Lesson 8 – Psychodynamic Explanations

Question 1

What makes up personality according to the psychodynamic approach/explanation?

Answer 1

The superego, id and ego make up personality

Question 2

What is the Id?

Answer 2

Id- operates on pleasure principle- wants immediate gratification regardless of morality

Question 3

What is the ego?

Answer 3

Ego- mediates between impulsive demands of id with reality of external 🌎 and moralistic demands of superego- … operates on reality principle- may delay gratification that id wants until a ⬆️ appropriate opportunity to satisfy its demands arises

Question 4

What is the superego?

Answer 4

Superego- operates on morality principle- contains our conscience- determines which 🏃‍♂️ morally acceptable and causes feelings of guilt when rules broken, or pride when moral 🏃‍♂️ exhibited

Question 5

When and at what age does the superego form?

Answer 5

Superego is last aspect of personality to form- develops at end of phallic stage of psychosexual development at 3-6 years old

Question 6

How do boys develop/create their superego?

Answer 6

Oedipus complex- male child unconsciously wishes to possess their mother🤰 and get rid of their father … boys experience castration anxiety (fear father will remove their penis to punish them for their desire of their🤰) … to resolve this anxiety 👶 identifies with father and eventually internalises their father’s superego, creating their own

Question 7

How do girls develop/create their superego?

Answer 7

Electra complex- BUT ✖️ have castration anxiety … ✖️ internalise their mother’s superego (which in itself is ⬇️ developed as well) to same extent and … their own superego is ⬇️ well developed than a male superego

Question 8

What did Blackburn state about the superego in 1993?

Answer 8

Blackburn (1993)- argued that if superego somehow deficient or
inadequate then criminal 🏃‍♂️ inevitable because id ✖️ properly controlled

Question 9

How many types of inadequate superego are there?

Answer 9

3

Question 11

What are the evaluation points of an inadequate superego?

Answer 11

👎- assumption of Psychodynamic approach is 💡 that girls develop weaker superego than boys … implies that 👩 ⬆️ prone to criminal 🏃‍♂️ BUT ✖️ supported by crime statistics
👎- Hoffman (1975)- tested 👶 ability to resist temptation- found hardly any gender difference BUT girls slightly ⬆️ moral than boys
👎- very little evidence that 👶 raised without same-sex parent are ⬇️ law-abiding as adults (or have ⬇️ of a conscience)
👎- if 👶 raised by deviant parents commit crime themselves- could be due to genetics or learning rather than deviant superego

Question 12

What are the types of inadequate superego?

Answer 12

1) Weak Superego- if same-sex parent absent during phallic
stage, 👶 ✖️ internalise fully formed superego because ✖️ opportunity for identification … makes offending 🏃‍♂️ likely
2) Deviant Superego- if superego that 👶 internalises has immoral or deviant values then this can-> offending 🏃‍♂️
3) Over-Harsh Superego- healthy superego has rules BUT also forgiving of mistakes- BUT excessively harsh superego means individual crippled by guilt and anxiety- may unconsciously drive individual to perform criminal acts to satisfy superego’s need for punishment