The stages of psychosexual development human being described by the famous Viennese psychologist Sigmund Freud , describe the supposed development of personality throughout childhood and the different phases we went through during it.
According to Freud In each of these stages the child focuses his sexual energy on a specific erogenous area. This sexual energy, also known as libido, is the source of most behaviors in the child, even though it moves him unconsciously.
Index
- 1 Bases of Freud's theory
- 1.1 Conflicts in each of the phases
- 2 Oral stage
- 3 Anal stage
- 4 Phallic stage
- 5 Latent stage
- 6 Genital stage
- 7 References
Bases of Freud's theory
Although the theory of psychosexual development has always been controversial within the world of psychology (even during the time in which it was developed), it can not be denied that it has had a great influence on the evolution of this discipline as an object of psychology. study of science.
According to Freud, the human mind develops in different phases that we all have to go through, from our childhood to our adult life. The five phases are the following: oral, anal, phallic, latent and genital.
During each of these phases our sexual energy or libido is fixed in a specific area of the body, from which the phases are named.
These areas are gaining importance as the person develops, either as sources of potential pleasure, frustration or both.
Freud gave special importance to these areas because he believed that life was based on two factors: tension and pleasure. Both were related to the libido, with tension being the accumulation of sexual energy, and pleasure its liberation.
Conflicts in each of the phases
As the child develops, a series of conflicts appear in his mind that he has to overcome in order to advance to the next successful phase. These conflicts are related to the struggle between the three components of the mind according to Freud: the id, the self and the superego.
The id is the fundamental force that drives the behavior of children. It is the unconscious mind, composed of all the desires, instincts and drives that each person feels.
The other two components are developed throughout the five phases to channel these primary desires so that they are socially acceptable.
During this process, in each phase there is a psychological conflict that must be resolved so that the child can advance in its development. The more difficult it is to resolve the conflict, the more it will affect the personality of the individual during his adult life.
When a person presents some unsolved conflict, according to Freud this can cause all kinds of psychological disorders over the years.
Therefore, the role of the psychologist is to detect what may be the cause of the fixation in a specific stage, and solve it by using therapy.
Next, each of the stages will be described.
Oral stage
During the oral stage, which occurs between the time of birth and the year and a half of age, the child is related to the world mainly through his mouth.
This organ is essential for survival, so the baby receives great pleasure from activities such as sucking and eating.
Because the child also needs adult care to survive, oral stimulation is also the main way in which he creates links with his caregivers. In particular, a very strong bond is established with the mother when she breastfeeds.
The main conflict at this stage is precisely the liberation to a certain extent of the dependence of the caregivers.
The child must begin to embark on his path to self-sufficiency; otherwise, in his adult life he could have problems such as dependence, aggression or addictions such as food or drink.
Anal stage
The anal stage occurs between a year and a half and three years of age; during this the child's attention is focused on the control of the sphincters.
The acquisition of the ability to go to the bathroom independently becomes the first great achievement of the child, who approaches in this way even more to personal autonomy.
According to Freud, the resolution of the conflict of this stage is especially delicate, and depends to a large extent on the way in which the parents teach the child to go to the bathroom.
If the caregivers reinforce the child each time he or she manages to use the bathroom properly, the person will grow up feeling competent, productive and creative.
However, in the case of parents who punish the child when they can not go to the bathroom alone (or in the case of accidents), the person can suffer all kinds of negative consequences in their lives.
For example, you could become too rigid, unable to break the rules or improvise.
On the other hand, if the training was not taken seriously by the parents, the person could grow up to become disorganized, appearing even all kinds of self-destructive behaviors.
Phallic stage
The third stage described by Freud focuses on the genitals, being the moment in which the person discovers the anatomical differences between men and women.
This is where the greatest psychological conflict of development occurs: the Oedipus complex in men, and the Electra complex in the women.
According to the author, the changes produced in this stage are closely related to the sexuality of people and their gender roles. The phallic stage goes from three to six years of age.
Latent stage
Between six years of age and puberty, the child's sexual energy enters a dormant state, being suppressed by the superego (the part of the mind that is responsible for social norms).
During this time, the repressed energy is used for other tasks, such as the development of social skills.
Genital stage
Finally, during puberty the sexual desires of the person reappear, this time in its most developed form.
At this stage (which ranges from adolescence to death), the desire focuses on the genitals and having sex with people who are attractive.
References
- "Anal stage"in: Britannica. Retrieved on: April 23, 2018 from Britannica: britannica.com.
- "Anal stage"in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: April 23, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.
- "Psychosexual stages"in: Simply Psychology. Retrieved on: April 23, 2018 from Simply Psychology: simplypsychology.com.
- "Freud's Psychosexual Stages of Development"in: Wilderdom. Retrieved on: April 23, 2018 from Wilderdom: wilderdom.com.