ORAL STAGE OF PSYCHOSEXUAL DEVELOPMENT

INFORMATION SOURCE
The Oral Stage
Age Range: Birth to 1 Year
Erogenous Zone: Mouth

During the oral stage, the infant's primary source of

interaction occurs through the mouth, so the rooting and
sucking reflex is especially important. The mouth is vital
for eating, and the infant derives pleasure from oral
stimulation through gratifying activities such as tasting
https://www.verywellmind.com/freuds-stages-of-psychosexual-
and sucking.
development-2795962
Because the infant is entirely dependent upon caretakers
By Kendra Cherry Updated on November 19, 2020
(who are responsible for feeding the child), the child also
Medically reviewed by Steven Gans, MD
develops a sense of trust and comfort through this oral
stimulation.

The primary conflict at this stage is the weaning process--

the child must become less dependent upon caretakers. If
fixation occurs at this stage, Freud believed the individual
would have issues with dependency or aggression. Oral
fixation can result in problems with drinking, eating,
smoking, or nail-biting.
Oral Stage (Birth to 1 year)
In the first stage of psychosexual development, the libido
is centered in a baby's mouth. During the oral stages, the
baby gets much satisfaction from putting all sorts of things
in its mouth to satisfy the libido, and thus its id demands.
Which at this stage in life are oral, or mouth orientated, https://www.simplypsychology.org/psychosexual.html
such as sucking, biting, and breastfeeding.
By Saul McLeod, updated 2019
Freud said oral stimulation could lead to an oral fixation in
later life. We see oral personalities all around us such as
smokers, nail-biters, finger-chewers, and thumb suckers.
Oral personalities engage in such oral behaviors,
particularly when under stress.
The oral stage https://www.healthline.com/health/psychosexual-stages#oral-stage
Age range: Birth to 1 year
Erogenous zone: The mouth
Quick: Think about a baby. Chances are you visualized a
little scoundrel sitting on their bum, smiling, and sucking
on their fingers.

Well, according to Freud, during this first stage of

development, a human’s libido is located in their mouth.
Meaning the mouth is the primary source of pleasure.
Medically reviewed by Janet Brito, Ph.D., LCSW, CST — Written by
“This stage is associated with breastfeeding, biting, Gabrielle Kassel on February 20, 2020
sucking, and exploring the world by putting things in the
mouth,” says Dr. Dorfman. Last medically reviewed on February 20, 2020

Freud’s theory says that things like excessive gum

chomping, nail biting, and thumb-sucking are rooted in too
little or too much oral gratification as a child.

“Overeating, overconsumption of alcohol, and smoking

are also said to be rooted in poor development of this first
stage,” she says.
Oral stage https://flo.health/being-a-mom/your-baby/growth-and-
development/psychosexual-stages-by-sigmund-freud
In Freud’s theory, the oral stage begins at birth and
typically lasts until children are one year old. The oral
stage is characterized by the pleasure center and libido Tanya Tantry, MD — Obstetrician & Gynecologist, Medical Consultant at
being centered around the mouth. Flo

Since infants’ primary way of interacting with the world is Updated on April 14, 2020
through their mouth, Freud thought this is where the libido
is focused. With the rooting and sucking reflex,
breastfeeding, biting, and tasting different foods, the oral
stage is about satisfying the id’s needs through the
mouth.

