Understanding Psychology (10th Ed)

DEFENSE MECHANISMS 
Freud’s efforts to describe and theorize about the underlying dynamics of personal-
ity and its development were motivated by very practical problems that his patients 
faced in dealing with anxiety, an intense, negative emotional experience. According 
to Freud, anxiety is a danger signal to the ego. Although anxiety can arise from 
realistic fears—such as seeing a poisonous snake about to strike—it can also occur 
According to Freud, a child goes 
through the anal stage from age 12 to 
18 months until 3 years of age. Toilet 
training is a crucial event at this 
stage—one that psychoanalytic theory 
claims directly infl uences the formation 
of an individual’s personality.
anal stage 
According to Freud, a stage 
from age 12 to 18 months to 3 years of 
age, in which a child’s pleasure is 
centered on the anus.
phallic stage 
According to Freud, a 
period beginning around age 3 during 
which a child’s pleasure focuses on the 
genitals.
Oedipal confl ict 
A child’s sexual 
interest in his or her opposite-sex 
parent, typically resolved through 
identifi cation with the same-sex 
parent.
identifi cation 
The process of wanting 
to be like another person as much as 
possible, imitating that person’s 
behavior and adopting similar beliefs 
and values.
latency period 
According to Freud, 
the period between the phallic stage 
and puberty during which children’s 
sexual concerns are temporarily put 
aside.
genital stage 
According to Freud, the 
period from puberty until death, 
marked by mature sexual behavior 
(that is, sexual intercourse).
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