...Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalytical Approach PROs Sigmund Freud, (1856-1939) Psychoanalytical Psychology refers to the root of our thoughts, emotions, actions and behavior and how they pertain to our early/childhood development and experiences. Freud’s theory became so popular because his approach was unprecedented, and his statements bold. Freud’s psychoanalytic theory was based on his belief that our personalities are shaped by experiences of our earliest childhood memories (usually in the unconscious mind), and how well we are nurtured during this time. The time in which Freud developed his psychoanalytic theory is perhaps the greatest factor that contributed to his reputation and subsequent success as a theorist or psychologist. A great deal of Freud’s original psychoanalytic theory was based on his own early childhood experiences, and much of what he learned from research and experiments were never recorded or in many cases, weren’t recorded until hours and even days later. Without credible sources and physical data to support his findings, his theory was improved upon by some of his students and colleagues. CONs Although Freud’s theory was seen as incomplete in certain circles, as his psychoanalytic theory only focused on one or two factors in psychology; psychoanalysis is one among many disciplines that fit under the psychological umbrella. Because of the way psychology has unfolded as both a general discipline and a science, Freud should be credited for inspiring...
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...Over the years psychology has grown and become more prevalent in society as people are more inclined to know more about the mind, behaviors, and how it all relates to psychology itself. There have been some major influences on psychology and what it is today. At first thought, one would only be able to think of a man who may have contributed to psychology but in contrast, there are many women who have contributed to psychology and what it has become. Anna Freud is one profound woman that had a lot to contribute to the world of psychology. She was born in Vienna on December 3, 1895. She is the youngest daughter of Sigmund Freud’s six children, and she is the only one of the children that became a psychoanalyst. Freud was the founder of child psychoanalysis, and she added to the understanding of how the ego and consciousness functions in preventing painful thoughts, ideas, and urges (Anna Freud, 2013). Of all Sigmund Freud’s children, Anna was closest to him, and she related to him in ways that the other kids did not. Freud’s mother was closer to her other children while Anna identified with her father. Freud and her mother had a strained relationship. Added to their already strained relationship, Freud’s mother was a total skeptic when it came to psychoanalysis. Sigmund Freud noticed his daughter’s intelligence and how interested she was in psychoanalysis. However, he did not send her to the schools that would prepare her for university. Alternatively, she attended Cottage Lyceum...
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...Foundations of Psychology Melisa Kimmerling PSY/300 January 25, 2014 Ashley Dolecki Foundations of Psychology The major schools of thought in psychology are: Behaviorism, Gestalt, Humanistic, Psychoanalytic, Cognitive, Structuralism and Functionalism. The early schools of thought are Structuralism and Functionalism which were developed by Edward Titchener. Edward Titchener was a student of Wilhelm Wundt who was known as the father of psychology. (Westen, 2011) Structuralism uses a method called introspection to uncover elements of the consciousness and how they form ideas. Structuralism is both a science and ideaology. As a science Structuralism tells about the fundamental nature of the World. (calstatela.edu) One of the founders of functioalism was William James, he wrote the first textbook in psychology. Functionalism focuses on the function of psychological processes and how individuals adapt to their enviroment. (Westen, 2011) An assumption of Functionalism is that human beings are caring and coorperative toward each other. (wmich.edu) Behaviorism, also refered to as behavioral perspective or behaviorist, focuses on how enviroment controls learning behavior. The most well know experiment of Behaviorism is Pavlov’s dog. Russian psychologist Ivan Pavlov did an experiment with his dogs and found out by accident that when he rang a bell his dogs would salavate thinking it was time to eat. Some behaviorist believe that everything we do is by behavior not mind...
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...November 2014 Psychology Theories Did you know there are over 7 different psychology theories? Psychology is studied differently by many different psychologists, and psychiatrists. Each theory is based around different mental processes, and body systems. The definition of psychology is the scientific study of the human mind and its functions, especially those affecting behavior in a given context. Psychology is a very broad topic with many different beliefs and theories. Cognitive Psychology is a rather young theory of psychology. It studies mental processes including how people think perceive, remember, and learn. One of the main psychologists who contributed to this theory goes by the name of Wilhelm Wundt. Dr. Wundt is a german physician who is most praised for founding Structuralism which is basically a theory of consciousness. When we think about through processes we think about how we interpret information, and how we perceive it. Another theory of psychology, which is one of the most popular and well know theory, is the Psychoanalytic Theory which is connected to a very well know psychologist who goes by the name of Sigmund Freud. The Psychoanalytic approach focuses on the unconscious mind. The un conscious is the portion of the mind of which a person is not aware. This portion houses many memories that the brain represses, such as any type of childhood trauma or thoughts that would be considered frowned upon. One other main topic of the Psychoanalytic theory is what...
