4.2.1 - psychodynamic approach Flashcards
Assumption of the psychodynamic theory
Freud proposed the idea that all behaviour is driven by the unconscious mind: the thoughts that we ignore because they re immoral and unethical and the thoughts that we aren’t immediately aware of
Frauds view on the past
All humans are slaves to their pasts
What are the 3 levels to the personality
- conscious mind
- pre- conscious mind
- unconscious mid
What is the conscious mind
Everything that we are aware of
What is the pre conscious mind
The thoughts that are beyond everyday awareness, BUT are easily accessible and tends to emerge in dreams
What is the unconscious mind
We repress traumatic, embarrassing and unacceptable
thoughts into the unconscious mind. So that we don’t have to face them everyday
HOWEVER they can emerge in behaviours and are possible to be accessed through therapy and free association.
↳ can emerge In both:
· latent fear
· manifested fear
What is latent fear and manifested fear
Latent : True fears
Manifested : something else that represents the true fear
What are the 3 levels to the mind
- id
- ego
- superego
What is the id
The pleasure principle.
- desires immediate satisfaction
- our thoughts, wants and desires.
↳ babies are mass ID , meaning we are born with id, it
is strong until 18 months.
What is the superego
the morality principle:
- allows the differentiation between right
and wrong
- it develops between 3-6 yrs and is learnt from society
and parents.
What is the ego
the reality principle:
- the balance of demands of Id and superego
- located in the conscious mind.
- develops between 18 months and 3 yrs
What are the 3 ego defence mechanisms
- denial
- displacement
- repression
What is denial
Refusing to accept reality
What is displacement
Taking out true feelings and placing them onto a safer target
What is repression
Pushing things away from our conscious awareness
What are the purpose of the ego defence mechanisms
help an individual cope with anxiety resulting from a stressful internal or external environment.
What are the purpose of the psychosexual stages
The stages of development that shape personality
List the 5 psychosexual stages
- oral
- anal
-phallic - latent
- genital
( Old Age Pensioners Like Girls )
Describe the oral stage
- ages 0-1
- pleasure focused on the mouth ( through breastfeeding )
- unresolved conflicts in this stage lead to: smoking, nail biting, eating/drinking problems
What is fixation
- occurs when an issue or conflict in a psychosexual stage remains unresolved, leaving the individual focused on this stage and unable to fully move onto the next.
Describe the anal stage
- ages 1-3
- pleasure is focused on the anus
- children withhold and expel faeces
- unresolved conflicts cause: anally retentive personality ( organised, perfectionist )
Or a anally retentive personality ( messy, disorganised)
Describe the phallic stage
- age 3-5
- focus of pleasure is from the genitals
- boys go through the Oedipus complex
- girls go through the electra complex
What is the Oedipus complex
↳ Young boys develop a sexual attraction to their mother
- so therefore become jealous of their father, and develop castration anxiety.
- To avoid this, boys identity with the father and copy their morals and ethics.
- at this stage superego is fully developed therefore get their superego from their father.
What is the electra complex
- girls desire their father because they have penis envy. - They view penises as powerful so penis = power.
- girls identify with their mother as she doesn’t have a
penis, then they desire a baby
Describe the latent stage
- ages 6-12
- sexual impulses are repressed and redirected into a focus on school and friendships
Describe the genital stage
- from puberty onwards
- a focus on sexual relationships with others with genital as a focus, rather than self pleasure
- unresolved conflicts: difficulty forming heterosexual relationships
A03: bias
- Freud may have shown research bias in his interpretations
- he may have only paid attention to information which supported his theories, and ignored information and other explanations that did not fit them.
A03: unscientific
- limitation
Subjective theories that are unfalsifiable meaning his theory cannot be supported by evidence
A03: talking therapy
- strength
proposed the first suggestion of talking therapy easily is used widely to treat patients with mental disorders today
A03: case studies
- limitations
Little hans was investigated in detail however cannot be generalised to the whole population - decreases the reliability
