF MARTIN LUTHER KING JUNIOR Sheri-Ann Pietersen Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Magister Artium In Counselling Psychology in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University January 2014 Supervisor: Prof. C.N. Hoelson Co-supervisor: Ms. A. Sandison i DECLARATION I, Sheri-Ann Pietersen (nee Kemp), 203054601, hereby declare that the treatise An Eriksonian Psychobiography of Martin Luther King Junior for the Magister Artium in Counselling Psychology is my own work and that it has not previously been submitted for assessment or completion of any postgraduate qualification to another university or for another qualification. Sign Sheri-Ann Pietersen Date ii Photograph of Martin Luther King Junior Source:http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html iii Acknowledgements I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13 I would not have been able to complete this without the support of the following people: All glory and honour is due unto my Saviour, Jesus. I know that with you all things are possible. To my absolutely amazing husband, Gerald. Love, thank you so much for your enduring support and unwavering faith in me. Thank you for keeping me strong and sane throughout this process. I am so blessed. Samantha Naicker, thank you for all the sacrifices you made in support of me. I truly hold you dear. Melissa Romain, Ronique Brecht and Giselle Naidoo, thank you for encouraging me and listening to my research talk. Thank you for also understanding. And thank you to your husbands, of course. To my parents, George and Elda Kemp, You have always believed in me, and you have undoubtedly supported my every initiative. I am so grateful. Thank you to my brother, George. Your hugs made the world of a difference. To Aunt, Charline Witbooi, thank you for providing the inspiration of this research and for coming to the rescue when you did. To my grandmother, Ma Yvonne, thank you for your prayers and encouragement throughout my life. I am really so blessed. To all my family who listened, encouraged and supported me, I am grateful for that. iv To my Disability Unit team: Prof Iona Wannenburg, Ruth Sauls and Tanita Kemp. You guys are the best cheerleaders. Thank you for listening to my frustrations and encouraging me to keep going. A huge thank you to my supervisor Prof. Hoelson and co-supervisor, Alida Sandison. You have truly gone out of your way to help me get this research done. Thank you for your guidance, your professional advice and for accommodating me in the way that you did. v Table of Contents Declaration i Photograph of Martin Luther King Junior. ii Acknowledgements iii Table of Contents v List of Appendices xi Abstract xii Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter Preview 1 Orientation to the Research Study 1 The Psychobiographical Approach 1 The Life of Martin Luther King Junior 2 Overview of the Theoretical Framework 5 Aim of the Research 6 Overview of the Treatise 6 Chapter 2 Erikson’s Psychosocial Development Theory Chapter Preview 7 Significant Life Events which Contributed to the Development of Erikson’s Theory 7 The Development of Personality: Erikson’s Perspective 11 The Fundamentals of Erikson’s Psychosocial Approach 12 The epigenetic principle. 12 vi Lifespan development. 13 Ego development and identity. 14 The Eight Psychosocial Stages 15 Trust versus mistrust (birth to about 18 months). 15 Autonomy versus shame and doubt (18 months to about three years). 17 Initiative versus guilt (three years to five years). 18 Industry versus inferiority (five years to 13 years). 20 Identity versus role confusion (13 years to 21 years). 21 Intimacy versus isolation (21 years to 40 years). 22 Generativity versus stagnation (40 years to 60 years). 24 Integrity versus despair (60 years and onwards). 25 Critique of Erikson’s (1950) Psychosocial Theory 26 Erikson the idealist and theory too idealistic. 27 Gender assumptions in Erikson’s work. 27 The developmental stages. 28 Conclusion 29 Chapter 3 The Life of Martin Luther King Junior Chapter Preview 30 The Life of Martin Luther King Junior 30 The Childhood Years (1929-1947). 30 Family of origin. 30 Fatherly influence. 31 King as a boy. 32 King at school. 33 vii Questioning. 34 Tough experiences. 34 College years. 35 Influences during college. 36 Becoming a man (1947 - 1950). 37 Minister after all. 37 Continued studies. 37 Influences and beliefs while at seminary. 38 Philosophy of nonviolence. 39 The emergence of King (1950 – 1953). 40 King as the diligent student. 40 King on a social level. 41 King meets Coretta Scott. 42 Leader in reverend’s cloak (1953 - 1957). 44 Where to go and what to do. 44 Life as a reverend. 45 Thought and word into action. 47 Freedom with responsibility leaves a legacy (1957 - 1968). 49 Fame and its challenges. 49 The movement. 52 I have a dream. 54 Peace at a price. 