freud's theory of aggression

Question 1

what was Freud’s psychodynamic explanation for aggression?

Answer 1

• 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’

Question 2

what does thanatos drive us towards?

Answer 2

self destruction

Question 3

what is thanatos?

Answer 3

our natural instinct

Question 4

over time what does Thanatos create?

Answer 4

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

Question 5

what is the conscious?

Answer 5

the small amount of mental activity we know

Question 6

what is the preconscious?

Answer 6

things we could be aware of if we wanted or tried

Question 7

what’s the unconscious?

Answer 7

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

Question 8

what is repression?

Answer 8

blocking unconscious thoughts and placing them in the unconscious

Question 9

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

Answer 9

ID
ego
superego

Question 10

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

Answer 10

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

Question 11

describe the EGO in relation to the iceburg

Answer 11

• 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)

Question 12

describe the SUPEREGO in relation to the iceburg

Answer 12

• 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

Question 13

describe the ID in relation to the iceburg

Answer 13

• 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

Question 14

what is our ID?

Answer 14

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

Question 15

what is the ego?

Answer 15

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

Question 16

what is the superego?

Answer 16

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

Question 17

what happens if a persons ID is too dominant?

Answer 17

this could lead to aggression

Question 18

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

Answer 18

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

Question 19

what is displacement?

Answer 19

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

Question 20

what is projection?

Answer 20

• 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

Question 21

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

Answer 21

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

Question 22

what is catharsis?

Answer 22

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.

Question 23

what does preventing catharsis do?

Answer 23

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

Question 24

give examples of catharsis

Answer 24

• watching emotive films
• playing aggressive games
• boxing

Question 25

evidence against

Answer 25

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.

Question 26

application

Answer 26

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.

Question 27

strengths

Answer 27

• 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.

Question 28

shortcomings

Answer 28

• 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.

Question 29

alternative

Answer 29

social learning theory