Dream Analysis Flashcards
How psychodynamic approach applied in DA: unconscious mind
-Freud proposed that one way the mind expresses itself is through dreams
-Called dreams the royal road to the unconscious
-And argued threatening nature of unconscious thoughts is disguised in dreams
-DA = form of psychoanalysis, aims to make the unconscious conscious through decoding manifest content of the dream to reveal the contents of the unconscious mind
-Through DA, therapist can establish if root cause of psychological problems is due to repressed issues
Therefore exposed and cure this problem
How psychodynamic approach applied in DA: Influence of childhood experiences
Freud suggested that traumatic experiences would be repressed into the unconscious mind as too painful to deal with
However, these childhood ordeals would still be troubling and would resurface through dreams as a way of trying to work though traumatic past events
How psychodynamic approach applied in DA: Tripartite Personality
Is thought that the demands & desires of id, which are unacceptable in waking hours are transferred to our dreams
Dreams are a way of Id acting out our desires in a more acceptable way
Thf, DA uncovers drives of id
During dreaming, Freud proposes our ego defense mechanisms are low so id comes to life
Describe the components of DA: Role of the therapist
- Role = reverse the dreamwork process, decode manifest content back into latent content (only by trained psychoanalysts)
- Sometimes a ‘Cigar is just a cigar’ - not all images in dreams represent something else- Freud doesn’t support Dream Diary
- Free association which helps to reveal connections and uncover repressed thoughts, reveal the truth behind symbols and latent content uncovered
- Suggests various interpretations, allows client to select those that make sense
Describe the components of DA: Dreams as wish fulfilment
- F believed all dreams were the unconscious fulfilment of wishes (a.k.a primary process thought)
- Dreams protect sleeper while allowing us to live out desires
- Repression of these desires seen to be a source of mental & behavioural disorders, so therapy aims to interpret dreams and uncover true wishes
Describe the components of DA:Symbolic Nature of dreams
- DA works on principle that what the dreamer recalls is actually a symbolic representation of the truth buried in their UM
- Dreamwork - the process of changing latent into manifest content
- 2 Dreamwork processes: - Condensation: condenses many different ideas into 1,
- Representation: - A thought is translated into visual images
Describe the components of DA: Dream Diary
- Between therapy sessions, client may be asked to record dreams upon waking
- Manifest content that is recorded in the dream diary is the basis for discussion during therapy sessions
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Evidence supports id
POINT
P - evidence supports the idea that our dreams are constructed as a result of the working of the id
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Evidence supports id
EVIDENCE
E - Somls (2000) used PET scans to identify regions of the brain that are active during dreaming. The results showed that the rational part of our brain (ego) is inative, areas concerned with memory & motivation (Freud said repressed memories and desires are stored in the unconscious) are very active
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Evidence supports id
EXPLAIN
E - this suggests that analysing the content of our dreams is an effective way to uncover repressed unconscious desires & conflicts. By making us consciously aware of them, they can be dealt with, thfr successfully resolve disorder they were causing
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Evidence supports id
CONTRAST POINT
C - Study was conducted in sleep lab - ppl may sleep in unusual or disrupted way in artificial surroundings, so brain activity detected in this study may not represent normal brain activity during dreaming.
Thfr, research may lack external validity anf invalidate the conclusion that dreams are a representation of id activity
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Self Esteem & greater insight into mind
POINT
P - Evidence supports the effectiveness of DA in helping ppl improve their self esteem and gain greater insight into their mind
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Self Esteem & greater insight into mind
EVIDENCE
E - Falk & Hill compared 22 separated and divorcing women (22-57 yrs) in 8wk dream interpretation groups to 12 women in a control condition in terms of changes in anxiety, depression, coping, self esteem, and insight into their dreams. Results indicate that women who participated in dream interpretation groups showed improvement compared to the control group in self esteem and insight.
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Self Esteem & greater insight into mind
EXPLAIN
E - suggests that DA appears to be effective at helping women adjust to life changes associated with divorce
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Self Esteem & greater insight into mind
CONTRAST
C - based on a small sample of women going through specific signifiant life event,. This narrow sample means we can’t use this evidence to assume that DA will have such + effect on all ppl suffering any kind of psychological event
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Subjective Interpretation of manifest content
POINT
P - A weakness if DA is that it’s based on subjective interpretations of the manifest content
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA : Subjective Interpretation of manifest content
EVIDENCE
E - Freud didn’t support the idea of dream dictionaries as each interpretation need to be made in context of individual client’s situation. Also, sometimes, an interpretation is not appropriate bc the manifest content is a literal representation of a memory or emotion rather than a symbol of smgth in the unconscious.
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Subjective Interpretation of manifest content
EXPLAIN
E - This means that it’s difficult to scientifically demonstrated that it is the interpretation of a dream that leads to the effective treatment of behavioural or mental disorders. One therapist may offer an entirely diff interpretation of another
Evaluate the effectiveness of DA: Subjective Interpretation of manifest content
CONTRAST
C - could be argued that whether it’s the analysing of dreams that is effective doesn’t matter. If the process of going through DA helps, that is the important thing
Evaluate the Ethical Issues of DA: Long term underlying cause of psychological issues
POINT
P - DA addresses the long term underlying cause of psychological and behavioural problems
Evaluate the Ethical Issues of DA : Long term underlying cause of psychological issues
EVIDENCE
E - DA works on uncovering repressed unconscious conflicts and desires that may have occurred in early childhood.
Bringing them to the surface and confronting the issue should result in long term end to the problems they were causing later in life
Evaluate the Ethical Issues of DA : Long term underlying cause of psychological issues
EXPLAIN
E - a strength of DA compared to other therapies such as biological and behavioural therapies which only treat symptoms of problem.
-DA should therefore avoid problems such as the ‘revolving door’, where people have to keep returning for therapy as their symptoms reoccur
Evaluate the Ethical Issues of DA : Long term underlying cause of psychological issues
CONTRAST
C - this can only be accepted as a strength if we accept that the repressed unconscious conflicts are the root of our problems. Evidence to support this is largely subjective & unscientific
Evaluate the Ethical Issues of DA: Psychological Harm
POINT
P - being made aware of unconscious conflicts may be distressing and cause psychological harm