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...“inseparable” playmate of his early childhood, Emanuel’s son, John.[13] Jacob Freud took his wife and two children (Freud's sister, Anna, was born in 1858; a brother, Julius, had died in infancy) firstly to Leipzig and then in 1860 to Vienna where four sisters (Rosa, Marie, Adolfine and Paula) and a brother (Alexander) were born. In 1865, the nine-year-old Freud entered the Leopoldstädter Kommunal-Realgymnasium, a prominent high school. He proved an outstanding pupil and graduated from the Matura in 1873 with honors. He loved literature and was proficient in German, French, Italian, Spanish, English, Hebrew, Latin and Greek.[14] Freud read William Shakespeare in English throughout his life, and it has been suggested that his understanding of human psychology was derived from Shakespeare's plays.[15] Freud entered the University of Vienna at age 17. He had planned to study law, but joined the medical...
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...Components of the Psychoanalytic Approach to Personality Sunny Pilkington PSY/250 October 15, 2012 Dr. Alisa Cortez . Psychologists Alfred Alder, Sigmund Freud, and Carl Jung are prominent founders and contributors in the components of psychoanalytic approach to personality. Alder, Freud, and Jung formulated separate theories worth comparing and contrasting. “Although their theories were at least as distinct as the four men were, they were passionate about their endeavors, and never settled with conclusion - their entire lives were spent in earnest search for better understanding of the human psychological frailties and their betterment” (Psychological-Musings.blogspot.com, n.d.).. Nevertheless, critical thinking and disagreements coexists among the theories founded by each to explain personality and improve quality of life and understanding. These three psychologists have different stances on the manner psychology functions in humans. In the components of psychoanalytic approach to personality, each of the psychologists seems to be striving to be unique. In this, many disagreement publications are brought about and many mirror similarities among the three. Following are the components of psychoanalytic approach to personality per psychologist. Alfred Alder’s theory holds that” basic psychological element of neurosis was a sense of inferiority and that individuals suffering with symptoms of this phenomenon spent their lives...
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...Major Perspectives in Psychology Psychology is a discipline that asks and answers the fundamental question, why do we behave the way we do and think the way we think?. The best way to characterize the different approaches that are taken to answer the question of psychology is to identify them as major perspectives. The major perspectives represent fundamental assumptions that underlie the research questions and methods that are used in order to answer the questions of psychology. Most all perspectives define psychology as the discipline interested in studying human behavior and mental processes, but that covers a lot of ground and the causes of behavior and mental processes are not always clear. This outline will attempt to catalogue the major perspectives and give the reader a sense of the underlying assumptions, the philosophical foundations, the research methods, and the outcomes or practices that result from the efforts of researchers and practitioners. Let's just begin with a list of the perspectives and a short description. 1. Psychodynamic Perspective: Probably the approach that has been most popularly associated with the discipline of psychology for the past century is the psychodynamic, psychoanalytic perspective. Sigmund Freud, who was medically trained in neurology, developed a theory of personality that made the assumption that human motivation was propelled by conflicts between instinctual, mostly unconscious, psychological forces. He called...
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...Psychology is a discipline that asks and answers the fundamental question, why do we behave the way we do and think the way we think?. The best way to characterize the different approaches that are taken to answer the question of psychology is to identify them as major perspectives. The major perspectives represent fundamental assumptions that underlie the research questions and methods that are used in order to answer the questions of psychology. Most all perspectives define psychology as the discipline interested in studying human behavior and mental processes, but that covers a lot of ground and the causes of behavior and mental processes are not always clear. This outline will attempt to catalogue the major perspectives and give the reader a sense of the underlying assumptions, the philosophical foundations, the research methods, and the outcomes or practices that result from the efforts of researchers and practitioners. Let's just begin with a list of the perspectives and a short description. 1. Psychodynamic Perspective: Probably the approach that has been most popularly associated with the discipline of psychology for the past century is the psychodynamic, psychoanalytic perspective. Sigmund Freud, who was medically trained in neurology, developed a theory of personality that made the assumption that human motivation was propelled by conflicts between instinctual, mostly unconscious, psychological forces. He called these intrapsychic elements the...
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...Foundations of Psychology The essence of psychology is the scientific study of the human mind, behavior, and mental processes. Psychology seeks to understand through research and application, the behaviors and emotions of human beings. Through this paper, the writer will examine the foundations of the study of psychology, the major schools of thought, and will identify the fundamental biological links to behavior. As a subject of study, psychology was established by Wilhelm Wundt, who in the late 1800s “founded the first psychology laboratory in Leipzig, Germany” (Kowalski & Westen, 2009, p.8). Wundt paved the path for psychology to emerge from what had been simply philosophical debate into scientific investigation. His main method of investigation was introspection, he trained observers to relay information of their mental reactions when presented with several objects, by recording this information, he was able to conclude that “the basic elements of consciousness are sensations (…) and feelings” (Kowalski, et al., 2009, p. 9), although he believed that experimentation was important to understand the basic elements, he knew that it was not the only way to understand psychology. Structuralism One of Wundt’s students, Edward Titchener, did believe that experimentation was not only useful, but that it was the only method of scientific investigation appropriate for psychology. Titchener established what became known as the structuralism school of thought; structuralism catalogued...
