1. Freudian Psychodynamic Theories of Behaviour Robert Averbuch, MD Assistant Professor Department of Psychiatry University of Florida Modified/edited and illustrations added by Lina Medaglia-Miller, Ph.D. For “The Great Pretender: The Art of Passing” GSSC 1073

2. Who Was Freud?

3. Freud’s Theories, in Context  Freud was originally trained as a Neurologist- biological approach to illness  Treated mostly Hysteria (conversion disorders)  Applied findings from abnormal patients to “normal” development

4. Freud: A Sign of the Times?  Time period: late 1800’s  Victorian times: conservative, repressed society  Prohibitions against sex

5. Selected Contributions of Freud  Psychic Determinism/ Dynamic Model  The Power of Catharsis  Transference and Countertransference  Topographical Model of the Mind Unconscious, Preconscious, Conscious

6. Selected Contributions of Freud  Structural Model of the Mind ID, EGO, SuperEGO  Defense Mechanisms

7. Behavior is Predetermined  Freud sees people as passive; behaviors determined by interaction of external reality and family with internal drives  Psychic Determinism: all behaviors driven by past experiences “There are no accidents”

8. Conflict and Behavior  Instinctual Drives (libidinal: sexual, aggressive) instincts drive people  Behaviors result from conflicts: Between instinctual (libidinal) drives and efforts to repress them from consciousness

9. Catharsis  Inherent benefits come from releasing pent-up tension  Some inherent value in the “talking cure”: being able to “unload,” or “get stuff off your mind”

10. Transference and Countertransference

11. Transference  Aka “emotional baggage”  UNCONSCIOUS misattribution of feelings, attitudes, and expectations from an important childhood relationship to a current one

12. Countertransference  Traditionally refers to the physician projecting her own feelings (“issues,” “emotional baggage”) onto her patient  The corollary to “Transference”

13. Freud’s Topographic Model The “Landscape” of the Mind

14. Topographical Model  Freud’s first model of psychopathology  Division of the mind into three different layers of consciousness: Unconscious Preconscious Conscious

15. Freud conceived of these levels as parts of a “mental iceberg”

16. Unconscious  Contains repressed thoughts and feelings  Unconscious shows itself in: Dreams Hypnosis Parapraxes (Freudian slips)  Driven by Primary Process Thinking

17. Primary Process Thinking  Not cause-effect; illogical; fantasy  Only concern is immediate gratification (drive satisfaction)  Does not take reality into account  Seen in dreams, during hypnosis, some forms of psychosis, young children, psychoanalytic psychotherapy

18. Freudian Slips (Parapraxes)  A “slip of the tongue”  Errors of speech or hearing that reveal one’s true but unconscious feelings

19. Preconscious  Accessible, but not immediately available  Always running in the background/ behind the scenes

20. Conscious  Fully and readily accessible  Conscious mind does not have access to the unconscious  Utilizes Secondary Process Thinking: Reality-based (takes external reality into consideration), logical, mature, time-oriented

21. Structural Theory ID, EGO, and SuperEGO

22. The Structural Model

23. The ID  Home of instinctual Drives  Completely Unconscious  Present at birth  “I want it and I want it NOW!” (Governed by Pleasure Principle)

24. The Superego  Internalized morals/ values- sense of right and wrong  aka Conscience  Suppresses drives of ID (thru guilt and shame)

25. The Superego  Mostly unconscious  Develops with socialization, and thru identification with same-sex parent (Neo-Freudians acknowledge that identifications can be with either parent)

26. The EGO  Mediates between the Id, Superego, and reality  Mostly conscious  Governed by Reality Principle

27. Defense Mechanisms Keeping the unpleasant stuff out of mind

28. “Ego” Defense Mechanisms  They serve to protect an individual’s Ego from unpleasant thoughts or emotions  Mostly unconscious

29. Mature/Healthy Defenses Altruism Anticipation Humour Sublimation Suppression

30. Sublimation  Rerouting an unacceptable drive in a socially acceptable (often constructive) way A healthy, conscious defense Martial arts, sports

31. Suppression  Deliberately (consciously) pushing anxiety-provoking material out of conscious awareness

32. Immature Defenses  Repression  Acting Out  Somatization  Regression  Denial  Projection  Splitting  Displacement  Reaction Formation  Magical Thinking  Intellectualization  Rationalization

33. Repression  Keeping an idea or feeling out of conscious awareness  The primary ego defense  Freud postulated that other defenses are employed only when repression fails

34. Acting out  Behaving in an attention-getting, often socially inappropriate manner to avoid dealing with unacceptable emotions or material

35. Somatization  Unacceptable impulses or feelings converted into physical symptoms

36. Regression  Return to earlier level of functioning (childlike behaviors) during stressful situations Kids regress after trauma

37. Denial  Unconsciously discounting external reality

38. Projection  Falsely attributing one’s own unacceptable impulses or feelings onto others Can manifest as paranoia

39. Splitting  Selectively focusing on only part of a person  Seeing people as either all-good or all-bad (Black and White thinking)  Serves to relieve the uncertainty engendered by the fact that people have both bad and good qualities

40. Displacement  Redirection of unacceptable feelings, impulses from their source onto a less threatening person or object Mad at your boss, so you go home and kick the dog

41. Reaction Formation  Transforming an unacceptable impulse into a diametrically opposed thought, feeling, attitude, or behavior; denying unacceptable feelings and adopting opposite attitudes Ex. Person who loves pornography leads a movement to outlaw its sale in the neighborhood

42. Magical Thinking  The idea that one can control external events just by thinking a certain way, or by doing something that ’ s unrelated (superstitious behavior)

43. Intellectualization  Using higher cortical functions to avoid experiencing uncomfortable emotions; thinking without accompanying emotion

44. Rationalization  Perceived controversial behaviors or feelings are explained in a rational or logical manner to avoid the true explanation

45. The End / Fin