Psychodynamic Approach

• Sigmund Freud


  • main figure in psychodynamic theory
  • Challenged the view that mental disorders were caused by physical issues
  • Proposed that there are psychological factors which could cause mental illness, and that using medical treatments may not be appropriate
• Psychodynamic assumptions

  • Influence of Childhood Experiences
  • Unconscious Mind
  • Tripartite Personality
• Ways that adult personality may be shaped by childhood

  • Role models
  • Cycle of abuse
  • Values
• Freud's theory of psychosexual development


  • Personality is shaped by our childhood
  • Psychological development through the 5 psychosexual stages
  • If we are moved on too late or too early, we can become fixated on a stage
  • Frustration is caused by moving on too soon and overindulgence by moving on too late
• Psychosexual stages

  • Oral (0-18 months)
  • Anal (18 months-3 years)
  • Phallic (3-6 years)
  • Latency (6 years - puberty)
  • Genital (Puberty-adult)
• Oral stage


  • The mouth is the libido focus for children in this age
  • During this stage, the child's ego begins to form
  • too much gratification - gullible, too dependent upon others (oral receptive)
  • not receive enough gratification - aggressive, pessimistic and full of envy and suspicion (oral rejective)
• Anal stage


  • The libido is now focused on the anus
  • The ego continues to develop
  • Healthy development: maintain orderliness, ability to deal with authority
  • Too little gratification (anal retentive): hates mess, obsessively tidy, punctual, stubborn
  • Too much gratification (anal expulsive): problems with potty training, may be messy, disorganised and careless
• Phallic stage


  • The libido is now focused on the genitals
  • By this point the ego has formed, but the superego is not present
  • The superego comes through the Oedipus complex for boys, or the Electra complex for girls
  • The Oedipus complex: boy focuses his sexual desires on his mother and sees his father as a rival - 'castration anxiety'
  • The Electra complex: girl begins to develop 'penis envy', seeing her mother as a rival for her father's affection
• Latency stage


  The libido is dormant, and the child focuses on acquiring knowledge and understanding of the world and building same-sex friendships
• Genital stage


  • The libido again focused on the genitals, but gratification is received from the opposite sex rather than parents
  • If an individual has made it through the previous stages of development with no issue - a well adjusted mature adult who is capable of love and is able to be loved, works hard and contributes to society, and is able to maintain healthy sexual relationships
• The unconscious mind


  Inaccessible but can be accessed indirectly, e.g. through dreams. It determines much of our behaviour and is ruled by pleasure-seeking. It contains repressed thoughts and feelings.
• Ego defence mechanisms


  • Displacement
  • Projection
  • Repression
  • Regression
  • Denial
• Displacement


  Redirection of an impulse (usually aggressive) to a less threatening target
• Projection


  Attributing one's own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to others
• Repression


  Forgetting or blocking from our conscious threatening thoughts or feelings
• Regression


  Reverting to an earlier, more immature stage of development to cope with stress
• A Freudian slip is an accidental mistake in speech that reveals something about the unconscious mind
• Dreams can give us insight into the unconscious mind
• Word association and inkblot tests can also provide insight into the unconscious mind
• Conscious


  What we are currently thinking and feeling, the logical and rational part of the mind
• Preconscious


  Things we are not currently thinking about but could be aware of if we thought about them, similar to memories
• Unconscious


  The vast majority of the mind, irrational and ruled by pleasure-seeking, where repressed thoughts and feelings are contained
• Parts of personality

  • Id
  • Ego
  • Superego
• Id


  The primitive biological part of the mind, present at birth, driven by basic impulses and the pleasure principle
• Ego


  The conscious, rational part that manages the demands of the id in a socially acceptable way, governed by the reality principle
• Superego


  The part that embodies the sense of right and wrong, holds a picture of the ideal self, and aims to perfect and civilise behaviour, governed by the morality principle
• Freud argued that conflicts between the id, ego and superego can lead to mental disorders
• ID


  Demands immediate pleasure, not concerned with the consequences of an action
• EGO


  Mediates between the ID and the SUPEREGO, devising a realistic strategy to obtain pleasure
• SUPEREGO


  Functions to CONVERGE the impulses of the ID, especially those which society forbids, and can punish the ego through feelings of guilt
• Displacement


  • Sarah really wants to punch her brother but punches her pillow instead
• Regression


  • Biting nails - comfort of being a 'toddler'
• Psychosexual development


  Raise children based on it so they don't get fixated at any stage and can form healthy relationships in the future
• Fixation can affect relationships in adulthood
• Overindulgence in oral stage


  • Can lead to unhealthy dependency
• Denial in sexuality


  • Forming relationships not in line with true feelings
• Defence mechanisms


  Psychological strategies used to avoid anxiety and protect the ego
• Forming a relationship in adulthood


  May bring up unpleasant emotions from the past
• People may use ego defence mechanisms


  To help them avoid anxiety
• These relationships may become dysfunctional and break down