Psychodynamic Approach

Key Points

• Behaviour is influenced by the unconscious mind
• The psychosexual stages suggests that a persons childhood will affect their later adulthood life
• Motivated by instinctive drives .i.e. sex and aggresion
• An important psychologist in this approach is Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

The Role Of The Unconscious

• Freud believed that the mind is like an iceberg and that most of its contents is beneath the surface
• The mind had three levels including the Conscious level (aware of), Preconscious level (Not currently aware of) and Unconscious level (not aware of)
• The role of the unconscious is to store drives, thoughts and memories that are unpleasant
• Such things are represses (locked away) so we are not aware of them
• Biological drives include the Eros/ Libido (life) drive and Thanatos (death) drive
• The need to satisfy these drives will therefore influence our behaviour and personality
• According to Freud, personality is split into the Id, Ego and Super-ego

• Id:
• Unconscious
• Biological drives and irrational impulses .e.g. Aggression
• Operates on the pleasure principle
• Basic and selfish desires that demand to be satisfied immediately
• Develops from birth

• Ego:
• Preconscious and Conscious
• Rational, logic and planing
• Operates on the reality principle
• Mediates betwwen the Id and Super-ego
• Develops from 2 years onwards

• Super-ego:
• Sense of right and wrong/ moral standards
• Guilt for wrongdoings
• Operates on the morality principle
• Develops from 5 years onwards

Defence Machanisms

• Unconscious strategies used by the Ego to prevent anxiety when faced with unpleasant situations that may cause guilt or embarrassment
• Distort reality to be protected by unpleasant feelings

Different defences

• Repression- Forcing a distressing memory into the unconscious .e.g. Can't recall events of an accident
• Denial- Refusing to acknowlege or admit to some aspect of reality .e.g. Turning up for work even though you have been sacked
• Displacement- Transferring an unacceptable emotion onto a substitute target that is more acceptable .e.g. Slamming the door after a argument 
• Sublimation- Acting out unacceptable impulses by making them socially acceptable .e.g. A man with a history of violence starts kick boxing
• Reaction Formation- Returning to an earlier stage of life .e.g. Stamping feet

During each stage

• The libido is focused on a particular erotogenic zone
• Child gains organ pleasure
• There is a conflict the child must resolve
• Unresolved conflicts result in fixation that can change the persons personality

Oral Stage:

• 0-1 years
• Mouth
• Putting things in mouth, sucking, biting and breast feeding
• Consequences of fixation include smoking, nail biting and thumb sucking

Anal Stage:

• 1-3 years
• Anus
• Toilet training
• Consequences of fixation include hates mess, punctual and respectful

Phallic Stage:

• 3-6 years
• Genitals (Oedipus= Boys, Electra= Girls)
• Attraction, resentment, rivalry, jealousy and fear
• Consequences of fixation include adopting characteristics of same sex parent/ gender problems

Latency Stage:

• 5- puberty
• Redirected
• Dormant through work, hobbies and friendship

Genital Stage:

• Puberty- Adulthood
• Resolve conflicts
• Consequences of fixation include relationships and sexual perversion

Oedipus Complex (Boy)

• Developed at the Phallic stage, the libido is unconsciously directed to his mother
• Conflict arises when the boys sexual pleasure will not be satisfied by mother, and the father is a formidable rival for attention
• The boy develops an unconscious fear that his father may stop competition by removing  his penis (Castration anxiety)
• Conflict is resolved when the boy identify's with his father, which gives him gender identity

Electra Complex (Girl)

• Girl desires to be like her father but realizes she doesn't have a penis
• This leads to penis envy and wishes to be a boy
• Resolves by repessing her desire and substituting the wish for a penis with a baby
• Girl blames mother for castrated state which creates tension
• Her feelings are repressed by identifing with mother to take on female gender role

Little Hans

• Hans was the 5 year-old son of an associates of Freud's
• Freud only studyed him through written correspondence with Hans' father
• He had a phobia of horses and was terrified of being bitten by one
• Developed his phobia shorty after being denied access to his parents' bed
• Often touching his penis and was threatened by his parents that if he continued to touch it they would cut it off
• Later described some dreams where a plumber fitted him with a larger penis "just like Daddy's" and was no longer afraid of horses after them 

Practical Applications

• Psychoanalysis is a treatment for mental illness
• Assumption that mental illnesses are caused by repression of traumatic childhood memories
• Use hypnosis and dream interpretation to access unconscious mind
• Free association- Saying the first thing that comes to mind
• Bergin- 83% success

Supporting Evidence

• Harris and Campbell found that women whose pregnancies were unplanned had more benefit from gains like money or relationship ties than those whose were planned
• Freud's case study of Little Hans supports the idea that boys experience an Oedipus complex

Unscientific

• Most of the evidence for the approach comes from case studies that just focus on one individual so are unlikely to be representative for the general population
• E.g. just because Little Hans suffered an Oedipus complex does not mean all 5 year-old males do
• The method is also very sujective (open to interpretation)
• E.g. Little Hans may have been classically conditioned 
• Many of the concepts can't be directly observed .e.g. the unconsious mind
• Can't be falsified so may not be valid or reliable

Deterministic

• Freud claims all human behaviour is determined by factors we can't control .e.g. a "Freudian Slip"
• Suggests that free will is an illusion
• Should be regarded with caution, as it is controversial and extreme to say that humans have no free will