AQA A-Level Psychology > Psychodynamic Approach > Flashcards

Psychodynamic Approach Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the role of the unconscious

A

Freud proposed that the conscious mind makes up only a small portion of our overall mental activity

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2
Q

What did Freud liken the role of the unconscious

A

Likened it to the tip of an iceberg, with the vast majority of the mind existing below the surface

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3
Q

What’s the hidden part known as and what does it contain

A

As the unconscious, contains thoughts, memories, and desires that influence our behaviour without us being aware

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4
Q

According to Freud, what’s the conscious mind

A

Is the part we are actively aware of in any given moment

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5
Q

What does the conscious mind include

A

Includes our current thoughts, perceptions and anything we are deliberately focusing on

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6
Q

What is the preconscious mind

A

Just below the surface of our awareness

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7
Q

What does the preconscious mind include

A

Includes memories and thoughts that are not currently active in our conscious mind but can be brought into awareness when needed

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8
Q

What did Freud believe about unconscious mind

A

Believed that the unconscious mind is the most powerful and influential part of our mental life

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9
Q

What does the unconscious mind contain

A

Contains thoughts, desires, memories, and feelings that are buried deep below conscious awareness, often because they are distressing, socially unacceptable, or anxiety - provoking

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10
Q

What do these repressed elements (desires, memories, and feelings that buried deep below conscious) do

A

Influence our behaviour, thoughts and emotions without us realising it

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11
Q

What is a Freudian Slip

A

Is an unintentional error in speech,writing or memory that reveals hidden thoughts, feelings or desires

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12
Q

What did Freud believe about these ‘slips’

A

Believed these ‘slips’ are not accidents, instead, they are the unconscious mind through, revealing repressed thoughts or desires that the conscious mind is trying to hide

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13
Q

What are the Freudian Slips evidence of

A

Are evidence that the unconscious mind is always active, shaping behaviour even when were unaware of it

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14
Q

What did Freud believe about dreams

A

That dreams are full of hidden meanings and symbolic expressions of thoughts and desires we keep buried

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15
Q

What does the unconscious mind disguise unacceptable thoughts (like desires, fears, or guilt) into

A

Into symbolic often strange dream images to stop the conscious mind from being disturbed

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16
Q

By analysing dreams, what did Freud believe we could uncover

A

Believed we could uncover repressed memories, desires and conflicts giving us insight into the deep workings of the unconscious

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17
Q

What did Freud believe about the personality

A

Has three parts—— the id, ego, and superego

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18
Q

What can the three parts of personality be referred to as

A

The tripartite personality

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19
Q

Freud conceived the mind as having what

A

As having only a fixed amount of psychic energy (libido), and id, ego, and superego contends for the most libido possible thus determining out personality

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20
Q

What is the ID

A

Is the primitive part of personality and operates on the pleasure principle

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21
Q

Throughout life how is the id

A

Is selfish and demands instant gratification of its needs

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22
Q

The ID is present…..

A

At birth

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23
Q

What does the ego work on

A

Works on the reality principle and mediates between the other two parts

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24
Q

What does the ego reduce

A

Reduces conflict between the demands of the id and the superego through defense mechanisms

