The psychoanalytic approach

What is psychic determinism

every psychological effect has a cause, often outside conscious awareness

Why did Freud use free association and dream interpretation?

To uncover unconscious causes of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

What is libido in Freud's theory?

Limited mental energy available for thinking, feeling, and motivating behavior.

What is catharsis theory?

Expressing anger releases mental energy that would otherwise be suppressed.

What is Thanatos?

Freud's proposed drive toward death, thought to contribute to risk-taking.

What is the id?

Entirely unconscious; follows the pleasure principle and seeks immediate gratification.

What is the ego?

Follows the reality principle and seeks satisfaction while considering consequences.

What is the superego?

The mostly unconscious part focused on morality and social values.

What is a compromise formation?

A compromise the ego finds between the id's desires and the superego's rules.

What are the three features of each psychosexual stage?

Physical focus, psychological theme, and adult character type.

What are the oral stage's age range and psychological theme?

Birth to 18 months; dependency.

What adult traits are associated with oral fixation?

Extreme dependence on others or mistrust and excessive self-reliance.

What are the anal stage's age range and psychological theme?

18 months to 3.5–4 years; self-control versus obedience.

What adult traits are associated with anal fixation?

A strong need for control and certainty, or impulsiveness and disregard for authority.

What is the physical focus of the phallic stage?

Genitalia and other sexual organs.

What psychological themes occur in the phallic stage?

Gender identity, socialization, sexuality, attraction, and jealousy.

What is identification in the phallic stage?

Taking on the attitudes, behaviors, and perspectives of the same-sex parent.

What adult traits are associated with phallic character?

An overly rigid morality or hypersexualized or other amoral behavior.

When does the genital stage begin, and what does it involve?

Hopefully at puberty; mature sexual expression, relationships, and reproduction.

What characterizes the genital character?

Psychological stability and adjustment; Freud believed few people achieved this.

According to Freud, what does mental health involve?

To love and to work.

What is fixation?

An inability to completely transfer libido to the next developmental stage.

What is regression?

A return of libidinal energy to a previously completed stage.

What is secondary process thinking?

Conscious, logical, rational thinking associated with the ego; related to explicit attitudes.

What is primary process thinking?

Unconscious thinking associated with the id's pursuit of gratification; related to implicit attitudes.

What are the three levels of Freud's topographic model?

Conscious, pre-conscious, and unconscious.

What is the pre-conscious mind?

Information not currently in awareness but that can be brought into consciousness.

What is the unconscious mind?

Mental content generally inaccessible to the person; psychoanalysis seeks to uncover it.

What is denial?

Unconsciously excluding information from beliefs about an event, leading someone to deny it.

What is repression?

Pushing a memory into the unconscious so it cannot be consciously accessed.

What is projection?

Relocating one's own personal flaw or unacceptable feeling onto others.

What is displacement?

Redirecting an unacceptable impulse toward a safer target.

What is reaction formation?

Responding to an impulse by adopting an exaggerated opposite position.

What is sublimation?

Redirecting an impulse into a socially valued outlet.

What is rationalization?

Justifying behavior with logical-sounding explanations while avoiding the real unconscious motives.

What is intellectualization?

Focusing on facts while avoiding the emotions connected to a situation.