week 2 personality - psychoanalysis Flashcards
what is the main reason for studying psychoanalytic theory
it features the theory of childhood sexuality
what are some criticisms about freud’s theory
universal not nomothetic
little evidence support
what are the levels of consciousness freud argued
conscious thought
preconscious mind
unconscious mind
repression
manifest content of dreams
latent content of dreams
primary process thinking
the pleasure principle
secondary process thinking
the reality principle
what did freud argue to unconscious mind holds?
full of unacceptable instinctual content - sexual and aggressive that we are motivated to repress from awareness
what did freud argue repression was
more automatic and less conscious process than unconscious suppression
what did freud say the function of dreams are
to protect sleep
the manifest content of the dream could be interpreted by the psychoanalyst to reveal the latent content of the unconscious
the manifest content hides the latent content through defensive devices eg symbolization eg a penis may be a pen
what represents primary process thinking
the unconscious and dream narrative
how can we describe the primary process thinking and what is it driven by
illogical and disorganised
driven by the pleasure principle
what represents the secondary processing thinking
reality principle - states daydreaming are a mixture of both types of thinking
how can we describe the secondary processing thinking
logical and organized
what is the key motivational construct in psychoanalytic thinking
libido or sexual energy
what did freud think about libido
- assumed libido was active at all life stages even kids
- libido exists alongside other life-preserving drives eg hunger and pain
what does the ID seek
UNCONSCIOUS
primary process thinking
biological component
instant gratification like a baby (pleasure principle)
all libidio is in the ID in babies - always unconscious
what does the EGO seek
REALITY, TESTING
secondary process thinking
Psychological component
delay gratification
as we grow, libido flows to the ego (partly becomes conscious)
what does the SUPEREGO seek
assists the ego
social component
partly conscious and unconscious
internalizing what our parents tell us we should be doing because we don’t realize our parental directives are really the source of our unconscious
what happens when the 3 parts of the mind come into conflict
creates anxiety or other mental disturbances
list the psychosexual stages of child development
oral stage (birth to 1 year)
anal stage (18months to 3 years)
phallic stage (3-5)
latency (5-12)
genital stage (12-18+)
describe the original psychosexual stage/stage 0
the infant is polymorphously perverse - gets pleasure from any body part being stimulated
what does each stage of the psychosexual stages represent
the focus on libido on different areas of the body
what happens if each stage of the psychosexual stages is not successfully completed
individual becomes fixated and later affects personality in adulthood
describe the oral stage
erogenous zone = mouth
completion demonstrated by weaning and eating independently
oral fixation = smoking (oral receptive character), biting nails, sarcastic, critical (oral aggressive character)
describe the anal stage
erogenous zone = whether to withhold or expel faeces
completion marked by potty training
anally retentive = tidy, stubborn, obsessive, perfectionist
anally explosive = generous but disorganized, messy, thoughtless
describe the phallic stage
erogenous zone = genitals
child develops gender identity through oedipus complex
- boys have unconscious sexual feelings for mothers resolving fear of father by identifying with him
- castration anxiety so repress love for mum and identity with dad
- substituting desire for mother with other women
- girls develop penis envy ; they notice they don’t have ‘phallus’ and Electra complex
phallic personality = narcissistic, reckless, possibly homosexual
describe the latency stage
leads to children unable to remember much of their early years
sexual desires repressed
kids identify with members of their own gender
child must derive pleasure from external activities eg hobbies
conflict and issues repressed
describe the genital stage
sexual desires become conscious alongside onset of puberty
sexuality develops and libido cathects
consequence of unresolved conflict = difficulty forming heterosexual relationships
what is the theory behind defense mechanisms
the ego has to be protected from knowledge o the uncivilized, sexual and aggressive id and from anxiety
list the 12 defense mechanisms
repression, denial, projection, reaction, rationalisation, conversation, phobic avoidance, displacement, regression, isolation/intellectualization, undoing and sublimation
describe repression as a form of defense mechanism
its like conscious suppression but the motivation is unconscious.
