Freud and Baron-Cohen

• Key theme - Understanding disorders -> Disorders are behaviours and thoughts which can be disturbing and disrupt everyday functioning.
• What do we learn about this theme from the classic study? - In the classic study we learn that case studies and self report can be used to understand disorders and their source. We learn Hans is experiencing the Oedipus Complex and that this is the cause of his phobia of horses as the horse represents his father.
• What knowledge stays the same with the contemporary study? - In Baron-Cohen we learn that there are other disorders, Autism and Aspergers, which can also begin in childhood and disrupt functioning (the Tourettes group was a control for childhood experiences of having a disorder).
• What do we learn that is new from the contemporary study? - Our understanding changes with Baron-Cohen as he uses experimental methods to show cause and effect in understanding disorders and their source. Using the 'Reading the Mind in the Eyes' test he shows that a deficit in mind reading skills, showing problems in theory of mind development, are the reason for the communication difficulties faced in autism as they score lower than the normal group. This supports psychology as a science by being objective, replicable and falsifiable in a way we could not understand from Freud's study.