Sigmund Freud – Psychoanalytic theory
- Freud is the father of psychoanalitical theory. He developed the theory of personality development and treatment system. According to his psychoanalytical theory the action system of mind is exhibited in the form of conflicts. Before unstanding the freudian psycho-sexual theory we must try to understand some main concepts. Freud has pointed out such concepts as levels of Mental Life, Instincts, Defence Mechanisms, Personality Components, Stages of Psychosexual development.
1. Levels of Mental life
- Freud has pointed out three levels of mental life. They are conscious, subconscious and unconscious levels. These are based on the amount of consciousness of thoughts and feelings. In conscious level all those for which an individual is conscious and included as sensations, perceptions, recollections, feelings and imaginations for which we are conscious in present time. Role of consciousness in psychoanalysis is less important. Sub-Consciousness links consc10usness and unconciousness which is below consciosness and which includes all the thoughts and sensations for which we are not conscious at present, but that can be easily brought into consciousness. He nce these thoughts and feelings can be recollected at will, for example what we did yesterday can be brought into consciousness.
The biggest and most important portion of mind is unconsciousness, where it is lies all our supressed thoughts, experiences and feelings. We can compare unconsciousness with that iceberg whose external part shows consciousness and the immersed portion shows unconsciouness. According to Freud this unconscious affects our behaviour and experiences continuously, but we do not know much about its effect.
2. Instincts
- These are our internal physical excitements. We have many instincts which can be divided into life and death. Each instinct has its ownpsychic-energy. The psychic-energy for life is called libido energy. This instinct is gratified by sexual satisfaction whereas the death instinct shows aggressiveness, cruelty, murder, suicide like activities. Both the instincts are equally important.
3. Defense Mechanisms
- For human life conflicts, tension and frustration are mendatory. Defence Mechanisms reduce frustration and troublesome situations. Frustration is caused by failure of attaining a goal. The defence mechanisms defend the self-concept of individual. For example if filure in exam makes a student worried, then to reduce anxiety he blames evaluation process. Defense mechanisms are unconscious mental measures adopted by one to reduce worry. Generally following defense mechanisms are used by people.
(i) Rationalization- In it rational causes are given for unreasonable behaviour. For example a criminal blames bad company for his behaviour or on failing to take admission in a course, the person put forth that the course is not good for a vocation. It is used to change the sense of guilt.
(ii) Repression- In this our painful expreince or undesired thoughts and feelings, memories are put down into our unconscious because recollecting them is painful. Many women repress their abusive language.
(iii) Displace ment- In this mechanism our emotional responses are replaced on others. On getting punishment from mother a child shows anger to his younger ones or breaks the toys.
(iv) Proje ction- In it the individual projects his worry caused by his own mistake on other person. For example people say she or he hates me inplace ofl hate her or him.
(v) Introjection- Adopting other person “behaviour as one’s, own; as children interject the vlaues of parents as their own.
(vi) Reaction Formation- Developing exactly opposite of one’s own feelings or behaviour, as developing love in reaction to hatred.
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Important Points of Human Development :-
- Development means proceeding towards more maturity which is not quantitatively measurable but in qualitative change.
- Development in continuous, systematic and sequential.
- In each cell of parents there are 23 chromosoms and these constitute 23 pairs.
- Each choromosom has many genes and each gene determines one or the other trait or characteristic.
- Heredity provides potentialities to develop. These potentialities develop in environment.
- Sigmund Freud propounded psychoanalytic theory and Erikson propounded Psycho social theory which describe the stages of development from birth to adulthood.
Human Development Questions And Answers
1. What is the meaning of heredity?
(A) Sperm and ovam
(B) Chromosomes and genes
(C) Mitosis and Meiosis
(D) DNA and RNA
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Answer :- ( B )
2. Which of the following theory has been propounded by Freud?
(A) Cognitive theory
(B) Psycho-social theory
(C) Stimulus-response theory
(D) Psycho analytic theory
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Answer :- ( D )
3. Who out of the following has propounded psycho-social theory?
(A) Sigmund freud
(B) Erik Erikson
(C) E.B. Hurlock
(D) Not any of these
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Answer :- ( B )