Sigmund Freud's Stages of Psychosexual Development
Sigmund Freud’s stages of psychosexual development came as fascination to us, as we hadn’t heard of many of this information ever before. Freud also developed a structural model of personality, which corresponds with the psychosexual development.
The first stage is from the child’s birth to 18 months, known as the Oral Stage. During this stage, the child is focused on oral pleasures, such as sucking. Too much or too little can result in an Oral Fixation or Oral Personality. This type of personality may have a greater tendency to smoke, drink alcohol, over eat, or bite his or her nails. Personality wise, these individuals may become overly dependent and gullible. This could also lead to a pessimistic outlook on life. Freud believes that we are born with Id. As newborns, it allows us to meet our basic needs. Id is based on our pleasure principle. The id wants whatever feels good at the time, with no consideration for the reality of the situation. When the id wants something, nothing else is important, so he or she thinks.
The next stage is the Anal Stage, which is from 18 months to 3 years. During this time, the child has to learn to have control. In terms of personality, anal fixation can result in an obsession with cleanliness and perfection. On the other hand, this can also lead to becoming messy and disorganized. As the child interacts more with the world, the second part of the personality begins to develop. Freud calls this the Ego, which is based on the reality principle. The ego understands that other people have needs too and that being selfish can hurt us in the long run. The ego meets the needs of the id, while taking into consideration the reality of the situation.
Thirdly is the Phallic Stage from ages 3 to 6. The pleasure zone switches to the genitals during this phase. Freud believed that during this stage, the boy develops unconscious sexual desires for his mother, and likely becomes rivals with his father. Due to the strong competition with his father, the boy eventually decides to identify with him rather than fight him. By this, the boy develops masculine characteristics and identifies himself as a male, repressing his sexual feelings toward his mother. This group of feelings is known as Oedipus complex. Girls go through a similar situation, developing unconscious sexual attraction to their father. A fixation at this stage could result in sexual overindulging and avoidance. By the age of 5, or at the end of the phallic stage of development, the Superego develops. This is the moral part of us that develops due to the ethical restraints placed on us by our caregivers. The Superego dictates our belief of right and wrong as well.
The next stage is the Latency Stage, from age 6 until puberty. The sexual urges remain reserved, and children interact mostly with the same sex at this time.
Lastly is the Genital Stage. The final stage of psychosexual development begins at the start of puberty when sexual urges are once again awakened. Through the lessons learned during the previous stages, adolescents direct their sexual urges onto the opposite sex. The Ego is believed to be the strongest because it can satisfy the needs of the Id, not upset the superego, and still take into consideration the reality of every situation.
Works Cited
The first stage is from the child’s birth to 18 months, known as the Oral Stage. During this stage, the child is focused on oral pleasures, such as sucking. Too much or too little can result in an Oral Fixation or Oral Personality. This type of personality may have a greater tendency to smoke, drink alcohol, over eat, or bite his or her nails. Personality wise, these individuals may become overly dependent and gullible. This could also lead to a pessimistic outlook on life. Freud believes that we are born with Id. As newborns, it allows us to meet our basic needs. Id is based on our pleasure principle. The id wants whatever feels good at the time, with no consideration for the reality of the situation. When the id wants something, nothing else is important, so he or she thinks.
The next stage is the Anal Stage, which is from 18 months to 3 years. During this time, the child has to learn to have control. In terms of personality, anal fixation can result in an obsession with cleanliness and perfection. On the other hand, this can also lead to becoming messy and disorganized. As the child interacts more with the world, the second part of the personality begins to develop. Freud calls this the Ego, which is based on the reality principle. The ego understands that other people have needs too and that being selfish can hurt us in the long run. The ego meets the needs of the id, while taking into consideration the reality of the situation.
Thirdly is the Phallic Stage from ages 3 to 6. The pleasure zone switches to the genitals during this phase. Freud believed that during this stage, the boy develops unconscious sexual desires for his mother, and likely becomes rivals with his father. Due to the strong competition with his father, the boy eventually decides to identify with him rather than fight him. By this, the boy develops masculine characteristics and identifies himself as a male, repressing his sexual feelings toward his mother. This group of feelings is known as Oedipus complex. Girls go through a similar situation, developing unconscious sexual attraction to their father. A fixation at this stage could result in sexual overindulging and avoidance. By the age of 5, or at the end of the phallic stage of development, the Superego develops. This is the moral part of us that develops due to the ethical restraints placed on us by our caregivers. The Superego dictates our belief of right and wrong as well.
The next stage is the Latency Stage, from age 6 until puberty. The sexual urges remain reserved, and children interact mostly with the same sex at this time.
Lastly is the Genital Stage. The final stage of psychosexual development begins at the start of puberty when sexual urges are once again awakened. Through the lessons learned during the previous stages, adolescents direct their sexual urges onto the opposite sex. The Ego is believed to be the strongest because it can satisfy the needs of the Id, not upset the superego, and still take into consideration the reality of every situation.
Works Cited
