non bio theory of aggression: psychodynamic exp- freud's theory Flashcards
unconscious, preconscious and conscious mind
freud thought the mind was made up of three parts. the conscious mind is what we are aware of. the preconscious mind has thoughts and ideas we can access but they are not conscious at the time. the unconscious mind is the main/ largest part. it is where all thoughts come from, some become conscious some in the pre. the unconscious is not passive - we use energy keeping thoughts, wishes and ideas unconscious.
therefore, there are underlying causes for aggression which can be found in the unconscious mind. these can be understood using methods such as dream analysis etc.
tripartite model of personality
the id according to freud and his theory is the main part of our personality. it represents our wishes and desires - the ‘I want’ part. it is there at birth and is unconscious.
the superego develops later. it relies on. the ‘morality principle’ and is about us becoming socialised by learning the principles from our parents and society.
the ego is the reasoning part of the personality, balancing the hidden desires of the id with the demands of the superego as to what we should be.
the ego has to find a balance between the two so does this by repressing unwanted or unnacpetable thoughts into the unconscious. if the ego does not develop during the final stage of development then aggression can ensue.
catharsis
freud put forward the idea of us having two instinctive urges.
the life instinct eros and the death instinct thanatos. these basic drives shape our behaviour. urges and wishes in the unconscious leads to arousal of the libido ( sexual energy) the death instinct may drive us to be aggressive.
if aggressive and frustrated thoughts can be brought into the conscious mind, the release is what freid called catharsis. it is an emotional way to vent aggression, eg watching agression on tv etc
it allows humans to not be uncontrollably agressive all the time. it allows us to relate emotions and satisfies our violent impulses. so we deal with this aggression by redirecting these impulses.
evidence to support catharsis
- there is evidence to support the role of catharsis
Verona and Sullivan 2008
aim= to find out whether acting aggressively is cathartic for an individual
procedure= participants were placed in a frustrating situation ( a confederate behaved in a way that was calculated to frustrate them - half of the participants got to act in an aggressive way - by pressing a shock button
- the other half got to act in a non aggressive way, pressing non shock
results= the half that behaved aggressively by pressing the shock button saw a reduction in their aggression as measured by heart rate. this would suggest that aggressive behaviour is cathartic.
but they were more aggressive in their response to blast of hot air than control group.
conc= acting aggressively by pressing shock button reduced tension, but did nit reduce aggressive drive.
this provides and objective method to study a mechanism that is working on an unconscious level and provides some support for psychodynamic explanations. however it does. not dispute catharsis as it demonstrates the aggressive drive has not reduced.
application
computer games, prisons using sports
S/W
:) the role of nature and nurture are accounted for in this explanation of aggression as the id is present from birth and the ego develops over time through socialisation.
this highlights the innate tendency for aggression and the role of socialisation eg parenting in the development of aggression.
:) the theory, unlike brain structure can explain individual differences in the development eg develop of ego through parenting and socialisation.
alternative
- psychodynamic explanations do not take into account the role of brain structure in the development of aggression
eg Raine found that
this discredits the psych explanation because the role of the brain in aggression can be measured objectively.