challenges are too hard to face and are automatically dealt with the mind
describe denial as a form of defense mechanism
refusing the face reality. but its usually something very obvious to other people rather than a mental issue
describe projection as a form of defense mechanism
taking bad feelings instead o admitting we have them, and attributing them to someone else to let them take the blame
describe reaction formation as a form of defense mechanism
when you go to behavioural extremes to hide something from yourself eg you’re gay but you’re unable to accept it so you join a religion to reassure yourself you’re not gay
describe rationalisation as a form of defense mechanism
when you make a judgment or decision first and then come up for reasons for it after
describe conversation as a form of defense mechanism
when a psychological disorder is converted to a physical one
describe phobic avoidance as a form of defense mechanism
when normal fears become exaggerated
describe displacement as a form of defense mechanism
displacing feelings onto someone or something else
describe regression as a form of defense mechanism
where people who can’t deal with the responsibility of being an adult regress back to an earlier stage of development eg after trauma sucking thumb
describe isolation/intellectualization as a form of defense mechanism
an idea is too disturbing to face realistically so one talks about it abstractly eg if someone is having trouble with sex, they become a psychoanalyst to talk about it
describe undoing as a form of defense mechanism
where one performs a “magical” ritual that helps eg touch wood
describe sublimation as a form of defense mechanism
where an unacceptable instinctual desire is turned into an acceptable one which Is like it but not exactly. eg a man who paints naked women because of the sure to have sex with naked women
considered one of the healthiest mechanisms as bad impulses are converted into something creative or productive
what are 4 clinical applications of freudian theory
catharsis, abreaction, transference, counter-transference
what is catharsis
remembering the original cause of trauma
describe Anna O’s experience of hysteria which lead to the paper studies in hysteria (1895)
Catharsis led to abreaction (a type of emotional release) that offered symptomatic relief
Negative emotions caused by traumas were initially too difficult to do it so they were repressed. This repression started medical symptoms of a complex condition called hysteria. But by emotionally venting the repression was reversed and so were symptoms
describe free association as a methodology to get unconscious material in patients
the therapist makes an interpretation based on what material they come up with and if they are showing resistance
makes people aware of unconscious conflicts
what is transference
the patient may project libidinous feelings from childhood onto the therapist
briefly evaluate freud theory
- grand theory - very comprehensive
- not parsimonious - not easy to translate into testable hypothesis
- has heuristic value
name 3 Neo-freudians
Adler, Jung and Horney
describe Adler’s individual psychology
- he focused on the whole person anticipating the humanistic perspective
- stressed social context
- focus on inferiority began from observations from biology or inferior organs - noticed how people compensate
- if we fail to get over our initial feelings of inferiority, we develop a complex about it, we may become neurotic or overcompensate by acting superior
- he believed our goals matter and style of life/mindset matters a lot
- does agree “childhood is destiny” - our parents determine styles of life
- also believed family dynamics due to birth order play a crucial developmental role
what did Adler say about eldest children?
centre of attention but with birth of sibling they may become “dethroned monarch”.
child understands important of power and authority
adult characteristics are conservative, support authority and excel in intellectual activities
what did Adler say about second children
view elder child as competition
development dependent on treatment by eldest
adult characteristics = demanding of themselves, settle unrealistic goals to ensure own failure as they then did not upset older sibling
what did Adler say about youngest children
remains baby of the family, getting most attention
adult characteristics = high dependency needs, create need to excel and need for praise
what did Adler say about only children
likely to be pampered esp by mother
adult characteristics = high need for approval, great difficulty handling criticism and dislike, high achievers
what did Adler say about a neurotic personality
can result if perceived inferiorities are not compensated for but serve as excuses, or if the child is neglected
has vulnerable self-esteem (too high or low)
lack mature social interest
what are the 4 personality types according to Adler?
