Psychology of an Individual Flashcards
What is Freud’s first concept?
That the human mind comprises of three levels: conscious, preconscious and unconscious.
What is the preconscious?
It is the level of information that a person is a aware of but is not currently in the conscious thoughts.
What are examples of the preconscious?
Your year 7 teacher, what you ate for breakfast.
How does a person access their preconscious material?
A person accesses their preconscious by simply thinking about it (retrieving).
What is the unconscious mind?
It is the keeper of the deepest, darkest wishes, unacceptable thoughts and trauma-based memories. Much of a persons behaviour unconscious, it drive our personality.
What is the conscious mind?
It is the thoughts a person has about their current present situation.
What is Freud’s second concept?
The psyche has three structures; Id, Ego and super ego.
What is the Id?
It is the interactive structure that is;
- based on the pleasure principle.
- exists from birth.
- it is the driver of instinctive urges.
- it demands immediate gratification.
- the driver of sexual and aggressive drives.
- completely selfish and has no empathy.
What is the ego?
The ego is the interactive structure that is;
- based on the reality principle.
- develops within the early stage of life.
- the mediator between the demands of the Id and the morals of super-ego.
What is the super-ego?
The super-ego is the interactive structure that is;
- based on the morality principle.
- is the the last structure to develop.
- informs us on the expectations of society.
- develops through socialising.
- responsible for guilt and shame.
- aligns with preconscious.
What is Freud’s third concept?
Psychosexual development.
Freud believed that childhood experiences play a significant role in the shaping of personality and a persons behaviour as an adult.
What are the three stages of Psychosexual development?
Oral stage.
Anal stage.
Phallic.
Latency stage.
Genital stage.
Describe the age, erogenous zone, focus and fixations of the ORAL STAGE…
Age: Birth to 18 months
Erogenous Zone: Mouth
Focus: Feeding and weaning
Fixations: Over/under eating, smoking, nail biting and excessive talking.
Describe the age, erogenous zone, focus and fixations of the ANAL STAGE…
Age: 18 months to 3 years
Erogenous Zone: Anus
Focus: Toilet Training
Fixations:
- Anal Expulsive: messy, over shares.
- Anal Retentive: obsessively tidy and orderly, rigid and authoritarian.
Describe the age, erogenous zone, focus and fixations of the PHALLIC STAGE…
Age: 3 - 7 years
Erogenous Zone: Genitals
Focus:
- Sexual identification
- Oedipus complex
- Electra complex
Fixations: Narcissistic behaviour, exhibitionist, vanity, compulsive, sexual behaviour and aggressive.
Describe the age, erogenous zone, focus and fixations of the LATENCY STAGE…
Age: 7 years - puberty
Erogenous Zone: Dormant sexual urges
Focus:
- Learning
- Same sex relationships (mother and daughter, daughter aspires to mother)
Fixations: Inability to form fulfilling relationships as an adult immaturity.
Describe the age, erogenous zone, focus and fixations of the GENITAL STAGE…
Age: Puberty+
Erogenous Zone: Genitals
Focus: Intimate relationships
Fixations: NONE
What is Oedipus complex?
Boys unconsciously view their father as competition for their mothers affection. This conflict causes jealousy and resentment for the same sex parent. Additionally, boys will fear their fathers. The boys believe the mothers penis has been removed as a punishment and serves as a warning for the boy to learn to suppress their desire for the mother.
What is Electra complex?
The daughter has the desire for her father and wishes to remove the mother to establish the relationship between the daughter and the father. Freud believed this caused the girls anxiety in addition to penis envy. The girl would blame the mother for not providing them with one.
What is the limitation to Freuds concept?
As it cannot be empirically tested due to the subjective nature of the work.
What are the characteristics of SELF ACTUALISATION?
Being concerned for others, accepting themself, creativity, loving, compassionate, sense of humor, ability to develop close friendships and enjoyment in employment.
