T.O.P. Lesson 2: Psychoanalytic Theory - Sigmund Freud

Vocabulary flashcards covering Freudian theory, the structure of the mind, drives, defense mechanisms, psychosexual stages, and dream analysis as presented in the notes.

Psychoanalysis

Freud's theory and therapy focused on unconscious processes, the roles of sex and aggression, and techniques like free association and dream analysis.

Unconscious

Drives and wishes outside awareness that motivate actions, dreams, slips of the tongue, and repression.

Preconscious

Mental material not currently conscious but easily brought into awareness; sources include conscious perception and the unconscious.

Conscious

Mental content in awareness at any given moment; directly accessible and receiving input from perception and preconscious/unconscious ideas.

Id (das Es)

Unconscious, chaotic part of the mind that houses basic drives and operates on the pleasure principle via the primary process.

Ego (das Ich)

Executive part of personality, in contact with reality, using the reality principle and the secondary process to mediate between id, superego, and the external world.

Superego (das Uber-Ich)

Moral and idealistic portion of personality; contains conscience and ego-ideal; formed after resolving the Oedipus complex.

Pleasure Principle

Id’s drive to satisfy instincts immediately without moral or realistic considerations; linked to the primary process.

Reality Principle

Ego’s tendency to satisfy id impulses in socially acceptable and realistic ways; linked to the secondary process.

Primary Process

Mental processes of the id focused on immediate gratification and the pleasure principle.

Secondary Process

Cognitive functions of the ego that plan, delay gratification, and test reality against the external world.

Trieb (Drive)

Internal impulse or motive; often translated as instinct but better rendered as drive or impulse.

Eros (Life Drive)

Sexual and life-promoting drives; part of Freud’s division of drives.

Thanatos (Death Drive)

Aggressive/destructive drive aiming toward a return to inanimate state; linked to self-destruction.

Libido

Sexual energy invested in objects or parts of the body; source of erotic motivation.

Erogenous Zones

Body areas (mouth, anus, genitals) capable of generating sexual pleasure.

Narcissism

Love of the self; can be primary (infants) or secondary (redirected to ego or self-appearance during adolescence).

Primary Narcissism

Infants’ libido invested in the self and ego.

Secondary Narcissism

Shift of libido back to the ego during puberty, focusing on self-appearance and self-interest.

Masturbation

Autoerotic sexual activity; part of early development and a defense against anxiety.

Love (Object Love)

Forms of love and attachment beyond the self, including narcissistic love and love for a significant other.

Sadism

Pursuit of sexual pleasure by inflicting pain or humiliation; can be a component of broader sexual behavior.

Masochism

Sexual pleasure from one's own pain or humiliation; may become perverse if Eros is subordinated to aggression.

Penis Envy

Girls’ alleged envy of the penis, a key concept in female psychosexual development according to Freud.

Castration Anxiety

Boy’s fear of losing the penis, a central issue in the male Oedipus complex.

Oedipus Complex (Male)

Boy’s identification with the father, sexual desire for the mother, and rivalry with the father.

Phallic Phase

Third psychosexual stage (about age 3–4); genitals become the primary erogenous zone; marks male/female differences.

Simple Male Oedipus Complex

Boy’s rivalry with the father and sexual desire for the mother, leading to castration anxiety.

Penis Envy (Female)

Girls’ perceived envy of the penis and its psychological consequences in development.

Female Oedipus Complex

Path for girls involving jealousy of male genitals, castration anxiety, and different routes to resolution.

Latency Period

Dormant psychosexual stage from about age 4–5 until puberty, with sublimation into social activities.

Genital Period

Puberty onward; sexual energy directed toward others; integration of earlier drives into mature sexuality.

Oral Phase

First psychosexual stage; lips/mouth as primary erogenous zone; includes oral-sucking and early pleasure from feeding.

Anal Phase

Second stage; anus as erogenous zone; includes early anal (destruction of objects) and late anal (interest in defecation).

Anal Character

Personality traits of orderliness, stinginess, and obstinacy arising from fixation at the anal stage.

Oral-Sadistic Period

Subphase where infants express aggression or hostility through oral actions.

Phallic Phase (revisited)

Phase with differentiated male/female development and masturbation as a decisive erotic activity.

Male Oedipus Complex

Ambivalence toward father, desire for mother, and processes leading to castration anxiety.

Castration Complex

Childhood fears and fantasies surrounding loss of the penis as part of Oedipal dynamics.

Latency (Psychosexual)

Period of reduced sexual activity, where libido is sublimated into social and cultural activities.

Genital Phase (Summary)

Re-emergence of sexual aims focused on others; maturation of erotic life and relationships.

Dream Analysis

Therapeutic method of translating dreams from manifest (surface) to latent (unconscious) content.

Manifest Content

Surface meaning of a dream as recalled by the dreamer.

Latent Content

Hidden, unconscious meaning of a dream uncovered through analysis.

Dream Work

Processes like condensation and displacement that transform latent content into manifest dream content.

Condensation

Dream content condensed; multiple ideas combined into one image.

Displacement (Dreams)

Dream image replaced by a related but different idea to hide true meaning.

Free Association

Therapeutic technique in which the patient speaks freely to reveal unconscious material.

Dream Symbols

Using symbolic interpretations to uncover latent content behind dream imagery.

Wish Fulfillment

Freud’s idea that dreams express unconscious desires and wishes.

Freudian Slips (Parapraxes)

Unconscious misstatements or mistakes that reveal hidden intentions or conflicts.

Transference

Patients’ feelings toward the analyst that reflect earlier relationships; essential to psychoanalysis.

Defense Mechanisms

Unconscious strategies to reduce anxiety and protect the ego from id/superego conflict.

Repression

Basic defense mechanism: pushing threatening impulses into the unconscious.

Reaction Formation

Defense in which an impulse is converted into its opposite to cope with anxiety.

Displacement

Redirecting impulses from their original object to a safer substitute.

Fixation

Permanent attachment of libido to an earlier development stage due to anxiety.

Regression

Returning to an earlier developmental stage under stress.

Introjection

Incorporating positive qualities of others into one’s own ego.

Sublimation

Redirecting sexual or aggressive impulses into culturally acceptable and socially valued activities.

Transference Limitations

Freud noted that not all memories can be brought to consciousness and therapy has limits in certain conditions.

Phylogenetic Endowment

Unconscious images inherited from ancestors and transmitted through generations.

Dream vs Reality in Freud

Dreams reflect unconscious wishes; analysis seeks latent content behind manifest dream form.