the psychodynamic approach

• Assumptions of the psychodynamic approach- Sigmund Freud


  All behaviour can be explained in terms of the inner conflicts of the mind.

  The unconscious mind, the structure of personality and childhood experiences influence our behaviour in later life.

  We are motivated by unconscious emotional drives.
• Tripartite personality


  Freud argued that early childhood experiences shape the structure of personality.

  • Id
  • Ego
  • Superego
• Id

  Present at birth.

  Selfish aspect of the mind focused only on satisfying personal needs and desires.

  The biological part of the personality, instincts and drives.

  Motivated by the pleasure principle and demands instant gratification of its needs.

  Remains a part of the unconscious mind throughout life.
• Ego


  Develops from around 18 months.

  Motivated by the reality principle which is the primarily conscious component of personality.

  Mediates the conflicts between the Id and superego by using rational thinking.

  Uses defence mechanisms.

  Allows individual's ability to interact with the world in a more balanced and realistic manner.
• Superego


  Develops from around 3 years

  Motivated by the morality principle and emerges as the child internalises the values and norms of their parents and society.

  Punishes the ego with guilt for 'wrongdoing' - moderates behaviour according to moral and societal expectations.
• Three parts of the mind

  
  

  • Conscious
  • Preconscious
  • Unconscious
• Conscious mind


  The part of the mind that we are aware of and can access without any effort, including ideas, decisions and emotions.

  Contains part of the ego.
• Preconscious mind


  The part of the mind that we cannot access without effort but can be brought into conscious awareness.

  Contains the ego and some of the superego.
• Unconscious mind


  The largest part of the mind, holding thoughts and memories that are not accessible to awareness but influence our behaviours and feelings. Contains desires, impulses and repressed memories.

  Contains the superego and the id.
• Defence mechanisms


  Unconscious strategies that the ego uses to manage the conflict between the id and the superego.

  Repression, displacement, denial.
• Repression


  An unpleasant memory or painful emotion is placed into the unconscious mind and is no longer accessible to the conscious mind.
• Displacement


  An impulse is redirected from its original target onto a more acceptable one.
• Denial


  A refusal to accept the reality of a situation.
• Stages of psychosexual development


  Freud argues that as children develop biologically, they pass through 5 psychosexual stages; at each stage, the child will experience an unconscious conflict that must be resolved.

  1. Oral Stage (0-1 years)

  2. Anal Stage (1-3 years)

  3. Phallic Stage (3-5 years)

  4. Latency Stage (6-12 years)

  5. Genital Stage (12+ years)
• Oral stage of psychosexual development

  0-1 year

  The mouth is the source of pleasure during breastfeeding.

  Forceful feeding, deprivation or early weaning can lead to a fixation on oral activities (e.g. smoking), dependency and aggression.
• Anal stage of psychosexual development

  1-3 years

  The child gets pleasure from withholding or expelling faeces.

  Too harsh toilet training can lead to fixations of obsessiveness, tidiness, meanness, or to untidiness and generosity.
• Phallic stage of psychosexual development

  3-5 years

  Pleasure is now focused on the genitals.

  Boys experience the Oedipus complex: a sexual desire for their mother, and castration anxiety: feat the father will find out and remove the boy's genitals. They then realise they cannot compete with their father and therefore identify with him, developing a male gender identity.

  Girls experience the Electra complex: describes a girl's attachment to her father and dislike for her mother.
• Latent stage of psychosexual development

  5-12 years

  Freud suggests at this stage, sexual energy (libido) is dispersed across the body, and previous conflicts, desires and memories from early childhood are repressed into the unconscious.
• Genital stage of psychosexual development

  12+

  This is the point of puberty, and sexual desire is not conscious and in the final adult form.

  Fixation at this stage should occur in a mentally healthy adult.
• + Supporting evidence


  E - Fisher and Greenberg concluded that experimental studies of psychoanalysis compare well with studies relevant to other areas of psychology.

  E - They found support for the existence of unconscious motivation as well as defence mechanisms.

  L - Therefore, this adds validity to the psychodynamic approach.
• + Practical applications- treatment for depression and anxiety


  E - Maat et al performed a review of psychotherapy studies with patients with said disorders and found that psychoanalysis has significant effects on improving their symptoms.

  E - The psychodynamic approach has effective practical applications. Treatment is still effective years later after the treatment.

  L - Therefore, it is reliable and can be replicated on those with the same disorder and is, therefore, more valid.
• - Not falsifiable


  E - Freud's ideas surrounding the unconscious mind are difficult to test because we cannot see it and therefore can only make assumptions.

  E - His theories and ideas can neither be proved true nor refuted. This makes Freud's ideas highly unscientific.

  L - However, despite the scepticism surrounding the unconscious mind, cognitive psychology has identified unconscious processes (e.g. procedural memory).
• - Deterministic


  E - The approach believes that if an individual gets too much or too little pleasure at a stage of psychosexual development that it will impact on adult behaviour, pre-programming them to behaviour in a specific way.

  E - The psychodynamic approach can be criticised for not taking free will into consideration.

  L - Therefore, without free will everybody would develop the same characteristics and there would be no variation. This is not representative of society.