Freud's study - Individual Differences

Question 1

What are the principles of the individual differences area?

Answer 1

• All psychological characteristics are inherited and as everyone inherits different characteristics, everyone is different and unique
• All human characteristics can be measured and quantified. The measures gained from one person are different to those gathered from another

Question 2

What is the background to Freud’s study?

Answer 2

• Most important driving force is sexual energy (libido). At each stage, this energy is expressed in different ways and through different parts of the body.

1. Oral (0-18 months, Id): Pleasure centres mouth-sucking, biting, chewing
2. Anal (18-38 months, Ego): Pleasure focuses on the bowel and bladder eliminations
3. Phallic (3-6 years, superego): Pleasure zone is genitals, Oedipus complex
4. Latency (6-Puberty): Dormant sexual feelings
5. Genital (Puberty onwards): Maturation of sexual interests

Question 3

Define Oedipus complex

Answer 3

A boy’s unconscious desire for his mother and jealousy of his father who he sees as a rival and wants to get rid of and replace.

Question 4

Define castration anxiety

Answer 4

A boy’s fear that his penis will be chopped off as punishment for his unconscious desires for his mother.

Question 5

Define a phobia.

Answer 5

An intense fear of an object, activity or situation which is out of proportion to the danger and causes impairment in functioning.

Question 6

Define a psychoanalysis.

Answer 6

Type of therapy involving talking to the patient and analysing their thoughts and dreams to bring the unconscious into the open

Question 7

What was the aim of Freud’s study?

Answer 7

To investigate the case of Little Hans, a young boy just under 3 who was experiencing a phobia and to provide evidence to support his theory of psychosexual development.

Question 8

The study by Freud used a case study method. What does this mean?

Answer 8

A case study means there is only 1 participant (Little Hans)

Freud’s study is a longitudinal case study: Little Hans was studied throughout 3 years

Question 9

What was the sample for Freud’s study?

Answer 9

Little Hans

Question 10

Describe Freud’s sampling method.

Answer 10

• Freud put out a call asking about children’s development
• Mother was previous Freud patient + both parents were supporters
• Hans is in the phallic stage
• He was a cheerful child until he developed a phobia
• Done in Austria, 1906-1908

Question 11

Describe the procedure in Freud’s study.

Answer 11

• Hans’ father recorded details of Hans’ behaviour and conversations, and made his own interpretations. He would then send these in a weekly letter to Freud.
• Freud replied with his own interpretations of the behaviours and conversations, and would give Hans’ father guidance on what to discuss with Hans and what behaviours to look out for.

Question 12

What was the data collection method in Freud’s study?

Answer 12

Self-report (interview): Hans’ father asked questions about dreams, fantasies and phobias.

Question 13

Describe the Freudian and alternative explanations to this phobia: Hans has a phobia of horses biting him.

Answer 13

Freudian: Hans was concerned his widdler would be cut off - castration anxiety due to his mom’s threat 15 months earlier to get Dr A to cut off his widdler due to him having his hand on it

Alternative: Fearful of horses due to overhearing someone in the street say “Don’t put your finger to the white horse or it’ll bite you”

Question 14

Describe the Freudian explanation to this phobia: Hans was fearful of horses, particularly what they wear in front of their eyes (blinkers) and the black muzzle.

Answer 14

The horse represents Hans’ father, with the horse’s blinkers being like his glasses and the muzzle being like his moustache.

Question 15

Describe the Freudian and alternative explanations to this phobia: Hans was fearful of carts, furniture vans and buses - fearing they would fall over when they turned.

Answer 15

Freudian: Hans’ father had asked him “When the horse fell down, did you think of your daddy?” Hans replied “Perhaps. Yes. It’s possible.” Seen as a desire for his father to die so that Hans could have his mother to himself.

Alternative: Hans had seen a bus-horse fall down and kick out with its feet when out with his mother. Likely to have been a scary experience for a young boy - maybe he has come to associate carts and buses with the fear he felt.

Question 16

Describe the Freudian and alternative explanations to this phobia: Hans was afraid that when he was in the big bath his mother would let him go and his head would go under the water.

Answer 16

Freudian: Interpreted as arising from a death-wish against his sister Hanna. Hans hoped his mom would drop her in so he would get his mom all to himself. Hans’ anxiety about the bath was then seen as a fear that he would be punished for the death-wish towards his sister.

Alternative: Young children can often be frightened of water. He may have slipped in the bath before and panicked.

Question 17

Describe the Freudian and alternative explanations to this dream/fantasy: After being given his bath, Hans was powdered around his penis by his mother, who was taking care not to touch it. Hans asked “Why don’t you put your finger there?” with her reply being “Because it’s not proper.”

Answer 17

Freudian: Hans desires his mother. This was a seduction attempt by Hans of his mother as he was asking her to touch him.

Alternative: Little Hans was probably just curious about why his mother was careful to avoid touching his penis while she was powdering him.

Question 18

Describe the Freudian explanation to this dream/fantasy: Hans climbed into his mother’s bed one morning and said “Do you know what Aunty M said? She said, ‘He has got a dear little thingummy”

Answer 18

Seduction attempt by Hans of his mother by expressing how others viewed him.

