The Psychoanalytic Perspective Flashcards
Roots of the Psychoanalytic Perspective
Darwin: idea that people share characteristics with animals
Helmholtz: conservation of energy ideas
Victorian Europe: reaction to conservatism, that it was taboo
Basic themes of the Psychoanalytic Perspective
- Personality is dynamic and a set of processes always in motion
- Need for defenses, to protect self from threat
- Importance of sex and aggression
- Human experience is suffused with lust
- Perspective is highly metaphorical
Salient characteristics
- personality develops at a very early age, 5-6 years old and remains constant
- importance of conflict
- mind = your personality
Topographical model
iceberg model which consists of:
1. conscious: part of your mind holding what you are aware of (thoughts)
2. preconscious: the things that you can easily bring into your conscious (memories)
3. unconscious: the part of the mind that isn’t as accessible (fears, immoral urges, violent motives)
Structural model
Id- it’s purpose is to get immediate in anyway possible, the id doesn’t care how the desires are fulfilled
Ego- Tries to make sure that the id’s impulses are expressed effectively
Superego- uses Parental/societal values to try to guide the ego to perfection
Pleasure principle
true purpose of life is the IMMEDIATE satisfaction of ALL needs
Primary process of the Id
when the id wants something it forms a mental image of desired object
Wish-fulfillment
the act of forming that image
Problem with Id
-Id doesn’t care how needs are met
-Can be irrational, reckless, immoral
-Doesn’t differentiate between objective and subjective reality
Reality principle
Takes into account the external world, and fulfills impulse needs in a safe, appropriate way
Secondary process
process of finding a match between image of needed object
Reality testing
when you weigh the risk of action before acting, if the risk is too high you find another way to meet your desires
Major purpose of the ego
delay of gratification
Rider/horse analogy
the id is the horse and the ego is the rider which determine the goal and guides the horse
Role of introjection
absorbing the values of your parents
Two systems
ego ideal- consists of rules about good behavior
conscience- consists of rules about bad and prohibited behavior
Major purpose of the superego
forces the ego to to act morally, rather than just rationally and guides the person towards perfection
Balancing forces—ego strength
Must release tension immediately (id demand) in a way that is socially and morally acceptable (superego demand) and realistic (external environment)
Basic assumption made about energy
-People are complex energy systems
-Your born with an amount of energy that stays constant throughout your life
-not physical energy, psychic energy
Cathexes
is energy investment into something
3 different types of Cathexes
Object cathexis= investment in an image
Ego cathexis = investment in a real thing
Anti-cathexis = investment of energy to contain id impulses from acting in irrational/immoral ways (repression)
Drive/Instincts
Life/sexual (EROS) instincts-
your drive and desire to partake in pleasure, reproduction, and survival
- the purpose of this instinct is that it drives you to partake is desirable human activities
- Libido: sexual desire/ drive
death instincts (THANATOS)-
your purpose in life is death.
Apoptosis - programmed cell death
Catharsis
The release of emotional tension when the built up tension of the Id is so great that it can’t be contained any longer.
Tension reduction- when you engage is aggression you releases and reduces the tension
Anxiety and mechanisms of defense
Reality- where you get anxious about something in real life (conscious)
Neurotic- The fear that the Id impulse will be so great that you can’t control it (conscious, unconscious)
moral- the fear that you might disappoint your parents, have or will go against your moral code (conscious, unconscious)
