Final answer:
Freud's phallic stage of psychosexual development involves children becoming aware of their bodies, recognizing gender differences, and experiencing conflicts related to their parents. The Oedipus complex is part of this stage, where boys desire their mothers and compete with their fathers for attention. Failure to resolve these conflicts may result in fixation and the development of particular personality traits.
Step-by-step explanation:
Freud's third stage of psychosexual development is the phallic stage (3-6 years), corresponding to the age when children become aware of their bodies and recognize the differences between boys and girls. The erogenous zone in this stage is the genitals.
Conflict arises when the child feels a desire for the opposite-sex parent, and jealousy and hatred toward the same-sex parent. For boys, this is called the Oedipus complex, involving a boy's desire for his mother and his urge to replace his father who is seen as a rival for the mother's attention. At the same time, the boy is afraid his father will punish him for his feelings, so he experiences castration anxiety.
The Oedipus complex is successfully resolved when the boy begins to identify with his father as an indirect way to have the mother. Failure to resolve the Oedipus complex may result in fixation and development of a personality that might be described as vain and overly ambitious.