Sigmund Freud

• Psychosexual Theory of Development


  Theory proposed by Sigmund Freud that describes how personality develops during childhood
• The theory of psychosexual development is well-known in psychology but also one of the most controversial theories
• Sub topics of the Psychosexual Theory of Development

  • Components of Mind
  • Components of Personality
  • The Stages of Psychosexual Development
• Preconscious


  Anything that could potentially be brought into the conscious mind
• Conscious mind


  Contains all of the thoughts, memories, feelings, and wishes of which we are aware at any given moment
• Unconscious mind


  A reservoir of feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that are outside of our conscious awareness
• Freud likened the three levels of mind to an iceberg
• Id


  The source of all psychic energy, the primary component of personality, present from birth, driven by the pleasure principle
• Ego


  Develops from the id and ensures that the impulses of the id can be expressed in a manner acceptable in the real world, operates based on the reality principle
• Superego


  Holds the internalized moral standards and ideals that we acquire from our parents and society, includes the conscience and the ego ideal
• The id, ego, and superego are not three separate entities with clearly defined boundaries, they are dynamic and always interacting
• Freud used the term ego strength to refer to the ego's ability to function despite the dueling forces of the id, ego, and superego
• Stages of Psychosexual Development

  • Oral Stage
  • Anal Stage
  • Phallic Stage
  • Latent Period
  • Genital Stage
• Oral Stage


  Birth to 1 year, erogenous zone is the mouth, primary conflict is the weaning process
• Anal Stage


  1 to 3 years, erogenous zone is the bowel and bladder, primary conflict is toilet training
• Phallic Stage


  3 to 6 years, erogenous zone is the genitals, includes the Oedipus complex and Electra complex
• Latent Period


  6 to puberty, sexual feelings are inactive, development of ego and superego
• Genital Stage


  Puberty to death, erogenous zone is maturing sexual interests, focus on welfare of others
• Psychoanalytic theory suggested that personality is mostly established by the age of five
• If the psychosexual stages are not completed successfully, fixation can occur
• Freud's psychosexual theory is important in the classroom because it helps teachers understand student behaviour and development
• The best contribution of Freud's psychoanalytic theory to teachers is the importance of respecting the child's individuality at an early age, studying the early years of the child, evaluating standards of behaviour from a new angle, and recognising the strength of sex-impulse and sex-education