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Mean Girls was filmed in 2004. The scenes were set in the suburbs at a public school called North Shore High School in Evanston, Illinois. Cady Heron, Regina George, Janis Ian, Damian Leigh, Gretchen Wieners, Karen Smith, Aaron Samuels, and Ms. Norbury were all the stars of the movie. Cady Heron (protagonist) was the new girl who had been homeschooled up until she attended North Shore because she lived in Africa most of her adolescence due to her parent’s careers as zoologists. Regina George (antagonist) was the popular girl at North Shore and the leader of the most popular clique at the school called “The Plastics.” Everyone either wanted to be her because she was pretty or hated her because of her malicious attitude. Janis Ian (Cady’s friend and Damian’s best friend) was a rebel. She wore all black clothes and had piercings all over her face. She made Cady feel welcomed when she started attending school at North Shore. Also, Janis hated Regina because of an old rumor she spread about her being a lesbian that stuck with her all throughout high school making her an outcast; therefore, she plotted to strip her of the title of most popular girl in the school. Damian Leigh (Janis’s best friend) was a proud homosexual with a vibrant attitude. He also made Cady feel welcome in her transition from being home schooled to going to a public school. Gretchen Wieners (member of “The Plastics”) was an insecure girl who constantly sought validation from her group leader, Regina, to keep her happy so she would not kick her out of the group.  She also kept going back to her cheating boyfriend throughout the film as well. Karen Smith (member of “The Plastics”) was the unintelligent girl who used her to body to get whatever she wanted including boys. Aaron Samuels (popular boy) was the guy Cady met in her math class the first day of school and developed a crush on. Then, she soon realized that he was Regina’s on and off boyfriend. This caused problems/competition between the two girls once Regina realized Cady liked him. And Ms. Norbury (Cady’s advisor) was the math teacher that celebrated Cady’s academic accomplishments but acknowledged when she was wrong; moreover, teaching her valuable life lessons.

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Who is Erick Erikson?

Erikson was a psychologist and psychoanalyst best known for his theory listed. He developed the 8 developmental stages that are required to produce healthy and well rounded individuals. We will break down this theory below.

What is the Erikson Theory?:

This theory, also known as the psychosocial development, outlines the 8 stages of human development ranging from infancy to adulthood. Each stage describes a conflict that at some point an individual will undergo in order to develop personality and social skills. Erikson believed that failing these stages may result in developmental delays and ability to pass any future conflicts.

Critics of This Theory:

Some critics will say tht htis theory is oversimplified in the fat that it takes life as stages and moves through a constant canon event. This is unrealsitic because life is unpredictable. Others also call out the fact that the stages focuses more on infacy and adolescents and get more b road through adulthood. Lastly these stages were only observed in European and North American cultures so it may not be generalized to apply to all individuals.

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Erikson's psychosocial development | Individuals and Society | MCAT | Khan Academy

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Trust vs. Mistrust (Infancy, 0-1 year): Infants learn to trust their caregivers for basic needs. Success leads to feelings of safety and security. This is present when babies start to become dependent on their mom for food and nurturing, trusting them more over strangers.

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Erikson's Stage 2: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

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Erikson's Stage 2: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

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Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (Early Childhood, 1-3 years): Children begin to assert independence. Success fosters confidence; failure can result in feelings of shame. This is present when children begin to want to feed themselves, walk on their own without assistance, and pick out their own toys.

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Initiative vs. Guilt (Preschool, 3-6 years): Children initiate activities and assert control. Success leads to a sense of initiative, while failure may cause guilt. This becomes present when children start to take charge in the classroom by doing classroom jobs or initiating activities.

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Erikson's Stage 4: Industry vs. Inferiority

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Erikson's Stage 4: Industry vs. Inferiority

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Industry vs. Inferiority (School Age, 6-12 years): Children work on skills and abilities. Success leads to a sense of competence, while failure can result in feelings of inferiority. This is present when students begin to study and improve skills to do well in class and show their intelligence.

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Erikson's Stage 5: Identity vs. Role Confusion 

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Erikson's Stage 5: Identity vs. Role Confusion 

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Identity vs. Role Confusion (Adolescence, 12-18 years): Teens explore their identity and sense of self. Success leads to a strong identity; failure can result in confusion about one’s role in society. This becomes prominent once teens start to be influenced by their peers and dig deeper into the things they like and dislike. This can be in a fashion sense or hobbies.

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Erikson's Stage 6: Intimacy vs. Isolation

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Erikson's Stage 6: Intimacy vs. Isolation

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Intimacy vs. Isolation (Young Adulthood, 18-40 years): Young adults seek deep relationships. Successful navigation fosters intimacy, while failure may lead to isolation. This is the stage that most of us are in. This is when we begin to have attraction towards other and yearn connections in friendships and relationships.

