Chapter 3

Question 1

Freud has two ways to make the unconscious conscious

Answer 1

1- Dream analysis
2- Free association

Question 2

What are the two types of content in the dreams, according to Freud?

Answer 2

Manifest content: whatever the dream story is
Laten content: The hidden psychological meaning behind the dream. That’s the part he’s interested in.

Question 3

Freud proposed that human behavior is driven by two fundamental unconscious forces:

Answer 3

Eros (Life Instinct): The drive for survival, reproduction, and pleasure. It includes sexual desires (libido).

Thanatos (Death Instinct): The drive toward destruction, aggression, and death. Freud believed humans have an unconscious wish for self-destruction or aggression toward others.

Question 4

Freud suggested that the ego uses defense mechanisms to cope with anxiety

Answer 4

Repression: Unconscious blocking of unacceptable thoughts or impulses.
Denial: Refusing to accept reality or facts. Denial that a certain threat is present.
Reaction formation: the man wants to cheat on his wife but is actually nice to her, brings her flowers
Projection: Attributing one’s own unacceptable desires or feelings onto others.
Displacement: Redirecting emotions from a dangerous object to a safer one (e.g., instead of being mad at your boss you scream at someone on the road).
Sublimation: Channeling unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable activities (e.g., aggression into sports).
Rationalization: Justifying behavior with logical, but not necessarily true, reasons.

Question 5

According to Freud, how do humans differ?

Answer 5

We differ in the defense mechanisms that we use.

Question 6

What is free association

Answer 6

patients are encouraged to verbalize their thoughts without any censorship or filtering

ex. A patient might start by talking about a recent argument with a friend, but as they freely associate, they may suddenly recall a childhood memory of being scolded by a parent. Through this process, the therapist might explore how unresolved feelings of rejection from childhood are influencing current relationships.

Question 7

How did the case of Anna O influence Freud’s theories?

Answer 7

Her case profoundly influenced his development of psychoanalysis, particularly the concepts of repressed memories, the unconscious mind, and the therapeutic power of talking about one’s experiences

Question 8

according to freud, what was responsible for hysterical symptoms in adulthood?

Answer 8

early traumatic experiences - mostly sexual

Question 9

what is freud’s idea of psychic determinism?

Answer 9

suggesting that all mental processes, thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are not random but are determined by unconscious causes.

meaning the unconscious forces have the power to influence behaviour

Question 10

Freud conceptualized the mind as having three distinct levels:

Answer 10

Conscious: The thoughts and perceptions we are currently aware of.

Preconscious: Memories and knowledge that are not in immediate awareness but can be accessed.

Unconscious: The largest part of the mind, containing desires, fears, memories, and feelings that are not accessible directly but influence behavior. Can be accessible with dreams and free association

Question 11

Freud divided personality into three interacting parts:

Answer 11

id: pleasure principle, seeks immediate gratification of desires. completely subconscious

ego: reality principle, rational part of personality, mediates between the desires of the id and the external world

superego: internalized moral compass, representing the ethical standards and values learned from parents and society

Question 12

the different types of anxiety: reality anxiety, neurotic anxiety, moral anxiety

Answer 12

Reality anxiety: the threat is really there

Neurotic anxiety: the ego and the id are fighting.
ex. One might worry about losing control over aggressive urges or desires.

Moral anxiety: when a person feels guilt, shame, or embarrassment for going against their moral principles or societal rules.
ex. Feeling guilt or shame after lying

Question 13

how would freud explain repression?

Answer 13

active effort by the ego to push threatening material out of consciousness

Question 14

what defense mechanism: mad at your boss but scream at your family members

Answer 14

displacement

Question 15

what defense mechanism: you cheat on exam but you tell yourself “ “if i had studied i would have done well anyways, so it’s ok”

Answer 15

rationalization

Question 16

what defense mechanism: Jane is sexually attracted to her friend but claims in public that she dislikes him

Answer 16

reaction formation. (saying the opposite of what you think)

Question 17

what defense mechanism: college student that is stressed about exam sucks on finger

Answer 17

regression

Question 18

what defense mechanism: don’t remember anything about a traumatic event

Answer 18

Repression / denial

Question 19

what defense mechanism: one participates in boxing to channel agressivity

Answer 19

sublimation

Question 20

what are fixations, according to freud

Answer 20

refer to an individual’s lingering focus on a particular stage of development due to unresolved conflicts or unmet needs during that stage.

Question 21

psychosexual stages of development: ORAL stage (birth to 18 months) what could come and create ORAL fixations?

Answer 21

child putting a lego to its mouth. The two extremes would be: violently smashing the lego out of the mouth OR letting the child put it in his mouth leading him to choke.

child could subconsciously internalize and apply to the world. might create a child that is overly focus on mouth, overly talks, someone that smokes, OR that never talks, doesn’t express opinions.

Question 22

psychosexual stages of development: ANAL stage. what could come and create ANAL fixations?

Answer 22

• If child is overly controlled: Perfectionism, compulsiveness, orderliness

If child decides to rebel against overly strict toilet training or if too loose toilet training: messiness, carelessness, lack of organization

Question 23

Oedipus Complex - boys during phallic stage according to Freud

Answer 23

• boy unconsciously becomes attached to his mother and desires her exclusive attention and affection
• boy views his father as a rival for the mother’s attention and affection
• boy develops a fear that the father will punish him for his desires toward the mother (castration anxiety)
• he has anger towards the dad but can’t do anything because dad has greater physical strength and authority
• resolves this conflict by identifying with the father: develop a sense of masculine identity and align with the societal expectations for his gender

Question 24

Electra Complex - girls during phallic stage according to Freud

Answer 24

• girl becomes attached to her father and desires his affection and attention
• The girl wishes to possess a penis, balmes mom for her perceived “incompleteness”
• Girl comes to realize that she cannot possess her father or become a man
• Resolve the conflict by identifying with her mother: female identity and adopts traditional feminine roles and values

Question 25

psychosexual stages of development: PHALLIC stage. what could cause PHALLIC fixations?

Answer 25

Fixation can occur if these conflicts are not resolved, meaning the child either remains attached to the opposite-sex parent or cannot identify properly with the same-sex parent.

In adulthood could be reckless, vain, or overly ambitious behavior

Question 26

according to Freud, when does personality pretty much stops developing?

Answer 26

stops developing in a significant way by the end of early childhood, around 5 or 6 years old, with the experiences in the first three psychosexual stages (oral, anal, phallic) shaping the core of a person’s personality.

Question 27

psychosexual stages of development: latency stage (from around 6 years to puberty)

Answer 27

sexual impulses are repressed, and there is little focus on psychosexual development.

Question 28

psychosexual stages of development: genital stage (from puberty into adulthood)

Answer 28

focused on mature sexual relationships and the ability to balance love and work

Question 29

symbolic behaviour according to freud

Answer 29

actions, thoughts, or symptoms that are expressions of unconscious desires, conflicts, or repressed emotions in a disguised form