psychodynamic approach Flashcards
what are the main assumptions of the psychodynamic approach? /4
(cusi)
- behaviour explained as Conflicts of the mind
- role of Unconscious mind
- Structure of personality
- Influence of childhood experiences.
what are the three parts of personality?
id, ego , superego
what is the id + when does it develop?
Primitive, pleasure principle, unconscious drives and instincts, present at birth.
what is the ego + when does it develop?
Rational, reality principle, mediates between Id and Superego, develops at two years.
what is the superego + when does it develop?
‘Conscience’, morality principle, formed at end of phallic stage.
what is the conscious?
part we are aware of and can easily access, ego
what is the preconscious?
cannot access without effort, contins ego and part of superego.
what is the unconscious?
cannot access without trained psychologist, contains superego and id.
what are the three main defense mechanisms?
repression, displacement and denial
what is repression?
used by ego- keep disturbing memories and repressed into unconscious mind.
what is displacement?
when an impulse is redirected from original target onto a more acceptable one.
what is denial?
the existence of unpleasant realities is denied and kept out of conscious awareness.
what are the psychosexual stages of development? /5
oral, anal, phallic, latent, genital
describe the oral stage?
source of pleasure in mouth, sucking and swallowing.
0-1 years
what is the outcome of fixation in the oral stage?
forceful feeding, deprivation or ealry weeing cause fixation on oral activities (smoking).
describe the anal stage?
pleasure in the anus, withholding or expelling faeces,
1-3 years
what is the outcome of fixation in the anal stage?
toilet training either to lax or harsh, fixation leads to either obsessivnes and tidyness or the opposite.
describe the phallic stage?
pleasure in penis or clitoris
3-5 years
what is the outcome of fixation in the phallic stage?
unusual relationship with parent, fixation leads to vanity, self-obsession, sexual anxiety and envy.
describe the latent stage?
sexual drives are repressed, 5-puberty. no fixation.
describe the genital stage?
pleasure in genitals, masturbation and sexual intercourse
puberty- death
what is the outcome of fixation in the genital stage?
fixation should occur in a mentally healthy adult.
what complex’s did Freud propose? /2
the oedipus complex, the electra complex
what is the oedipus complex?
in phallic stage, boys develop feelings for mother and hatred for their father.
boys fear their father will castrate them and so they repress their feelings and identify with the father.
what case study did Freud study?
little Hans
what happened in the Little Hans case study?
5 year old boy with fear of horses after seeing one collapse in the street.
Freud suggested his phobia was displacement, his repressed fear for his father displaced onto horses. unconscious fear of castration so oedipus complex
ao3 real life application?
strength, development of psychological therapies, psychoanalysis.
used to explain mental disorders (depression).
cp- cant explain neuroses disorders such as schizophrenia.
ao3 untestable concepts?
limitation, evidence based on singular case study, cannot generalise to other people as outcomes may differ.
not open to imperical testing.
ao3 determinism?
limitation, rejects idea of free will, behaviour determined by unconscious motives. individual not responsible so no motivation to fix undessirable behaviours.
