Psychosexual stages of development

To Freud, the oral, anal,phallic, and genital

stages through which all children pass.
At these stages, gratification of the id instincts depends on the stimulation of corresponding
areas of the body. Each stage is defined by the erogenous zone of the body.In each
psychosexual stage of development, the child’s pleasure-seeking urges, coming from the id,
are focused on a different area of the body, called an erogenous zone. The stages are oral,
anal, phallic, latency, and genital.

Fixation:-A condition in which a portion of

libido remains invested in one of the psychosexual stages because of excessive frustration
or gratification.

Stages
● Oral stage (Birth-1 yr):-In the oral stage, pleasure is focused on the mouth. Mouth is
the primary erogenous zone and id is dominant.Eating and the pleasure derived from
sucking (nipples, pacifiers, and thumbs) play a large part in a baby’s first year of life.
At around 1 year of age, babies are weaned from the bottle or breast, and this
process can create conflict if not handled properly by caregivers. According to Freud,
an adult who smokes, drinks, overeats, or bites her nails is fixated in the oral stage of
her psychosexual development; she may have been weaned too early or too late,
resulting in these fixation tendencies, all of which seek to ease anxiety.
● Anal stage(1-3yrs):-After passing through the oral stage, children enter what Freud
termed the anal stage (1–3 years). In this stage, children experience pleasure in their
bowel and bladder movements, so it makes sense that the conflict in this stage is
over toilet training. Freud suggested that success at the anal stage depended on how
parents handled toilet training. Toilet training (external reality) interferes with
gratification received from defecation.Parents who offer praise and rewards
encourage positive results and can help children feel competent. Parents who are
harsh in toilet training can cause a child to become fixated at the anal stage, leading
to the development of an anal-retentive personality. The anal-retentive personality is
stingy and stubborn, has a compulsive need for order and neatness, and might be
considered a perfectionist. If parents are too lenient in toilet training, the child might
also become fixated and display an anal-expulsive personality. The anal-expulsive
personality is messy, careless, disorganized, and prone to emotional outbursts.
● Phallic stage(4-5yrs):-Freud’s third stage of psychosexual development is the
phallic stage, corresponding to the age when children become aware of their bodies
and recognize the differences between boys and girls. The erogenous zone in this
stage is the genitals. Conflict arises when the child feels a desire for the opposite-sex
parent, and jealousy and hatred toward the same-sex parent.At this stage,the
individual starts using defence mechanisms.
Oedipus complex:-During the phallic stage(ages 4–5), the unconscious desire of a boy for
his mother, accompanied by a desire to replace or destroy his father.The boy comes to
resolve the Oedipus complex by identifying with his father.
Castration anxiety:A boy’s fear during the
Oedipal period that his penis will be cut off.
Electra complex:-During the phallic stage (ages 4–5), the unconscious desire of a girl for
her father, accompanied by a desire to replace or destroy her mother.
Penis envy:-The envy the female feels toward the male because the male possesses a
penis; this is accompanied by a sense of loss because the female does not have a penis.
The Phallic Personality
Phallic conflicts and their degree of resolution are of major importance in determining adult
relations with the opposite sex. Poorly resolved conflicts
can cause lingering forms of castration anxiety and penis envy. The so-called phallic
character or personality type evidences strong narcissism.Although continually acting in
ways to try to attract the opposite sex, they have difficulty establishing mature heterosexual
relationships. They need constant recognition and appreciation of what they see as their
attractive and unique qualities. As long as they receive such support they function well, but
when it is lacking they feel inadequate and inferior.
Freud described the male phallic personality as brash, vain, and self-assured. Men with this
personality try to assert or express their masculinity through repeated sexual conquests. The
female phallic personality, motivated by penis envy, exaggerates her femininity and uses her
talents and charms to overwhelm and conquer men.The tense drama of the phallic stage is
repressed in all of us according to Freud. Its effects motivate us as adults at the unconscious
level, and we remember very little, if anything, about the conflict.
● Latency stage(5-puberty):-The storms and stresses of the oral, anal, and phallic
stages of psychosexual development form the basic material out of which most of the
adult personality is shaped. The three major structures—the id, ego, and
superego—have been formed by around the age of 5,and the relationships among
them are being solidified.Fortunately, because the child and parents certainly could
use some rest, the next 5 or 6 years are quiet. The latency period is not a
psychosexual stage of development. The sex instinct is dormant during this time,
Freud believed, and is temporarily sublimated in school activities, hobbies, and
sports and in developing friendships with members of the same sex.
● Genital stage(Adolescence-Adulthood):-The genital stage, the final psychosexual
stage of development, begins at puberty. The body is becoming physiologically
mature, and if no major fixations have occurred at an earlier stage of development,
the individual may be able to lead a normal life. Freud believed that the conflict
during this period is less intense than in the other stages. The adolescent must
conform to societal sanctions and taboos that exist concerning sexual expression,
but he believed that conflict is minimized through sublimation.The sexual energy
pressing for expression in the teenage years can be at least partially satisfied
through the pursuit of socially acceptable substitutes and, later, through a committed
adult relationship. The genital personality type is able to find satisfaction in love and
work, the latter being an acceptable outlet for sublimation of the id impulses.