Psychodynamic approach Flashcards
Briefly, what is the psychodynamic approach?
The approach sees the mind has been influenced by powerful unconscious/subconscious forces.
How does the psychodynamic approach see the mind?
Freud saw the mind as an iceberg, the tip of it represents a conscious mind, the unconscious part is ‘underwater’.
The unconscious mind harbours our deepest thoughts, desires and feelings; it is constantly present urging us to seek pleasure.
Where do psychodynamic therapists believe depression phobias and obsessions come from?
From repressed memories of early traumatic experiences in our lives.
What is the tripartite personality according to Freud?
id: Present from birth and is unconscious and operates on the pleasure principle.
ego: Develops around the age of 2 to meet the demands of the age and socially acceptable way. This is the conscious part of our mind.
superego: Emerging from five years of age, unconscious, and our acts on the morale of tea principle, or the individuals conscience regarding feelings of right and wrong..
What are Freud’s five stages of child development?
OAP-LG
Oral stage.
Anal stage.
Phallic stage.
Latency.
Genital stage.
What is the oral stage?
Developing between 0 to 1 years old, satisfaction is gained from putting things in the mouth and relates to how we engage in trusting relationships later.
What is the anal stage?
Developing between one and three years.
Pleasure is gained from going to the toilet, with conflict emerging when parents ask the child to use a potty;
This relates in Freudian thinking to how we deal with authority figures later on in life.
What is the phallic stage?
Between three and five years old.
The child has unconscious sexual desires for the opposite sex parent and fears punishment from the same-sex parent.
This can cause psychological conflict.
Gradually the values of the same-sex parents are internalised and resolve the conflict leading to development of moral and gender identity.
What is the latency stage
Developing between five and 12 years old.
This is a period of consolidation in which the child is busy learning gender roles, social roles and developing self-confidence.
Sexuality is dormant and leads to well-adjusted adulthood.
What is the genital stage?
From 12 upwards.
This is a time of adolescent sexual experimentation, the successful resolution of which is settling down in a loving relationship in one’s twenties.
ADDENDUM:
In Freud’s time, sexual attraction was assumed to be heterosexual; his thoughts on homosexuality initially saw it as a failure to break through one of the key stages of development, but ultimately, as one psychotherapist writes, he “did not think homosexuality was pathological in the sense that it was the consequence of degenerative physiology or psychology. He found homoeroticism compatible with normal psychological functioning and even associated it with elevated capacities and superior psychic and moral qualities. However, Freud did believe homosexuality represented stunted individual psychosexual development and from this perspective saw it as inferior sexuality in a mature adult.” (https://psychotherapypapers.wordpress.com/2008/11/12/kirby1/) That is one thinker I came across, no doubt the literature to explore is vast and Freudians will offer a variety of opinions on (a) what Freud concluded and (bu) what his approach can mean without Freud! -ed.
Name three strengths of psychodynamic approach
1) Evidence based:
Fisher and Greenberg (1996) found supporting evidence for Freud’s oral and anal personalities
2) Deterministic:
The theory provides an explanation for dramatic behaviour has been determined in childhood experiences.
3) Case studies:
Freud’s case studies provide rich and detailed information about individuals
Name three weaknesses of the psychodynamic approach
1) Unscientific:
Concepts such as the unconscious, it ego and superego cannot be tested scientifically.
2) Deterministic (in a bad way!)
Freud was deterministic in his approach to psychological issues, and therefore ignored free will or other factors.
3) Lacking generalisability
Freud’s case studies involve a narrow sample of adults, hence is a representative and lacks generalisability.
Explain John Bowlby’s attachment formation.
Drawing on Freud, Bowlby researched how children reacted to early traumas, rather than through fantasy and unconscious drives. the most important events in the first year of a child’s life is how well they attached to a primary caregiver..
What are John Bowlby’s three stages of attachment theory?
0 to 3 months, the child is indiscriminate with whom he or she is, and enjoys any kind of company.
3 to 6 months, the infant starts to recognise carers and shows behaviour directed more towards the caregivers then complete strangers.
After six months, there is a secure base behaviour in which behaviour is directed towards the main caregiver, and the infant may show signs of of separation anxiety when the care giver is away; also shows fear and suspicion with unfamiliar people.
What did Massie and Szajnberg’s (2002) research show?
Using a longitudinal study of 76 people from birth to 30, and interviews and questionnaires, the adults who had received better care as infants were more psychologically healthy.
Those who had received multiple traumas in infancy were significantly less healthy psychologically speaking.
