Freud Flashcards
what is a neurotic psyche
psyche run by superego
high levels of anxiety and guilt
what happens if fixation occurs in the phallic stage of psychosexual development
for males:
- promiscuity, seeking sexual gratification or they dont develop masculine characteristics and may be attracted to men
for females:
- may develop masculine traits and be attracted to women
in the phallic stage of psychosexual development how do the relationships with the parents change with girls
Girls:
- ELECTRA COMPLEX
- see fathers as sexual objects, mother as rival
- wishing for father and fear of mother causes anxiety, not as strong as mother is less powerful (no penis)
- girls identify with mother, and father (because of want to obtain missing penis)
- so Electra complex is not resolved so girls have weaker ego functioning and its harder for them to cope with competing id demands and reality
in the phallic stage of psychosexual development how do relationships with parents change with boys
Boys:
- intuitively become aware of their mothers as sexual objects
- develop sexual attachment to mother
- regard father as sexual rival
- OEDIPUS COMPLEX (fear of father with power to castrate them, desire for mother, conflict causes anxiety)
- to resolve conflict boys want to become their fathers, this ‘inner father’ serves as superego
What is the phallic stage of psychosexual development
3rd stage (3-5 years of age)
libidal energy moves to genital area
difficult for girls because they dont have a penis - leading girls to develop penis envy - which also leads to feelings of deficiency in girls
boys gain castration anxiety - worry of losing their penis
leads to both sexes changing their relationships with the parents
what happens if fixation occurs in the anal stage of psychosexual development
if conflict between child and demanding parents may lead to individuals to rebel against authority
if toilet training handled badly you get one of two personalities:
- anal retentive personality (stingy, stubborn, hoarder, very orderly, stingy)
- anal-expulsive personality (untidy, disorganised, disregard rules about cleanliness)
to avoid fixation parents should adopt relaxed approach to toilet training and positively reward success
Evaluate Freudian theory
Based on case studies only
Difficult (almost impossible) to produce descriptions of normal behaviour
He did address the complexities of human behaviour and his theorising led to important debates about the personality
May not be completely original (ideas came from teachers)
Too vague (psychosexual stages)
Overly stresses sexual drives
What is humour (defence mechanisms)
although not a defence mechanism discussed by Freud, is a way of distancing a person from a sensitive topic/subject that a person alleviates uncomfortable emotion
often see as a coping mechanism to protect the ego and gain social acceptance
What is sublimation (defence mechanisms)
it allows unconscious drives to be expressed in a modified, socially acceptable manner
the instinctual drives are diverted from their original aim and channelled into something seemingly acceptable
Eg
Individuals against violent films may actually spend a lot of time watching such films in order to be able to protest about the decisions made by the censors
Art and music are seen as examples of successful sublimations of the instinctual drives
Or, playing a vigorous sport as an expression of aggressive drives
What is undoing (defence mechanisms)
Often accompanies isolation
person can acquire ritualistic behaviours which symbolically negate the thoughts previously held and/or felt guilty about
Eg
If you think something is associated with bad luck you do something to negate it; many disturbed individuals may adopt all sorts of ritualistic behaviours to protect themselves
What is isolation (defence mechanisms)
anxiety associated with an event is dealt with by recalling the even without any emotions
those feelings are separated and ‘isolated’
What is regression (defence mechanisms)
to avoid anxiety we return to something simpler, easier in our life
can be normal and healthy
what is displacement (defence mechanisms)
rather than expressing our feeling directly to the person who provoked them, we deflect them elsewhere
we take out our frustration on someone else
if used too often can be bad for interpersonal relationships
What is phobic avoidance (defence mechanisms)
avoiding places or situations that cause us to experience unpleasant emotions-phobic avoidance is an extreme form of this
this is different to normal phobias which are relatively common
What is conversion reaction (defence mechanism)
unacceptable emotions/thoughts are converted into physical symptoms
Eg
psychosomatic disorders
What is rationalism (defence mechanisms)
the process where the reasons for an action are given after it has happened
Eg
You really want this job and you eagerly go for an interview but you don’t get it. You then claim that you really didn’t want the job and the Position was not that good.
this way we can save our own self esteem
easier to say you didn’t want the job than say you weren’t good enough
denial in such situation can give more courage to try again
What is reaction formation (defence mechanisms)
we use it to overcome impulses that are unacceptable to us
Eg
We’re obsessively tidy but keep a locked cupboard messy and hidden from others. So, we deal with our impulses to be untidy by becoming obsessively tidy. Our reaction formation is not successful as the impulse is expressed via our untidy cupboard
what is projection (defence mechanisms)
blaming everything or everyone for our shortcomings
we externalise unacceptable feelings
(eg “I am not the problem, you are”)
