Psychodynamic approach Flashcards
(9 cards)
Key assumptions
The driving force behind behaviour is the unconscious mind
Early childhood is pivotal in influencing who we are today
Three levels to the mind
Conscious: thoughts, feelings, memories which are accessible and aware of by individuals
Preconscious: thoughts, feelings, memories that could be accessible if a person wanted to
Unconscious: thoughts, feelings, memories not accessible to an individual
role of the unconscious
Freud believed the largest part of the mind was the unconscious mind, which drives behaviour in day to day life. It reveals itself in slips of the tongue (Freudian slips). The unconscious prevents negative thoughts, feelings and memories from reaching the conscious to avoid anxiety and depression.
the structure of personality
The ID (0-1 years): operates on the pleasure principle in the unconscious mind. The ID deals with feelings, needs and seeks pleasure
The superego (1-3 years): operates on the reality principle in the Conscious mind. The superego creates a balance between the ID and the EGO
The ego (3-6 years): operates on the morality principle in the unconscious mind. The ego acts as a moral guide based on parental and societal norms
Defence mechanisms
Defence mechanisms: prevent the conscious mind becoming aware of any negative thoughts, feelings or memories that a person may be experiencing:
Repression: the unconscious blocking unacceptable thoughts, but these still influence behaviour
Denial: refusal to accept reality to avoid having to deal with any painful feelings that may be associated with traumatic situations
Displacement: a strong emotion is expressed onto another person or object
psychosexual stages
Freud believed that personality is developed through a sequence of five stages called the psychosexual stages to emphasis that the most important driving force in development is the need to express sexual energy (libido).
The unconscious conflict between stages must be overcome to move onto the next, or fixation could occur leading to permanent traits in the future.
1) Oral (0-1): the pleasure in the mouth
2) Anal (1-3): the pleasure of the anus withholding and expelling faeces
3) Phallic (3-5): the pleasure of the genitals
4) Latent (6-12): previous conflicts resolved or repressed and early years are largely forgotten
5) Genital (12+): sexual desire becomes conscious through puberty
Phallic stages
Oedipus complex: boys sexual desire for the mother and hatred towards the father whom they see as their rival. Thy fear the father will castrate them.
Electra complex: girls experience penis envy and desire the father, believing the mother castrated them
Psychodynamic approach +
+) PD concepts such as defence mechanisms have an intuitive appeal, where most people appreciate the ideas of repression, denial and displacement
+) PD has practical applications, leading to the development of psychoanalysis – a therapy for the treatment of anxiety disorders. This laid the groundwork for psychotherapy in modern psychiatry
Psychodynamic approach -
+/-) The case of Little Hans supports the Oedipus complex. However, the Oedipus complex can only be inferred from behaviour, where subjective interpretation is open to investigator bias. The PD therefore lacks scientific rigour.
-) key concepts of the PD such as the unconscious mind and defence mechanisms lacks falsifiability because they are unconscious processes and difficult to check . This makes it difficult to move forward with scientific knowledge
-) concepts of the PD are based on small samples due to the reliance of the case study method. This poses problems of generalisability.
-) the model can be criticised as Freud assumes that abnormalities are caused by childhood trauma and problems. Therefore, this does not account for current problems patients may be experiencing
