(6) stages of development

• According to Freud, what is the most crucial period for personality formation?

  The first 4 or 5 years of life
• What occurs during the latency period in Freud's stages of development?

  Little or no sexual growth takes place
• What is ushered in at puberty according to Freud?

  A renaissance of sexual life and the genital stage
• What characterizes the infantile period in Freud's theory?

  • A period of pregenital sexual development
  • Lasts for the first 4 or 5 years after birth
  • Sexual impulses can be satisfied through organs other than the genitals
• What is the primary source of pleasure during the oral phase of development?

  Pleasure is derived from sucking, biting, and swallowing
• What characterizes the anal phase of development?

  Satisfaction is gained through aggressive behavior and the excretory function
• How do children express satisfaction during the anal phase?

  By destroying or losing objects
• What are the two divisions of the anal phase?

  1. Early anal period: Satisfaction through destruction and aggression.
  2. Late anal period: Interest in feces stemming from erotic pleasure of defecating.
• What is meant by 'anal character' in Freud's theory?

  People who derive satisfaction from keeping and arranging objects neatly
• What becomes the leading erogenous zone during the phallic phase?

  The genital area
• What is the Oedipus complex?

  The unconscious desire of a boy for his mother and to replace or destroy his father
• What is the Electra complex?

  The unconscious desire of a girl for her father and to replace or destroy her mother
• What is castration anxiety in Freud's theory?

  A boy's fear during the oedipal period that his penis will be cut off
• What is penis envy according to Freud?

  The envy a female feels toward the male for possessing a penis
• What characterizes the latency period in Freud's stages of development?

  • Lasts from approximately age 5 to puberty
  • The sex instinct is dormant
  • Sublimated in school activities, sports, hobbies, and same-sex friendships
• What happens during the genital period of development?

  Adolescents direct their sexual energy toward another person instead of themselves
• What significant change occurs in sexual drive during the genital period?

  Reproduction becomes possible
• How does penis envy manifest in girls during the genital period?

  The vagina obtains the same status for them that the penis had during infancy
• What is maturity in Freud's theory of development?

  • Begins at puberty and continues throughout life
  • Attained by everyone who reaches physical maturity
  • Psychological maturity is achieved after passing through earlier developmental periods ideally
• Why is psychological maturity seldom achieved according to Freud?

  Because people have too many opportunities to develop pathological disorders or neurotic predispositions