The Psychodynamic Approach

Question 1

The approach - (A01)

Answer 1

The role of the unconscious - The conscious mind is the ‘tip of the iceberg’.

The structure of personality -
Id - primitive part, pleasure principle.
Ego - reality principle, protected by defence mechanisms.
Superego - formed age 5, sense of right and wrong, morality principle.

Psychosexual stages - Five stages, a different conflict at each stage leads to fixations.

Defence mechanisms - Used by the Ego to keep the Id ‘in check’ and reduce anxiety - repression, denial, displacement.

Question 2

The psychodynamic approach - Evaluation (A03)

Answer 2

Real-word application - New form of therapy (psychoanalysis), forerunner to ‘talking therapies’.
Counterpoint - not suitable for all mental disorders (e.g. not for schizophrenia).

Explanatory power - Influential theories about personality, moral development and gender identity.

Untestable concepts - Much of the theory is unfalsifiable, and based on case studies, thus pseudoscientific.

Evaluation extra: Psychic determinism - All behaviour is driven by the unconscious, leaves no room for free will.