The Psychoanalytic Perspective

Lecture Roadmap

• basic themes

• Topographical model of the mind

• Structural model of personality

• Defense mechanisms

• Accessing the unconscious

• Neo-Freudian extensions

• Evaluating Freud today

Learning Objectives

1. define and describe the parts of the topographical model (i.e. conscious, pre-conscious, unconscious)

2. Define and describe the parts of the structural model (i.e. id, ego, super-ego)

3. define the different defense mechanisms (e.g. denial, repression, projection… etc.) and be able to apply them to an example

4. define free association, parapraxes, and projective tests

5. define and explain manifest vs. latent content in a dream and be able to apply to an example

6. describe some of the key extensions of Freud’s work (especially Jung and the collective unconscious)

7. Explain which parts of Freud’s theory have modern empirical support, and which do not

Sigmund Freud

• medical doctor working in vienna

• specialized in “nervous disorders”

• saw women who complained of “hysteria”

• Known as the ‘father’ of personality psychology (even though many of his ideas are not supported today)

Basic Themes

1. Psychodynamic

2. Psychological defense

3. Psychic determinism

Psychodynamic

• Personality shaped by dynamic “forces” - often unconscious - inside a person

• These forces can sometimes conflict and work against each other

Psychological Defense

• Freud had a rather dark view of human nature

• Theory assumes that everyone experiences psychological threats that must be dealt with

Psychic determinism

• Nothing happens by chance

• Freud believed that everything a person does/says has a cause - no “accidents” or “innocent mistakes”

Topographical Model

configuration of the mind, organized into three layers of “consciousness” (awareness)

Topographical Model of the Mind - breakdown

1. conscious

2. preconscious

3. unconscious

topographical model - is it supported

NOT SUPPORTED

conscious

the part of the mind that holds what you are now aware of

Preconscious

the part of the mind that you can become easily aware of (e.g. ordinary memories)

Unconscious

the part of the mind you are not aware of and cannot become easily aware of. contains “darker” memories, urges, and desires

examples of each topographic model

Conscious mind – taking notes

Preconscious – ordinary memories – what you had for breakfast, what you did with friends

Unconscious – connects to psychological threat

topographic iceberg

Implicit processes

automatic, unconscious, and fast ways of thinking that happen without awareness

• Explicit memories – conscious memories

Importance of non-conscious processes - is it supported

generally supported

structural model of personality

idea that personality consists of three psychological aspects that interact to influence behaviors

• id

• ego

• super-ego

id

the inherited, instinctive, primitive aspects of personality

• first to develop (present at birth)

• pleasure principle - all needs should be satisfied immediately

  • “treat yourself day” – a day where they get whatever they want

  • Think about kids and delayed gratification- if they are at the store, they need that toy now. They want that cookie now instead of after dinner

ego

mostly conscious part of personality

• develops from the id and harnesses part of the id’s energy for it’s own use

• reality principle - takes reality into account in addition to wants and desires

• tries to express id’s impulses effectively

• engages in self-control and delayed gratification=

  • ego = you, (“I” or “yourself”)

  • ex. “ok, we can have the cookie but we need to eat dinner first” – delayed gratification

super-ego

the moral part of one’s personality

• last part of personality to develop

• develops through incorporating parental and societal values (thru processes called introjection)

• morality principle - should always do what is morally right

• ex. - Mom instilling value into you of making handwritten thank you notes every time you get a gift –that is introjection and that’s the super-ego

example of id, ego, superego

Ego = trying to satisfy both id and superego

dexter example id, ego, superego

ego strength

ego’s ability to be effective despite conflicts and competing pressures

personality

a dynamic organization, inside the person, of psychophysical systems that create the person’s characteristic patterns of behavior, thoughts, and feelings.

updated iceberg - topographic and structural

structural model (id, ego, superego) - is it supported

NOT SUPPORTED (not really testable anyway)

• Need to be able to conduct a study that the id doesn’t exist – null hypothesis testing. This is hard bc it is unconscious

Defense Mechanism Types

Freud thought much of personality revolved around anxiety

3 types

• reality anxiety

• neurotic anxiety

• moral anxiety

reality anxiety

a danger in the real world

Neurotic anxiety

fear of punishment for following id’s impulses

defense mechanisms

how we deal with all this anxiety

• defense mechanisms: tactics that the ego develops to help avoid anxiety

  • distort reality in some way

  • operate mostly unconsciously

Kinds of defense mechanisms

1. Denial

2. Repression

3. Projection

4. Rationalization

5. Intellectualization

6. Reaction formation

7. Displacement

8. Sublimation

… and others!

