9. Psychological Explanations: Psychodynamic Explanations Flashcards
What is the superego and what role does is play in Freud’s psychodynamic theory?
The superego is part of the tripartite structure of personality, formed at the end of the phallic stage after the resolution of the Oedipus/Electra complex. It operates on the morality principle and punishes the ego through guilt for wrongdoing and rewarding it with pride for moral behaviour.
Who applied Freud’s psychodynamic approach to offending behaviour?
Blackburn (1993)
What did Blackburn propose?
He said that if the superego is somehow deficient or inadequate then criminal behaviour is inevitable bc the id is given ‘free reign’.
What are the three types of inadequate superego proposed?
- The weak superego
- The deviant superego
- The over-harsh superego
What is the weak superego?
A superego that is not fully-formed, the child didn’t get the chance to fully internalise the same sex parents superego due to absence in the phallic stage. Increases the chances of immoral behaviour.
What is the deviant superego?
A superego that has immoral or deviant values (inherited from the same sex parent). Often leads to offending behaviour.
What is the over-harsh superego?
A superego inherited from an overstrict same sex parent, the superego is so harsh the individual is constantly crippled with guilt. This means the individual is unconsciously driven to commit punishable acts to satisfy the superegos need to punish.
What is the maternal deprivation theory of offending?
Bowlby argued that children who didn’t form an attachment to a mother-figure as a child would experience damage in later life - affectionless psychopathy. This is a condition characterised by a lack of guilt and empathy for others. Maternally deprived individuals are more likely to engage in offending behaviour.
What evidence did Bowlby provide for his theory?
Bowlby carried out his 44 thieves study. He interviewed 44 thieves, in 14 of them he found behaviours fitting an affectionless psychopath. Of the 14 he found 12 had suffered prolonged separation as children. Only 2 of a non-criminal group had suffered separation. This strengthened his idea that separation led to AP which leas to crime.
What are the evaluation points for the psychodynamic explanation of offending behaviour?
- Gender Bias
- Contradictory Evidence
- Unconscious Concepts
- Correlation not causation
How does the psychodynamic explanation suffer from gender bias?
Freud’s theory implies boys should have a stronger superego bc they’re castration fear motivates them to identify with their father. This isn’t present in girls, therefore girls should engage in more offending behaviour - no evidence for this.
How does the psychodynamic explanation suffer from contradictory evidence?
According to Blackburn children raised without a same sex parent should have a weaker superego meaning they’d engage in more crime - this is not supported by evidence.
How does the psychodynamic explanation suffer from having unconscious concepts?
The majority of concepts in Freud’s theory are unconscious and therefore unfalsifiable - therefore the theory could only be considered pseudoscientific and has limited applications.
How does the psychodynamic explanation suffer from correlation not causation?
There is a questionable link between separation as a child and criminality and even if there was a link this could be for any number of other reasons - genetics for instance. The link doesn’t necessarily mean its causal.
