Psycology Analysis of Stephen Hawking
I chose Stephen Hawking to write about for my case study because I have always found him extremely interesting. As a fellow atheist he has come pretty outstanding scientific theories on how our universe came about, none of which are attributed to some fictitious being. I am also inspired with the amount that Hawking has done so far in his lifetime. All this has been done in spite of, or because of, having ALS. As a medical professional I am in awe of the things that he has accomplished. Stephen William Hawking, born in 1942 is the eldest of Frank and Isobel Hawking’s three children. Mary was born in 1943, Philippa was born in 1947, and Edward was adopted in 1956. As a newborn Stephen first lived in Northern London. Hawking’s parents where themselves quite accomplished, Stephen’s father was a respected medical researcher in the specialty of tropical diseases, while his mother was one of Oxford’s first female students. When he was just two weeks old Stephen was almost killed when a V2 rocket damaged the Hawking’s home while they were away. This is when the Hawking’s moved to Oxford in order to avoid the attacks by the Luftwaffe (the aerial warfare branch of the German Armed Forces) and to provide a safer environment to raise their growing family. In 1950, when Stephen was eight years old he and his family moved to St Albans in Hertfordshire. As a child Stephen was awkward and small for his age. His teachers thought he was bright but he did not stand out as being very far above his classmates in elementary school. At one point in school he was third from the bottom of his class. He did enjoy creating games with his friends. They would come together at the family home on weekends and holidays to play. Stephen would create many of the rules and the games would often be so complex that one turn could take an entire afternoon. At the local public high school, the gauche, lisping Hawking was persecuted as a swot, which is a person that devotes themselves solely to
References: Stephen Hawking (2006) Retrieved June 3, 2012 from http://www.csupomona.edu/~nova/scientists/articles/hawk.html Stephen Hawking Biography (n.d.) Retrieved June 3, 2012 http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/stephen-hawking-2668.html Master of the Universe (Robin McKie, 2001) Retrieved June 3, 2012 http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2001/oct/21/highereducation.academicexperts Psychosocial Theory: Erikson (Davis & Clifton, 1995) Retrieved June 3, 2012 http://www.haverford.edu/psych/ddavis/p109g/erikson.stages.html Theories of Development (Crain, 1985) Editorial board Words of Wisdom (2011) Introduction to Psychology Stephen Hawking http://www.biography.com/people/stephen-hawking-9331710 Stephen Hawking Biography (2010) Retrieved May 26, 2012 from http://www.notablebiographies.com/Gi-He/Hawking-Stephen.html#ixzz1vzRLUH5F About Stephen Hawking (n.d.) Retrieved May 26, 2012 from