Psychoanalytic Approaches to Personality Flashcards
intrapsychic domain
- deals with mental mechanisms (many of which operate outside conscious awareness)
- both classic and modern takes of Freud’s psychoanalysis theory
Sygmund Freud
- studied hypnosis with Jean-Martin Charcot
- treated patients with “nervous-disorders” and developed theory of the unconscious
- adult personality = result of how one coped ith sexual and aggressive urges
fundamentals of psychoanalysis
- personality = complex interplay of conscious + unconscious motives, thoughts and feelings
- B motivated by unconscious factors
1. unconscious motives + conflicts
2. parapraxis = Freudian slip
fundamental assumptions
- human mind is like hydraulic system
- personality change occurs with redirection of person’s psychic energy
- unconscious mind operated under its own power
- emphasis on interaction and conflict between the unconscious and conscious mind
- unconscious thoughts must be discovered in indrect ways
- developed large theoretical models to explain a wide range of clinical observations
basic instincts - sex and aggression
instincts
- strong innate forces that provide all the energy in the psychic system
- Freud’s original theory of instincts was influenced by Darwin’s theory of evolution
initial formulation
- self- preservation instincts and sexual instincts = life instincts (libido)
To which instinct did Freud add “Thanatos” to ?
the death instinct
theory of personality: conscious
- contains A, C and images about which one is presently aware
theory of personality: preconscious
- contains info one is not presently thinking about, BUT can be easily retrieved - made conscious
theory of personality: unconscious
- largest part of the human mind
- hold thoughts, memories, that one is unaware of
- includes unacceptable sexual and aggressive urges, thoughts and feelings
theory of personality: motivated unconscious
- material can leak through into ABC
- sometimes we don’t know why we do what we do
dynamic unconscious
id - instincts
ego - rational
superego - moral
id
- most primitive part of the mind, source of all drives and urges
- operates according to the pleasure principle (desire for immediate gratification)
- functions according to primary process thinking
- wish fulfillment
wish fulfillment
something unavailable = conjured up and the image of it is temporarily satisfying
ego
- constrains id to reality
- develops within first 2-3y of life
- operates according to reality principle
- operates according to secondary process thinking
- executive of personality
reality principle
understands that urges of id are often in conflict with social and physical reality
superego
- upholder of societal values and morals of society (or care-givers)
- “conscience” or “ego ideal”
- main tool in enforcing right vs wrong = emotion of guilt
what is one similarity between the id and the superego?
superego and id are not bound by reality
anxiety
- state of tension which motivates individuals to do something
- types
1. reality
2. neurotic
3. moral
reality anxiety
conflict between EGO and EXTERNAL REALITY
neurotic anxiety
conflict between ID and EGO
moral anxiety
conflict between EGO and SUPEREGO
defense mechanisms
- when the ego is not in control of anxiety through rational methods, resorts to unrealistic methods
- 2 characteristics
1. denying, falsifying and distorting reality
2. operates unconsciously
how the ego copes
primitive
- denial, projection, regression
neurotic
- repression, displacement, reaction formation, rationalization (debated)
mature
- sublimination, humour, suppression, altruism
repression
- keeping unconscious from consciousness by pushing it down
- repressive coping
- refer to slide 21
repressive coping
- not allowing anxiety to become fully conscious
- slow RT to disturbing sexual and aggressive phrases
denial
- not acknowledging unconscious content
- fundamental attribution error
displacement
- moving a troubling impulse onto a different, less threatening object
- anger = common example
projection
- protecting ego by attributing your own undesirable characteristics to others
- false consensus effect
rationalization
reinterpreting B through use of plausible but inaccurate excuses
reaction formation
- disguising unconscious content by turning it onto its opposite
- refer to graphs on slide 24
- Toddlers & Tiaras
sublimination
- channeling unconscious impulses into work
- relatively healthy
suppression
- will address it when I’m ready
defense mechanisms: humour
- release tension between unconscious + conscious
1. diffuse uncomfortable situation
2. help people cope with - experiences - 4 styles:
1. affiliative
2. self-enhancing
3. aggressive
4. self- defeating
evidence for defense mechanisms
- considerable evidence for reaction formation + denial
- some evidence for projection
- little evidence for displacement/sublimation
- more likely to protect self esteem than defend against unconscious drives
psychological stages
- oral
- anal
- phallic
- latency
- genital
oral stage
- 0-1y
- id driven
- source of pleasure and tension reduction are on the mouth, lips and tongue
- key conflict - weaning - withdrawing from the breasts or bottle
- oral fixation
anal stage
- 1-3y
- libido = attached to anus
- child obtains pleasure from expelling feces, then, during toilet training, from retaining feces
- focus on potty training
- many conflicts arise around child’s ability to achieve self-control, self-mastery, self-knowledge
anal stage: oral fixation results in 1 of 2 patterns…
- anal retentive
- pleasure obtained from neatness and order - anal expulsive
- pleasure obtained from messiness and disorganization
phallic stage
- 3-5y
- libido = attached to gnitals
- child discovers that they do or don’t have a penis
- sexual desire directed toward the parent of opposite sex
- produces oedipal and electra conflicts
oedipal and electra conflicts
- unconscious wish to have oppposite sex parent all to self by eliminating the same sex parent
- castration anxiety
latency stage
- 6 to puberty
- little psychological dev occurs
- libido remains dormant until puberty
- focus of child is on learning skills and abilities necessary to succeed as adult
genital stage
- puberty through adult life
- libido = focused on genitals, but not in manner of self manipulation associated with the phallic stage
- not accompanied by specific conflict
- people reach this stage only if conflicts = resolved at previous stages
making the unconscious conscious
GOAL OF PSYCHOANALYSIS
1. identify unconscious thoughts and feelings
2. once aware of this material, enable person to deal with it realistically and maturely
techniques
1. free association
2. dream analysis
3. projective techniques
free association
resistance
- blockage or refusal to disclose painful memories during free association
analysis of repression
- barring unacceptable ideas, memories or desires from conscious awareness
- leaving them to operate in the unconscious mind
dream analysis
manifest content
- literal meaning
latent content
- underlying meaning
wish fulfillment
- symbolic expression of a wish
dreaming and personality
- high in neuroticism = more nightmares
- low in neuroticism and high in openness = more dreams about flying
- high in openness = more strange and different people and more likely to remember dreams
- high agreeableness = more poeple in dreams
projection
- project their own personalities into what they report seeing
- hostile and aggressive person might see teeth, claws and blood
- oral fixated might see food or people eating
importance of psychoanalysis
- continuing influence on
- modern psychotherapy
- research topics, including the unconscious and defense mechanisms
- popular Western culture - laid foundation for topics and questions that psychologists are still interested in today
- BUT many criticisms
- Freud’s theory = primarily of historical value and does not directly inform much current personality research
