Psychodynamic approaches 1 Flashcards
The great demotions: Copernicus
Copernicus (1473 - 1543) dethroned the earth (the sun, not the earth, is the centre of the universe).
The great demotions: Darwin
Darwin (1809 - 1882) dethroned homo sapiens. We
are not special biologically, just one result of an utterly blind evolutionary process.
The great demotions: Freud
Freud (1856-1939) dethroned our rationality
what does the Psychodynamic approach emphasise?
emphasises the role of internal mental processes and early childhood experiences
what belief is the psychodynamic approach based on?
belief that personality and psychological disorders result from dynamic interactions among mental structures.”
what does psychopathology result from?
from unconscious conflicts in the individual
The motivated unconscious: according to Freud, the human mind consists of 3 parts:
- the conscious mind
- the pre-conscious mind: stored info recallable to consciousness
- the unconscious mind: a mind reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings and memories
what did Freud believe?
Society does not allow the free expression of all our sexual and aggressive instincts:
how to control sexual urges?
keep them from entering conscious awareness in the first place
Id
- Most primitive structure.
- Source of instinctual drives.
- Operates on the pleasure principle.
- Characterized by “primary process
thinking”.
Ego
3 points
- Operates on the reality principle – mediates between the id and the external world and between id and superego.
- Characterized by “secondary process thinking” – the development of strategies for solving problems and obtaining satisfaction.
- The “executive branch.”
Superego
- The moral structure – conscience.
- Internalised taboos and moral values of
society. - The morality principle – the “judicial
branch”
Compromise Formation
a key task of the ego - to find a balance between the key
demands of motivation, morality, and practicality.
what did Enoch and Ball (2001) conclude about capgras delusion?
Capgras delusion resolves ambivalent feelings of love and hatred towards a spouse or close relative.
What did Capgras & Carette (1924) say about the representation of capgras delusion?
Capgras delusion represents an attempt to veil forbidden incestuous desires
Anxiety: Freud
a casual role in most forms of psychopathology
Objective anxiety
- Fear of danger from real world
- Level is proportionate to degree of
threat
Neurotic Anxiety
- Fear that instincts will get out of hand and cause someone to do something which they will be punished for
Moral anxiety
- Fear of one’s own conscience (e.g., feeling guilty when you do something against your moral code)
Defence mechanisms - repression
Blocking threatening material (impulses, ideas, memories) from consciousness
Freud’s fainting episodes
“Fainting represents… the most massive denial, the refusal or inability to remain conscious in the face of a threat.”
Defence Mechanisms: displacement
Discharging pent-up feelings on safer targets than those arousing the feelings.
Defence Mechanisms: Projection
Attributing one’s own unacceptable impulse or action to another. We can then condemn them instead of condemning ourselves.
Defence Mechanisms: Reaction Formation
Expressing the exact opposite of an
unacceptable desire
Defence Mechanisms: Regression
Retreating to an earlier developmental level involving less mature behaviour and responsibility.
Defence Mechanisms: undoing
A repetitive action that symbolically atones for an unacceptable impulse or behaviour
Defence Mechanisms: compensation
Making up for feelings of inferiority or perceived
limitations by developing other positive traits.
Defence Mechanisms: sublimation
Channelling frustrated sexual or aggressive energies into different areas, particularly more socially acceptable or even admirable areas (e.g., sport, art,
charity)
Defence Mechanisms: Humour
Dealing with unpleasant ideas and situations with
wit and self-deprecation.
Freud on Humour
Jokes allow the expression of impulses ordinarily held in check, especially aggressive and sexual impulses
Which psychoanalytic concepts are involved with the five stages of personality development?
The ego and superego are associated with five stages in personality development.
What is each five stages characterised by?
a dominant mode of achieving sexual energy
What is an erogenous zone?
bodily areas which are chief focus of pleasure
what happens if a child at a particular stage fails to resolve a conflict?
- he or she may get stuck in that stage or become fixated, resulting in a corresponding adult character type.
- each successive stage represents a more mature mode of obtaining sexual gratification
The oral stage
birth -> 18 months
- Erogenous zone: mouth, lips and tongue (sucking, swallowing, exploring objects with the mouth)
- Key conflicts are associated with issues of dependency on others. Fixated = alcoholism? Eating disorders? Smoking?
The Anal stage
(18 months -> 3 years)
- Erogenous zone: anus-buttocks region. Child obtains pleasure from first expelling faeces and then, during toilet training, from retaining faeces.
- key conflicts are associated with issues of self-control
The anal stage: fixated
- Anal-retentive: organised, controlled,
rigid, obsessive-compulsive, stingy - Anal-expulsive: disorganised, messy,
overly generous
The phallic stage
(3-5 years)
- Erogenous zone: genitals.
- Key conflicts: The Oedipus and Electra Complexes. Castration anxiety, penis envy
- Sexual desire for opposite-sex parent (and desire to eliminate same-sex parent).
- Resolution: identification with same-sex parent and development of superego.
Displacement and Phobias
Phobias result when unconscious anxiety is displaced onto a neutral or symbolic object (Freud, 1909).
Displacement and Fetishes
- Freud – fetishism originates in the (male) child’s horror of castration.
- The fetishistic object as a symbolic substitute for the mother’s missing penis.
The Latency stage
(6 -> 12 years)
Sexual motivations channelled (sublimated) into age-appropriate interests and activities such as sports
and hobbies.
