Week 2 (Psychodynamic approaches)

Question 1

What latin word does personality derive from.

Answer 1

“Persona” meaning “mask”

Question 2

What does does empirical validity mean?

Answer 2

Means that theory is shown to be valid

Question 3

When was Sigmund Freud alive?

Answer 3

1856-1939

Question 4

What was Freud’s main belief?

Answer 4

That the unconscious mind was far more powerful than previously thought.

Question 5

Freud’s topographic model

Answer 5

The conscious (tip of the iceberg)
-We pay attention to objects perceived, events recalled, thoughts.

The preconscious
-Memories, plans, wishes, ideas which in the present are out of consciousness but can be made out of conscious.

The unconscious
-Mental contents and processes that cannot be made conscious.

Question 6

What is the primary and secondary process thinking

Answer 6

Primary
-Irrational mental activity
-Making the logically impossible, possible.
-Pleasure principle

Secondary
-Rational, logical, organised
-Conscious and preconscious
-Reality principle

Question 7

What does Freud believe to be the two fundamental drives

Answer 7

1. Libido- born with a fixed amount of mental energy which will later become adult sexual drives.
2. Life-preserving drives (e.g., hunger, pain)

Question 8

Freud’s theoretical models

Answer 8

-The topographic model
-The structural model
-The psychosexual model

Question 9

What does Freud’s structural model consist of?

Answer 9

Consists of the ego, the superego, and the ID

Question 10

What is ID in Freud’s structural model

Answer 10

ID:
-Instinctual drives powered by a reservoir of instinctual “psychic energy”
-Source of survival drives, sexual drives, and aggressive drives
-Freud believed only ID is present in infants
-Derives from the ‘pleasure principle’ - all urges strive to obtain pleasure and avoid displeasure.
Delayed gratification = “If you wait patiently your needs will be met”
Immediate gratification = ‘I want it all now’

Question 11

What is the Ego in Freud’s structural model

Answer 11

The Ego:
-Through development, libido energy transfers into ego
-Executive part of personality which regulates behaviour and channels it in a particular direction in accordance with the external environment.
-Follows the “reality principle” and becomes the mediator between the child and external world
-Still trying to get what they want but now taking social expectations into account.

Question 12

What is the superego in Freud’s structural model

Answer 12

Superego:
-Conscience of the child and helps make judgements about what is right or wrong
-Comprised of internalised moral values and parental attitudes
-It is in the opposition of ID and it helps ego rechannel immoral impulses
-If ego would allow immoral ID impulses, superego would turn against ego.

Question 13

What are the developmental stages of Freud’s psychosexual model?

Answer 13

-Oral stage
-Anal stage
-Phallic stage
-Latency stage
-Genital stage

Question 14

What is the Oral stage in Freud’s psychosexual model?

Answer 14

-From birth - 12 months
-Dependency: Feeding, weaning, teething.
-Fixation: (when stuck on this stage in later life) Excessive enjoyment on food, gum, smoking, chewing.

Over-indulged as a child: Oral receptive personality. Overly dependent, too trusting and gullible
Under-indulged as a child: Oral aggressive personality.
-Exploitative attitudes towards others.

Question 15

What is the anal stage in Freud’s psychosexual model?

Answer 15

-From 18 months - 3 years
-Orderliness / control: Mobility, language, potty. training.
-Fixation can occur is potty training is done poorly
-Anally expulsive personality- untidy, disorganised and disregard accepted rules
-Anally retentive personality - orderly, stingy, and stubborn with tendency to hoard things

Question 16

What is the phallic stage in Freud’s psychosexual model?

Answer 16

-From 3 - 5 years
-Identification/ Conscience: Gaining awareness of sex and gender
-Fixation: guilt feelings, problems with intimacy and romantic/ sexual relationships.
-Phallic personality - boastful, narcissistic and vain.

Question 17

What is the latency stage in Freud’s psychosexual model?

Answer 17

-From 5-12 years
-Sublimation of impulses: Play and socialising
-Characterised by low levels of sexual feelings are repressed or displaced onto there activities. “Dormant sexual feelings are repressed or displaced onto other activities.
-Fixation on this stage –> lack of close friends and inability to make meaningful friendships as an adult.

Question 18

What is the genital stage in Freud’s psychosexual model?

Answer 18

-From 12-18 years
-Maturing sexuality & relationships: Developing independence
-Changes in the body reawaken the libido
-Maturation of sexual interests & romantic interests
-Usually eats to normal adult sexual/ psychological development.

