psychodynamic

• Freud's theory suggests that there are three levels to our minds - conscious, preconscious and unconscious
• the psychoanalytic approach is based on the idea that people are motivated by unconscious desires, which can be revealed through analysis
• informing policy development?


  psychoanalysis- a form of counselling created by Freud, the goal is to uncover unconscious conflicts causing the abnormality, this is called gaining insight and there were many techniques for psychoanalysis for example free association.
• techniques?


  dream analysis, word association, free association
• dream analysis ?

  unconcious drives are expressed in uncensored dreams, they are disguised in symbolic forms to protect the conscious mind
• freud believed that most of our everyday actions and behaviours are a product of the unconscious mind
• freud compared our mind to an iceberg: the conscious mind is the tip of the iceberg and the small amount we know about mental activity, the preconscious is just under the surface, they are things we could acknowledge if we tried or wanted to, sometimes these things come to light. Finally, the unconscious is the bottom of the iceberg and are the things we are unaware of and cannot become aware of like unacceptable sexual desires and immoral urges
• freud acknowledged biology plays a role in our behaviour
• freudian principle ?

  roots of behaviour formed in childhood and unconscious conflicts are what drives future behaviour
• ronald blackburn had what idea ?

  inadequate superego
• the mind is made of three parts: id, ego and super ego
• id?

  desires/instincts
• ego ?


  balance
• superego ?

  conscience
• id?

  present from birth, only in the unconscious mind, demands immediate satisfaction and pleasure
• ego ?

  develops around two years old, aims to resolve conflict between the impulsive demands of the id and the moral demands of the superego, the ego is anchored in reality of real life
• superego?

  moral compass, develops around five, determines which behaviours are acceptable/unacceptable, and causes guilt when rules are broken. Likely to be related to offending as it is concerned with right and wrong
• blackburn argues if the superego is somehow deficient or inadequate then criminal behaviour is inevitable as it gives the id free reign
• development of superego?

  develops through childhood, need to pass though five stages to make a strong ego, superego develops around four as an outcome of the electra or oedipus complex
• oedipus complex ?


  father seen as love rival due to boys being sexually attracted to their mothers, this results in castration anxiety, boys will use their father as a model for moral behaviour and someone to identify with
• electra complex ?

  • Mother seen as love rival, girls have penis envy and want to get rid of the mother.
  • in an attempt to resolve the conflict the child replaces penis envy with a desire for children
  • leads to identification with the mother
• resolution of the complexes should result in identification with same sex parent and normal development of superego
• underdeveloped super ego?


  little control over anti-social behaviour and is likely to act in ways that satisfy their instinctual id impulses
• overdeveloped superego?

  happens if identify with strict parent- excessive feelings of guilt and anxiety because anytime they act on id impulse they feel bad, the individual would commit a crime with a wish to be caught and then the punishment would reduce their feelings of guilt
• deviant superego?

  normal identification with same-sex parent means the child takes on the same moral attitudes as that parent, if.child has a criminal parent the child would identify with them and adopt the same deviant attitudes
• a03 critique ?

  very little evidence that children raised without a same-sex parent are less law-abiding as adults, this contradicts blackburns superego argument. Similarly, if a parent is criminal and their child turns out one this could be due to genetics and socialisation, not a deviant superego. Finally, its implausible that crime reflects an uncocious desire for punishment as most offenders go to great lengths to conceal their crime
• a03 determinism ?

  he suggests adult behaviour is determined by early childhood and the unconscious mind, and if an adult is criminal its due to their same sex partners behaviour, this is deterministic as it ignores free will. Also removes blame from the criminal and directs responsibility towards parents so its socially sensitive