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Psychology > The Psychodynamic Approach > Flashcards

The Psychodynamic Approach Flashcards

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1
Q

Who came up with the psychodynamic approach?

A

Freud

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2
Q

Assumptions of the psychodynamic approach

A
  • Behaviour results from unconscious processes
  • Psychodynamic conflict (between the 3 components) explains behaviour
  • Behaviour is motivated by emotional drives (sexual and aggressive)
  • Childhood experiences are important and shape our adult personality
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3
Q

The component of the conscious mind

A

Ego

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4
Q

The components of the unconscious mind

A

Id and super ego

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5
Q

The id

A
  • A primitive aspect of our personality based on the pleasure principle
  • Present from birth
  • Satisfying our desires
  • Wants immediate gratification
  • Unconscious
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6
Q

The ego

A
  • The mediator between the other two elements
  • Based on the reality principle (deals with reality)
  • Develops from our experience of not getting our own way
  • Spans all three levels of consciousness
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7
Q

The superego

A
  • Our internal sense of right and wrong
  • Based on the morality principle (inner parent)
  • Develops around age 5
  • Represents the moral standards set by our same-sex parent
  • It spans all three levels of consciousness
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8
Q

The three main psychosexual stages

A

Oral
Anal
Phallic

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9
Q

Age - oral stage

A

0-1 years

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10
Q

Age - anal

A

1-3 years

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11
Q

Age - phallic

A

3-5 years

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12
Q

What is the pleasure centre for the oral stage?

A

The mouth

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13
Q

What is the pleasure centre for the anal stage?

A

The anus

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14
Q

What is the pleasure centre for the phallic stage?

A

The genital area

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15
Q

Possible causes of fixation - oral

A
  • Early weaning
  • Deprivation of love or food
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16
Q

Possible causes of fixation - anal

A
  • Lax toilet training
  • Harsh toilet training
17
Q

Possible causes of fixation - phallic

A
  • No father figure
  • Very dominant mother
18
Q

Possible results of fixation - oral

A
  • Biting nails
  • Smoking
  • Sarcasm
19
Q

Possible results of fixation - anal

A
  • Obsessiveness
  • Meanness
  • Tidiness
20
Q

Possible results of fixation - phallic

A
  • Self-obsession
  • Sexual anxiety
  • Envy
21
Q

The Oedipus complex

A
  • Boy starts to desire his mother
  • Boy sees father as a rival for mother’s attention
  • He fears that if his father finds out about his feelings for his mother, he will castrate him
  • The boy is in a state of conflict. He resolves this by internalising and identifying with his father
  • This leads to the development of the superego. The boy substitutes his desire for his mother into desire for other women
22
Q

The Electra complex

A
  • She starts to desire her father who has a penis
  • The girls sees her mother as a rival for her father
  • The girl begins to develop penis envy. She blames her mother for removing her penis
  • To resolve this, the girl identifies with her mother so she can have her father
  • The superego develops, as does gender identity. She replaces penis envy with desire for a baby
23
Q

Defence mechanisms

A

Unconscious methods used to protect the ego

24
Q

The three defence mechanisms

A
  • Repression
  • Denial
  • Displacement
25
Q

Repression

A

Forcing a distressing memory out of the conscious mind
e.g. Lucy can’t remember her favourite pet dying

26
Q

Denial

A

Refusing to believe events or admit emotions that provoke anxiety
e.g. Tom continues to turn up for work even though he has been sacked

27
Q

Displacement

A

Diverting emotions from their true source towards a substitute, less dangerous one
E.g. Ravi is angry with his parents so he snaps at his mates at school.

28
Q

Strengths of the psychodynamic approach

A
  • Real world application due to the introduction of psychotherapy to treat mental disorders psychologically
  • It’s ability to explain human behaviour. This approach was a key force force in psychology during the first half of the 20th century. Has been used to explain personality development, abnormal behaviour, moral development and gender identity.
  • The first approach to look at psychological causes
  • Linked to biological needs
  • Looked at how experiences affect development later on
29
Q

Weaknesses of the psychodynamic approach

A
  • Psychoanalysis is rewarded as inappropriate for people experiencing more serious mental disorders such as schizophrenia
  • Psychoanalysis can be time consuming and expensive
  • Much of the approach is untestable and is not open to the possibility of being disproved.
  • Too much emphasis on the past
  • No establishment of cause and effect
  • Subjectivity
30
Q

The other psychosexual stages

A

Latency
Genital

31
Q

What causes fixation in the first place?

A

Not having the proper nurturing and parenting during a stage.

32
Q

What influenced Freud’s perspective?

A

Sexual repression and limited understanding and education around human sexuality at the turn of the 20th century

33
Q

What acted as proof for Freud?

A

His own recollections and interpretations of patients’ experiences and dreams were sufficient proof that psychosexual stages were universal events in early childhood

34
Q

Latency

A
  • Age 6 to puberty
  • Sexual feelings are dormant as children focus on other pursuits e.g. school, friendships, hobbies
  • Children generally engage with peers of the same sex which consolidates a child’s gender-role identity
35
Q

Genital stage

A
  • From puberty onwards
  • A sexual reawakening occurs as the incestuous urges resurface but the person redirects these urges to a more socially acceptable partner who often resemble
    the other-sex parent
  • Poeple who successfully completed the previous stages (with no fixations) are said to be well-balanced, healthy adults.
36
Q

Why was the psychodynamic approach subjective?

A
  • Freud examined patient’s dreams so he had the potential for subjectivity
  • His conclusions were unreliable and had bias

Psychology (17 decks)

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