- ruling type
- avoiding type
- getting type
- social useful type
describe the ruling type personality
- lacks social interest and courage is typified by intense striving for personal superiority and power
- typically exploit others to accomplish goals; emotionally manipulating
- eg drug addicts or juvenile delinquents but also domineering and successful individuals as they exploit others and don’t give credit where due
overall = narcissistic, power-hungry and aggressive (high-status)
describe the avoiding type personality
-lack confidence to solve problems; pretends doesn’t exist
overall = low self-esteem, denial and evasion (low-status)
describe the getting type personality
-little effort to sort problem or will use charm to get others to do things for them
overall = parasitic, passive, lack autonomy
describe the social useful type personality
healthy option
- faces life confidently and prepared to co-operate with others
describe alders therapy approach
goal-orientated rather than focusing on unconscious causes
ask for earlier childhood recollection which is indicative of lifestyle, then enquire into birth order position, and then the history of childhood disorder (traceable to inferiority complex) then dreams and current problems
evaluate alders individual psychology theory
- more testable
- genetic sources of neurosis may be ironically underemphasized
- parismonious
- heuristic - more research on birth order
- foreshadow modern research on self esteem and status
what did carl Jung say about libido
it wasn’t sexual, it was a creative life-force
what did carl Jung say abut the mind
its a complex structure, with a balance of forces
the principles of opposites was that this energy comes out of a tension between different parts of the mind
individuation - integrate the psyche into a balanced whole (teleological and goal orientated)
what is the principle of equivalence according to carl Jung
one part of the psyche came at the expense of activity in another part eg if you expend energy being extroverted, you have less energy to spend being introverted
what is the principle of entropy according to carl jung
there is a drive towards equivalent energy expenditure in different domains to avoid imbalance
how did Jung describe the structure of the mind
There is the conscious ego and the personal unconscious. However, the personal unconscious is not only populated by uncivilized sexual and aggressive instincts. It is also a repository of positive inclinations.
also in different mythologies common themes emerge suggesting our mind tap into a shared collective substratum of archetypes eg person, shadow, anima, animus and self
what is the persona archetype
the face we show to the world
helps disguise inner feelings and respond appropriately to others
what is the shadow archetype
dark side of personality similar to ID
consists of unconscious evil
what is the anima archetype
feminine part of the male soul eg sensitivity, irrationality, vanity and moodiness
derived from a mans experience of women throughout evolution and experience o mother
what is the animus archetype
male part of the female soul eg reason, logical and social insensitivity
what is the self archetype
the archetype we strive to become
we reach it through a process of individuation = creating a balance within psych and coming to accept oneself as one really is
what was carl Jungs approach to treatment
neurosis was the result of one-sided development so balance restoration needed
also used dream but through method of amplification (unpack meaning of symbols)
4 stages of therapy = confession, elucidation, education and transformation
evaluate jungs theory
idiosyncratic - uses a lot of myths
archetypes very hard to demonstrate and test but dreams are testable
not that parsimonious
good heuristic value
what did Horney say neurosis stemmed from
not successfully processing perverse instinctual drives
poor or inconsistent parenting leading to basic anxiety in child and then develops defensive attitudes
children become alienated from true self and create idealized selves to compensate
what did Horney emphasise
family, society and culture
what defense mechanisms did Horney add?
blind spots = denial
compartmentalization = double-think
rationalization = excuses after the fact
excessive self-control = superego too active
arbitrary rightness = just assume they are right
elusiveness = can pin them down
cynicism = don’t build up hopes
what did Horney call the process of using defense mechanisms
externalisaiton
describe horneys compliant personality type
- desperately need other people, submissive and devalue own abilities
people style - moving towards people
describe horneys aggressive personality type
- need power, social recognition and admiration
- believe others are hostile and untrustworthy
people style = moving against people
describe horneys healthy personality type
adopts all 3 personality styles but they complement each other
what is horneys critique of penis envy
women don’t want a literal male phallus, but want opportunity to symbolize it (power)
also suggested some men envy capacity to bear children - womb envy
