the psychodynamic approach Flashcards
Who was Freud?
-Sigmund Freud- the father of modern psychology
-Came up with the psychoanalytic theory- psychodynamic approach
-A therapist in the late 1800s
-Based many of his therapies on his patients and advocated talking therapies
What are the main assumptions of the psychodynamic approach?
1) Unconscious activity is the key determinate of how we behave
2) We possess innate drives (or instincts) that energize our mind as we develop through our lives
3) Our (three part) personality- the psych- is compromised of the id, ego and superego
4) Childhood experiences have significant importance in determining our personality when we reach adulthood
What is the conscious mind?
Everything we are currently aware of
e.g. thoughts, perceptions
What is the preconscious mind?
Things we can easily access
e.g. memories, stored knowledge
What is the unconscious mind?
Primal instincts and things that makes us feel uncomfortable
e.g. fears, irrational wishes, shameful experiences, selfish needs, unacceptable desires
What is the id?
-the primitive, selfish part of our personality
-operates on the pleasure principle
-formed at birth
-in the unconscious mind
What is the ego?
-the rational part of our personality
-operates on the reality principle
-formed 18mo-3yrs
-mostly in the conscious mind
What is the superego?
-the moral conscience, the judgemental part
-operates on the morality principle
-formed 3-6 yrs- an internalisation of our parents’ values
-mostly in the unconscious mind
How is a healthy personality achieved?
Ego should moderate the demands of the ego and superego
What happens if the id becomes dominant?
Person is aggressive, impulsive and criminal
What happens if the superego becomes dominant?
Person is extremely moralistic and judgemental (especially of themselves)
What are the psychosexual stages of development?
-Freud believed our personality was formed in five stages
-Our sexual energy (libido) is centred in different areas of the body as we develop
-We experience tension from this energy and pleasure is gained at different stages through its expression
-If we are under or over gratified at a certain stage, we experience fixation, which can have personality impacts
Describe the oral stage.
-Age 0-2
-Pleasure centre- the mouth (where the libido is focussed)
-Possible cause of fixation- deprivation of love or food, early weaning
-Pleasure gained from sucking/eating
-Possible results of fixation- biting nails, smoking, sarcasm
Describe the anal stage.
-Age- 2-3
-Pleasure centre- the anus
-Possible cause of fixation- parents place demands on the child (toilet training- either too harsh or too lax)
-Possible results of fixation- obsessiveness, tiredness, meanness
Get pleasure from expelling/retaining faeces
Describe the phallic stage.
-Age- 3-5
-Pleasure centre- the genital area
-Possible cause of fixation- no father figure, very dominant mother
-Sexual energy focused on the genitals. Major conflict- Oedipus complex.
-Possible results of fixation- envy, self-obsession, sexual anxiety
Describe the latency stage.
-Age-6-12
-Conflicts of previous stages are repressed- childhood amnesia
-Libido- latent- buried
Describe the genital stage.
-Age- 12+
-Culmination of psychosexual development- sexual energy remains fixed in the genitals
What is the Oedipus Complex?
-phallic stage- 3-5
-boys desire their mother, want her sole attention, want to get rid of their father
-anxiety about their fathers finding out
-castration anxiety
-fear of the father= hide true feelings
-in time, bond with fathers, internalise sense of morality (superego develops)
What is the electra complex?
-Freud rejected this- didn’t see a substitute for castration anxiety
-Freud recognised that females bonded with their mothers but as it is not motivated by fear of castration , he argued that women became morally weaker
What is a defence mechanism?
When anxiety becomes too great due to a traumatic situation, the ego uses defence mechanisms to protect itself
e.g. denial, repression, displacement
What is denial?
Refusal to accept that a situation is happening
What is repression?
Thoughts and memories related to the trauma that are pushed into the unconscious mind where they cannot be accessed
What is displacement?
Redirecting unpleasant thoughts or feelings onto a safe object or individual
Summarise the Little Hans case study
