Psychodynamic Theories of Personality Flashcards
(29 cards)
What is a specific theory of personality and method of psychotherapy that was formulated by Sigmund Freud?
Psychoanalysis
What do all Psychodynamic Theories emphasize?
- unconscious processes in the mind
- assumption that experiences in early childhood are primarily responsible for formation of adult personality and problems.
Freud’s theory consists of what 3 major systems of personality?
Id, Ego, and Superego
Define: Id
The Id is made up of two competing instincts: libido (life), and aggression (death). It is present at birth and represents unconscious motives to obtain pleasure and avoid pain.
Define: Ego
The Ego is both a conscious and unconscious battle between instinct (Id) and demands of society. It is known as the “reason and good sense” part of ourselves.
Define: Superego
The Superego is the primarily unconscious voice of conscience, representing morality and parental authority. It judges the activities of the Id and rewards good behavior and puts down bad behavior.
According to Freud, what makes a healthy personality?
Balance of all 3 systems
Define: Defense Mechanisms
They are our unconscious strategies to avoid conflict and anxiety, with the possibility to become unhealthy and self-defeating.
What are the 5 primary defense mechanisms?
- Repression
- Projection
- Displacement
- Regression
- Denial
Define: Repression
An unconscious suppression of a threatening idea, memory, or emotion.
Define: Projection
When a person’s own unacceptable or threatening feelings are repressed and attributed to someone else.
Define: Displacement
When people direct their emotions towards things or other people that are not the real object of their feelings.
When displacement serves a higher purpose such as art, religion, or inventions, it is called…
Sublimation
Define: Regression
When a person reverts to a previous phase of psychological development.
Define: Denial
When a person refuses to admit something unpleasant. Denial protects a person’s own self-image and invulnerability.
Freud’s theory states personality develops through what Psychosexual Stages?
- Oral
- Anal
- Phallic (Oedipal)
- Latent
- Genital
Define: Oral Stage
Occurs during 1st year of life when babies experience the world through their mouth.
Define: Anal Stage
Occurs between ages 2-3 when control of bodily waste is the key issue.
Define: Phallic (Oedipal) Stage, and the difference between boys and girls
It is the most crucial stage of forming the personality, lasting from ages 3-6. The child unconsciously wishes to possess the parent of the opposite sex and get rid of the same sex parent.
- For boys, they eventually repress their desire for the mother and come to chiefly identify with the father and accept his authority and standards of morality. This is where the Superego emerges.
- For girls, they do not have the overwhelming fear to give up their oedipal feelings and have a lingering sense of “penis envy”
Define: Latent Stage
The non-sexual stage in preparation for the genital stage.
Define: Genital Stage
Begins at puberty and leads into adult sexuality.
What is the central idea of the Jungian Theory?
In addition to an individual’s own unconscious, there exists a Collective Unconscious.
Explain: Collective Unconscious
All human beings share universal memories, symbols, images, and themes (archetypes).
What does the Object-Relations School focus on?
Belief that the central problem in life is balance between need for independence and need for others. It is also a balance of adjusting to separations and losses.
