Evaluation

• Real-world application

  One strength of the psychodynamic approach is that it introduce the idea of psychotherapy (as opposed to physical treatments):

  • Freud created psychoanalysis. This was the first attempt to treat mental disorders psychologically rather than physically.
  • Psychoanalysis claims to help clients by bringing their repressed emotions into their conscious mind so that they can be dealt with
  • Psychoanalysis is the forerunner of counselling
• Counterpoint to real-world application

  Although Freudian therapists have claimed success for many clients with mild neuroses, psychoanalysis is regarded as inappropriate, even harmful, for people experiencing serious mental disorders, such as schizophrenia. Those with the disorder lose grip of reality, meaning that they cannot express their thoughts in the ways required by psychoanalysis.
• Explanatory power


  A strength of Freud's theory is its ability to explain human behaviour:

  • Alongside behaviourism, the psychodynamic approach was a key force in psychology for the first half of the 20th century and has been used to explain a wide range of phenomena including personality development and the origins of psychological disorders
  • The approach is also significant in drawing attention to the connection between experiences in childhood and our later development
• Untestable concepts


  A limitation of the psychodynamic approach is that much of it is untestable:

  • Philosopher of science Karl Popper argued that the psychodynamic approach does not meet the scientific criterion of falsification as it is not open to empirical testing.
  • Many of Freud's concepts, such as the Id and the Oedipus complex, are said to occur at the unconscious level, making it hard, even impossible, to test.
  • Furthermore, his ideas were based on subjective single studies, which makes it difficult to make universal claims about human behaviour.