Psychoanalytic Theory Basic Freudian Propositions

Sigmund Freud and the Psychoanalytic Movement Sigmund Freud developed psychoanalysis Shaped peoples thinking by telling them how their thinking was shaped

The Basic Instincts: Sex and Aggression Closely follows Darwin’s theory Freud believed that everything humans do goes back to survival or the struggle between life and death. Later termed libido (life) and thanatos (death) Mirrors Darwin’s theory of natural selection: selection by reproduction and selection by survival. Although he initially believed that the life and death instincts worked to oppose one another, he later argued that they could combine in various ways. He believed that from these instincts comes the energy that powers all human behaviors.

How he Developed his Ideas Studied patients through interviews, analyzed their dreams, thoughts and fantasies for recurring themes Analyzed himself- realized a lot of his issues were around his strained relationship with his father- Oedipal Complex

Unconscious Motivation Individuals control their sexual and aggressive urges by placing them in the unconscious These take on a life of their own, unconscious to the individual person According to Freud the mind is made up of 3 parts: the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious. The latter is the largest part of the mind and manifests itself in the dreams, “slips of the tongue”, irrational feelings, physical symptoms, or inexplicable anxiety.

Levels of Consciousness Conscious - current awareness Preconscious - not aware of material but it’s retrievable (via ordinary retrieval) Unconscious - not aware of material but it’s not retrievable (via ordinary retrieval)

Levels of Consciousness

Personality and Psychoanalysis Techniques for Revealing the Unconscious Free Association Dream Analysis Recovered Memories Free Association: Speaking whatever comes into your mind without censoring your thoughts. Psychoanalysts must be able to recognize the subtle signs that something important has just been mentioned. Dream Analysis: Uncovering unconscious material in a dream by interpreting the content of a dream. Consists of manifest content (what the dream actually contains) and latent content (what the elements of the dream actually represent) Projective Techniques: Uses the idea that what a person sees in an ambiguous figure reflects his or her personality.

The Structure of Personality EGO constrains the id to reality ID Primitive instincts Psychoanalytic theory concerns how people cope with their sexual and aggressive instincts within the constraints of a civilized society. One part of the mind creates urges, another has a sense of what civilized society expects, and another part of the mind tries to satisfy the urges within the bounds of reality and society. These parts of the mind are in constant interaction. They have different goals, provoking internal conflicts within an individual. SUPEREGO internalizes the values, morals, and ideals of society

Psychodynamics Conflict model Id vs. superego; Individual vs. society Restrain expression of all drives Surplus energy results in anxiety

Summary What is really going on in all people is the struggle between life and death: survival There are 3 main forces in the psyche that constantly interact to tame the other 2 motives Psychoanalysis is a therapy used for making the patient's unconscious conscious and relieve the anxiety caused by the inner conflicts within each person

Evaluating Freud’s Contributions Proponents argue it is the first and perhaps only comprehensive theory of human nature Psychoanalysis has had a major impact on Western thought Critics maintain it is not contemporary The nature of evidence upon which it was built can be criticized Emphasis on sexual drives is inappropriate