Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, personality develops through a series of stages, each characterized by a certain internal psychological conflict
Key Points
- Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of personality argues that human behavior is the result of the interactions among three component parts of the mind: the id, ego, and superego.
- This “structural theory” of personality places great importance on how conflicts among the parts of the mind shape behavior and personality. These conflicts are mostly unconscious.
- According to Freud, personality develops during childhood and is critically shaped through a series of five psychosexual stages, which he called his psychosexual theory of development.
- During each stage, a child is presented with a conflict between biological drives and social expectations; successful navigation of these internal conflicts will lead to mastery of each developmental stage, and ultimately to a fully mature personality.
- Freud’s ideas have since been met with criticism, in part because of his singular focus on sexuality as the main driver of human personality development.