Denial

ego reduces anxiety by refusing to believe that the source of the anxiety exists

• Example 1: Your significant other breaks up with you, but you continue to believe & act as though you are still together

• Example 2: You have an addiction that is getting out of hand, but insist everything is okay and you can stop any time you want to.

(shrek having crush on fiona but denies it)

Repression

ego reduces anxiety by putting anxiety-inducing thoughts outside of conscious awareness  (person is not aware the ego is doing this)

• Example 1: You were bitten by a dog as a child but repressed the memory. Now you have a phobia of dogs, but you don’t know why

• Example 2: You forget to call someone ->  you secretly harbor anxiety or anger to that person and your ego is trying to manage that.

(doctor who clip where the guy forgets about the billions of deaths caused)

Repressed memories

claim that memories for traumatic events may be stored in the unconscious mind and blocked from normal conscious recall

• are repressed memories real? false memories and Elizabeth Loftus

• memories are fallible and easily changed

Repressed Memories - is it supported

NOT SUPPORTED

Projection

ego reduces anxiety by taking uncomfortable impulses off the self and placing them onto others

• Example 1: You harbor unconscious dislike for a coworker, so you decide that they are really the one who dislikes you.

• Example 2: You are unfaithful to your partner, so you accuse them of cheating on you.

  • even if you don’t cheat yet, it is still projection

Reaction formation

ego reduces anxiety by prompting behaviors that are the opposite of the anxiety-inducing impulse

• Example 1: Someone who is a staunch pacifist (i.e., opposed to war) may actually be trying to mask aggressive impulses (Thanatos drive)

• Example 2: A legislator works really hard to pass a law outlawing an activity he/she is guilty of

Phobia example – Freud might say that unconsciously you actually really want what you “fear”

• reminds me of guys not wanting insta models but that’s actually their type lol

(jealous girlfriend video example - extra nice instead of mean to ex)

Rationalization

 reduce anxiety by finding a rational explanation (i.e., excuse) for some behavior or outcome

• Example 1: a person might rationalize getting passed over for an important promotion by suggesting that they didn’t really want the job in the first place. (“sour grapes”)

• Example 2: Someone who cheats on their taxes may argue that it reduces the amount of money spent on weapons in the world

Intellectualization

the tendency to think about threats in cold, analytical, and emotionally detached terms

• example 1: After receiving a health diagnosis, person looks up a all the information/research and view through very “clinical” lens

• example 2: A man who lost his wife may focus all of his energy on funeral arrangements and logistics instead of acknowledging his grief.

Displacement

moving a troubling impulse onto a different, less threatening object

• Example 1: A tennis player angry at a bad ref call wrecks his racket

• Example 2: You had a bad day at work, and when you come home instead of yelling at your boss (like you really want to) you yell at a family member instead - familiar lol

(beginning of footloose example video)

Sublimation

ego reduces anxiety from an unhealthy impulse by re-directing it into a more socially acceptable and constructive activity

• a more healthy version of displacement

  • Example 1: You satisfy your unconscious aggressive impulses by channeling them into a professional sports career

  • Example 2: After a breakup, you channel your anger into working really hard on your schoolwork

Do you understand how this manages to satisfy both the desires of the id and the super-ego?

