Module 31 Psychodynamic Approaches to Personality Chapter 10, Pages Essentials of Understanding Psychology- Sixth Edition PSY110 Psychology © Richard Goldman November 8, 2006

Personality The pattern of enduring characteristics that differentiate people. Behaviors that make each individual unique.

Psychodynamic Approach to Personality Pioneered by Sigmund Freud Personality and behavior is motivated by inner forces and conflicts. People have little awareness or control of these forces. The unconscious portion of the mind is composed of a vast store of memories, knowledge, beliefs, and feelings that influence our personality and behavior.

Understanding (Psychodynamic) Personality Must expose the unconscious to understand it. The unconscious disguises the meaning of its contents and cannot be viewed directly. The unconscious is disguised to protect us from the pain and conflict within it. To learn about the unconscious we must interpret:  Dreams  Fantasies  Slips of the tongue (Freudian slips) Preconscious – A portion of the unconscious composed of unthreatening knowledge (2+2=4)

The Structure of (Psychodynamic) Personality Id, ego, and superego are abstract concepts that describe the forces of the mind.  Id – Primitive drive Pleasure Principle  Hunger  Sex  Aggression  Ego – Conforms behavior to environment Reality Principle  Makes decisions and Controls actions  Balances primitive drive of id  Balances over-idealistic superego  Superego – Right & Wrong Conscious  Make us feel guilty  Prevents immoral behavior  Helps control id Ego-Ideal  Strive for perfection  Drives us to be behave morally

Freud’s Model of Personality Structure

Psychodynamic Development of Personality Focused on major biological functions: Each function is related to a sexual concern Fixation occurs when there is over indulgence or frustration at a particular stage

Oral Stage of Development (0-15mo) Pleasure from sucking, eating, mouthing, biting Fixations:  Eating  Talking  Smoking  Sarcastic or Gullible

Anal Stage of Development (15mo-3yr) Pleasure from retention and expulsion of feces Fixations:  Overly rigid  Orderly  Punctual  Disorderly & sloppy

Phallic (3yr-5yr) Pleasure from fondling genitals Fixations:  “Improper” sexual identity  No conscious Psychopath Sociopath

Latency – (5yr-Puberty) No sexual concerns during this period Fixations: none

Genital – (Puberty-Death) Pleasure from sexual intercourse Fixations: none

Oedipal & Electra Conflicts Boys - Oedipal:  Has sexual interest in mother  Sees father as rival & wishes to kill him  Views father as too powerful  Fears father will retaliate by cutting off his penis (castration anxiety)  Castration anxiety caused son to repress desire for mother  Son then identifies with father. Girl - Electra:  Has sexual interest in father  Develops penis envy  Blame mother for lack of penis (mother is responsible for her castration)  Resolves these unacceptable feeling by identifying with mother

Defense Mechanisms Unconscious strategies used to reduce anxiety  Anxiety – intense, negative emotional experience from a real threat  Neurotic anxiety – irrational anxiety from fear of uncontrollable id Neurosis – occurs with the exaggerated use of defense mechanisms.

Types of Defense Mechanisms Repression – Primary defense mechanism – blocking unpleasant or unacceptable thoughts Regression – Behave as if in earlier stage of development Displacement – Redirect unwanted feelings to weaker individual Rationalization – Create self-justifications Denial – Refuse to accept or acknowledge the truth Projection – Attribute your feeling to someone else Sublimation – Diverting unwanted feeling in socially acceptable behaviors Reaction Formation – Unconscious thoughts are expressed as their opposite

Problems with Freudian Theories Lack of supporting scientific evidence (unobservable abstract concepts) Freud’s theories of development do not fit all individuals (personalities sometimes change) Can not use Freud’s theories to predict behavior (Can not tell if anal fixation will produce messy or orderly individual) Freud viewed women as inferior to men Freud’s theories were derived from a limited population (early 1900’s Austrian women)

Neo-Freudian Psychoanalyst Less emphasis on sex More emphasis on society and culture

Carl Jung Collective Unconscious – Inherited from parents  Ideas  Feelings  Images  Symbols Archetypes – Universal representations of particular people  Mother  Good  Evil

Alfred Alder Emphasis on the quest for self-improvement and perfection. Inferiority Complex – Phrase coined by Alder to describe the feeling children feel when they compare themselves to adults.

Karen Horney Focused on social and cultural factors Supported woman’s rights

Other Neo-Freudians Anna Freud (Sigmund Freud’s daughter) Erik Erikson