Self-Actualizing: Where Ego Development Finally Feels Good?

This article addresses a paradox surrounding psychosocial maturity and self-actualizing in relation to 10 well-being: Several stage theories of maturity (notably ego development; Loevinger, 1976) culminate in self-actualizing, which Maslow (1968) characterizes as the pinnacle of psychological health and well-being. However, empirical measures of maturity and well-being do not correlate. In a reanalysis of three datasets, we find preliminary support for the notion that people scoring at the highest stage of Loevinger’s ego development might have higher levels of well-being and narrate a more 15 growth-focused self-identity than people scoring at all other stages. Drawing on Erikson’s (1959= 1994) claim that the acceptance of life’s complexities underlies ego integrity, we attempt to provide a theoretical explanation for how well-being might emerge normatively at the highest stage of psychosocial maturity.