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25
When does the ego develop
Develops around 2 years old
26
What is the super ego
Is the sense of right and wrong and is based on the morality principle
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What does the super ego punish
Punishes the ego for wrongdoings through guilt
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When is the superego formed
Around the age of 5
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What are defence mechanisms
The ego balances potential conflict between the ID and superego and tried to reduce anxiety. In areas of significant conflict the ego can reduce redirect psychic energy using ‘Defense mechanisms’
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What are the three key mechanisms Freud proposed
Repression, displacement, denial
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What is repression
Burying an unpleasant thought or desires in the unconscious
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What is displacement
Emotions are directed away from their source or target towards other things
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What is denial
A threatening thought is ignored or treated as if it were not true
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Strengths of psychodynamic approach
-Freud highlighted a widely accepted link between childhood experience and adult characteristics -Some evidence supports the existence of ego defense mechanisms such as repression, e.g. adults can forget traumatic child sexual abuse (Williams, 1994)
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Weaknesses of psychodynamic approach
-Many of Freud’s ideas are considered non-falsifiable ———— theories may appear to reflect evidence, but you cannot observe the relevant constructs directly (especially the unconscious mind) to test them scientifically such that they could be proved wrong
36
What are did Freud believe about psychosexual stages
Freud believed that at different stages of childhood, the libido is focused on specific erogenous zones- the mouth, anus, or genitals
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What happens in psychosexual stages
At each stage, the child’s needs are linked to that zone, and if the child doesn’t have these needs met or they are overindulged, they child may become fixated
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What does fixated/fixation mean
Means some of the libido remains stuck in that stage, shaping the adult personality
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Name all the psychosexual stages
Oral stage Anal stage Phallic stage Latent stage Genital stage
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What is the first psychosexual stage
Oral stage
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When does oral stage begin —-age
0-1 years
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Where does the oral stage start from, and what erogenous zone is the primary focus
Starts from birth, when the MOUTH is the primary focus of libidinal energy
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What happens to a child who is frustrated at the oral stage
May develop an orally expulsive personality that is characterised by pessimism, envy and suspicion (the ‘oral aggressive’ character)
44
An over indulged child at the oral stage may develop what
An orally retentive character
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What is an orally retentive character
Optimistic, excessively dependant, gullible and admiring
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Having an orally retentive character can cause adults to develop what
A strong need for oral gratification in the form of smoking or drinking addiction
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What is the second psychosexual stage
Anal stage
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What does the child focus on in the anal stage
Pleasure
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In the anal stage what is the child’s focus of pleasure on and what does this present
Eliminating and retaining faeces, this presents a conflict between the id and the ego
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What ages is the anal stage
1-3 years
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What happens in the anal stage if parents are too lenient
It will result in the formation of an anally exclusive character who is disorganised, reckless and defiant
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A child who aims to hold their faeces in the anal stage may develop what
Develop into an anally retentive character who is neat, stingy and obstinate
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What is the phallic stage
Children develop unconscious sexual feelings towards the opposite sex parent ——— for example, boys to the mother and girls to their fathers
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What ages is the phallic stage
3-5 years
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What is the third psychosexual stage
Phallic stage
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What do boys experience in the phallic stage
The Oedipus complex
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What is the Oedipus complex
Desiring their mother and fearing punishment from their father (castration anxiety)—detailed explanations, the fear experienced by a young boy that his father will castrate him as punishment for his desire for his mother.
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What do girls experience in the phallic stage
The Electra complex
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What do boys experiencing Oedipus complex do to resolve it
They identify with their father, adopting masculine traits and repressing their feelings
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What is the Electra complex
Attraction to their father and ‘penis envy’
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What did Freud believe about girl’s conflict
Girl’s conflict resolution was delayed and less complete, though they eventually replace this desire with a wish for a baby
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What does successful resolution lead to
Identification with the same sex parent
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Fixation at the phallic stage may result into what
May result in narcissistic or reckless behaviour
63
Which of Freud’s case study offers support for the Oedipus complex
Little Hans
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Freud used the case study of Little Hans to do what
To support his views on the origins of phobias and childhood sexuality and the Oedipus complex, as well as his belief in psychoanalysis as an effective therapy
65
What did Freud believe about Hans’ fears, dreams and fantasies
Believed they were symbolic of his unconscious passing through the phallic stage of psychosexual development
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What type of data was gathered by Little Hans’ father
Qualitative data
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Little Hans’ father sent information to Freud by letter, how Freud reply
Replied with interpretations and advice
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What did Hans develop a fear of
White horses and being bitten by them
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Why did Hans develop a fear of white horses
Because he was experiencing the Oedipus complex, he was subconsciously scared of his father
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Hans fear of his father was manifested into a fear of horses, what did the features of the horse represent
Horses with dark around the mouth —- represents father’s beard Blinkers——represented his father’s glasses
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What was another sign that Hans was in the phallic stage of development and experiencing the Oedipus complex
Hans’ obsession with his penis
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What’s the fourth psychosexual stage
Latent stage
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What ages is Latent stage
6-Puberty
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What is the latent stage
The latency period is a period in which the sexual drive lies dormant and IS NOT a psychosexual stage of development
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In the latent stage what are boys and girls with each other
They will be quite distinct from each other
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In the latent stage girls become more what
Feminine
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In the latent stage boys become more what
Masculine
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What did Freud see latency as
Saw latency as a period of repression of sexual desires and erogenous impulses
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What’s the last psychosexual stage
The Genital Stage
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What years does the genital stage occur from
Puberty onwards
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Where does the genital stage begin at
Begins at the start of puberty, when sexual urges are once again awakened and interest now turns to relationships
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What is the genital stage
The less energy the child has stilled invested in unresolved conflicts in the earlier stages, the greater their capacity will be to develop normal relationships with the opposite sex
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What may occur if fixation happens in the genital stage
May lead to a person struggling to form relationships
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Strengths of psychosexual stages
-Idiographic= case study methodology embraces our complex behaviour by gathering rich information on an individual basis -Psychodynamic Therapy= modern day psychiatry still utilises Freudian psychoanalytic techniques
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Weaknesses of psychosexual stages
-Overemphasis on childhood experience= things that happen to us as adults also have an impact on our personality -Lack of control= by using case studies to support theories, it is less scientific than other approaches -Generalisability= case study evidence is difficult to generalise to wider populations -Falsifiability= you can’t test them to prove them wrong
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AQA A-Level Psychology
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