Sigmund Freud's Theory Of Psychosexual Development

Introduction

The history of psychology —like the history of the twentieth century —could not be written without discussing the contributions of Sigmund Freud

(1856–1939). Both supporters and critics of his theory of personality regard it as a revolutionary milestone in the history of human thought

(Robinson, 1993).

Sigmund Freud 's theory of psychosexual development is based on the idea that parents play a crucial role in managing their children 's sexual and aggressive drives during the first few years of life to foster their proper development. Freud 's structural model posits that personality consists of three interworking parts: the id, the ego,

According to his theory, each stage of psychosexual development must be met successfully for proper development; if we lack proper nurturing and parenting during a stage, we may become stuck in, or fixated on, that stage.

Psychoanalysis focused on early childhood, postulating that many of the conflicts which arise in the human mind develop in the first years of a person 's life. Freud demonstrated this in his theory of psychosexuality, in which the libido (sexual energy) of the infant progressively seeks outlet through different body zones (oral, anal, phallic, and genital) during the first five to six years of life. According to (Crandell 2009) Freud proposed three key psychosexual stages of development—oral, anal, and phallic (see Figure 1)

Figure 1, showing the first 3 stages of psychosexual development

Sigmund Freud, few weeks before his death

(1939) London

Stages, development and Parent’s role

Freud emphasized that a child 's first five years were the most important years to social and personality development (Newman

As mentioned above, initiative is a great quality that a person must have in order to have a successful like both in schooling and in real life. This stage is also important in the child’s future relationships with authority.

During the phallic stage, (3 to 6 years): the primary focus of the libido is on the genitals.

At this age, children also begin to discover the differences between males and females (Ellis

2008). Freud also believed that boys begin to view their fathers as a rival for the mother’s affections. The Oedipus complex describes these feelings of wanting to possess the mother an d the desire to replace the father. However, the child also fears that he will be punished by the father for these feelings, a fear Freud termed castration anxiety. The term Electra complex has been used to describe a similar set of feelings experienced by young girls.