by Mieder van Loggerenberg
What does it mean to be anal retentive?
Being anal retentive is an extreme need to be in control of your environment or being overly obsessed with details, regardless of the importance, to an extent that it annoys others around you. This type of personality is perceived as being anxious and impulsive. For example, we all try to research a product before buying it, but an anal personality will do endless research even when buying everyday items like a jar of peanut butter.
Freud's Theory of the Anal Personality
The term anal personality was coined by an Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud, who proposed this personality type to be part of the psychoanalytic theory.
Freud stated that there were three psychosexual stages during early child development:
· Oral: From birth to one year
· Anal: From Age 1 to Age 3
· Phallic: From Age 3 to Age 6
Freud stated it was at the anal and toilet training stage that the retentive personality would develop. He believed that if I child at this age could manage and restrict bowel movements, they would potentially develop either an anal-retentive or anal-expulsive personality. If a parent was too strict or tried toilet training a child too early or being punished for toilet training accidents, this would lead to a child developing an anal-retentive personality.
Freud’s interpretation of an anal personality is a person being methodical, meticulous, suspicious, and reserved or socially awkward. Freud later added traits that included being stubborn, strict, stingy with money and time, and being obsessed with neatness or cleanliness. He also believed an anal personality is being a perfectionist that are overly self-reliant and tend to be passionate about organizing, classifying, or collecting objects.
Karl Abraham, a student of Freud, describe the opposite of anal-retentive as being anal-expulsive – meaning a messy and extremely disorganized person.
Is an anal personality an OCPD?
A person who has an anal personality would be considered to have a personality quirk or having a unique behavior. However, with an obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) it is considered to be a mental disorder that interferes with or hinder your daily life. Psychological research has indicated that the anal personality appears as a cluster of traits rather than a disorder.
Signs You Have an Anal Personality
· Has anyone ever referred to you as being overly neurotic about having things perfect around you?
· Do you get annoyed or bothered when you see things out of place or minor imperfections?
· Do you find it hard to unwind or relax even on weekends or when on vacation?
· Do you tend to be overly hung up on correct grammar even when it is just an informal chat?
· Do you buy excess groceries so that you won’t run out?
· Do you organize your grocery list in categories or any other list?
· Do you unnecessarily organize items like arranging items in color, dominations, size etc.?
· Are you overly stingy on using everyday items like toilet paper, soap or even condiments?
· Do you spend an unnecessarily amount of time researching a product before buying them?
These are just some examples of what it might be like having an anal personality, where you need to be in control of your environment.
What can I do about it?
What should you do if you think you have anal personality? Well, it depends on how much it affects those around you. If you feel that it is affecting your life, it would be best to consult a health professional to determine if it is more than just a personality quirk.
Do you feel your behavior is excessive or it’s out of control? Do you have trouble delegating tasks when they don’t work out perfectly or does it hinder your ability to function at school or work? These are signs that you might need to seek help. On the other hand, if you are able to function well, and others aren’t bothered by your quirks and people in general accept your personality or behavior, then it may just be best to accept your uniqueness, but it is always best to consult a professional!
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