CHAPTER 4: understanding the self PSYCHOLOGY

PSYCHOLOGY

PSYCHOLOGY

is the scientific study of the mind and behavior. It is multidisciplinary.

PERSONALITY

the long-standing traits and patterns that move people to consistently think, feel, and behave in a certain way. Personalities are said to be long term,stable, and not easily changed.

SIGMUND FREUD

Freud argued that most of the time we do not understand why we do what we do. For him, our mind is like an iceberg where the unconscious part is the larger part.

ID 

- forms the basis of our most primitive impulses and it is Entirely unconscious.

- driven by the pleasure principle.

EGO

- based on the reality principle.

- the decision-maker of personality

- balances the id and superego.

SUPEREGO

- sense of morality.

- tells us what we should not do or the duties and obligations of society

- driven by perfection

Theories of PERSONALITY

FREUD'S PSYCHOSEXUAL DEVELOPMENT

It argues that personality is developed through a series of psychosexual stages wherein each stage focuses on pleasure from a different part of the body

First Stage: Oral Stage 

-It begins from birth and lasts until 18 months of age.

-the infant gets sexual pleasure by sucking and drinking. When infants receive either too little or too much gratification, they

become fixated in the oral stage.

Second Stage: Anal Stage

-It happens from 18 months to 3 years of age.

-pleasure comes from bowel movements. This is also the age where they are being toilet trained and that delays their gratification.

-if a child’s toilet training was too harsh, the child will be anal retentive wherein the child will become stingy and be too orderly and tidy. If the parents are too lenient, the child becomes anal expulsive. This is characterized by a lack of self-control, messiness, and carelessness.

Third Stage:   PHALLIC STAGE

-Lasts from age 3 to age 6

-The primary erogenous zone for sexual pleasure is the penis for

boys and the clitoris for the girls. In this stage, the children develop

an unconscious strong attraction for parent (opposite-sex) and a

desire to eliminate the same-sex parent. Freud based this on the

story of Oedipus.

-Freud believed that girls experience penis envy in this stage

Fourth Stage: LATENCY STAGE

-6 years to 12 years of age

-a period of relative calm sexual impulses were repressed during this stage 

-a time of exploration in which the sexual energy repressed or dormant 

-energy is still present, but it is sublimated into other areas such

as intellectual pursuits and social interactions

Fifth Stage: GENITAL STAGE

-begins at 12 years and lasts into adulthood, sexual impulses

return.

-if development has proceeded normally up to this stage then

the child will able to move into the development of mature

romantic relationships.

-if earlier problems are not resolved then the child will have a

hard time establishing intimate love attachments.