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Erikson's Stage 7: Generativity vs. Stagnation

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Erikson's Stage 7: Generativity vs. Stagnation

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Generativity vs. Stagnation (Middle Adulthood, 40-65 years): Adults contribute to society and help the next generation. Success leads to feelings of usefulness, while failure can result in stagnation. This is the stage where people begin to retire and focus on providing wealth for their families and generation to come. They are coming to end of their development and now leaving a mark for the upcoming generations.

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Erikson's Stage 8: Integrity vs. Despair

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Erikson's Stage 8: Integrity vs. Despair

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Integrity vs. Despair (Late Adulthood, 65+ years): Older adults reflect on their lives. Success leads to a sense of fulfillment, while failure may result in regret and despair. This is the last step and this where elders become fulfilled with their lives and everything the done and come to terms with the fact that its coming to an end.

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Erikson's theory did well in explaining Cady Heron's character development. Her transition from being shy, lost, and insecure to a confident young woman aligns with "Erikson's Stage 5." This theory captured all the experiences of Cady in "Identity vs. Role Confusion". Cady's initial need to fit in with the best clique and date the popular guy confirmed Erikson's theory. She was introduced to an entirely new environment after being isolated for most of her life so naturally she had to find her own way in the world and figure out who she was as a person without her parents around. The theory is a good "fit" when making a psycho-developmental assessment of Cady Heron because of the level of influence (like peer pressure) her fellow students had over her during her journey. Based on Cady's identity, Erikson's theory is valid in its use to analyze her. This is because Cady Heron embodies this particular stage of the theory about teens "determining who they are".

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Erikson's Theory in Mean Girls: Cady Heron 

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Erikson's Theory in Mean Girls: Cady Heron 

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l. According to Erikson's theory, Cady Heron is undergoing the Identity vs. Role Confusion stage.

ll. Erikson would evaluate Cady as initially identifying with the personality she was raised upon which was innocent and authentic. But after being exposed to the high school's totally different culture, she is forced to conform to the social norms in order to fit in. She becomes involved with a mean girls group, with complete different personality from herself. This would be her exploring her identify more and role in highschool. As she begins to adapt to the Plastics, she begins to have internal conflict, battling between her desire to fit in and her true identify. This is the start to her role confusion because she begins to adapt a personality that clashes with her own values.

lll. The major turning point to Cady's development is when she realizes that she turning into someone she doesnt recognize and doesn't like her negative rolle shes playing. This realization happens when the burn book becomes public and Cady realizes that everyone was being really rude and detramental to others and that they were all just as insecure and confuses as one another. This is when Cady realizes that she didn't want to be apart of the people that iflict pain and drama.

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Themes such as: self-discovery and loyalty were explored in Mean Girls. Cady had to learn that being herself was ok and that she did not need to fit in (be popular), become someone else, or dumb herself down to impress the popular guy. Friendships were tested in this film. “The Plastics” found out what they really thought of one another all along which was not so friendly. Cady, Janis, and Damian realized their friendship was more important than anything issue related to Regina George (common enemy). Conflict wise, there was both internal and external conflict. Cady struggled internally with figuring out who she wanted to be as a person. Externally, the problem was between Cady and Janis because Janis noticed how much Cady changed to fit in with the popular girls and forgot about her real friends; furthermore, Aaron noticed Cady was becoming more like Regina George and he did not like it either. Regina and Cady were in competition over wanting to be the most popular girl in the school and obtaining Aaron Samuels. In the end, Cady recognizes how much she has changed. She apologizes to her friends and her math teacher for trying to ruin her career. Cady then joins the math team at her school. Eventually, she apologizes to Aaron as well for treating him like Regina used to and they kiss. On the other hand, Regina is removed from the status of being the “popular girl” and the social “norms” begin to move from a hierarchy at North Shore High School. “The Plastics” disbanded and joined new cliques that helped them channel their attitudes into a positive manner.

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Mean Girls (2004) | Movie Themes Analysis

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Kohlberg and Moral Development:

This is another concept that was present in Cady's development in high school because she had to face the conflict between her moral well being compared to the social standards. Kohlberg's theory defines the development of the moral portal of ones personality and how the different stages in their life interacts with their morals. This was present in the movie because Cady had to pick between what type of person she wants to be regardless of social norms, which helped her develop her morality. https://macmillan.vitalsource.com/reader/books/9781319449636/epubcfi/6/138[pom_9781319339449_ch09_05]!/4