anal stage

in the classical psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud, the second stage of psychosexual development, typically occurring during the 2nd year of life, in which the child’s interest and sexual pleasure are focused on the expulsion and retention of feces and the sadistic instinct is linked to the desire to both possess and destroy the object. Fixation during this stage results in an anal personality. Also called anal phase. See also anal-expulsive phase; anal-retentive phase; anal-sadistic phase.

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Psychology term of the day

February 21st 2025

adaptive testing

a testing technique designed to adjust to the response characteristics of individual examinees by presenting items of varying difficulty based on the examinee’s responses to previous items. The process continues until a stable estimate of the ability level of the examinee can be determined. See also item response theory.