Psychodynamic

• Psychodynamic Approach -

  • Events in our childhood influence our adulthood such as shaping our personality. Unconscious forces in our mind determine our thoughts, feelings and behaviour.
  • The role of the unconscious -
  • Conscious = small amount of mental activity we are aware of: thoughts, perceptions & stored knowledge.
  • Preconscious = could be aware of if we wanted/tried can present in dreams or 'slips of the tongue' - selfish needs, violent motives & fears.
  • Unconscious = unaware of, events may be too painful or traumatic to acknowledge - immoral urges, unacceptable sexual desires.
• Tripartite Personality -

  • Id - pleasure principle, present at birth, entirely selfish immediate satisfaction, unconscious desires
  • Ego - reality principle, mediates between Id and superego, may delay satisfying Id until a more appropriate time, uses defence mechanisms.
  • Superego - morality principle, formed at around 5 years old, phallic stage, moral standards of society & same-sex parent causes feelings of guilt.
• Defence Mechanisms -

  • Repression = putting information into the the unconscious.
  • Denial = refusal to accept an event that occurred.
  • Projection = placing unacceptable impulses on others.
  • Displacement = unacceptable drive e.g. hatred is displaced from its primary target to a more acceptable one.
  • Regression = returning to a previous stage of development.
  • Sublimation = satisfying an impulse e.g. anger with a substitute object which is more socially acceptable.
• Psychosexual Stages - personality develops in 5 stages from birth to adolescence, children are born with an unconscious libido (sexual urge). At each stage the child seeks pleasure from a different object and a conflict needs to be resolved by the child in order to be psychologically healthy otherwise mental abnormalities can occur in adult life.
• ~ Old Age Pensioners Like Guinness.

  • Oral (0-2) libido - mouth. Child explores the world with their mouth, successful completion = weaning. Consequence = smoking, biting nails, critical (oral fixation).
  • Anal (2-3) libido - anus. Potty training, ego develops as parents impose restrictions. Child's first experience of control (expulsion/retention of faeces), successful completion = potty trained. Consequence = obsessive, perfectionist (anal retentive) or thoughtless, messy (anal expulsive).
• • Phallic (3-6) libido - genitals. Oedipus & Electra complex, child identifies with same-sex parent & internalises their morals & values. Important for the development of the superego. Consequence = narcissistic, reckless (phallic personality).
  • Latent (6-12) earlier conflicts repressed, lull before puberty. No fixation occurs.
  • Genitals (12+) libido - genitals, sexual desires = conscious. Healthy adult relationships form if earlier stages are completed successfully. Consequence = difficulty forming heterosexual relationships.
• AO3 -

  • Based off case studies e.g. Little Hans (idiographic) generalised to the wider population e.g. we all go through the Oedipus and Electra complex although that was only formed from the Little Hans case study. Also, Freud studied most of these personally so observer bias may have occurred and interpretations are not part of the scientific method.
  • Fisher and Greenberg (1996) RS for defence mechanisms. They looked at 2500 studies of the psychodynamic approach and found evidence for unconscious motives in human behaviour as well as support for the defence mechanisms: repression & denial.
• • Freud's theory was one of the first to connect early childhood to later development, RLA as it allows parents to be aware of their interactions with children to ensure healthy development.
  • RLA - psychoanalysis, a therapy used to help treat psychological disorders such as eating disorders e.g. anorexia. Research support and evidence for the therapy and its effectiveness, patients symptoms improved and these improvements were maintained. Improves patients quality of life.
  • Pseudoscience as concepts are not falsifiable, lacks scientific rigour and discredits psychology's credibility as a science.
• Roles of the unconscious -

  • the unconscious is the driving/motivating force behind our behaviour/personality
  • the unconscious protects the conscious self from anxiety/fear/trauma/conflict.
• Elaboration on the role of the unconscious -

  • traumatic (repressed) memories drive our behaviour
  • defence mechanisms, e.g. repression, denial, displacement, are used unconsciously to reduce anxiety
  • the underlying unconscious drive is sexual
  • if a conflict is experienced during the development through the psychosexual stages, e.g. oral, anal, phallic, latent, genital, a fixation (that resides in their unconscious mind) can affect an adult’s personality.
• What is the role of defence mechanisms?

  • help the ego manage the conflict between the id and the superego
  • provide compromise solutions (usually unconscious) to deal with unresolvable conflict
  • provide a strategy to reduce anxiety (which weakens the ego’s influence)
  • use of examples, e.g. through the use of denial/displacement/repression, to describe the role of defence mechanisms
• AO3 -

  • psychotherapy as a treatment for mental health issues
  • explanatory power to many psychological topics
  • socially sensitive, e.g. mental health issues may be blamed on parents
  • testing of unconscious concepts is unfalsifiable
  • lack of scientific rigour
  • subjectivity – unconscious thoughts can only be inferred from behaviour or reported thoughts/experiences
• Developmental stages


  • Oral
  • Anal
  • Phallic
  • Latency
  • Genital
• Oral stage (0–1yr)


  Focus of pleasure is the mouth and the mother's breast is the focus of desire
• Anal stage (1–3yrs)


  Focus of pleasure is the anus and child focuses on withholding and expelling faeces
• Phallic stage (3–5yrs)


  Focus of pleasure is genitals and children experience the Oedipus/Electra complex
• Latency stage (6–12yrs)


  Previous conflicts are resolved/repressed and early years are largely forgotten
• Genital stage (12yrs/puberty-adulthood)


  Sexual desires become conscious with the onset of puberty
• There is an unconscious conflict at each stage which must be resolved before the next stage is reached