Ch 2 Outline 1 - Psychoanalytic Theory

Flashcards covering key vocabulary from Freud's Psychoanalytic Theory, including the Oedipal and Electra complexes, as well as critiques and alternative theories from Karen Horney and Nancy Chodorow.

Freud's Psychoanalytic Theory

A theory of psychosexual development, dominant for over half a century, which popularized the idea of developmental stages in psychology, though largely focused on male development due to sexism.

Oedipal Complex

In Freud's phallic stage, a boy's sexual desire for his mother and competition with his father, resolving into adopting the father's values for moral and ethical development.

Electra Complex

In Freud's phallic stage, a girl's upset over not having a penis (penis envy), blamed on her mother, and a desire to be with her father sexually to metaphorically get a penis, leading to feelings of inadequacy compared to men.

Penis Envy (Freud)

Freud's concept describing a girl's upset realization that she doesn't have a penis, which he believed leads to the Electra complex.

Karen Horney

An early female psychoanalyst who critiqued Freud, proposing that men have 'womb envy' which drives their over-achievement as an overcompensation for their inability to create life.

Womb Envy (Horney)

Karen Horney's concept suggesting that men experience envy of women's ability to bear children, leading them to overcompensate through various forms of achievement.

Nancy Chodorow's Psychoanalytic Theory of Gender Roles

A feminist psychoanalytic approach suggesting women typically do childcare due to stronger emotional attachment with daughters, and that equal sharing of parenting duties between mothers and fathers would foster greater gender equality.

Criticisms of Freud and Chodorow's Theories

Based on subjective observations rather than objective measurements, only consider heterosexual relationships and cisgender people, and exhibit a lack of intersectionality by not considering social class or race.