THE

PSYCHOANALYTIC
APPROACH
Sigmund Freud: Psychoanalysis

-Siddarth Gurung
MSW 1st Semester
Roll No.- 04
Sigmund Freud: Psychoanalysis

 The Levels of Personality

 The Structure of Personality
 Anxiety: A Threat to the Ego
 Defenses against Anxiety
 Psychosexual Stages of Personality Development
The Levels of Personality

Freud’s original conception divided personality into three levels: the conscious, the
pre-conscious and the unconscious.
Conscious
 It includes our current thoughts: whatever we are thinking about or experiencing at a
given moment.
 Examples- conscious of the feel of the pen, the sight of the page, a dog barking in
the distance etc.
 It is a limited aspect of personality because only a small portion of our thoughts,
sensations, and memories exists in conscious awareness at anytime.
 It is a limited aspect of personality because only a small portion of our thoughts,
sensations, and memories exists in conscious awareness at any time.
Pre-conscious
 It contains memories that are not part of current thought but can readily be brought to mind if the
need arises.
 It is between conscious and unconscious level.
 Example- If your mind strays from studying and you begin to think about a friend or about what
you did last night, you would be summoning up material from your preconscious into your
conscious.

Unconscious
 The unconscious mind forms the bulk of human mind.
 It is the focus of analytic theory.
 Its vast, dark depths are the home of the instincts, those wishes and desires that direct our
behaviour.
 The unconscious contains the major driving power behind all behaviours and is the repository of
forces we cannot see or control.
 The Structure of Personality
The Id
• It is the reservoir for the instincts and libido
(the psychic energy manifested by the
instincts).
• It consists of all our primitive, innate urges.
These include various bodily needs, sexual
desire, and aggressive impulses.
• The id operates in accordance with pleasure
principle; through its concern with tension
reduction, the id functions to increase
pleasure and avoid pain.
• The hungry infant cannot find food on his or
her own. The only ways the id can attempt to
satisfy its needs are through reflex action and
wish-fulfilling hallucinatory or fantasy
experience, which Freud labeled primary-
process thought.
The Ego
 In Freud’s theory, it is the part of personality that takes account of external
reality in the expression of instinctive sexual and aggressive urges.
 The growing child is taught to deal intelligently and rationally with the outside
world and to develop the powers of perception, recognition, judgement, and
memory- the powers adults use to satisfy their needs. Freud called this abilities
secondary-process thought.
 The ego does not prevent id satisfaction. Rather, it tries to postpone, delay, or
redirect it in order to meet the demands of reality. It perceives and manipulates
the environment in a practical and realistic manner and so is said to operate in
accordance with the reality principle.
 The ego serves two masters- the id and reality-and is constantly mediating and
striking compromises between their conflicting demands. Also, the ego is never
independent of the id. It is always responsive to the id’s demands and derives its
power and energy from the id.
The Superego
 The superego is the final aspect of personality described by Freud.
 It is a powerful and largely unconscious set of dictates or beliefs-that we acquire
in childhood: our ideas of right and wrong.
 Through praise and punishment children learn which behaviors their parents
consider good or bad. Those behaviors for which children are punished form the
conscience, one part of the superego. The second part of the superego is the
ego-ideal, which consists of good, or correct, behaviors for which children have
been praised.
Anxiety: A Threat to the Ego

In Freudian theory, anxiety is an unpleasant feelings of tension or worry experienced

by individuals in reaction to unacceptable wishes or impulses.
Freud proposed three types of anxiety: reality anxiety, neurotic anxiety, and moral
anxiety.
i. Reality anxiety- It is also known as objective anxiety. It involves a fear of tangible
dangers in the real world. Most of us justifiably fear fires, hurricanes,
earthquakes, and similar disasters. Reality anxiety serves the positive purpose of
guiding our behaviour to escape or protect ourselves from actual dangers. Our
fear is subsides when the threat is no longer present.

ii. Neurotic anxiety- Neuro anxiety has its basis in childhood, in a conflict between
instinctual gratification and reality. The neurotic anxiety is an unconscious fear of
being punished for impulsively displaying id-dominated behaviour. The fear is not
of the instincts, but of what may happen as a result of gratifying the instincts. The conflicts
become one between the id and the ego, and its origin has some basis in reality.

iii. Moral Anxiety- Moral anxiety results from a conflict between the id and the superego. In
essence, it is a fear of one’s conscience. When you are motivated to express an instinctual
impulse that is contrary to your moral code, your superego retaliates by causing you to feel
shame or guilt.
Moral anxiety is a function of how well developed the superego is. A person with a strong
inhibiting conscience will experience greater conflict than a person with a less stringent set of
moral guidelines.
Defenses against Anxiety