(end of footloose example video)

Defense Mechanisms

george valliant’s (1977) continuum

◦Actually some modern evidence that more “immature” (vs. mature) defense mechanisms are correlated with more maladaptive (vs. adaptive) coping techniques (Silverman & Aafjes-van Doorn (2023)

Defense mechanisms - is it supported

mixed evidence

How would you assess personality from a psychodynamic perspective

unconscious level

Parapraxes - assessing the unconscious

Freud believed nothing was accidental

parapraxes - “accidents” (e.g. memory lapses, slips of speech) that actually provide insight into a person’s true (unconscious) desires

• ex. “freudian slip”

  • friends Ross marriage slip video

Free association

talking freely; saying whatever comes to mind

Psychoanalysis

a form of psychotherapy that focuses on exploring the unconscious mind and its influence on current thoughts, feelings, and behaviors

Psychoanalysis Therapy - is it supported

very mixed evidence

Wish fulfillment

Freud believed that unconscious desires could be revealed in dreams

wish fulfillment - freud thought that dreams represent unconscious desires, thoughts, and motivations that our conscious mind represses.

Manifest content

what actually happened in the dream

Latent content

unconscious desires “hidden” beneath the surface, the symbolism/meaning underlying the manifest content

• examples

  • parents: can represent authority figures or unresolved childhood issues

  • siblings: can represent rivals or relationships with others

Dream analysis - is it supported

NOT SUPPORTED

Projective tests

A psychological test in which words, images, or situations are presented to a person and the responses analyzed for the unconscious expression of elements of personality that they reveal

• ex. Rorschach inkblot test - psychologist/clinician infers unconscious fears and desires based patient’s interpretation of ambiguous inkblots

Projective tests and support

 

 Psychometric properties of the inkblot (and other projective) tests:

1. is it reliable?

   1. Not really… inter-rater reliability for many indices was pretty low

   2. ◦Not many good studies of test-retest reliability, and estimates range pretty widely (e.g., from .2 - .9) 

2. is it valid?

   1. probably not. Not good as a diagnostic tool (e.g., for diagnoses psychiatric disorders)

   2. Also little correlation with self-report measures of personality

Projective tests - is it supported

NOT SUPPORTED

Psychosexual stages of development

•  Freud’s idea about how personality develops during childhood

• Thought that children moved through various stages

• Each stage associate with conflicts; if conflicts were not resolved correctly, could result in problems in adulthood

Psychosexual stages of development support

NOT SUPPORTED

Neo-Freudian Extensions

• anna freud

• carl jung

• alfred adler

• karen horney

Anna Freud

◦Sixth and youngest child of Sigmund Freud

◦Emphasized “normal” development of the ego

◦Worked to fully develop defense mechanisms

Carl Jung (important)

◦Swiss psychiatrist 

◦Student of Freud until the two parted ways

collective unconscious

• carl jung believed in this

• shared, inborn set of memories and ideas specific to each species

Archetypes

shared, inborn set of memories and ideas specific to each species

◦Hero

◦Heroine

◦Wise old man

◦Trickster

◦Shadow 

Ego attitudes and functions

 ways people engage with and perceive the world

◦Extraversion vs. introversion

◦Thinking vs. feeling

◦Intuition vs. sensation

(Katherine Cook Briggs and Isabel Briggs Myers)

Alfred Adler

◦Early colleague of Freud’s

◦Focused more on drive for power

Inferiority complex

 the belief that one is of lower status or weaker than others.

• alfred adler belief

Compensation

is to react against perceived inferiority by asserting oneself

• alfred adler belief

Karen Horney

 Challenged male-centric view of Freud’s theory

 Took a more social perspective – believed that neurosis/disorders arose from basic anxiety caused by interpersonal relationships

evaluating freud today

 

 Remember, good scientific theories should be:

 1. Make testable, falsifiable predictions

• Freud’s theory is very hard to test and ideas hard to measure

• Theory is too flexible (does not make “risky” predictions)

2. Supported by data

• Freud’s ideas based on his subjective interpretation of a small handful of case studies. Not tested with empirical studies

 3. Parsimonious - simple

• Freud’s ideas very complex!!

Importance of past/childhood events support

generally supported

Freud Theories and if they are supported

Why do we still teach freud

◦Very influential (inspired a lot of additional research and ideas… some still with us today even if not technically correct)