psychodynamic

• definition

  Freud believed that behaviour has unconscious causes. These are sexual and aggressive drives which struggle against the ego and super ego. The ID keeps them out of control.
• Key terms

  ID= The selfish and emotional part that deals with feelings and needs. It seeks gratification and is present at birth.

  Ego= balances the ID and superego which is formed between 18m-3yrs. Uses defense mechanisms to deal with the ID and superego.

  super ego= moral guide based on parental and societal values which is formed between 3-6yrs.
• defense mechanisms

  Repression= forcing a memory into the unconscious mind.

  Denial= refusing to acknowledge an aspect of reality.

  Displacement= transferring feelings onto a substitute target.
• Oedipus complex

  males sexually desire their mothers. He realises the father is more powerful and fears he will castrate him.

  He deals with this by identifying and internalising.

  This becomes his super ego and the boy takes on the male gender identity.
• Electra complex

  Girls desire their father but realise they don't have a penis. This results in Penis envy.

  They repress the desire for their father with the wish for a baby.

  she represses her anger towards her mother and identifys with her to take on the female role.
• 1909- Little Hans

  He was a 5 year old boy with a phobia of horses after seeing one collapse in the street. Freud suggested that he displaced his repressed fear of his father onto horses and the 'real' fear was of castration by his father.
• stage 1

  • oral
  • 0-1
  • pleasure= mouth
  • desire= mothers breast
  • oral fixation (nail biting,smoking & sarcasm)
• stage 2

  • anal
  • 1-3
  • pleasure=anus. Child focuses on withholding and expelling faeces
  • anal retensive= obsessive/ perfectionist mean
  • anal expulsive= thoughtless /messy/ generous
• stage 3

  • phallic
  • 3-5
  • pleasure= genitals
  • children experience the oedipus / electra complex
  • narcissistic, reckless, vain, confused sexual identity
• stage 4

  • latency
  • 6-12
  • pleasure= cognitive/ social development
  • previous conflicts are resolved/ repressed and early years are largely forgotten
  • immaturity and inability to form fulfilling relationships
• stage 5

  • genital
  • 12/puberty- adulthood
  • pleasure= relationships
  • sexual desires become conscious with onset of puberty
  • problems carried on from earlier stages&difficulty forming straight relationships
  • resolved conflicts= good mental health
• strengths

  1. used to explain many concepts in psychology
  2. practical applications such as psychotherapy (De Maut found considerable improvement in patients)
• weaknesses

  1. untestable concepts such as unconscious parts of the brain are impossible to test
  2. gender bias- differences between males and females are exaggerated
  3. deterministic- illusion of choice (lives determined by upbringing)
  4. insensitive- mental health issues may be blamed on parents