Psychosexual stages are a classification system for determining how someone will behave in certain areas of their life.
It was developed by British psychologist Richard Dawkins, who coined the term in the 1980s.
The stages are: a) introversion (like an introvert who likes to read and think), b) extroversion (such as a high-energy, extroverted person who likes talking and socialising), c) introvert-like (like a high introvert), d) introverted-like and e) extradimensional (such a person may have multiple personality disorder).
“Psychosexual stages can be thought of as a way of categorising the person as an individual,” the Wikipedia article explains.
“They are the result of brain-based cognitive abilities, such as logical thinking, memory and imagination, which are all affected by environment and life experiences.”
The article goes on to explain that: a person can have a psychoanalytic stage, a “phase” in which they develop different personality traits.
They may be more introverted or introverted, a high extrovert or a low extroverts.
When a person has a psychosocial stage, their personality may change significantly.
For example, a person with a low psychosexuality stage might become a high, or vice versa.
Psychosocial stages are useful because they help us understand how the brain works and to help us choose when to engage in different behaviours.
In the article, the psychologist adds that the terms are not a one-size-fits-all.
“The individual can be someone who is an extrospective extrodon, someone who likes a good cup of tea, someone whose extrospection and curiosity is enhanced by being in touch with their emotions,” the article states.
It goes on: “They can be a person who prefers a particular lifestyle, such a person might prefer to work in a team or have hobbies or special interests.
They can also be someone that enjoys being with friends, family or pets.”
While the article offers a wide range of perspectives, the only one I could find that used the terms interchangeably was the psychologist’s, which suggests that he/she is referring to the “social aspects of personality”, i.e. a person’s sense of belonging and belongingness to a social group.
If that’s the case, then I suppose I should be able to use my psychosexual-stage diagnosis as a sort of diagnostic tool, i.a. a tool that can help me understand how I would feel if I was in a particular situation, such is my personal identity and what my social skills are.
The point is, I can’t have it both ways, can I?
The Psychology Today blog also offers a range of psychological profiles for people with various psychosexual types.
As a psychologist, I tend to prefer to use the term “gender” when referring to a person, which is why I’m not sure whether I’d use the word “sex” to describe myself.
However, I have to admit that it sounds better to me than “sexual orientation”, which is just another word for “gender”.
This might be why I find myself using the terms “sexual” and “homosexual” a lot, since these terms are used interchangeably in the DSM-IV and I’m quite sure I’m using one or the other.
I would think that if someone had a “gender identity disorder”, that would be a psychotherapeutic diagnosis, as they would be suffering from gender dysphoria, or gender identity disorder.
What I’m saying is that it’s quite possible that the DSM could classify someone as having a gender identity problem if they are not comfortable with using those terms, or if they don’t have the social skills to use them.
Even if you don’t identify as a “sexual”, you still have to be a “psychosexual”.
It’s possible that I’m too simplistic.
I’m guessing that the idea of having a personality disorder, which doesn’t match what the DSM says about you, is not something that’s talked about too often.
Is it worth trying to get a diagnosis?
I would say yes.
It may be that it will be harder to get one, or that the person may never get one.
However, if you think you have a personality problem, you can ask for one to see a psychologist.
You can also go online to a psychologist’s website and see if they can help you with your issues.
Have a question?
Let us know in the comments below.