approaches ( psychodynamic + humanistic) Flashcards
AO1 - introduction and assumptions
psychodynamic
- There are 3 levels of consciousness: The conscious, preconscious and unconscious.
- unconscious activity is the key determinate oh how we behave
- we possess innate ‘drives’/’instincts’ that energize our minds to motivate behaviour as we develop through our lives
- childhood experiences have significant importance in determining our personality when we reach adulthood
what is Freud’s Tripartite Personality
Freud viewed the personality as made up of three components i.e. ‘tripartite’. These are the Id, ego and superego.
what is the Id
This is the innate part of the personality, and operates on the pleasure principle.
Therefore, the Id constantly demands instant gratification (e.g. to fulfill innate,
biological instincts, such as hunger and thirst) and so is in conflict with the superego.
what is the Id
This is the innate part of the personality, and operates on the pleasure principle.
Therefore, the Id constantly demands instant gratification (e.g. to fulfill innate, biological instincts, such as hunger and thirst) and so is in conflict with the superego.
what is the ego
Formed during the first 3 years of life, and operates on the reality principle. Helps to resolve the conflict between the id and the superego through the use of
defence mechanisms (repression, denial and displacement). The strength of the
unconscious depends upon how efficiently the ego resolves this conflict.
what is the superego
Formed at the end of the phallic stage, and operates on the morality
principle. This contains the child’s internalised sense of right and wrong, based upon
their same-sex parent. The superego is in constant conflict with the Id.
what is the conscious part of the mind - freud
contains all of the thoughts, memories, feelings, and wishes of which we are aware at any given moment. This is the aspect of our mental processing that we can think and talk about rationally. This also includes our memory, which is not always part of consciousness but can be retrieved easily and brought into awareness.
what is the preconscious part of the mind - freud
consists of anything that could potentially be brought into the conscious mind. eg dream states
what is the unconscious part of the mind - freud
is a reservoir of feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that are outside of our conscious awareness. The unconscious contains contents that are unacceptable or unpleasant, such as feelings of pain, anxiety, or conflict
what is Freuds psychosexual stage of development
- he suggests that sexual energy is present right from birth, unconscious desires which kids are not aware of
- different parts of the body become more sensitive as we grow, erogenous zones
- 5 stages and each stage our libido (sexual energy) is focused on something different
what are the 5 stages of psychosexual development
old age pensioners love Guinness oral stage 0-1 Anal stage 1-3 Phallic stage 3-6 latency 6yrs to puberty genital stage puberty- maturity
what occurs in stage one of the psychosexual development
oral stage (0-1 year)
mouth is focus of pleasurable experiences /organ of pleasure
freud argues that this person could be stuck at this stage if they are under or over fed as a baby
what occurs at the second stage of the psychosexual dvelopment
Anal stage (1-3 years)
organ of pleasure is now the anus- the child gets pleasure from retention or expulsion of faeces
stage ego develops
too strict or lax potty training can result in anally retentive or anally expulsive
what occurs at the phallic stage
3-6 years
organ of pleasure is now the genitals, child becomes fully aware of gender differences
becomes obsessed with own genitals
freud, most important + where Oedipus complex occurs
what occurs at the latency stage
6years to puberty
sexual desires remain dormant
children want nothing to do with opposite sex, as social and intellectual development occurs
what occurs at the genital stage
puberty - maturity
marks the beginning of mature adult sexuality
id makes demands in the form of heterosexual desires
the opposite sex is now needed to satisfy the libido
what is the Oedipus complex
The Oedipus complex is a theory of Sigmund Freud, and occurs during the Phallic stage of psychosexual development.
It involves a boy, aged between 3 and 6, becoming unconsciously sexually attached to his mother, and hostile towards his father (who he views as a rival).
when they fear that there fathers will castrate them they stop - castration anxiety
summary of stage 1 of the psychosexual stages of development
stage - oral
age - 0-1
focus of libido - mouth tongue lips
major development - weaning off breast or formula
adult fixation example - smoking, overeating
summary of stage 1 of the psychosexual stages of development
stage = oral
age = 0-1
pleasure centre = the mouth
possible cause of fixation = early weaning + deprivation of food
possible = smoking sarcasm, biting nails, smoking
summary of stage 2 of the psychosexual stages of development
stage= Anal
age = 1-3
pleasure centre = the anus
possible cause of fixation = harsh toilet training/ lax toilet training
possible fixation = tidiness, obsessiveness, meanness
summary of stage 3 of the psychosexual stages of development
stage= phallic
ages = 3- 5 years
pleasure centre = the genital area
possible cause of fixation= very dominant mother, no father figure
possible results = envy, sexual anxiety, self obsession
is little Hans case study good evidence for the Oedipus complex
yes, Freud decided Hans secretly wished to replace his father in his mother’s affections. Hans was especially fearful of horses with black around their eyes or mouths, which Freud linked to the glasses and mustache of Hans’s father. In his view, the boy’s phobia was a displaced fear of his father finding out his forbidden desires and punishing him.
is Freuds study on little Hans a scientific way of studying phobias
no as it was his own self analysis which meant it was subjective and had a lot of personal bias. This affects the validity of the study
how might a behaviourist explain Hans phobia of horses
Through classical conditioning. the horse created a loud bang which scared little hans he then began to associate fear with the horses even though the loud bang wasn’t present
what are the three types of defence mechanisms
repression
denial
displacement
what is repression
Freud
unconscious mechanism employed by the ego to keep disturbing or threatening thoughts from becoming conscious. Repressed thoughts are those of guilt from superego
example and evaluation of repression
- not successful in long terms
- although hidden they will create anxiety
- eg Oedipus complex, aggressive thoughts about same sex parents are repressed
- eg Tamsin forces memories of a very frightening experience into her unconscious mind
what is Denial
Anna fraud
proposed involves blocking external events from awareness. primitive and dangerous defence. operates with its set or commonly with more subtle mechanisms to support