jones - psychodynamic approach

Question 1

What is the psychodynamic approach?

Answer 1

A perspective that describes the different forces (dynamics) most which are unconscious that operate on the mind and direct human behaviour and experience.

Question 2

What did Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) develop?

Answer 2

Psychoanalysis (theory of mental life)
-> emphasises the psychodynamics of the mind (forces that operate + inner mental conflicts)
-> therapy: pressure is released by expressing

Question 3

What are the three levels of the mind according to freud?

Answer 3

1) conscious
2) unconscious
3) preconscious

Question 4

What is the conscious part of the brain?

Answer 4

all of the thoughts, memories, feelings, and wishes of which we are aware of

Question 5

What is the pre-conscious part of the brain?

Answer 5

Thoughts and ideas which we can easily gain access to
-> “slips of the tongue”: calling a female teacher “mum” instead of “miss”
-> dreams

Question 6

What is the unconscious part of the brain? and what is its role?

Answer 6

Processes we are not aware of (eg. biological instincts, threatening and disturbing memories)
-> Role: locks away / represses memories that cause anxiety or depression

Question 7

What is the structure of personality?

Answer 7

1) Id
2) Ego
3) Superego

Question 8

What is the id?

Answer 8

-primitive part of personality
-present at birth
-entirely selfish
-demands instant gratification of its needs

Question 9

What principle is the id based on?

Answer 9

Pleasure principle

Question 10

What are babies called according to Freud?

Answer 10

bundles of Id

Question 11

What is the ego?

Answer 11

-develops at around the age of two
-mediator be tween the two other parts of the personality (reduces conflict)
-employs a number of defence mechanisms (unconscious strategies)

Question 12

What principle is the ego based on?

Answer 12

Reality principle

Question 13

What is the superego?

Answer 13

-formed at the end of phallic stage (age of five)
-internalised sense of right and wrong
-represents moral standards of the same sex parent

Question 14

What principle is the superego based on?

Answer 14

Morality
-> punishes the ego for wrongdoing through guilt

Question 15

What are defence mechanisms?

Answer 15

-unconscious strategies
-employed by the ego
-purpose: prevent people from experiencing anxiety caused by the id and the superego
-> protect ego and maintain self esteem

Question 16

What are the three main defence mechanisms?

Answer 16

1) repression
2) denial
3) displacement

Question 17

What is repression?

Answer 17

banishing anxiety arousing thoughts and feelings from conscious part of the brain

Question 18

What is denial?

Answer 18

The unwillingness to face or accept unpleasant events

Question 19

What is displacement?

Answer 19

Taking out aggression on an object or human other than the one originally directed at

Question 20

What are psychosexual stages?

Answer 20

-occurs throughout child development
-failing to resolve conflicts during particular stages will lead to problems later on in life

Question 21

What are the five psychosexual stages?

Answer 21

1) oral
2) anal
3) phallic
4) latency
5) genital

Question 22

What psychosexual stage is the id associated with?

Answer 22

oral

Question 23

What psychosexual stage is the ego associated with?

Answer 23

anal

Question 24

What psychosexual stage is the superego associated with?

Answer 24

phallic

Question 25

When do the psychosexual stages throughout child development?

Answer 25

1) oral - 0 to 1 years 2) anal - 1 to 3 years 3) phallic - 3 to 5 years

Question 26

What is the description of the oral psychosexual stage?

Answer 26

-focus of pleasure is the mouth -mother's breast is the object of desire

Question 27

What are the consequences if the conflict is unresolved in the oral stage?

Answer 27

oral fixation -smoking -biting nails -sarcastic -critical -overreacting

Question 28

What is the description of the anal psychosexual stage?

Answer 28

-focus of the pleasure is the anus -child gains pleasure from withholding and expelling faces

Question 29

What are the consequences if the conflict is unresolved in the anal stage?

Answer 29

1) anal retentive -perfectionist -obsessive -stingy 2) anal expulsive -thoughtless -messy

Question 30

What is the description of the phallic psychosexual stage?

Answer 30

-focus of pleasure is the genital area -child experiences the Oedipus or the Electra complex

Question 31

What are the consequences if the conflict is unresolved in the phallic stage?

Answer 31

phallic personality -narcissistic -reckless -identity with gender issues (possibly homosexual)

Question 32

What is the description of the latency psychosexual stage?

Answer 32

earlier conflicts are repressed

Question 33

What is the description of the genital psychosexual stage?

Answer 33

sexual desires become conscious alongside the onset of puberty

Question 34

What are the consequences if genital stage?

Answer 34

difficulty forming heterosexual relationships

Question 35

What is a summary of the complex freud introduced?

Answer 35

A child develops... -feelings of desire for their opposite sex parent -jealousy and rivalry towards their same sex parent -during the phallic stage of the psychosexual development (3-6 years old)

Question 36

What is the oedipus complex?

Answer 36

Boys - involves unconscious feelings of desire for the mother and rivalry with the father, whom they view as a competitor

Question 37

What is the castration fear?

Answer 37

a fear of punishment from the father boys feel -> resolution; identification of the father - helps internalise male roles and morality

Question 38

What is the electra complex?

Answer 38

Girls - feels desire foe her father and envy for her mother (less developed in Freud's work)

Question 39

What is the case study of little hans?

Answer 39

-conducted in 1909 -involved a five year old boy with a phobia of horses (freud interpreted as stemming from the oedipus complex) -> fear of horses: unconscious fear of father whom he saw as a rival for his mother's attention -> fear of being bitten: anxiety over potential punishment for these feelings

Question 40

What are some strengths of the psychodynamic approach?

Answer 40

+theraputic applications: psychoanalysis +insight into unconscious process +focus on childhood impact

Question 41

What are some weaknesses of the psychodynamic approach?

Answer 41

-lack of scientific evidence: based on interpretations -highly subjective -> falsification -deterministic