4.6 Psychodynamic Approach

Question 1

What is the psychodynamic approach?

Answer 1

Focuses on different unconscious mental forces that operate on the mind and direct human behaviour and experience

Question 2

Who formed the psychodynamic approach?

Answer 2

Sigmund Freud

Question 3

What is the unconscious?

Answer 3

Part of the mind we are unaware of but which directs much of our behaviour

Question 4

What does the unconscious contain?

Answer 4

Contains threatening and disturbing memories/feelings that have been repressed

Question 5

What is the id?

Answer 5

• Primitive part, unconscious drives and instincts
• Pleasure seeking principle
• Contains selfish instincts that demand instant gratification
• Present at birth

Question 6

What is the ego?

Answer 6

• Reality principle
• Reduces conflict between demands of id and superego
• Develops around age 2

Question 7

What is superego?

Answer 7

• Morality principle
• Punishes ego for not upholding standard of behaviour
• Forms at end of phallic stage (age 5)

Question 8

What are the 5 psychosexual stages of development?

Answer 8

1. Oral
2. Anal
3. Phallic
4. Latency
5. Genital

Question 9

What is the importance of the psychosexual stages of development?

Answer 9

• Passing through the stages make us psychologically healthy + well balanced
• Each stage has a conflict that must be resolved

Question 10

What are defence mechanisms?

Answer 10

Unconscious strategies that the ego uses to manage the conflict between the id and superego

Question 11

What are 3 defence mechanisms?

Answer 11

• Repression : forcing memory out of mind
• Denial : refusal to acknowledge aspect of reality
• Displacement : transferring feelings onto substitute target

Question 12

AO3 for psychodynamic approach

Answer 12

1. Real-world application
Introduced idea of psychotherapy, Freud brought new form of therapy- psychoanalysis, attempt to treat disorders psychologically, techniques to access unconsciousness e.g dream analysis, brings repressed emotions to conscious mind to be dealt with, value of approach

2. Explanatory power
Influence on psychology and contemporary thought, used to explain wide range of phenomena e.g personality development, origins of disorders, gender identity, draws attention to connection between childhood experiences and later development, approach has positive impact

3. Untestable concepts
Karl Popper argued approach does not meet scientific criteria, not open to empirical testing, many of Freuds concepts occur at unconscious level so impossible to test, ideas based on subjective study of individuals, difficult to make universal claims, Freuds theory was pseudoscientific

Question 13

Describe the oral stage

Answer 13

• 0-1 years
• Focus of pleasure is on the mouth, mothers breast can be object of desire

Question 14

What are the consequences of unresolved conflict in the oral stage?

Answer 14

Oral fixation - smoking, biting nails, sarcastic

Question 15

Describe the anal stage

Answer 15

• 1-3 years
• Focus of pleasure is on the anus
• Child gains pleasure from expelling and withholding faeces

Question 16

What are the consequences of unresolved conflict in the anal stage?

Answer 16

• Anal retentive: perfectionist, obssessive
• Anal expulsive: thoughtless, messy

Question 17

Describe the phallic stage

Answer 17

• 3-6 years
• Focus of pleasure is the genital area

Question 18

What are the consequences of unresolved conflict in the phallic stage?

Answer 18

Phallic personality - narcissistic, reckless

Question 19

Describe the latency stage

Answer 19

Earlier conflicts are repressed

Question 20

Describe the genital stage

Answer 20

• Sexual desires become conscious alongside the onset of puberty

Question 21

What are the consequences of unresolved conflict in the genital stage?

Answer 21

Difficulty forming heterosexual relationships