Four-year-old John is very competitive with his father in trying to gain more attention from his mother.Freud would have suggested that John is going through the ________ stage of development.

A) phallic
B) latency
C) anal
D) oral

Freud's theory of psychosexual development suggests that young children go through different stages of development, each with its own set of challenges and conflicts. The phallic stage, which typically occurs between the ages of 3 and 6 years old, is characterized by a focus on the genitals and feelings of attraction to the opposite-sex parent. Children in this stage may become competitive with their same-sex parent for the attention and affection of the opposite-sex parent. Therefore, John's behavior is characteristic of the phallic stage.