Defense mechanism are techniques used by the ego to keep threatening and unacceptable
material out of consciousness, and so to reduce anxiety.
Although defense mechanisms vary in their specifics, they share two characteristics:
i. They are denials and distortions of reality–necessary ones but distortions nonetheless,
and,
ii. They operate unconsciously

1. Repression- Repression is an involuntary removal of something from conscious

awareness. It is an unconscious type of forgetting of the existence of something that
brings us discomfort or pain and is the most fundamental and frequently used defense
mechanism. Repression can operate on memories of situations of people, on our
perception of the present, and even on the body’s physiological functioning. For
example, a man can so strongly repress the sex drive that he becomes impotent.
2. Denial- The defense mechanism of denial is related to repression and involves denying the
existence of some external threat or traumatic event that has occurred. For example, a person with a
terminal illness may deny the imminence of death. Parents of a child who has died may continue to
deny the loss by keeping the child’s room unchanged.

3. Reaction Formation- One defense against a disturbing impulse is to actively express the opposite
impulse. This is called reaction formation. A person who is strongly driven by threatening sexual
impulses may repress those impulses and replace them with more socially acceptable behaviours.
For example, a person threated by sexual longings may reverse them and become a rabid crusader
against pornography.

4. Projection- Another way of defending against disturbing impulses is to attribute them to someone
else. This defense mechanism is called projection. Lustful, aggressive, and other unacceptable
impulses are seen as being possessed by other people, not by oneself. The person says, in effect, “I
don’t hate him. He hates me.” Or a mother may ascribe her sex drive to her adolescent daughter.
The impulse is still manifested, but in a way that is less threatning to the individual.
5. Regression- In regression, the person retreats or regresses to an earlier period of life that was more
pleasant and free of frustration and anxiety. Regression usually involves a return to one of the
psychosexual stages of childhood development. The individual returns to this more secure time of life
by manifesting behaviours displayed at that time, such as childish and dependent behaviours.

6. Rationalization- Rationalization is a defense mechanism that involves reinterpreting our behaviour

to make it seem more rational and acceptable to us. We excuse or justify a threatening thought or
action by persuading ourselves there is a rational explanation for it. The person who is fired from a
job may rationalize by saying that the job wasn’t a good one anyway.

7. Displacement- If an object that satisfies an id impulse is not available, the person may shift the
impulse to another object. This is known as displacement. For example, children who hate their
parents or adults who hate their bosses, but are afraid to express their hostility for fear of being
punished, may displace the aggression onto someone else. The child may hit a younger brother or
sister, or the adult may shout at the dog. In these examples, the original object of aggressive impulse
has been replaced by an object that is not a threat. However, the substitute object will not reduce the
tension as satisfactorily as the original object. If you are involved in a number of displacements, a
reservoir of undischarged tension accumulates, and you will be driven to find new ways of reducing
that tension.
8. Sublimation- Whereas displacement involves finding a substitute object to satisfy id impulse,
sublimation involves altering the id impulses. The instinctual energy is diverted into other channels
of expression, ones that society considers acceptable and admirable. Sexual energy, for example,
can be diverted or sublimated into artistically creative behaviours. Freud believed that a variety of
human activities, particularly those of an artistic nature, are manifestations of id impulses that have
been redirected into socially acceptable outlets. As with displacements (of which sublimation is a
form), sublimation is a compromise. As such, it does not bring total satisfaction but leads to a build-
up of undischarged tension.
 Psychosexual Stages of Personality Development

 Freud believed that personality developed through a series of childhood stages in which
the pleasure-seeking energies of the id become focused on certain erogenous areas.
 An erogenous zone is characterized as an area of the body that is particularly sensitive
to stimulation. The erogenous zone serves as a source of pleasure. The psychosexual
energy, or libido, was described as the driving force behind behavior.
 Each stage of development is marked by conflicts that can help build growth or stifle
development, depending upon how they are resolved. If these psychosexual stages are
completed successfully, a healthy personality is the result.
 If certain issues are not resolved at the appropriate stage, fixations can occur. A
fixation is a persistent focus on an earlier psychosexual stage. Until this conflict is
resolved, the individual will remain "stuck" in this stage.
 The Oral Stage