Question 19

Describe the Freudian and alternative explanations to this dream/fantasy: Hans was preoccupied with faeces - as shown by him following his mother and Berta to the toilet.

Answer 19

Freudian: Hans’ father believed the interest in defecation represented little Hans’ concerns about a heavily loaded stomach (pregnancy) and the potential future competition for his mother’s affections that the birth of another child would bring

Alternative: Could be explained due to him having troubles with his stools - suffering constipation until food intake was reduced under medical guidance.

Question 20

Describe the Freudian explanation to this dream/fantasy: Hans had two plumber fantasies. In the first one, a plumber took a big borer and stuck it into his stomach. In the second one, the plumber removed his bum and widdler with a pair of pincers and replaced them with bigger versions.

Answer 20

It was suggested that the bigger widdler and behind represented those of his father, and the fantasy reflected Hans’ desire to be like his dad. Seen as Hans having overcome the castration complex.

Question 21

Describe the Freudian and alternative explanations to this dream/fantasy: Hans gave one of his imaginary friends the name Lodi.

Answer 21

Freudian: Father’s interpretation of Lodi was that the name is like saffalodi (sausage), which resembles faeces. Possibly linked to concerns around his mother giving birth to another baby.

Alternative: Lodi is a relatively common name in Germany so unlikely to have any real significance.

Question 22

Describe the Freudian and alternative explanations to this dream/fantasy: Hans was playing with his imaginary friends, explaining that he was the children’s daddy, that his mom was their mommy, and that his dad was their granddad.

Answer 22

Freudian: Suggesting a satisfactory conclusion to the Oedipus complex which allowed little Hans to be with his mother, but without having to kill his father

Alternative: Young children have imaginary friends as part of their normal development.

Question 23

Describe the Freudian and alternative explanations to this dream/fantasy: Hans had climbed into his parents’ bed one night. He explained the next morning he had a fantasy of there being a big giraffe in the room and a crumpled one; the big one called out because he took the crumpled one away. Then it stopped calling out, and he sat on top of the crumpled one.

Answer 23

Freudian: Hans’ father decoded this by suggesting that the big giraffe represented him due to the long neck reflecting his penis, while the crumpled giraffe was Hans’ mother. The fact that little Hans had come into his parents’ bedroom was seen as a desire for his mother.

Alternative: Hans had visited Shonbrunn zoo five days earlier, so it could be due to him remembering seeing animals there.

Question 24

What can Freud conclude about his theory of infantile sexuality?

Answer 24

Nothing new was found that Freud didn’t discover from his other patients. Oedipus complex made Hans want his father gone and desire his mother. Hans was able to resolve his Oedipus complex.
- During the phallic stage, boys develop an Oedipus complex
- Phobias are the result of unconscious anxieties which have been displaced onto external objects.

Question 25

Outline one advantage of the sample used in Freud's study.

Answer 25

More detail about why Hans behaves the way he does, so provides evidence for the psychosexual stages of development.

Question 26

Outline one disadvantage of the sample used in Freud's study.

Answer 26

Researcher bias - parents of Hans were Freud supporters, and Freud wanted evidence for his theory therefore lacks validity.

Question 27

Outline one advantage of collecting data through self-report in Freud's study.

Answer 27

Dreams are not observable, so self-report is the only way.

Question 28

Outline one disadvantage of collecting data through self-report in Freud's study.

Answer 28

Social desirability bias as Hans' father was reporting the behaviours and might have wanted to look better.

Question 29

Outline one advantage of collecting qualitative data in Freud's study.

Answer 29

More detail - more support for psychosexual stages as it tells us information we otherwise wouldn't have.

Question 30

Outline one disadvantage of collecting qualitative data in Freud's study.

Answer 30

Reduces validity as Freud and Hans' father analysed the data (researcher bias)

Question 31

What ethical guidelines did Freud uphold?

Answer 31

- Consent + Withdrawal given by Hans' parents - Hans was not deceived

Question 32

What ethical guidelines did Freud break?

Answer 32

- Psychological harm - Confidentiality: Little Hans' real name was found (Herbert Graf) - Hans was not debriefed - Deception: leading questions might have deceived

Question 33

Is Freud's study ethnocentric?

Answer 33

No because the psychosexual stages of development are universal

Question 34

Internal reliability: Is the procedure standardised and replicable in Freud's study?

Answer 34

No because the questions were very specific to Little Hans and can't be asked to other children. Since we can't replicate, we can't establish consistent results.

Question 35

External reliability: Is the sample large enough to show a consistent effect in Freud's study?

Answer 35

No, because there is only one participant so it does not show a consistent effect.

Question 36

Construct validity: Was Freud correct in his interpretations of little Hans' phobias and fantasies? Could the way in which questions were asked affected Hans' responses?

Answer 36

It is very subjective - researcher bias as Freud wanted evidence for his theory. Leasing questions: Hans gave socially desirable answers

Question 37

Population validity: Is the sample diverse enough to be representative?

Answer 37

No, because there is only 1 participant so it's not generalisable to other people.