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A white man with short, grey hair and a trimmed mustache/beard, holds a cigar and poses with his hand at his hip, wearing a suit and coat.
Portrait of Sigmund Freud (1921).

Sigmund Freud develops psychoanalysis.

1896

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Portrait of Sigmund Freud (1921).

Freud is a physician with an interest in psychological suffering, which leads him to develop multiple theories of conscious and unconscious impulses within the human psyche. His ideas will inform a lasting set of beliefs within both psychology and medicine about the mental and physical manifestations of trauma and early life experiences.

Freud coins the term "psychoanalysis," and includes an exploration of male sexuality, rather than just focusing on "hysteria" in female patients like many of his predecessors. Psychoanalysis will later be used in the service of many sexist, racist, and ableist visions of health and mental wellness.