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Psychoanalysis has convincingly brought home to psychologists, educators, and sociologists the fact that the vicissitudes of early life have far-reaching consequences for later development. Every new contribution Freud made to the understanding of the neuroses was eagerly seized upon by pedagogues and psychologists. Thus, in the earliest stages of analysis, it was thought that Victorian prudishness had resulted in repression of childhood sexuality, and it was hoped that neurosis could be avoided if children were given greater freedom in this area.
Soon afterward it was discovered that the oedipus complex exerts far-reaching influences on the development of personality and that it seemed to be at the root of most neurotic problems. Parents then strove to be aloof and nongiving to their children, in the expectation that the arousal of oedipal feelings could be avoided. Unfortunately, this only resulted in a blunting of emotional expression.
When analysts discovered the importance of the aggressive drives, it was held that the free expression of aggression and aggressive acts would be important