 Age Range: Birth to 1 Year

 Erogenous Zone: Mouth
 During the oral stage, the infant's primary source of interaction occurs through the mouth, so the
rooting and sucking reflex is especially important. The mouth is vital for eating, and the infant
derives pleasure from oral stimulation through gratifying activities such as tasting and sucking.
 Because the infant is entirely dependent upon caretakers (who are responsible for feeding the
child), the child also develops a sense of trust and comfort through this oral stimulation.
 The primary conflict at this stage is the weaning process--the child must become less dependent
upon caretakers. If fixation occurs at this stage, Freud believed the individual would have issues
with dependency or aggression. Oral fixation can result in problems with drinking, eating, smoking,
or nail-biting.
 The Anal Stage

 Age Range: 1 to 3 years

 Erogenous Zone: Bowel and Bladder Control

 During the anal stage, Freud believed that the primary focus of the libido was on controlling bladder and
bowel movements. The major conflict at this stage is toilet training--the child has to learn to control his or her
bodily needs. Developing this control leads to a sense of accomplishment and independence.
 According to Freud, success at this stage is dependent upon the way in which parents ​
approach toilet training.
Parents who utilize praise and rewards for using the toilet at the appropriate time encourage positive
outcomes and help children feel capable and productive. Freud believed that positive experiences during this
stage served as the basis for people to become competent, productive, and creative adults.
 However, not all parents provide the support and encouragement that children need during this stage. Some
parents instead punish, ridicule or shame a child for accidents.
 According to Freud, inappropriate parental responses can result in negative outcomes. If parents take an
approach that is too lenient, Freud suggested that an anal-expulsive personality could develop in which the
individual has a messy, wasteful, or destructive personality. If parents are too strict or begin toilet training too
early, Freud believed that an anal-retentive personality develops in which the individual is stringent, orderly,
rigid, and obsessive.
 The Phallic Stage
 Age Range: 3 to 6 Years
 Erogenous Zone: Genitals
 Freud suggested that during the phallic stage, the primary focus of the libido is on the genitals. At
this age, children also begin to discover the differences between males and females.​
 Freud also believed that boys begin to view their fathers as a rival for the mother’s affections. The
Oedipus complex describes these feelings of wanting to possess the mother and the desire to
replace the father. However, the child also fears that he will be punished by the father for these
feelings, a fear Freud termed castration anxiety.
 The term Electra complex has been used to described a similar set of feelings experienced by young
girls. Freud, however, believed that girls instead experience  penis envy.
 Eventually, the child begins to identify with the same-sex parent as a means of vicariously possessing
the other parent. For girls, however, Freud believed that penis envy was never fully resolved and that
all women remain somewhat fixated on this stage. Psychologists such as Karen Horney disputed this
theory, calling it both inaccurate and demeaning to women. Instead, Horney proposed that men
experience feelings of inferiority because they cannot give birth to children, a concept she referred to
as womb envy.
 The Latent Period

 Age Range: 6 to Puberty

 Erogenous Zone: Sexual Feelings Are Inactive
 During this stage, the superego continues to develop while the id's energies are suppressed.
Children develop social skills, values and relationships with peers and adults outside of the family.
 The development of the ego and superego contribute to this period of calm. The stage begins
around the time that children enter into school and become more concerned with peer
relationships, hobbies, and other interests.
 The latent period is a time of exploration in which the sexual energy repressed or dormant. This
energy is still present, but it is sublimated into other areas such as intellectual pursuits and social
interactions. This stage is important in the development of social and communication skills and
self-confidence.
 As with the other psychosexual stages, Freud believed that it was possible for children to become
fixated or "stuck" in this phase. Fixation at this stage can result in immaturity and an inability to
form fulfilling relationships as an adult.
 The Genital Stage

 Age Range: Puberty to Death

 Erogenous Zone: Maturing Sexual Interests
 The onset of puberty causes the libido to become active once again. During the final stage of
psychosexual development, the individual develops a strong sexual interest in the opposite sex. This
stage begins during puberty but last throughout the rest of a person's life.
 Where in earlier stages the focus was solely on individual needs, interest in the welfare of others grows
during this stage. The goal of this stage is to establish a balance between the various life areas.
 If the other stages have been completed successfully, the individual should now be well-balanced,
warm, and caring.
 Unlike the many of the earlier stages of development, Freud believed that the ego and superego were
fully formed and functioning at this point. Younger children are ruled by the id, which demands
immediate satisfaction of the most basic needs and wants. Teens in the genital stage of development
are able to balance their most basic urges against the need to conform to the demands of reality and
social norms.