The Psychodynamic Approach

Key assumptions of the psychodynamic approach

- mind is made up of the conscious, preconscious and the unconscious

- the unconscious mind has important influence on behaviour

- personality has three parts : id, ego, superego

- 5 psychosexual stages determine adult personality

- defence mechanisms used by ego to reduce anxiety

what is the conscious

- part of the psyche we are aware of

- includes current thoughts, perceptions and feelings

- smallest part of psyche

what is the preconscious

- thoughts and memories not currently in conscious but can be accessed when needed

- below surface of awareness

what is the largest and most influential part of the mind

the unconscious

what is the unconscious

- part of mind which operates outside conscious awareness

- contains biological drives, instincts and repressed memories that are too distressing for the conscious mind to process

- protective role in shielding conscious mind (ego) from anxiety/conflict

what is the key function of the unconscious argued by Freus

- the unconscious acts as the primary driving force behind behaviour

- human behaviour is motivated by unresolved conflicts and repressed traumatic experiences

how do hidden influences in the unconcious mind manifest

- dreams

- slips of tongue

- neurotic behaviour

how do psychodynamic therapists suggest to confront trauma in the unconscious

psychoanalysis

conflict in the tripartite personality

- id, ego and superego are in constant dynamic conflict

- shapes behaviour, personality, mental health

what is the id

- present from birth

- dominates behaviour during oral stage ( first 18 months)

- unconscious, irrational, operates on Pleasure Principle

- seeks only self-indulgent pleasure and instant gratification

what is the ego

- develops in anal stage (18 months - 3 years)

- rational, Reality Principle

- mediator- balances demands of id with constraints of superego and external reality

what is the superego

- develops in phallic stage (3-6 yrs)

- Morality Principle, represents our internalised sense of right and wrong

- acts as a conscience

- punishes ego via guilt

where do we get our internalised sense of right and wrong from

parental (usually same sex parent) and societal values

if the id dominates what is a persons behaviour like

selfish, impulsive

if the superego dominates what is behaviour like

guilt, anxiety, low self esteem

what does a strong ego result in

balances personality- manages conflicts between id and superego effectively

what are defence mechanisms

unconscious processes that protect the ego from anxiety caused by conflict between the id and the superego

how do defence mechanisms reduce anxiety

- distort/ deny reality to reduce psychological discomfort

- provide compromise solutions

exmaples of defence mechanisms

- repression

- denial

- displacement

what is repression

pushing distressing memories into the unconscious

what is denial

refusing to accept reality

what is displacement

redirecting emotions onto a safer target

according to freud, how does personality develop

through psychosexual stages

What is libido according to Freud?

the psychic energy that motivated sexual instincts and desires

focused on different areas of the body at different ages

what are the five psychosexual stages?

1. Oral Stage

2. Anal Stage

3. Phallic Stage

4. Latency Stage

5. Genital Stage

what happens if the conflict is not resolved at each psychosexual stage?

some libido becomes fixated in that stage

how can fixation occur

1. frustration- needs not met

2. overindulgence- needs overly satisfied

Oral stage

0-1 years, pleasure centers on the mouth- sucking, biting, chewing

Fixation/adult behaviour- smoking, nail biting (oral dependent behaviours)

Anal stage

(1-3 years) pleasure focuses on anus, conflict centred around toilet training

Fixation/adult behaviour- anal retentive will be overly tidy, controlling due to strict toilet training, anal expulsive will be messy, disorganised due to lenient toilet training

Phallic stage

3-6 years, when we learn our gender

pleasure focused on genitals

oedipus/ electra complex

Fixation/adult behaviour- difficulties with behaviour, vanity, gender identity issues

Latent stage

6-11 years

sexual drives repressed

earlier conflicts resolved/ hidden

Genital stage

12+ years

sexual desires become conscious at puberty --> mature sexual relationships

Fixation/adult behaviour- difficulty forming healthy adult relationships, sexual dysfunction if earlier stages unresolved

What is the Oedipus complex?

a boy's unconscious sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father, castration anxiety

What is the Electra complex?

Girls experience penis envy and desire their father, feel rivalry towards mother

how is conflict in the phallic stage for the oedipus/electra complex resolved

identification with the same-sex parent- adopt their values and behaviours

leads to gender development and formation of superego

support for oedipus complex- Little Hans

- boy had phobia of horses after seeing one collapse in the street

- Freud suggested the phobia was displacement- repressed fear of father displaced onto horses

- horses symbolic of hans unconscious fear of being castrated

strength of the psychodynamic approach- real world application

- introduced idea of psychotherapy

- Freud developed psychoanalysis- uses dream analysis etc. to uncover and work through unconcious conflicts/ repressed thoughts

- Freud's ideas can be applied in treating mental disorders, e.g. depression

- forerunner to modern therapies, e.g. counselling

- influenced effective treatments still widely used

counter of real world application- inappropriate

- success for those with mild neuroses

- psychoanalysis viewed as inappropriate/harmful for more serious disorders, e.g. scizophrenia

- schozophrenics experience paranoia/delusional thinking- cannot articulate thoughts in the way required by psychoanalysis

- freudian therapy don't apply to all disorders

strength of psychodynamic approach- emphasises importance of childhood experiences in shaping adult behaviour

- freud- unresolved conflicts in psychosexual stages lead to fixation -> influence personality

- psychologists before ignored childhood experiences

- support from Bowlby's monotropic theory + IWM- early relationships have long term effects on emotional development

- suggests mental health problems stem from childhood trauma- critical period of development

- changed societal views on importance of childhood

weakness of psychodynamic approach- pseudoscientific

- lacks supporting scientific evidence

- key concepts- unconscious minds, Oedipus/Electra complex- are abstract, difficult to empirically test

- not open to objective testing so approach viewed as pseudoscientific > scientific

weakness of psychodynamic approach- psychic determinsim

- psychically deterministic- Freud argued behaviour driven by unconscious conflict rooted in childhood

- suggests free will is an illusion, leaves little room for personal control

- overly extreme view- socially sensitive by reducing personal responsibility

- pessimistic- limited potential for change beyond childhood

- reduces usefulness of approach- overlooks free will, raises ethical concerns over responsibility