58 The Legacy Lives On 58 Conclusion 59 viii Chapter 4 Psychobiographical Research Design and Methodology Chapter Preview 60 Overview of the Psychobiographical Research Design 60 Methodological Considerations of Psychobiographical Research 62 Analysing an absent subject. 62 Researcher bias. 64 Reductionism. 65 Elitism and easy genre. 66 Inflated expectations. 67 Psychobiographical Ethical Considerations 67 Research Design 68 The Psychobiographical Research Subject 68 Data Collection 69 Data Analysis 70 Alexander’s guidelines for the extraction of salient data. 71 Primacy. 71 Frequency. 71 Emphasis. 71 Uniqueness. 72 Negation. 72 Omission. 72 Error or distortion. 72 Isolation. 72 Incompletion. 72 ix Questioning the Data 73 Developing a Case Description 74 Reflexivity 75 Conclusion 75 Chapter 5 Findings and Discussion Chapter Preview 76 Findings 76 Basic trust versus mistrust (birth to 18 months). 77 Discussion of the first stage. 77 Autonomy versus shame and doubt (18 months to three years). 78 Discussion of the second stage. 78 Initiative versus guilt (three to five years). 79 Discussion of the third stage. 80 Industry versus inferiority (five to 13 years). 80 Discussion of the fourth stage. 81 Identity versus role confusion (13 to 21 years). 82 Discussion of the fifth stage. 83 Intimacy versus isolation (21 to 40 years). 86 Discussion of the sixth stage. 86 Conclusion 90 Chapter 6 Conclusion, Limitations and Recommendations Chapter Preview 91 Conclusions of the Study 91 x Limitations of Current Research Study. 91 Value of the Study 93 Recommendations for Future Research 94 Final Conclusion 95 References 96 xi List of Appendices: Appendix A A Matrix of Martin Luther King Junior’s Life and Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Stages 103 xii Abstract The aim of the current study was to conduct a psychobiography of the life of Martin Luther King Junior, who was born in 1929 and died in 1968. He was an American clergyman, husband, father, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American civil rights movement. King fought for civil rights for all people. His “I Have a Dream” speech raised public consciousness of the civil rights movement and established him as one of the greatest orators in the United States of America. His main legacy was to secure access to civil rights for all Americans, thereby empowering people of all racial and religious backgrounds, and promoting equality in the American nation. This is a psychobiographical research study which aimed to explore and describe the life of Martin Luther King junior’s psychological development according to Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Developmental Theory. King was selected through purposive sampling on the basis of interest, value, and uniqueness to the researcher. Alexander’s model of identifying salient themes was used to analyse the data which were then compared to Erikson’s theory through a process of analytical generalisation. Limitations of the current study were identified and certain recommendations for future research in this field are offered. Key Concepts: Erik Erikson, Martin Luther King Junior, psychobiography, psychosocial development. 1 Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter Preview This chapter contains an introduction to the research study and provides a general orientation thereof. It provides a brief outline of the psychobiographical approach, a short account of the life of Martin Luther King Junior, and an overview of Erikson‟s (1950) Psychosocial Development Theory. The aim of the research is presented, and the chapter then concludes with an overview of all the chapters in the research study. Orientation to the Research Study Through the research method of psychobiography the researcher explores and describes the personality development of Martin Luther King Junior throughout his entire lifespan, utilizing Erik Erikson‟s (1950) Psychosocial Development Theory. The research is categorised as a psychobiographical case study which uses Erikson‟s psychosocial stages to restructure and highlight King‟s life, providing a comprehensive account of his psychological development. The Psychobiographical Approach The purpose of a psychobiography is to utilise psychological theory in a systematic way, so as to discover aspects of the subject‟s lived life (McAdams, 1994; Stroud, 2004). Roberts (2002) ascribed interest in the psychobiographical method in recent years to four different factors: a developing cynicism with static approaches to data collection; a growing interest in the life stages; an increased concern with lived experience and how best to express and reveal it, as well as the growth in popularity of qualitative research in general. Pillay (2009) suggests that various definitions and descriptions of psychobiography exist. Schultz (2005) describes psychobiography as the process of utilizing psychological theory and research to analyse the inner life of the subject. It looks at the entire life birth to death, to 2 determine and differentiate the main story of the subject‟s life (McAdams, 1994).