seduction theory

noun

Sigmund Freud's hypothesis, in the mid-1890s, that a repressed memory of an early childhood sexual abuse experience was the essential precondition for hysterical or obsessional symptoms.

OriginGerman Verführungstheorie →
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Meanings

nounseduction theory (uncountable)
  1. uncountableSigmund Freud's hypothesis, in the mid-1890s, that a repressed memory of an early childhood sexual abuse experience was the essential precondition for hysterical or obsessional symptoms.

Origin

  1. GermanVerführungstheorie
  2. Englishseduction theory

Calque of German Verführungstheorie

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Cite this entry
APA

seduction theory. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seduction%20theory

MLA

“seduction theory.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seduction%20theory. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “seduction theory,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/seduction%20theory.

Source: seduction theory on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.