Electra complex

/ɪˈlɛktrə ˈkɑmplɛks/ noun

Definition

In psychoanalytic theory, a girl's unconscious sexual attraction to her father and competitive feelings toward her mother during the phallic stage. This is the female counterpart to the Oedipus complex, though Freud himself preferred the term 'female Oedipus complex.'

Etymology

Named after Electra, a figure from Greek mythology who helped kill her mother to avenge her father's death. Carl Jung coined this term in 1913 as a parallel to Freud's Oedipus complex, though Freud was initially resistant to the separate terminology.

Kelly Says

The Electra complex suggests that little girls go through a 'daddy's girl' phase that's more psychologically complex than it appears - it's supposedly about learning gender identity and relationship patterns, not just preferring one parent!

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