Question 19

What is the Oedipus complex?

Answer 19

-Occurs during the phallic stage, when a boy becomes aware of his mother as a sexual object and feels hostility towards his father.
-Castration anxiety - sees father as powerful, threatening figure.
-Ends successfully by accepting the impossibility of this fantasy and the eventual identification with the father.
-The “Law of the father” is the first major ‘touchstone’ for superego formation.

Question 20

What is the Electra complex?

Answer 20

-Parallel to the Oedipus complex
-Girl wishes to selfishly possess her father and feels hostility towards her mother.
-Penis envy (realisation of genitals difference) - equivalent of castration anxiety.
-Ends ‘successfully’ by accepting the impossibility of this fantasy and eventual identification with the mother
-However, Freud believed that girls cannot fully resolve this stage resulting in weaker ego functioning.

Question 21

What are theories evaluated on?

Answer 21

-Description = identify behaviour
-Explanation = understand behaviour
-Empirical validity = shown to be valid
-Testable concepts = can be measured
-Comprehensiveness = wide variety of behaviours
-Parsimony =all concepts are measured
-Heuristic value = stimulate interest
-Applied value =practical usefulness

Question 22

Pros and cons of the “description” of freud’s theory

Answer 22

Pros
-Addressed the complexities of human behaviour
-Opened doors for future research and debates on personality and development

Cons
-Published very few case studies
-Did not annotate his case studies - poor qualitative data
-Based on his theories on neurotic individuals - not general sample

Question 23

Pros and Cons of the “explanation” of Freud’s theory

Answer 23

Pros
-Good face validity: we are all aware of the conflicts caused by making choices and anxiety this can cause. E.g. By doing X we still feel guilty.

Cons
-Some vagueness on what is exactly needed for normal development
-E.g. not clear how much oral stimulation is sufficient

Question 24

Pros and Cons of the “Empirical Validity” and “Testable concepts” of Freud’s theory

Answer 24

Pros
-Support for some of the concepts despite methodological difficulties for the studies
-E.g. ego defence mechanism

Cons
-Large areas of Freud’s work remain untested and little attempts in recent psychology to do so
-Very weak evidence for the Oedipus complex, and seemingly none for the Electra complex (Hunt, 1979)

Question 25

Pros and Cons of “Comprehensiveness” of Freud’s theory

Answer 25

Pros
-Very comprehensive including wealth of topics

Cons
N/A

Question 26

Pros and Cons of “Parsimony” of Freud’s theory

Answer 26

Pros
-Fairly parsimonious with the rest

Cons
-Does not meet parsimony criteria in terms of the motivational drives - too restrictive.

Question 27

Pros and Cons of “Heuristic Value” of Freud’s theory

Answer 27

Pros
-Enormous impact which still provokes debate 100 years later
-Influenced treatment and motivated others to develop alternative approaches

Cons
N/A

Question 28

Pros and Cons of “Applied Value” of Freud’s theory

Answer 28

Pros
-Huge advances in treatment and humane treatment f patients
-Psychoanalysis shown to be effective with certain disorders.

Cons
N/A

Question 29

What were the differences of Jung and Freud’s beliefs about “Nature and purpose of the libido”

Answer 29

Jung: A generalised source of psychic energy motivating a range of behaviours
Freud: A source oh psychic energy specific to sexual gratification

Question 30

What were the differences of Jung and Freud’s beliefs about the “nature of the unconscious”

Answer 30

Jung: A storehouse of repressed memories specific to the individual and our ancestral past
Freud: A storehouse for unacceptable repressed desires specific to the individual

Question 31

What were the differences of Jung and Freud’s beliefs about the “Cause of behaviour”

Answer 31

Jung: Past experiences in addition to future aspiration
Freud: Past experiences particularly in childhood/

Question 32

What did Alfred Adler argue?

Answer 32

-Argued for role of children’s feelings of inferiority and need to compensate –> striving for superiority
-Social interest and desire to contribute to society
-Birth order contributes significantly to individual development.

Question 33

What were Karen Horney’s beliefs on Freud’s theory?

Answer 33

-AGREED that anxiety-provoking experiences in childhood can result in maladjustment
-BUT argued that environmental forces have a greater role in mental life than Freud theorised: and that need for security and warmth is ore important than instinctual drives.