Social Psychology L2 Flashcards
It is important to remember that while Freud did get a lot of things right…
He also got a lot of things wrong.
Freud was the first to draw attention to…
. The study of the unconscious
. The developmental aspects of personality
. Talking cures
What is Freud’s evaluation of the human condition?
If left alone, humans would blindly seek pleasure and gratification.
According to Freud, the morality, values, and beliefs of society are…
Internalized during childhood.
What would Freud say about human impulses?
That they can be repressed, but never eliminated. This creates a constant conflict between societal expectation and primitive desire.
What are the Freudian subsystems which are involved with conflict?
Id
Ego
Superego
Describe the ID
Contains most basic urges (eat, drink, warmth etc)
Most importantly pursues sex.
Operates on the pleasure principle
What is the pleasure principle?
The ID demands immediate satisfaction regardless of consequence.
Describe the Ego
Tries to satisfy the ID pragmatically in accordance with societal norms.
Works on the reality principle.
Describe the superego
Represents internalized rules of parents and society acting as a moral policeman. Makes you feel guilty when you break these moral rules.
What dynamic exists between the superego and the ID?
The impulses of the ID are always repressed by the demands of the superego.
What are the four defense mechanisms?
- Displacement
- Reaction formation
- Projection
- Isolation
Describe the displacement mechanism
Impulses redirected into a safer course. Freud particularly thought that physical behaviors (ie running) are re-directions of sexual impulses.
Describe the reaction formation mechanism
The original desire is supplanted with the opposite. You claim to hate that which you really like.
Describe the projection mechanism
You project your urges onto other people.
Describe the isolation mechanism
People separate themselves from the emotions of traumatic events. A sort of survival mechanism.
Where does unconscious conflict originate?
Childhood
What are the stages of childhood from which unconscious conflicts arise?
Oral stage (0-2) Anal stage (2-4) Phallic stage (4-6) Latency stage (6-12) Genital stage (12+)
When does the Oedipus complex arise?
Phallic stage
What is an Oedipus complex?
Boy wants to sleep with mum, fears that father may find out and castrate him. This results in castration anxiety. To resolve this anxiety, males decide to emulate their fathers in the hopes that they will one day get to pursue a relationship with a woman who is like their mother.
Describe an Electra complex
A girl realizes that she does not have a penis and regards this as a catastrophic castration. She then develops penis envy and develops lust for the dad in the hopes that he will give her a baby as a form of substitute penis. She develops anxiety over these desires, which she then resolves by identifying with her mother.
What are some examples of oral fixations?
Smoking, thumb sucking
What are some examples of anal fixations?
Very frugal
Obstinate
Likes painting
What are some examples of phallic fixations?
Unresolved castration anxiety can lead to homosexuality
What are some of the problems with Freudian psychoanalysis?
. He never actually studied children
. His ideas are not falsifiable (Freudian theory has an explanation for everything)
. Little experimental evidence to support his ideas
What are some issues surrounding experimental evidence and Freud?
Most data is more appropriately explained through other ideas
Experiments that support Freud’s claims are often flawed.
Describe experiments which explore Freud’s idea of repression.
Bruner and Postman had participants read out a word which would be flashed across a monitor. Participants took longer to read out aggressive or sexual words.
What are some problems with Bruner and Postman’s experiment?
The results could be explained in other ways…
- Participants could simply be embarrassed
- Participants could be doubtful that they were reading the words correctly.
