fixation
Summary
In Freud's psychodynamic theory, fixation is arrested psychosexual development: unresolved conflict at a stage keeps some energy tied to it and shapes adult traits, such as oral habits. The testable point is matching a behavior to its stage. In problem solving, fixation means being stuck on one approach.
Detail
Meaning: Freud's theory has a child pass through psychosexual stages (oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital). When needs at a stage are frustrated or overindulged, some energy stays tied to it, and adult personality shows traits linked to that stage. Examples: oral fixation appears as smoking, nail biting, or overeating; anal-retentive traits are orderly and rigid, anal-expulsive traits messy; phallic fixation is tied to an unresolved Oedipus or Electra conflict.
On the MCAT: A vignette describes an adult's habit or personality and asks which stage the person is fixated at, or which theory explains it (psychodynamic, not Erikson's or Piaget's). The word also appears in problem solving, where fixation means being stuck on one approach, as in functional fixedness or mental set.
Common confusion: Fixation is mixed up with regression. Fixation is a lasting hold-up at a stage from unresolved conflict. Regression is a defense mechanism in which a person under current stress returns, usually temporarily, to behavior of an earlier stage. Ask whether the behavior is a long-standing trait (fixation) or a reaction to a recent stressor (regression).
Sources
- Theories of Personality
- Psychology: Themes and Variations
Written for the MCAT and checked before it was published. For study reference only. Spotted an error? Let us know.