Sigmund Freud's Theory of Psychosexual Development

While there are many theories of development, a very famous one is Sigmund Freud’s psychosexual developmental theory. This theory focuses on how early childhood experiences influence the changes in pleasure and sexual impulses. Freud believed that we go through five stages of psychosexual development: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital. The oral stage states that an infant’s pleasure centers on the mouth by sucking, swallowing, etc. from birth until the age of one and a half years. The anal stage is when the child’s pleasure focuses on the anus by withholding or expelling feces from one and a half years to three years of age.

The phallic stage is when the child’s pleasure begins to focus on the genitals through masturbation between the ages of three to six years old. Stage four, latency, is when a child holds sexual interest and develops social and intellectual skills until they hit puberty. Finally, the genital stage is a time of “sexual reawakening” when the source of sexual pleasure becomes someone outside of the family through sexual intercourse for the rest of the time once puberty has hit.

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This theory states that the way we act once we enter adulthood is based on the experiences we encountered during those five stages and how we resolved the situations. The biggest strength of this theory is that it has been revised by many psychoanalytic theorists, therefore it is proven to be relatable and includes accurate desires.

However, the weakness of the theory is that Freud overemphasized the sexual factor rather than interpreting how cultural experiences and conscious thought tie into an individual’s development.

While I do believe Freud enhanced the idea that development focuses largely on sexual instincts, there are unproven aspects of the theory. I believe that the revision of the theory, Erikson’s psychosocial theory, includes a more accurate evaluation of the “primary motivation for human behavior”. The biggest difference between Sigmund Freud’s original theory versus Erik Erikson’s revision is that Freud believed that the early stages of life were most important whereas Erikson focused on both early childhood and late adulthood experiences. Chromosomal abnormality is a condition in which a gamete is formed, but the sperm and/or ovum do not have the normal amount of chromosome sets, 23. The most notable example of chromosomal abnormality is Down syndrome. Down syndrome is a developmental and intellectual disability that results from an error in cell division that creates an extra copy of chromosome 21. This genetic disorder is the most common cause of learning disabilities in children while it also usually causes other medical abnormalities. While there are no external factors of pregnancy that are known to cause down syndrome, there are risk factors such as advancing maternal age and already having a child with the disability. Symptoms of the down syndrome include but are not limited to, a slower growth rate, noticeable intellectual problems, and distinct facial features such as a flattened face and protruding tongue. The life expectancy for those who suffer from down syndrome has dramatically increased from age 50 onward, however, signs and symptoms remain stable or worsen over time. Gene-linked abnormalities are disorders resulting from one or more abnormalities formed in a genome during gestation.

This genetic problem can be caused not only by an abnormal number of chromosomes but also by harmful genes. A well-known example of a gene-linked abnormality is sickle-cell anemia. Sickle-cell anemia is a genetic disorder in which there are not enough healthy red blood cells to sufficiently carry oxygen through the body. The gene for the disorder is passed through generations with a pattern of inheritance. Sickle-cell anemia often occurs in African Americans with aboutoftheabout one in ten being a carrier of the disease. Symptoms of the sickle cell include anemia, episodes of pain, and swelling of the hands and feet the inform about There are plenty of health concerns and complications included with sickle cell. While many treatments can aid in pain, there is no cure for the abnormality. Genetic counseling is an evaluation method for a family to understand the risk of health conditions that may run in the family. This testing must be completed by a certified genetic counselor or a doctor/nurse specializing in genetic counseling. Genetic counseling aids families that may carry hereditary health conditions or may be at risk of giving birth to a child that will develop health conditions. If birth defects or medical conditions run in a family, it is advised to attend genetic counseling to receive education on how these factors may affect your family’s health.

After the patient is educated on the risks and concerns that relate to their family, the counselor assists in helping make decisions about a baby’s health/care and decisions about a pregnancy. This counseling program is offered before or during pregnancy as an educational tool to provide the informthe knowledge to expecting mothers abouto the baby’s risk of genetic conditions. The most important benefit of genetic counseling is that it acts as an early warning system. It informs you of all risks and health concerns that come along with your decision to have a child if you or your spouse carry a gene for any health conditions. Genetic counseling is not only available for children, but also for individuals to see if they are predisposed to conditions such as certain cancers. Another positive outcome from testing is that it may be able to put your mind at ease. If you are highly concerned and worried that you might develop a disease later in life, you can test for the genes to determine whether you should be worried about it or not. A negative aspect of genetic counseling is that it can increase your stress levels when things are not certain. If you receive results stating that you are at a higher risk of developing a medical condition, you may begin to get concerned. However, just because a patient is at a higher risk of developing something, does not mean that they will for sure develop the condition at any time in their life inform the starts necessary would consider genetic counseling if I was considering having a child with someone who is exposed to a genetic medical condition. I would appreciate the insight as to what things might be like in the future with my child. It would give me, along with any other patient, a jump-start to obtain any necessary knowledge needed to provide the proper care and/or treatment for my child. Evolutionary psychology is an approach to psychology that explains some traits as adaptations. It also places an importance on reproduction and “survival of the fittest”. This theoretical approach focuses on how evolution has influenced and shaped humans’ brains and behaviors. It is believed that psychological and functional mechanisms are created by the idea of natural selection, adaptation to an environment required for survival, and increased life expectancy. Your mind and body adapt to an environment and the necessary survival skills based on multiple different factors. Maladaptation is defined as a trait that is more harmful rather than helpful. This occurs because some traits may have been poorly selected or are no longer useful due to changes in the environment.

These maladaptations result in the idea of survival of the fittest. If these dysfunctions were not killed off, they would be passed down to future generations, endangering the species due to shorter life expectancy and a smaller chance to produce offspring. While maladaptation can be physical characteristics, it can also be psychological. An example of a maladaptive trait is substance abuse. Many people begin taking advantage of substances such as pain medication and alcohol to cope with a traumatic experience, such as losing a loved one. However, once they continuously use the substance, they become addicted. This will lead to impairments or changes in functions of the brain and how the user behaves. Sex addiction is also an example of a maladaptation behavior. Those addicted to engaging in sexual intercourse rely on it to escape realities such as relieving stress. While the subject gains physical pleasure, they are also placing a burden on those who surround them as well as possibly creating bad habits such as engaging in unprotected sex with multiple people. Another example of maladaptation behavior is workaholism. While this can be looked at inform, a positive perspective as getting things done and being a hard worker, the negatives outweigh the positives. Workaholism can eventually impair the brain functions and response mechanisms when the subject is placed in a non-work environment while also physically draining the subject. There is a wide range of maladaptive behaviors in humans. All of these characteristics have some positive outcomes, but eventually,  become the informfeet that jump-start, and become harmful to the subject and those around them.