The field of psychology may have grown to be respected as a science.
Objectivity and the scientific method are both part of the psychologist’s modeof operation. However, even the greatest of psychologists can only theorizeabout what makes human beings act the way they do. Absolutes are not part ofpsychology . Everything is relative and open to speculation. Theorists give ustheir views or ideas about life. In the field of psychology, there have been many different areas ofinterest.
Human development is one of the most popular areas of interest forthose who study psychology. Freud, Erikson and Piaget are all great theoristswith different ideas concerning human development. Each theorist developed ideasand stages for human development. Their theories on human development had humanbeings passing through different stages. Each theory differed on what thesestages were.
These theories also differed with their respect towardsparadigmatic assumptions, learning and development, and relationship towardseducational practice. Freud is known as the father of psychology. Although some of his workhas been dismissed, most of it still holds weight in the world of psychology. Freud believed that human development was fueled by inner forces. He believedthe most powerful of all inner forces was our sexual being. Freud linkedeverything with sex.
This includes any bodily pleasure whatsoever. Thus, whenFreud discusses the sexual needs of children, they are not the same kind ofsexual needs that an adult would experience. Children experienced sexualgratification in different ways. Sucking their thumbs or retaining theirexcrement could be seen as sexual gratification for small children. Freud alsospecified certain areas of our body as erogenous zones.
Those areas included themouth and genitals. This all fit in to Freud’s obsession with sex. An obsessionthat could be linked to the era that Freud lived in. It was a very conservativeperiod in history.
Sexual feelings were often repressed. Freud’s theory on human development could be labeled the psychosexualstages of development. Freud believed human beings passed through differentstages in their life based on which part of their body gave them sexualgratification. Freud’s psychosexual stages of development are five in total.
The Oral stage takes place from birth to about one year. During thisstage, a child is orally oriented. The mouth is the child’s erogenous zone. Everything a child touches is put in his mouth. Freud believes children do thisbecause it gives them pleasure. When a child sucks his thumb, it does sobecause it gives it gives him gratification.
According to Freud, thegratification is sexual. The second stage in Freud’s psychosexual development theory takes placebetween the ages of two and three years of age. The erogenous zone shiftslocation, thus moving from one stage to another. The second erogenous zone inFreud’s stages of human development is the anal region. Freud believes childrenexperience sexual gratification during bowel movements and when they withholdbowel movements.
Some children may even experience pleasure handling, looking at,or thinking about their own feces. Once the Anal stage of development has been completed, the next stage ofdevelopment for Freud is the Phallic Stage. This usually occurs at about threeyears of age. The shift in erogenous zones moves from the anal region to thegenital organs. This stage is also known as the Oedipal Stage of psychosexualdevelopment.
This name comes from the legendary king, Oedipus, who killed hisfather and married his mother. During this stage children take interest in theirsexual organs. Soon they notice differences and similarities between themselvesand their parents. Each sex wants to be with the parent of the other sex, forgirls this is referred to as the elektra complex. Once the children realize theycan not be with their mother or father, they identify with the parent of thesame sex. The next stage is called the stage of Latency.
This stage ischaracterized by a lack of change or absence of erogenous zones. After therealization that the child can not be with a parent sexually, the child shiftsits attention to same-sexed relationships. Boys will shift their sexual urgesand drives to something acceptable, such as sports. This is a time of relativecalm.
The last stage of Freud’s psychosexual development is the Genital Stage. The erogenous zone returns in a very powerful way in the genital organs. Thisstage takes place from puberty into adulthood. This stage is marked by truesexual desire and sexual relationships.
Erikson took Freud’s ideas and enhanced them. He added stages for theadult years. He .
