This means early experiences play a critical role in our lives. Freud believed the human mind has both unconscious and conscious areas. The unconscious part is seen as being dominated by the id, a primitive part of the human personality that seeks only gratification and pleasure. It isn’t concerned with social rules, only with self-gratification and it is driven by the ‘pleasure principle.’ It is said psychopaths are ID led. The disregard for our consequences of behaviour is referred to as ‘primary process thinking’.
The psychodynamic approach assumes that adult behaviour reflects complex dynamic interactions between the conscious and unconscious mind, which are present from birth. Freud, the founder of this approach, believed that our behaviour is powerfully affected by the processes within our conscious mind and psychological disorders in adulthood, are due to problems with we have encountered in our childhood, that have not been solved. Freud purposed that personality is made up of three parts. These parts are the id, superego and ego. He also suggested that our personality is shaped in different times of our childhood, which is known as the psychosexual development.
“Evaluate the extent to which Freud’s theory of Psychosexual Development can help us to understand a client’s presenting issue?” In this essay I am asked to evaluate one aspect of Freudian theory. I will begin by first describing Freud’s psychosexual theory and demonstrate an understanding of its relationship to adult neurotic behaviour. Having done this I will examine some of the criticisms that have been levelled at Freudian theory in order to evaluate it. In 1905 Freud published ‘Three Essays on the theory of Sexuality and other Works’, one of those essays was titled ‘Infantile Sexuality’. In this essay Freud sets out his theory of psychosexual development.
Psychology/405 Personality Theories Freud’s Theory of Psychoanalysis and Adler’s Theory of Individual Psychology Constance Turner Professor DR. Rockel Etienne February 18, 2012 Freud’s Theory of Psychoanalysis: According to Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of personality, there are three distinctive categories of the mind. These categories are the conscious, the sub-conscious, and the pre-conscious areas of the mind (Freud, 2002 revised Ed.). In the human mind, the conscious part of the mind involves our present thinking processes, as well as our present environmental awareness and behaviors that we act in. The sub-conscious category of the mind prevents the present thinking processes from reaching the conscious category of the mind. The sub-conscious, acts on its own accord; as it not only thinks independently, but it also acts independently as well (Freud, 2002, revised Ed.).
Evaluate the extent to which Freud’s theory of pyschosexual development can help us to understand a clients presenting issue? A central aim of this essay is to demonstrate an understanding of Freud’s Theory of Psyhcosexual development and how this theory may help us to explain and identify adult neurotic behaviour. Evaluating the pros and cons of psycho sexual theory and the extent to which it helps us to understand a clients presenting issue. We shall define and consider the relationship between the Id, Ego and Super Ego and the way in which these constructs of our psyches are in many ways representative of earlier experiences and of those early situations and conflicts we had faced. Sigmund Freud is recognised as being one of the great forefathers of modern day psychology.
Outline and evaluate the psychodynamic approach to abnormality The psychodynamic approach assumes that experiences in our earliest years can affect our emotions, attitudes and behaviour in later years without us being aware that it is happening. Freud suggested the mind or psyche has three parts: the conscious, the preconscious, and the unconscious. Freud suggested that individuals can never be aware of the contents of the unconscious. Freud argued that childhood experiences play a crucial part in adult development, including the development of adult personality. Every child must pass through the so-called psycho-sexual stages; how a child experiences these stages plays a crucial role in the development of his/her personality.
Psychology Assignment Attachment John Bowlby was a British psychoanalyst born in 1907. He believed that mental health and behavioural problems could be attributed to early childhood experiences. He was commissioned by the World Health Organisation to investigate the effects on children’s development of being raised in an institution. To formulate his theory of attachment Bowlby drew on the work of Psychoanalytical theorists and Ethological theorists, such as Konrad Lorenz. ‘The time is ripe for a unification of Psychoanalytical concepts with those of Ethology’ J Bowlby 1953 Bowlby’s theory begins with the idea that we are all born with innate drives, this comes from the Darwinist theory that all characteristics have survival value, Bowlby would consider attachment to be one of these characteristics.
Attachment theory (John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth) The attachment theory is based on the collaboration of both John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth. The theory describes the dynamics of long-term relationships between humans especially as in families and life-long friends. Bowlby basically said that early experiences in childhood have an important influence on development and behavior later in life. Our attachment styles evolve during childhood based on the relationships we have with our parent or caregiver. The attachment theory is a psychodynamic theory.
His most important contribution to the study of the psychology of human behaviour was his concept of the ‘dynamic unconscious’, that the unconscious mind played a very important role in determining how a person behaved. Underlying this theory is the belief that any individual’s behaviour is the direct result of the influences of all prior experiences and that these influences would have an even greater effect if they were from childhood. Freud believed that these first experiences formed solid foundations on which the developing child would structure the rest of their life. This would mean that the adult personality was directly formed in childhood, according to the experience and treatment as a child. In summary if a child had a happy and well balanced upbringing then they could develop into a well balanced and adjusted adult.
You could view children becoming abusers themselves via Freud's ego and super ego theory, which it could be argued that in early development a child sees the way to get what they want and or need via coersion, violence, complaining, yelling, or how ever the child perceives the parent obtaining that which they want. We could also argue from Erikson's psychosocial stages that the children are not being taught what correct hope, will, love, trust, fidelity, care and wisdom truly are. My personal theory is that if we look into Bandura's social learning theory that can give us a better understanding of the development of children into adult abusers or victims. “Children learn to hit by watching other people in real life and on television. Adults learn job skills by observing or being shown them by others.” (Bandura, A.)