psychodynamic approach Flashcards
who pioneered the approach?
Sigmund Freud
what do they believe that behavior is influenced by?
- different levels of consciousness
- the three parts of the mind
- progress through the psychosexual stages
the levels of consciousness
conscious
pre-conscious
unconscious
what is the conscious mind?
all of the mental processes of which we are aware
(thoughts + perceptions)
what is the preconscious mind?
contains memories that can be recalled to consciousness
(memories + stored knowledge)
what is the unconscious mind?
contains our biologically based instincts, the most important of which are the primitive urges for sex and aggression
what are manifest thoughts and behaviours?
appear on the conscious surface
what are latent processes?
hidden in the unconscious
what’ the difference in latent and manifest meanings?
manifest thoughts and behaviours are only indicators of a set of latent processes in the unconscious
how can we access our unconscious thoughts?
free associating
dream analysis
Freudian slips
Rorschach inkblot test
what are the parts of the tripartite personality?
the ID
the ego
the superego
what is the ID?
present from birth
works on the pleasure principle
seeks immediate gratification
the ID: extra knowledge
Freud called babies ‘bundles of ID’s’ as they are all about seeking pleasure and getting what they want
what is the ego?
present from 1-2 years
works on reality principle
balances the wishes of the ID and superego
what is the superego?
present from 4-5 years
works on the morality principle
forms an ideal self
will punish with feelings of guilt or praise with feelings of pride
why do we use defence mechanisms?
the ego has to protect itself from anxiety, caused by conflicts between the ID and the superego
what is repression?
forcing a distressing or threatening memory out of your conscious mind
what is denial?
failing or refusing to acknowledge some aspects of reality
what is displacement?
transferring feelings from the true object of anxiety onto a substitute target/object
what’s a strength of defense mechanisms?
has an intuitive appeal
most people can appreciate the idea
what’s a case study that supports DM use?
Repression of Dora to deal with someone making sexual advances to her as a child
what’s a limitation of defense mechanisms?
lack of testability
their use can only be inferred so lack of evidence
what are the stages of development?
- oral
- anal
- phallic
- latency
- genital
what is fixation?
each stage has a conflict that the child needs to resolve to lead to healthy development
if they do not then they unconsciously remain in that stage for the rest of their lives
what is oral stage?
0-1 years
ID is dominant
what is the libido focus of the oral stage?
the mouth
what is the oral stage successful resolution?
a person can enjoy food and drink healthily
and form relationships
what are the behaviours of an oral character?
thumb sucking
smoking
biting finger nails
what is the anal stage?
1 - 3 years
focus on expelling and withholding faeces
what is the anal stage successful resolution?
the ability to deal with authority and to have a balance between being orderly and disorganised
what are the behaviours of an anal retentive character?
excessively early or harsh potty training
can lead to:
stubbornness
perfectionism
obsessively tidy
punctual
submissive towards authority figures
what are the behaviours of an anal expulsive character?
over indulgence or late toilet training
can lead to:
extremely messy
disorganisation
rebellious
what is the phallic stage?
4 - 6 years
important stage for gender identity and development of morals
when opedius and electra complex’s happen
what is the libido focus of the phallic stage?
genitals
what is the successful resolution of the phallic stage?
identification of same sex parents’ morals
what are the behaviours of a phallic character?
recklessness
resolute
self assurance
narcissistic
excessively vein and proud
can lead to:
confusion about gender identity and possibly even homosexual
what is the latency stage?
7 - 10 years (until puberty)
child represses sexual desires and channels energy into play
don’t tend to fixate here
what is the genital stage?
11+ years (puberty and beyond)
comes with onset of puberty
what is the successful resolution of genital stage?
leads to the genital character who is the ideal adult:
well adjusted
mature
able to love + be loved
works hard
contributes to society
what is the consequences of fixation at the genital stage?
can lead to unsatisfactory relationships or a failure to form relationships
when does the Oedipus complex happen?
during phallic stage (3-6 years)
for boys only
what is the steps Freud’s Oedipus complex?
- boys unconsciously desire their mothers which leads to jealousy of father
- so have castration anxiety in case father finds out
- represses desire and identifies with father
- internalises fathers male characteristics and morals
- super ego develops
what is the Electra complex?
phallic stage (3 - 6 years)
girls only
what is the steps in Freud’s Electra complex?
- girls are aware they have no penis and believe mothers castrated them so resent them
- develop penis envy so father becomes love object (envy is of the power males have as a result of their penis)
- represses unconscious wishes for her father and channels desire for a baby instead
- leads to identification with mother so develops feminine identity
- development of superego
what is the case of little Hans?
5 years - developed fear of horses after seeing one, pulling all over
what’s Freud’s explanation of little Hans fear?
Freud thought the cart symbolised his pregnant mother and the horse his father
so had displaced his fear of his father onto horses
the blinkers reminded Hans of his fathers glasses and the black hair reminded of his fathers beard and moustache
what is the case of rat man?
Ernsts Lanzer (late 20s)
had an obsessional neurosis (dated back to childhood)
had many fears:
something bad was going to happen
fears his father would die (but was already dead)
main fear:
a punishment where tas would bore into criminal’s anus
what was Freud’s explanation of rat man?
when he had indulged in sexual foreplay and feared his father would find out
so associated sexual pleasure with fear of punishment and hostility towards his father
so really fears punishment for himself
but displaces onto fear of those close to him getting punished
what was the case of wolf man?
Sergei Pankeieff (23 year olds)
was dependent and close to serious mental illness illness
he had a dream he was lying looking to walnut tree with six wolves with long tails
what was Freud’s explanation of wolf man?
- wolves had long tails to represent fear of castration
- stillness of wolves represented his father in violent motion - seen his parents having intercourse
what is strengths of the psycho dynamic approach?
has practical applications - therapies psychoanalysis
takes an interactionist position on the nature v nurture debate
what is the limitations of the psycho dynamic approach?
has many aspects considered unfalsifiable - hard to test unconscious mind
deterministic - no such thing as accident
