freud's theory of aggression Flashcards

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1
Q

what was Freud’s psychodynamic explanation for aggression?

A
  • he said that we have an unconscious drive that causes aggressive behaviour
  • its caused by an internal force, our natural instinct that Freud names ‘Thanatos’
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2
Q

what does thanatos drive us towards?

A

self destruction

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3
Q

what is thanatos?

A

our natural instinct

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4
Q

over time what does Thanatos create?

A

over time Thanatos builds up, creating pressure which we can’t control and makes us do something aggressive

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5
Q

what is the conscious?

A

the small amount of mental activity we know

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6
Q

what is the preconscious?

A

things we could be aware of if we wanted or tried

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7
Q

what’s the unconscious?

A

things we are unaware of and can’t become aware of

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8
Q

what is repression?

A

blocking unconscious thoughts and placing them in the unconscious

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9
Q

what are the 3 parts of freud’s personality theory?

A

ID
ego
superego

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10
Q

describe how each part of freud’s theory look in relation to an iceburg? top to bottom

A

ego (reality)
super ego (morality)
ID (instintcs)

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11
Q

describe the EGO in relation to the iceburg

A
  • the EGO is reality and is at the top of the iceberg
  • this includes our thoughts and perceptions
  • it it our conscious (the small amount of mental activity we know)
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12
Q

describe the SUPEREGO in relation to the iceburg

A
  • the superego is morality
  • it is mixed with the preconscious and the unconscious and it goes from top to bottom of the iceberg
  • the pre-conscious involves stored knowledge and memories
  • the unconscious includes bad things such as fears, violent motives, unacceptable sexual desires, irrational wishes
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13
Q

describe the ID in relation to the iceburg

A
  • this is our instincts
  • it is part of repression (when we block unconscious thoughts and placing them in the unconscious)
  • this includes really bad things such as selfish needs, shameful experiences, traumatic experiences, immoral urges
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14
Q

what is our ID?

A

-our unconscious
-it’s pleasure orientated and selfish
-insatiable instincts are present from birth

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15
Q

what is the ego?

A

-our conscious
-driven by the reality principle
-balances conflicting demands of the ID and superego

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16
Q

what is the superego?

A
  • the last part of personality to develop
  • develops through socialization
  • concerned with morality, right and wrong
17
Q

what happens if a persons ID is too dominant?

A

this could lead to aggression

18
Q

if a persons ego and super ergo are well developed what does this mean?

A

their aggressive urges remain in the unconscious mind
we are unaware of any violent urges we may feel because they are out of our conscious thought and so our D impulses are well controlled

19
Q

what is displacement?

A

you take out your anger and frustration on a person or object not the actual target of your anger
e.g. after being yelled at by your teacher you go home and yell at your mum or kick the dog/cat

20
Q

what is projection?

A
  • A person accuses someone of having particular thoughts that they themselves are having to avoid responsibility for a behaviour
  • For example, a person who realizes they are being aggressive in an argument accuse the other person of being aggressive. This deflects criticism from their own behaviour onto the other person and so they can continue with their aggressive behaviour
21
Q

what did freud believe with how we deal with our aggression?

A

Freud believed we deal with our aggressive instincts by redirecting them into other activities. It is a way of ‘letting off steam’ in a safer way than responding to situations in an aggressive manner
e.g. projection and displacement

22
Q

what is catharsis?

A

Humans are not uncontrollably aggressive all of the time. This is because of catharsis. Catharsis is the process of releasing negative energy from the mind. It is a way of:
venting aggression
letting off steam
releasing emotions
satisfying our violent impulses
This makes us feel better, but in a safer way than acting in a highly aggressive manner towards others.

23
Q

what does preventing catharsis do?

A

So preventing catharsis builds up energy and could lead to aggressive behaviour

24
Q

give examples of catharsis

A
  • watching emotive films
  • playing aggressive games
  • boxing
25
Q

evidence against

A

Bushman (2002):
Found that students who were allowed to vent their anger after being criticised, blasted a confederate with the longest and loudest noises compared to controls.
This goes against the idea that venting proves cathartic in reducing aggression.
This suggests that evidence is inconsistent.

26
Q

application

A

Can be used to prevent a build-up of destructive aggressive energy. People can build into their lives harmless ways of expressing anger. These are based on Freudian concepts such as displacement, for example hitting an object rather than a person i.e. boxing. This means that Freud’s theory offers a practical solution to reduce aggressive behaviour with potential benefits for individual and wider society.

27
Q

strengths

A
  • The role of both nature and nurture are accounted for in this explanation of aggression as the id is present from birth and the ego develops over time through socialisation. This highlights the innate tendency for aggression and the role of socialisation e.g. parenting in the development of aggression.
  • The theory, unlike brain structure explanation can explain individual differences in the development of aggression e.g. development of the ego through parenting and primary socialisation.
28
Q

shortcomings

A
  • Not scientific – we cannot objectively measure these parts of our personality and therefore cannot falsify it. This is because of the emphasis that Freud places one the role of the unconscious mind.
  • Reductionist explanation that aggression stems from a dominate id – ignores other factors such as brain structure. However, Freud does take account of childhood experiences, so from this point of view, the theory is more holistic.
29
Q

alternative

A

social learning theory