Psychodynamic

• Freud argued that the mind is one of the driving forces behind our behaviour. Freud argued that the mind is made up of 3 parts: the conscious, preconscious and unconscious
• The conscious - the bit we are aware of
• The preconscious - this includes information that we may become aware of during dreams or 'slips of the tounge'
• The unconscious - a large storehouse of biological drives and instincts that has a significant influence in our behaviour and personality. It also contains threatening and disturbing memories that have been repressed or locked away and forgotten
• Freud also argued that our personalities are made up of three parts and the different parts affect how we behave. These are the ID, ego and superego
• The id

  • The primitive part
  • Operates on the pleasure principle and gets what is wants - entirely selfish and demands instant gratification of its needs
  • Mass of unconscious drives and instincts
  • Only part present at birth
  • Found in the unconscious part of the mind
• The Ego

  • Works on reality principle
  • It is a mediator between the two parts
  • Develops around the age of two
  • Its role is to reduce conflict between the demands of the Id and the superego
  • Uses defence mechanisms to help it
  • Found in the conscious part of the mind
• The superego

  • Works on the morality principle
  • It is our internalised sense of right and wrong - represents moral standards of the childs same sex parent
  • Punishes the ego for wrongdoing (through guilt)
  • Formed at the age of 5 at the end of the phallic stage
  • Found in the preconscious mind
• Defence mechanisms:

  The ego has a difficult job balancing the conflict demands of the id and the superego so it uses defence mechanisms to help it.

  These are unconscious and prevent the ego from being overwhelmed by threats or trauma.

  They involve distorting or denying reality so not good to use often or long term
• Defence mechanism examples

  Repression - forcing a distressing memory out of conscious mind

  Denial - refusing to acknowledge some aspect of reality

  Displacement - transferring feelings from true source of distressing emotion onto a substitute target
• Psychosexual stages

  Freud believes child development occurred in 5 stages.

  Each stage apart from (latency) is marked by a different conflict that the child must resolve in order to move to the next stage
• Psychosexual stages

  Any psychosexual conflict that is unresolved leads to fixation where the child becomes 'stuck' and carries certain behaviours and conflicts associated with that stage through to adult life
• Stage 1 (Oral stage) - 0 to 1 years

  Focus of pleasure is the mouth such as eating or sucking
• Stage 2 (Anal stage) - 1 to 3 years

  Focus of pleasure is the anus. Child gains pleasure from withholding and expelling faeces
• Stage 3 (Phallic stage) - 3 to 6 years

  Focus of pleasure is on the genitals. The child experiences the Oedipus conflict (boy) or electra conflict (girl)
• Oedipus Conflict

  Occurs in boys during phallic stage - they develop incestuous feelings towards their mother and a desire to get rid of the father

  However they fear that their father will castrate them if they found out (castration anxiety) and so repress their feelings

  They will identify with their father and take on his gender role and moral values
• Electra conflict

  Occurs in girls in the phallic stage, where they develop incestuous feelings towards their father because they experience penis envy and having their fathers is a way of getting this

  They hate their mothers but are afraid their mother will find out and she will stop loving them

  Overtime girls give up the desire for father and replace this with a desire for a baby and identifying with their mother
• Stage 4 (Latency stage) - 6 to 22 years

  During this stage boys and girls spend very little time together. Earlier conflicts are repressed
• Stage 4 (Latency stage) - 6 to 22 years

  During this stage boys and girls spend very little time together. Earlier conflicts are repressed
• Stage 5 (Genital stage) - 11+ years

  Focus of pleasure is the genitals and experiencing pleasure with a partner. Sexual desires become conscious
• AO3 - Case study of Little Hans

  Freuds theory is supported by Little Hans. Little Hans was a 5 year old boy who developed a phobia of horses after seeing one collapse.

  Freud suggested that Hans phobia was a form of displacement in which his repressed fear of his father was transferred onto horses.

  Horses were a symbolic representation of Hans unconscious fear of castration during Oedipus complex
• AO3 - case studies

  Freud theory was based on case studies who were often in therapy. Freuds observations were detailed but critics have suggested it is not possible to make such universal claims about behaviour based on studies of such a small number of individuals who were psychologically abnormal.

  Freuds interpretations were subjective and some conclusions are unlikely. Freuds methods lack scientific rigour and therefore may not be valid
• AO3 - unscientific

  Many of Freuds concepts such as the Id and Oedipus complex are said to occur unconsciously which makes them difficult to test, therefore we don't know if any of Freuds ideas are actually true
• AO3 - new therapy

  Freud brought into the world a new therapy called psychoanalysis. This employs a range of techniques designed to access the unconscious such as hypnosis and dream analysis. Suggests the theory is useful
• AO3 - psychic deterministic

  The theory claims that everything even accidents are determined by unconscious forces which are out of our control.

  It therefore argues that free will is an illusion which some theorists would disagree with