Ch. 10: Psychoanalysis Intro Flashcards
Why did Freud think talking helps?
saying out loud makes thoughts/fears explicit = rational mind can deal w them
List the 4 ideas of psychoanalysis
- psychic determinism
- internal structure
- psychic conflict
- mental energy
Define the psychic determinism assumption
assumption that everything in your mind & everything you do has a specific reason (rooted in personality)
-many important mental processes are unconscious
What does psychic determinism not account for?
miracles, free will, random accidents (ex. said smt not intended)
Define the internal structure assumption & how the mind is divided
the mind has an internal structure made of parts that can fxn independently & sometimes conflict
-id (irrational, emo), ego (rational), superego (moral)
How does research support psychic determinism?
supports idea that only some of what the mind does is in conscious awareness
How does research support the theory of internal structures? What is not supported?
- supports idea that mind includes separate, independent structures that process diff thoughts/motivations at same time
- doesn’t support 3 divisions
Define compromise formation
ego’s main job is to find compromise btw competing motivation/morality/practicality/desires
-internal compromise; what person thinks/does next
Define the mental energy assumption
limited amount of libido (mental energy) = drive to creation, nurturing, enhancement of life
According to Freud, what are the two motives? Describe them
- life drive/libido: force of creation, protection, enjoyment, productivity, growth
- death drive/Thanatos: destructive beh, everyone dies
Entropy define
basic force in universe toward randomness & disorder
Doctrine of opposites + implication
- everything requires its opposite (life/death drive)
- extremes on a scale are more similar than an extreme to the middle
What does “follow the energy” refer to?
psychic energy - necessary and limited
According to Freud, how is libido involved in psychosexual development?
describes how life energy becomes redirected
Name & define the 3 aspects of the psychosexual stages
- physical focus: energy concentrated; gratification
- psychological theme: related to phys focus & demands
- adult character type: assoc w being fixated on that stage
What happens when someone fails to resolve the issues of a psychosexual stage?
leaves a psychological scar tissue throughout life
List the psychosexual stages in order
- oral
- anal
- phallic
- latency
- genital
Oral stage: age, phys focus, mental structure, psyc theme, character
- birth to 18 mo.
- mouth, lips, tongue (main pleasure source)
- Id (wanting stuff)
- dependence, passivity
- dependent//overly independent
Anal stage: age, phys focus, mental structure, psyc theme, character
- 18 mo. - 3.5 yrs
- anus, organs of elimination (toilet training)
- ego (mediate desires vs what’s possible)
- obedience, self-ctrl
- obedient & obsessed w order//anti-authority & chaotic
Phallic stage: age, phys focus, mental structure, psyc theme, character
- 3.5 - 7 yrs
- sexual organs
- superego = morality (values of same-sex parent)
- gender identity & sexuality (love, fear, jealousy)
- over // under-sexualized
Latency period: age and psyc theme
- 7 yrs to puberty
- learning & cognitive dev
Genital period: age, phys focus, mental structure, psyc theme, character
- puberty - adulthood
- sexuality in mature relationship
- well-balance Id, ego, supergo
- creation & life enhancement (reproduction, add smt to society)
- mature adult (rarely achieved)
What happens if one’s needs during the oral stage aren’t fulfilled?
mistrust, never depend on others, fear of betrayal
What happens if one’s needs during the oral stage are met instantly?
dependency, passivity
Name & describe the adult personality type that results from extremes during the oral stage
oral character: obsession, irrationality abt issues related to dependency/passivity
Name & describe the adult personality type that results from extremes during the anal stage
anal character - control issues, obsessive/orderly VS little self-ctrl/disorganized/defy authority
more likely to switch from one extreme to the other than reach middle
What realizations are associated w the phallic stage?
sex differences, parents are different sexes
Define identification + what stage it’s associated with
- taking on the values/worldview of another person (parent)
- phallic
Most important result of the phallic stage
image of self as masculine or feminine
Name & describe the adult personality type that results from extremes during the phallic stage
phallic character - over/underdeveloped superego
How is the genital stage different from the others?
an achievement to be sought
Freud’s definition of mental health
to love and to work
Define regression
retreating to an earlier stage due to stress/play/creativity
Describe the 2 incomplete shifts in thinking during development
- primary process: unconscious id, does not contain “no”, goal: gratification
- secondary: conscious ego, rational, can delay/redirect gratification
How is secondary process thinking secondary?
- only appears when ego develops
- less imp/powerful role (Freud)
Describe condensation and symbolization + which thinking process that’s associated
- compress several ideas together, one representing another
- primary thinking
Topographic model
3 lvls of consciousness:
- conscious
- preconscious
- unconscious: id, almost all of superego, most of ego
List the methods for bringing the unconscious to the surface
hypnosis, slips/accidents/memory lapses, free association
Another word for Freudian slip
parapraxes
Where can anxiety be generated from?
- outside world
- conflicts of mind
List the ego defense mechanisms
- denial
- repression: prevent recall of reminders
- reaction formation: protect forbidden thought by stating the opposite (homophobe)
- projection: attribute unwanted trait to other people
- rationalization: find logical reason for smt shameful
- intellectualization: translate threatening situation into intellectual terms (“the patient expired”)
- displacement: redirect forbidden impulse onto safer target (voodoo doll)
- sublimation: convert impulse into noble cause (cut ppl open; surgeon)
What do psychoanalysts call ‘running away from the solution’?
flight from health
Term for therapist-patient emotional bond
therapeutic alliance
Describe transference
- to form the therapeutic alliance
- tendency to bring ways of thinking/feeling/behaving
- therapist relationship based on patient’s past relationships
Describe countertransference
therapist in return has pos/neg reactions to patient
List 5 shortcomings of psychoanalytic theory
a) excessively complex
b) case study method = confidential, non-verifiable
c) vague definitions
d) untestability (cannot prove/disprove)
e) sexism: tragedy that female is not male
Supported ideas CH 11***
- Perceptual defense (unconscious perception)
- Unconscious thought (parallel distributed processing)
- Defense mechanisms
- Catharsis: freely expressing troubling issues
Unsupported
Oedipal crisis at phallic stage
What does modern psychoanalytic theory say about Freud’s concept of mental or psychic energy?
it’s the mind’s limited capacity for processing information, rather than its raw energy