Sigmund Freud's theory of psychosexual development outlines five stages crucial for personality formation from birth to adulthood, emphasizing the role of early experiences and pleasure-seeking behaviors. Each stage, including the oral, anal, phallic, latent, and genital stages, is centered around specific erogenous zones and presents unique conflicts that can lead to fixation if not resolved properly. Fixation can result in various personality issues in adulthood, illustrating the lasting impact of these formative experiences.

1. SIGMUND FREUD STAGES OF
PSYCHOSEXUAL DEVELOPMENT
LIJODI BRENDA

2. • Psychosexual stages were given by
Sigmund Freud.
• According to him, personality is mostly
established by the age of five. Early
experiences play a large role in personality
development and continue to influence
behavior later in life.
• Freud believed that personality develops
through a series of childhood stages during
which the pleasure-seeking energies of the
Id become focused on certain erogenous
areas. This psychosexual energy, or libido
(sex drive), was described as the driving
force behind behavior.

3. • According to him from birth on, we have an innate
tendency to seek pleasure, especially through physical
stimulation and particularly through stimulation of
parts/zones of the body that are sensitive to touch:
• The mouth
• The anus
• The genitals
Which are referred to as erogenous zones.
• Various body zones are active as per the age and stage
or there occur shift of dominant erogenous zone from
one age/ stage to other.

4. FIXATION
• If the child need’s at one of the psychosexual
stages were either unsatisfied or oversatisfied,
fixation would take place.
• This means the child would show continued
attachment to an old stage even after moving on
to a new one as per his/her age.
• This results into problematic behavior patterns

5. STAGES
• There are five stages to his theory
which include
• The oral stage
• The anal stage
• The phallic stage
• The latent stage
• The genital stage

6. ORAL STAGE (BIRTH TO AGE 1
 In this stage the infant obtains sensual
pleasure first by sucking and later by
biting. The center of libido is mouth.
 The mouth is vital for eating, and the infant
derives pleasure from oral stimulation
through gratifying activities such as tasting
and sucking.
 Also the infant is entirely dependent upon
caretakers, the infant also develops a
sense of trust and comfort through this oral
stimulation.

7. •
•
•
•
•
•
Feeding and contact with the mother.
Mouthing new objects.
relief of teething pain by biting.
A conflict at this stage occurs with a child being weaned
off the mother’s breast
Signs of Fixation or affects on adult personality in this
stage are:
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–
–
–
–
–
–
Overeating or Pessimism
Smoking
Envy
Gullibility
Suspicion
Dependency
Passivity
HELPFUL

8. • Changes occur in the normal expression
of oral behavior as a person grows older.

9. ANAL STAGE (1-3 YRS)
•The region around the anus become highly sensitive
to the stimulation of “holding on” and “letting go”.
•Freud believed that the primary focus of the libido
was on controlling bladder and bowel movements.
•The major conflict at this stage is toilet training--the
child has to learn to control his or her bodily needs.
• Developing this control leads to a sense
of accomplishment and independence.
•Toilet training is child’s first encounter with authority.

10. • First part of this stage involves pleasure from
expulsion of feces; latter part involves pleasure
from retention.
• Fixation at first stage
•
•
Messiness
Disordered
• Fixation at second stage
•
•
•
Excessive compulsiveness
Over conformity
Exaggerated self control.

11. •
• Parents who utilize praise and rewards for using the
toilet at the appropriate time encourage positive
outcomes and help children feel capable and productive.
•
•
•
•
Positive experiences during this stage served as the
basis for people to become
Competent
Productive
creative

12. •
•
•
•
•
•
If parent punish, ridicule or shame a child for
accidents or other inappropriate parental
responses can result negative outcomes.
If parents take an approach that is too lenient, Freud
suggested that an anal-expulsive personality could
develop in which the individual is
Messy
Wasteful
destructive
Rigid obsessive

13. The child grow more interested
in their genitals. At this age,
children also begin to discover
the differences between males
and females.
In this stage, the focus of
Libido, where pleasure is
found, is in:
Awareness of sexual organs
Love-hate relationship with
the same-sex parent
Phallic stage (Age 3-5)

14.  Some critical episodes for development occur
 during this stage, but these episodes occur
differently for boys (Oedipus complex) and girls
(Electra complex).
 Signs of Fixation or affects on adult
personality in this stage are:
 Reckless or afraid of
love Narcissistic
 Self-Assured or Selfish
 Poor Opposite sex relationships

15. •
•
•
•
•
•
Occurs in boys
Desire for stimulation or masturbation of his own
genitals.
Have sexual/sensual desires for his mother.
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 and the
desire to replace the father.
The child also fears that he will be punished by the father
for these feelings, a fear Freud termed castration
anxiety.
Starts identifying with father
Phallic stage cont..
Oedipus

16. • Identification with
father
•
•
•
•
Reduces anxiety.
Behave like his father
Take up his ideas of right and
wrong.
Tries to dress like his father.

17. Phallic stage cont.
Electraco
m
p
l
e
x
• Occur in girls.
• Attracted towards their father.
• Notice that she does not have the sex organs like her
father and brother.
• Feeling of being castrated by her mother which makes
her angry and she starts devaluating her mother.
• Still identify with her mother with the feeling that by doing
so she will stand better chance in her own “romantic
relationship”

18. • Identification with mother
in girls being with feeling
that by doing so she will
stand better chance in
her own “romantic
relationship”.
• It is well said saying “A
father is a daughter’s first
love”

19. •
4.L
a
te
n
c
yS
ta
g
e:(a
g
e6top
u
b
erty)
At this stage, sexual drive lay dormant.
The stage begins around the time that
children enter into school and become
more concerned with peer
relationships, hobbies and other
interests.
• Sexual energy is still present, but it is
directed into other areas such as
intellectual pursuits and social interactions.
• Child usually has few opposite sex friends.
• This stage is important in the development
of social and communication skills and
self-confidence.
• A sign of fixation in this stage is a lack of
close friends

20.  Marked by puberty
 Mature heterosexual interests appears.
 A person becomes interested in dating and marriage
 The more libidal energy that a child has at this stage, the
greater his or her capacity will be to develop normal
relationships with the opposite sex.
 If the other stages have been completed successfully, the
individual should now be well- balanced, warm and
caring. The goal of this stage is to establish a balance
between the various life areas.
•
•
• Signs of fixation in this stage include:
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Guilt about sexuality
Feelings of inadequacy
Poor sexual relationships
Anxious feelings regarding the opposite sex
GENITAL STAGE (ADOLESCENT
AND BEYOND)