Since infants’ primary way of interacting with the world is

through their mouth, Freud thought this is where the libido
is focused.
Freud believed that if a child at this age is not properly
weaned (becoming less reliant on caregivers), then a
fixation could occur. Fixation could also occur at this
stage if an infant’s needs for security, largely fulfilled
through feeding, were not met. Freud thought that an oral-
stage fixation could show up later as aggression or
dependency, expressing itself through compulsive habits
such as smoking, overeating, and excessive drinking.
Stage I: 0-1 year, oral, mouth: Oral desire is the center of
pleasure for the newborn baby. The earliest attachment of
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557526/
a baby is to the one that provides gratification to his oral
needs, usually his mother. If the optimal amount of
Sarah E. Lantz; Sagarika Ray.
stimulation is not available, libidinal energy fixates on the
Last Update: February 7, 2021.
oral mode of gratification, resulting in subsequent latent
aggressive or passive tendencies.
During this psychosexual stage, a child derives pleasure
from oral activities, such as sucking and tasting.
Successful fulfillment of the child’s feeding needs and
proper weaning will result in the establishment of trust.
https://www.psychologynoteshq.com/freud-psychosexual-development/
Too much or too little gratification can bring about an oral
fixation when the child grows up and can result in
addictions such as drinking alcohol, smoking, over eating,
or nail biting.
The oral stage begins at birth, when the oral cavity is the https://victorianweb.org/science/freud/develop.html
primary focus of libidal energy. The child, of course,
preoccupies himself with nursing, with the pleasure of Created 1992; added to the Victorian Web 6 December 2000; last
sucking and accepting things into the mouth. The oral modified 27 May 2001,
character who is frustrated at this stage, whose mother Thanks to Herwig Neefs of Belgium for correcting a error.
refused to nurse him on demand or who truncated nursing
sessions early, is characterized by pessimism, envy,
suspicion and sarcasm. The overindulged oral character,
whose nursing urges were always and often excessively
satisfied, is optimistic, gullible, and is full of admiration for
others around him. The stage culminates in the primary
conflict of weaning, which both deprives the child of the
sensory pleasures of nursing and of the psychological
pleasure of being cared for, mothered, and held. The
stage lasts approximately one and one-half years.
Oral stage, in Freudian psychoanalytic theory, initial
psychosexual stage during which the developing infant’s
main concerns are with oral gratification. The oral phase
in the normal infant has a direct bearing on the infant’s
activities during the first 18 months of life. For the
newborn, the mouth is the all-absorbing organ of
https://www.britannica.com/science/oral-stage
pleasure. Freud said that through the mouth the infant
makes contact with the first object of libido (sexual
energy), the mother’s breast. Oral needs are also
satisfied by thumb-sucking or inserting environmental
objects, such as dolls, other toys, or blankets into the
mouth. Freud believed the oral phase begins to shift
toward the end of an infant’s first year to the anal region.
Oral Stage (Birth to 1 year)
In the first stage of psychosexual development, the libido
is centered in a baby's mouth. During the oral stages, the
baby gets much satisfaction from putting all sorts of things
in its mouth to satisfy the libido, and thus its id demands.
Which at this stage in life are oral, or mouth orientated, https://www.simplypsychology.org/psychosexual.html
such as sucking, biting, and breastfeeding.
By Saul McLeod, updated 2019
Freud said oral stimulation could lead to an oral fixation in
later life. We see oral personalities all around us such as
smokers, nail-biters, finger-chewers, and thumb suckers.
Oral personalities engage in such oral behaviors,
particularly when under stress.
Extending from birth to age two, during this stage the
primary source of gratification is orally, through the
nursing of breast milk. The process of weaning is https://www.goodtherapy.org/blog/psychpedia/psychosexual-
challenging for the baby, and helps the infant understand development
that he can’t exercise full control over his environment.
Problems that occur during this stage can cause oral 08-18-2015
fixations leading to excessive chewing or smoking, and
might also cause a gullible or manipulative personality.
Early in your development, all of your desires were https://cla.purdue.edu/academic/english/theory/psychoanalysis/freud.html
oriented towards your lips and your mouth, which
accepted food, milk, and anything else you could get your July 17, 2002
hands on (the oral phase). The first object of this stage
was, of course, the mother's breast, which could be
transferred to auto-erotic objects (thumb-sucking). The
mother thus logically became your first "love-object,"
already a displacement from the earlier object of desire
Felluga, Dino. "Modules on Freud: On Psychosexual Development."
(the breast). When you first recognized the fact of your
Introductory Guide to Critical Theory. Date of last update, which you can
father, you dealt with him by identifying yourself with him;
find on the home page. Purdue U. Date you accessed the site.
however, as the sexual wishes directed to your mother
<http://www.purdue.edu/guidetotheory/psychoanalysis/freud.html>.
grew in intensity, you became possessive of your mother
and secretly wished your father out of the picture (the
Oedipus complex). This Oedipus complex plays out
throughout the next two phases of development.
During the oral stage, the child if focused on oral
pleasures (sucking). Too much or too little gratification
can result in an Oral Fixation or Oral Personality which is
evidenced by a preoccupation with oral activities. This
https://allpsych.com/personality-theory/freud/psychosexual/
type of personality may have a stronger tendency to
smoke, drink alcohol, over eat, or bite his or her nails.
2021 AllPsych
Personality wise, these individuals may become overly
dependent upon others, gullible, and perpetual followers.
On the other hand, they may also fight these urges and
develop pessimism and aggression toward others.