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From the psychodynamic model, I have chosen to include Jung’s concept of the collective

unconscious. I am including this because I believe that there are aspects to our personalities that

we cannot explain from our own experiences alone. Jung postulates that the collective

unconscious is comprised of instincts and archetypes that are not ours personally, but that we all

share as a species. Jung studied numerous cultures and spent time living among indigenous

societies in his attempt to understand the human psyche. He was also very interested in

mythology and noted that similar myths and symbols existed across cultures and time. Jung

noted that these similar “psychic processes are peculiar to any human being of any time; that is,

they have an ahistorical and an atemporal structural nature, regardless of culture” ((Iurato, 2015,

p. 64). In other words, virtually all cultures and peoples create some kind of shared religious

practice, which is often an integral part of their identities. Wars and conflicts in the Middle East

illustrate this point.

The collective unconscious cannot be understood without including a discussion of archetypes.

These are universal symbols that help us to envision and make sense of the world around us.

Jung believed that there were several archetypes that we all experience and can access and that

increasing our awareness of them will help us to better understand ourselves and live in the

world. Two important archetypes that are relevant to the study of personality are the

anima/animus and the shadow. The anima/animus represent the unconscious feminine in the

masculine and the unconscious masculine in the feminine. Jung believed that these archetypes

were always at play in our interpersonal relationship with the opposite sex in that we project our

inner feminine or masculine onto our partners and react to that projection rather than to the

person with whom we are involved. The expression and/or suppression of masculine and

feminine inside each of us play a role in the development of our personalities (Laughlin &

Tibera, 2012).

The shadow represents what is commonly referred to as our “dark side.” But it is bigger than

that. It encompasses all the things about us that we do not want to accept. Humans tend to

repress their shadow as unacceptable, but Jung says that the shadow can be a source of vibrant

creativity if acknowledged and managed. Otherwise the shadow will manage us. The shadow

can also explain healthy and unhealthy personalities. Jung says that a repressed shadow will find

ways to escape. If we can acknowledge and embrace our shadow, we can channel its energy into

creative outlets. If we deny or repress our shadow, then that energy will express itself in

unhealthy ways. So from a Jungian perspective, some of the differences between healthy and

unhealthy personalities can be explained by our ability to face, embrace, and express the

archetypes that exist in our collective unconscious.

Iurato, G. (2015). A brief comparison of the unconscious as seen by Jung and Levi-Strauss [PDF]. Anthropology of Consciousness, 26(1), 60-107. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/anoc.12032.

Laughlin, C. D., & Tiberia, V. A. (2012). Archetypes: Toward a Jungian anthropology of consciousness. Anthropology of Consciousness, 23(2), 127-157. doi:10.1111/j.1556- 3537.2012.01063.x