approaches

• AO1 - key assumptions and features

  The founder of the psychodynamic approach and the main figure of the approach is Sigmund Freud. According to Freud the part of the mind we are most aware of is the conscious mind. However. it is the unconscious which influences our behaviour as most of our mind is made up of the unconscious. Freud uses the metaphor of an iceberg to describe the human mind. The tip of the iceberg is visible and represents the conscious mind. The conscious contains the small amount of mental activity we know about e.g. thoughts and perceptions. Whereas the much larger part of the iceberg represents the unconscious. The unconscious contains things we are unaware of and cannot become aware of e.g. instincts and deeply buried memories. The unconscious mind also contains threatening memories which may have been repressed.(Repressed memories are memories that have been unconsciously blocked due to the memory being associated with a high level of stress or trauma.) Under the surface of our conscious mind is the preconscious, which includes thoughts and ideas, which we mav become aware of during dreams or through 'slip of the tongue." Also. referred to as'parapraxes."
• AO1 - tripartite


  Freud described the structure of our personality as 'tripartite' as it composed of three parts the id, superego and ego. The id is described as the evil and selfish part of the personality. As it operates according to the "pleasure principle." The id is contained in the unconscious part of the mind and only the id is present at birth and throughout life the id is entirely selfish and wants its demands met instantly. Whereas the superego opposes the desire of the id and is the complete opposite. The superego enforces moral restrictions and battles against id impulses. The superego develops at around the age of 5 through identification with one or the other parent. The last part of our personality is the ego, which is the mediator between the id and superego. The ego is developed at around the age of 2 and operates according to the "reality principle." The role of the ego is to reduce conflict between the demands of the id and the superego.
• AO1 - the ego

  The ego does this by employing defence mechanisms (unconscious strategies) to protect itself from conflicts between the id and superego. These include repression, denial and displacement. The displacement mechanism transfers feeling from the true source of distressing emotion onto a substitute target. Everyone uses defence mechanism from time to time, however excessive use of defence mechanism will eventually result in the ego becoming increasingly detached from reality and in time can cause psychological disorder.
• AO1 - psychosexual stages

  The psychodynamic theory states that events in our childhood have a great influence on our adult lives, shaping our personality. This is because events that occur in childhood remain in the unconscious and may cause problems for us as adults. Freud suggested that all children go through the five stages of development. The oral stage 0-1 years of age, anal stage 1-3 years of age, phallic stage 3-5 years of age, the latent stage 6-11 years of age and finally the genital stage 12+ years of age.
• AO3 - strength - explanatory power


  A strength of the psychodynamic approach is that despite Freud's theory is controversial in many and bizarre occasionally, it has still had an influence on psychology and Western contemporary thoughts. Alongside behaviorism, the psychodynamic approach had remained the dominant force in psychology for the first half of the 20* century. It has been used to explain a wide range of phenomena including personal development, abnormal behaviour, moral development and gender. It is significant as it draws attention to the connection between experiences in childhood, such as our

  relationships with our parents and connection to our childhood. Theretore, the psychodynamic approach is significant in a way due to its dominance.
• AO3: strength - real life application

  Alongside the theoretical basis of the psychodynamic approach, Freud also brought a new form of therapy: psychoanalysis. Employing a range of techniques designed to access the unconscious, such as hypnosis, dream analysis, free association, ink blot test. Which is a strength as it shows practical application. However, Freudian therapists have claimed success with many patients suffering from mild neurosis, psychoanalysis has been criticised as inappropriate, even harmful, for people suffering with more serious mental disorders such as schizophrenia. This is because if someone is experiencing hallucinations and delusions etc. This therapy will worsen those symptoms.
• AO3 Weakness - untestable concepts


  However, a limitation is that it has untestable concepts. Karl popper argued that the psychodynamic approach does not meet the scientific criteria of falsification. Many of Freud's concepts such as the Id and the Oedipus complex are said to occur at an unconscious level, making them difficult, if not impossible, to test. According to popper this affords the psychodynamic theory the status of pseudoscience rather than a real science. However, there is some recent research that has begun to provide evidence for the unconscious mind - processing of subliminal information has been reported in scanning techniques, which may suggest that there is scientific credibility to some of Freud's concepts.
• AO3 Weakness - psychic deterministic


  Another weakness is that it is psychic deterministic. Freud believed, in relation to human behaviour, that there was no such thing as an 'accident'. Even something as apparently random as a 'slip of the tongue' is driven by unconscious forces and has deep symbolic meaning. The psychodynamic approach explains all behaviour(even accidents) as determined by unconscious conflicts that are rooted in childhood so that any free will we may think we have is an illusion.