Psychoanalytic Theory

Question 1

Describe Freud’s view of human nature. (What drives human behavior?)

Answer 1

According to Freud, human nature is driven by unconscious motivations and biological/instinctual drives that result from the outcomes of psychosexual stages from ages 1-6.

Question 2

According to Freud, what is responsible for human aggression?

Answer 2

Death instincts.

Question 3

Describe Freud’s triune view of human personality.

Answer 3

According to Freud, the personality consists of the:

• Id
• Ego
• Superego

Question 4

Describe the Id

Answer 4

Id:

• the unconscious innate drives and impulses
• is amoral and illogical; strives to satisfy instinctual needs

Question 5

Describe the Ego.

Answer 5

Ego:

• Has contact with external reality
• mediates between the external environment and the Id.
• Aims to protect the person by checking the blind impulses of the Id.

Question 6

Describe the Superego.

Answer 6

• the judicial branch of the personality
• A person’s moral code; represents the ideals and societal values passed from parents to children.
• Judges whether actions are right or wrong. Strives for perfection, not pleasure.

Question 7

In psychoanalysis, inferences about the subconscious can be made by examining:

Answer 7

• Dreams
• Slips of the tongue
• Post-hypnotic suggestions
• material obtained from free-association
• material obtained from projection techniques
• Symbolic content from psychotic symptoms

Question 8

The aim of psychoanalytic therapy, is to:

Answer 8

• The aim is to uncover the client’s unconscious motives and repressed issues. Acknowledging and facing the issues allows them to find better coping mechanisms/behaviors.

Question 9

Describe anxiety as per the psychodynamic theory.

Answer 9

Anxiety is a feeling of dread that occurs when repressed memories or desires are brought into the person’s awareness.

Question 10

What is the purpose of ego-defense mechanisms?

Answer 10

Help the person cope with anxiety and prevent the ego from becoming overwhelmed.

Question 11

Name the 11 Types of Ego-Defense Mechanisms

Answer 11

• Repression
• Denial
• Reaction formation
• Projection
• Displacement
• Rationalization
• Sublimation
• Regression
• Introjection
• Identification
• Compensation

Question 12

How did Erickson’s view differ from Freud’s

Answer 12

Erickson built upon Freud’s basic ideas, emphasizing the psychosocial aspects of development in childhood and beyond.

Question 13

In classical psychoanalysis, the clinician uses the blank-screen approach. What is the blank-screen approach?

Answer 13

The counselor takes an anonymous, non-judgmental stance.

Question 14

Clinicians avoid ____-_______, and try to stay neutral to foster a ________ relationship - where clients project onto them.

Answer 14

Clinicians avoid self-disclosure

Foster a transference relationship.

Question 15

Describe the process of free-association.

Answer 15

Client faces away from counselor and is free to express ideas, emotions, feelings, experiences, etc. immediately as they come to mind.

Question 16

Describe the counselor-client relationship in classical psychoanalysis.

Answer 16

The counselor stays distant from the client, and offers interpretations.

Question 17

Describe the counselor-client relationship in contemporary psychoanalysis.

Answer 17

The counselor focuses on current issues, as well as repressed issues from the past.

Question 18

What is Transference?

Answer 18

When the client unconsciously shifts feelings, attitudes, and fantasies onto the counselor, which are reactions to significant early relationships during their development. The therapist serves as a substitute for significant others.

Question 19

What is counter-transference?

Answer 19

When content from the session triggers an emotional response from the counselor’s past, causing the counselor to lose objectivity or responds irrationally to the client.

Question 20

What are the 7 basic techniques used in psychoanalysis?

Answer 20

• Maintaining the analytic framework
• Free Association
• Interpretation
• Dream Analysis
• Dream Work
• Analysis of Resistance
• Analysis of Transference

Question 21

How did Jung’s perspective differ from the classical psychoanalytic.

Answer 21

• Jungian psychology combines ideas from history, mythology, anthropology, and religion.
• Jung disagreed with Freud’s view of sexuality.
• Jung viewed people in a more positive light.

Question 22

What was Jung’s contribution to our understanding of personality and personal development?

Answer 22

• Jung popularized the notion of the mid-life crisis, saying that in midlife, one must let go of previous values and behaviors, and confront the unconscious.
• Jung said that we are shaped by our future aspirations and past experiences– not JUST by past experiences.
• Jung said that we all share a collective unconsciousness .)

Question 23

Describe the purpose of Jungian therapy.

Answer 23

Jungian therapy seeks to help the client tap into their inner wisdom, helping them not only solve immediate problems, but transform their entire personality.