Normal Psychosexual Development *

Abstract

PSYCHOSEXUAL issues occupy a central place in child development both because of the importance of sexual interests in any consideration of social and emotional behaviour and because theories of development have so often regarded sexual drive and its focus as causal influences in relation to personality formation.In examining what happens in normal psychosexual development it will be necessary to consider many different and disparate areas, for sexuality is a complex subject which incorporates many relatively independent subdivisions. In order to set the scene for psychological issues, the physical changes associated with sexual development will be described. Hormonal changesBefore puberty there are no sizeable sex differences in sex hormone production. In both boys and girls small amounts of androgens and oestrogens are producedprobably by the adrenals (Tanner, 1962). The production of androgens increases in both sexes at about 8-10 yr with a further much sharper rise in adolescence. This later rise is present in girls and boys but it is much more marked in the latter so that greater androgen excretion in the male is first evident only at puberty. The excretion of oestrogens gradually rises in both sexes from about age 7 yr. During adolescence there is a very large and sharp further increase in girls but only a very small increase in boys. The adolescent increase in androgens and oestrogens is due to increasing hormone production by the gonads stimulated by gonadotrophins from the anterior pituitary gland (Fitschen and Clayton, 1965). Growth of gonads and development of secondary sexual characteristicsThere is very little growth in the weight of the gonads in either sex up to the time of adolescence, when, of course, there is a very marked development (Tanner, 1962).In boys, the first sign of impending puberty is usually an acceleration of the growth of the testes and scrotum, accompanied by slight and later great growth of pubic hair. At the same time there is development of the penis, a considerable height spurt, enlargement of the larynx and deepening of the voice. About 2 yr after the beginning of pubic hair growth, axillary and facial hair first appear and there are changes in physique associated with an acceleration in the development of muscular strength. There are two main points to notice in relation to the physical changes at

Practical approach to childhood masturbation—a review

“…There is one published case of masturbation in utero and, in the literature, there are several reports on infantile masturbation [7,22]. There seems to be a gradual rise in masturbation in the prepubescent years, from about 10% at the age of 7 to about 80% at the age 13 [26]. Masturbation occurs in 90-94% of males and 50-60% of females at some point in their lives [19].…”

Gender identity in a group of retarded children

“…This last state of stabilization of gender identity parallels the general stabilization of constancies of physical objects that occurs at 6 or 7 years of age. If we accept this view of the development of gender identity and gender constancy, and also consider Rutter's (1971) viewthat the child's individual feelings in recognizing himself as a boy or girl are important in sex role development, then the delay in formation of gender identity may affect the entire psychosexual development of the retarded child.…”

Youth in Substitute Care Presenting With Sexual Behavior Problems

“…Problematic sexual behaviors in children have been long assumed to be "deviations from the normal course of sexual development" (Araji, 1997). According to this perspective, children and adolescents, much like adults, are considered to be sexual beings (Rutter, 1971). Therefore, before one can label children's sexual behaviors as 8 problematic or indicative of a problem, it is necessary to better understand which behaviors are typically present and appropriate at various ages.…”