Psychodynamic approach

• assumption: child hood experience

  • psychological development through psychosexual stages where libido fixates on different area of body
  • Oral,Anal,Phallic,Latency,Genital
• frustration and overindulgence

  1. not resolved and needs not met
  2. more than satisfied so too comfortable
• Oral stage fixation (0-18 months)


  frustration: pessimism, sarcasm, envy

  overindulgence: optimism, gullibility, neediness
• Anal stage outcomes (18 mo- 3 yrs)


  Frustration:stubborn, possessive, overly tidy

  Overindulgence: messy, disorganised, reckless
• phallic stage outcomes (3-5yrs)


  self assured, vain, problems building relationships and problems with sexuality
• Assumption: tripartite personality

  Id- impulsive and unconscious, present at birth, demands immediate satisfaction - pleasure principle

  Ego- Rational, develops at age 2, balances demands of Id. -reality principle

  Super ego- right and wrong,develops at age 4. Idea of his or her ideal self, perfects and civilises behaviour. Learn through identification with parents -morality principle

  -Ego resolves conflict between id and super ego considering consequences
• Assumption- unconscious mind

  • Conscious mind is logical and makes up 20%
  • unconscious pleasure seeking, cannot be directly accessed but can indirectly through dreams
  • determines behaviour , motivating us through unconscious emotional drives
  • unresolved conflicts have a powerful effect
• Oedipus complex and relationships

  • (Desire for mother and sees father as rival) Identification with father resolves this so boys can develop normal healthy friendships and heterosexual realtionships
  • if unresolved, homosexuality and problems in relationships may occur (according to Freud)
• oral stage and relationships

  overindulgence leads to dependency on others so may be needy
• phallic stage and relationships

  Fixation leads to inability to love another person or enter a relationship
• Defence mechanisms and relationships

  • May used to avoid anxiety around unpleasant emotions from past
  • In denial about sexuality->form relationships, not in line with true feelings -dysfunctional and will break down
  • Dishonesty in relationships->rationalisation
• Ego, defence mechanisms

  1. Displacement- move impulses from one person/object to another
  2. Projection-undesirable thoughts attributed to someone else
  3. Repression- push, painful, memories, deep into unconscious so they are forgotten
• Weakness: determinist

  • Underestimate uniqueness of people and ability to choose destiny-> remove the responsibility
  • Adult behaviour, determined by childhood experience
  • No free-> excuse to behave unreasonably or excuse criminal behaviour
• Weakness: reductionist

  • Approach may be holistic, but also reductionist as mechanistic
  • Behaviour due to mechanics of the mind-> ignores, biochemistry and genetics
  • Simplistic
• Strength: holistic

  • Reflect complexity of human behaviour, taking into account multiple factors
  • Uncovers, deep meanings and acknowledges that understanding behaviour is a lengthy process
• Strength:application

  • Highlights importance of childhood in development
  • Freud 1st to recognise psychological factors can explain physical symptoms
  • wide use of psychoanalyisis
  • Understand mental health issues-> child, trauma/unresolved conflict
• Strength : nature and nurture

  • Acknowledges both
  • Nature: personality as a product of innate drives id instinctual-> driven by Eros and Thanatos
  • Nurture: childhood experience is key-> fixation of libido predicts, and defines adult personality
• Weakness: unfalsifiable

  • Cannot prove theory only falsify
  • Notoriously, slippery, i.e. all men have repressed homosexual tendencies, can’t be falsified as it would be repressed
  • Generate a testable hypothesis