Psychodynamic approach

Assumptions

• Behaviour is determined by unconscious mental conflict - psychic determinism

• Tripartite structure of personality- Id, super ego & ego

• When the ego becomes overwhelmed by conflict between id & superego, it uses defence mechanisms

• Importance of childhood experiences & childhood development through 5 psychosexual stages

Iceberg analogy

• Conscious

• Preconscious

• Unconscious

Conscious

What you’re aware of here and now

Preconscious

What you can recall with a little effort

Unconscious

• Part of mind that we’re unaware of

• 9/10 of mind

• Content can’t be accessed

• Requires great effort to be uncovered eg therapy

Freudian slips

Unintentional errors regarded as revealing unconscious feelings

ID (pleasure principle)

• Present at birth

• Instructive part of personality

• “I want that”

• Wants to be satisfied & won’t tolerate delay or denial of its wishes

Superego (morality principle)

• Develops at age 5

• “You can’t have that”

• Conscience given by parents, rules etc

• Sense of right & wrong, morals

• Reward with pride or punish with guilt

Ego (reality principle)

• Develops age 2

• Balances demands of id & restraints of superego

• Rational part of personality

• Thinks logically

Defence mechanisms

• Unconscious strategies used by the ego when the id & superego are in disagreement

• Protects a person from anxiety

• Prevents painful unconscious thoughts & memories from becoming conscious

Denial

Making yourself believe something won’t happen when in fact it will

Displacement

When you transfer your feelings onto something less threatening eg slamming door

Repression

Pushing bad experiences into the unconscious so you no longer think about it

Oral stage

• Develops 0-18 months through weaning

• Focus of pleasure is centred around mouth - nourishment & comfort

• ID in control so baby is demanding

• Fixation - smoker, talking too much, nail biter, sarcastic personality

Anal stage

• Develops 18-36 months through toilet training

• Focus of pleasure is on the anus

• Can determine child’s future relationship with authority

• Ego has developed

• Fixation - early/harsh potty training can lead to anal-retentive personality - perfectionist, hates mess

Phallic stage

• Develops 3-6 years through oedipus/electra complex

• Focus of pleasure is in genital area

• Child learns morality & their gender

• Identifies with same sex parent & takes on their values

• Superego & conscience developed

Latent stage

• Develops 6 years-puberty

• Libido is dormant

• Sexual impulses repressed & redirected towards school, friends etc

Genital stage

• Develops puberty +

• Time of adolescent sexual experimentation

• Sexual impulses directed to heterosexual pleasure

Oedipus complex

• Boy wishes to have sex with his mother & kill his father as he is his love rival

• Boy becomes afraid & thinks the father knows

• Boy suffers castration anxiety

• Boy ends up solving the problem & identifying with the farther

Electra complex

• Girl hates her mother & displays obsessive attention to father

• Girl discovers she doesn’t have a penis & gets penis envy & resents her mother for this

Little Hans case study

• Had a fear of horses

• Freud explain phobia resulting from oedipus complex & ego’s use of displacement

• His castration anxiety had displaced onto horses

Strengths AO3

• P - practical real life applications

• E - Freud developed psychoanalytic therapy using techniques like free association & dream analysis

• T - applied in real world to benefit society & economic benefits

Limitations AO3

• P - psychic determinism

• E - Freud believed all behaviour was due to unconscious mental processes & unconscious conflict between id & superego

• T - ignoring free will has societal implications & affects justice system

• P - abstract concepts that are untestable & lack empirical evidence

• E - unconscious mind & defence mechanisms can’t be used/observed

• T - unfalsifiable theories so unscientific

• P - relies on evidence from case studies & dream analysis/free association

• E - case study of Little Hans

• T - case studies are unique studies of an individual or small group so aren’t representative & generalisable