PS201 - T1W3 - Psychodynamic Approaches

Slides 4–10: Freud – Core Psychodynamic Assumptions

Key claims / arguments

  • Personality is shaped by unconscious processes that influence behaviour outside awareness

  • Motivation and behaviour are driven by internal conflicts between instinctual drives and social constraints

  • Successful functioning depends on effective mediation between impulses and reality

Key theories / models

  • Levels of consciousness: conscious, preconscious, unconscious

  • Structural model of personality: Id, Ego, Superego

  • Pleasure principle vs reality principle

Key studies / sources

  • Freud (1901/1953; 1940/1969)

    • Proposed unconscious mental processes as drivers of behaviour.

  • Freud (1920/1977; 1965)

    • Elaborated structural personality components and motivation.

One-line essay use

  • Can be used to argue that individual differences in self-regulation (ego strength) may affect educational persistence, workplace behaviour, or relationship stability.

Slides 11–13: Psychosexual Development & Fixation

Key claims / arguments

  • Early developmental experiences shape adult personality

  • Fixation at developmental stages can produce enduring personality tendencies

  • Maladaptive personality outcomes may hinder later success

Key theories / models

  • Psychosexual stages: oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital

  • Fixation as a source of later personality problems

Key studies / sources

  • Freud (1905/1965) (theoretical framework referenced via Maltby et al., 2022)

    • Early experiences determine adult personality structure.

One-line essay use

  • Useful for discussing developmental explanations of individual differences, while critically noting limited empirical support for predicting success outcomes.

Slides 14–15: Defence Mechanisms

Key claims / arguments

  • Individuals differ in how they cope with anxiety and conflict

  • Defence mechanisms influence interpersonal behaviour and adjustment

  • Maladaptive defences may impair relationships or work functioning

Key theories / models

  • Defence mechanisms (e.g., repression, denial, projection, rationalisation, sublimation)

Key studies / sources

  • Freud (1936/1966) (via Maltby et al., 2022)

    • Defence mechanisms protect the ego from anxiety.

One-line essay use

  • Can be used to explain why some individuals struggle with feedback, stress, or relationships, potentially undermining success.

Slides 16–20: Adler – Individual Psychology

Key claims / arguments

  • Individual differences arise from efforts to overcome feelings of inferiority

  • Striving for mastery motivates achievement and success

  • Social interest is central to healthy functioning

Key theories / models

  • Inferiority feelings → striving for superiority

  • Style of life

  • Birth order effects

  • Adlerian personality types

Key studies / sources

  • Adler (1958; 1964; 1979)

    • Personality shaped by goal-directed striving and social context.

One-line essay use

  • Strongly applicable to education and employment, linking motivation, achievement, and social contribution to success.

Slide 19: Birth Order Effects

Key claims / arguments

  • Family position influences personality development

  • Different birth positions are associated with achievement-related traits

Key theories / models

  • Birth order theory

Key studies / sources

  • Adler (1958)

    • Birth order shapes adult personality tendencies.

One-line essay use

  • Can be used cautiously to discuss contextual influences on individual differences, while acknowledging weak empirical consistency.

Slides 21–25: Jung – Analytic Psychology

Key claims / arguments

  • Personality development continues across the lifespan

  • Individuals differ in orientation toward the inner vs outer world

  • These differences shape relational and occupational preferences

Key theories / models

  • Introversion vs extraversion

  • Psychological functions: thinking, feeling, sensing, intuition

  • Self-realisation

Key studies / sources

  • Jung (1965)

    • Personality reflects lifelong development and energy balance.

One-line essay use

  • Useful for social relationships, explaining differences in interaction styles and compatibility.

Slides 26–30: Horney – Humanistic Neo-Freudian Approach

Key claims / arguments

  • Healthy personality develops from warm, supportive parenting

  • Neurotic personality arises from basic anxiety

  • Maladaptive coping styles undermine personal and social success

Key theories / models

  • Real self vs ideal self

  • Neurotic needs

  • Compliant, aggressive, detached personality styles

Key studies / sources

  • Horney (1945; 1950; 1977)

    • Culture and parenting shape personality and adjustment.

One-line essay use

  • Strong for social relationships, linking attachment, coping style, and interpersonal success.

Slides 31–32: Feminine Psychology & Cultural Critique

Key claims / arguments

  • Personality theories may reflect cultural and gender bias

  • Individual differences must be understood within social context

Key theories / models

  • Feminine psychology

  • Cultural influence on personality development

Key studies / sources

  • Horney (1993)

    • Challenged male-centred assumptions in personality theory.

One-line essay use

  • Useful for critical evaluation, highlighting limitations of personality explanations of success.