by Mell Chase

Created on: May 25, 2011   Last Updated: May 27, 2011

Sigmund Freud, the founder of the psychoanalytic theory, had many theories on how the mind works. These ranged from defense mechanisms to psychosexual stages of development and the unconscious mind (the id, the ego, and the superego.) He believed that all people are controlled by the subconscious with its sexual and aggressive urges. Born in 1856, Freud's theories may sound a little odd, but in that time period, these theories seemed to be the only way to explain human behavior. 

Freud believed in the psychosexual stages of development; the oral, anal, phallic, latency and genital stages. The oral stage starts at birth when s/he begins nursing and gains pleasure from sucking or putting items in their mouth. If the child experienced frustration through nursing, this person would be pessimistic, envious, sarcastic and suspicious of others. If the child was overindulged, this person would be excessively satisfied, optimistic, gullible, and full of admiration for others. The anal stage starts around one and a half years of age when toilet training begins. The child will become obsessed with the anus and the retention or expulsion of feces. The child who had a tough time during this stage was told his character would be messy, disorganized, reckless, careless, and defiant. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the child would be overindulged, s/he will be neat, precise, orderly, careful, withholding, and passive-aggressive. The most crucial sexual conflict is the phallic stage. This is where the Oedipus or Electra complex will begin. In the Oedipus conflict, a young boy spends much time with his father, seeing him as a rival and wants to steal his mother away. The same goes for the Electra complex, except with the daughter seeing the mother as her rival. The fixation at this stage will form a person who is reckless, resolute, self-assured and narcissistic. Though not considered a psychosexual stage, the latency stage is where the sex drive is dormant. Freud saw latency as repressive sexual desire and impulses. Children will put this unused energy into productive activities, like school and friendships. The last stage, the genital stage, is where the child focuses on his genitals, but turns his or her interest into heterosexual relationships. If s/he has trouble in this stage, s/he will struggle with repression and defenses. 

The structural model consists of the id, ego and superego. According

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