1902 - 1994
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Erik Erikson was a German born American psychologist. His mother, who was Jewish, and his father, who passed him the physical traits of having blond hair and blue eyes, caused Erikson to feel like "doubly an outsider". He was made fun of at school, in Germany, for being Jewish, yet also mocked at the synagogue for having blonde hair and blue eyes. This caused Erikson's interest in the adolescent struggle for identity and would later contribute to his study of psychology. He and his family left for the US as Hitler began rising to power. Erikson wrote the book, Childhood and Society, which had the introduction of his major contribution to psychology, the eight stages of psycho-social development.
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