Michael Smith only

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Sigmund Freud

and the

Psychodynamic view

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

• Founder of psychoanalysis

• Proposed the first complete theory of personality

• A person’s thoughts and behaviors emerge from tension generated by unconscious motives and unresolved childhood conflicts.

• Emphasizes unconscious motivation – the main causes of behavior lie buried in the unconscious mind (within the individual)

• Mind = made of 3 components: – Conscious mind – Preconscious mind – Unconscious mind

• Personality = made of three components as well: – Id – I want it all and I want it now! – Super Ego – You shouldn’t! – Ego – if you put it this way I guess I will… and behavior follows.

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• Id - instinctual drives present at birth, drive toward immediate gratification, most fundamental human motive – does not distinguish between reality and fantasy – operates according to the pleasure principle

• Ego - develops out of the Id in infancy – understands reality and logic – mediator between Id and superego, follows the reality principle

(ability to postpone gratification in accordance with demands of reality)

• Superego – internalization of society’s & parental moral standards – One’s conscience; focuses on what the person “should” do – Develops around ages 5-6. – Partially unconscious – Can be harshly punitive using feelings of guilt

The Personality

Id: “I want!” Superego: “I should!” Ego: “I will!” https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=tMgpF nycZCg

Childhood Psychosexual Stages https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uowhCklNAio

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Oral Stage (birth – 18 mo.)

• Mouth is associated with sexual pleasure

• Pleasure comes from chewing, biting, and sucking.

• Weaning a child can lead to fixation if not handled correctly

• Fixation can lead to Oral Personality : oral activities in adulthood

Anal Stage (1 – 3 years) • Gratification comes from bowel and

bladders functions.

• Toilet training can lead to fixation if not handled correctly

• Fixation can lead to Anal Personality: anal retentive or expulsive behaviors in adulthood

Phallic Stage (3 – 6 years) • Focus of pleasure shifts to the genitals

• Sexual attraction for opposite sex parent

• Boys cope with incestuous feelings toward their mother and rival feelings toward their dad (Oedipus Complex). For girls it is called the Electra Complex.

• Child identifies with and tries to mimic the same sex parent to learn gender identity.

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Oedipus Complex – for boys • Boys feel hostility and jealousy towards their fathers but knows

their father is more powerful. This leads to…

• Castration Anxiety results in boys who feel their father will punish them by castrating them.

• Resolution = Identification: imitating and internalizing one’s father’s values, attitudes, and mannerisms. (Formation of gender identity & superego)

• The fact that only the father can have sexual relations with the mother becomes internalized in the boy as taboo against incest in the boy’s superego.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iw__Dsg1fNc

Oedipus Complex – for girls • Girls also have incestuous feelings for their dad and

compete with their mother.

• Penis Envy – Little girl suffers from deprivation and loss and blames her mother for “sending her into the world insufficiently equipped” causing her to resent her mother.

• Resolution: Identification: In an attempt to take her mother’s place she eventually indentifies with her mother.

• Fixation can lead to Phallic Personality: – Males: excessive masculinity – Females: the need for attention or domination

Latency Stage (5 – puberty)

• Sexuality is repressed (Latent = “hidden”) due to intense anxiety caused by Oedipus complex.

• Children participate in hobbies, school, and same-sex friendships that strengthen their sexual identity.

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Genital Stage (puberty on)

• Incestuous sexual feelings re-emerge but being prohibited by the superego are redirected toward others who resemble the person’s opposite sex parent.

• Healthy adults find pleasure in love and work • Fixated adults have their energy tied up in

earlier stages

Defense Mechanisms

• Unconscious mental processes employed by the Ego to reduce anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRW-m_8nZzw

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8a3-DyMUHQ

Defense Mechanism Activity • 2 groups of 3 students would volunteer to serve as actors and would leave the room to work on an act that will demonstrate a particular defense mechanism (5-10 min)

• The remaining students will write a short essay giving an example from their own life where they used some of the mechanism defense (5-10 min)

• The acting students return and play out the scenario they have created (5min)

• The task for the remaining students is to discuss the defense mechanism they feel each scenario attempted to depict

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Free Association • Freudian technique of exploring the

unconscious mind by having the person relax and say whatever comes to mind no matter how trivial or embarrassing.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= DupfsWxQx-E

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= cDflnqo0TQs

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= O4SH5uaGN3Y

The Couch (for som e reason, som e textbooks include pictures of “the couch”. I thought it w as funny, so I included it here)

Interpretation of Dreams • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWMEnkyL_qA • Manifest dream vs. Latent dream • Condensation • Displacement • Example of symbols:

King and Queen / Boxes, chest/ Small animals or vermin / Falling into or out of water/ Being rescued from water/ Sticks, umbrellas, trees/ Flying in dreams/ Walking down up the stairs, ladders, elevators, planes/ Haircut, baldness/ Pits, closets, tunnels, doors / Apples, peaches

• Homework for next class: as soon as you wake up, write down everything you remember from your dream, all the details, people, the location, the feelings

Interpretation of Dreams

• Homework for next class: as soon as you wake up, write down everything you remember from your dream, all the details, people, the location, the feelings. Based on what you learned about the symbols, condensation, and displacement from Freud’s theory, try to interpret you dream.

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Personality Assessment Projective Techniques

• Interpretation of an ambiguous to trigger projection of one’s inner thoughts and feelings

• Used to determine unconscious motives, conflicts, and psychological defenses & traits

What do you see ? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xa8JM8qmbyc

History of Psycho-pathology: Conclusion

• What is the most important contribution that Freud made to current theories of psychopathology? – Integrated normal developmental concepts into understanding psychopathology (processes that change over time)

Some criticisms:

• Heavy emphasis on sexuality • Abnormal population • Lack of scientific support