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...Running head: PROMOTING PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH PSYCHOLANALYSIS' CONTRIBUTION TO THE FIELD OF MENTAL HEALTH NAME COURSE INSTRUCTOR DATE Psychoanalysis is a method of understanding mental functioning and the stages of growth and development. Psychoanalysis is a general theory of individual human behavior and experience, and it has both contributed to and been enriched by many other disciplines. Psychoanalysis seeks to explain the complex relationship between the body and the mind and furthers the understanding of the role of emotions in medical illness and health. In addition, psychoanalysis is the basis of many other approaches to therapy. Many insights revealed by psychoanalytic treatment have formed the basis for other treatment programs in child psychiatry, family therapy, and general psychiatric practice (Farrell, 1981, p. 202). Sigmund Freud was the first psychoanalyst and a true pioneer in the recognition of the importance of unconscious mental activity. His theories on the inner workings of the human mind, which seemed so revolutionary at the turn of the century, are now widely accepted by most schools of psychological thought. In 1896, Freud coined the term "psychoanalysis," and for the next forty years of his life, he worked on thoroughly developing its main principles, objectives, techniques, and methodology. Freud (1949) defines the qualities of the psychical process as being conscious, preconscious, or unconscious (p. 31). Ideas considered to be conscious...
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...This essay has 2462 words ‘Behaviourists explain maladaptive behaviour in terms of the learning principles that sustain and maintain it. Discuss this statement and show how a behaviourists approach to therapy is in stark contrast to a psychoanalytic one’ Behaviorism was originally founded by John B. Watson who believed that behavior had the means to be measured, trained and changed (1913) The Behavioural theory is firstly based on experiment and secondly by describing how human behaviour is learnt through principles and rules. Maladaptive behaviour is when an individual is unable to adjust to situations; psychologists use this term to describe patterns of emotional disturbance. Both behavioural and psychoanalytic psychologists use this in different ways. The behavioural theory is based on two main factors being biological drives such as primitive needs and sex drive and what is learnt. The three main principles in the behavioural theory are Stimuli, response and conditioning. Behaviour is believed to be a conditioned response to an environmental stimulus. Individuals are obliged to react to stimuli using their senses such as seeing and hearing. There are short lived unlearned behaviours such as suckling and unlearned grasping. Responses are overt and implicit, learned or unlearned. Response can be foreseen if stimuli are available and stimuli can be predicted from the response. Unlearned responses are automatic such as breathing heavily and perspiring when running. Unlearned...
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...and he worked in Vienna as a doctor, specialising in neurological disorders (disorders of the nervous system). He constantly revised and modified his theories right up until his death but much of his psychoanalytic theory was produced between 1900 and 1930. Freud originally attempted to explain the workings of the mind in terms of physiology and neurology ...(but)... quite early on in his treatment of patients with neurological disorders, Freud realised that symptoms which had no organic or bodily basis could imitate the real thing and that they were as real for the patient as if they had been neurologically caused. So he began to search for psychological explanations of these symptoms and ways of treating them. In 1885 he spent a year in Paris learning hypnosis from the neurologist Charcot; he then started using hypnosis with his patients in Vienna. However, he found its effects to be only temporary at best and it did not usually get to the root of the problem; nor was everybody capable of being hypnotised. Meanwhile Breuer, another Viennese doctor, was developing another method of therapy which he called the cathartic method, where patients would talk out their problems. Freud adopted Breuer’s method and called it free association which became one of the three fundamental tools of psychoanalysis. Freud began his self-analysis during the 1890s and in 1900 published The Interpretation of Dreams, in which he outlined...
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...psychoanalysis of literary characters. While there is much to ponder in Sullivan's essay, there are two points, both involving dualisms, that I would like to discuss. In the first case, Sullivan argues insightfully and convincingly against an absolute distinction between how we know and think about fictional characters and how we know and think about real people. In the second case, however, Sullivan insists on an absolute (Cartesian) mind-body dualism as a cornerstone of psychoanalytic theory. I would like to repeat and extend Sullivan's argument in the first case, but refute it and deny its validity in the second. First dualism: Fact/Fiction Sullivan cites as representative of a certain widely-shared approach Maud Ellmann's insistence that there is an important distinction between a “human being made of flesh and character made of words” (5), a distinction that allows us to make one kind statement about the former but not the latter. Ellmann is not alone in making the real-life/fictional distinction a fundamental matter of ontology. We are all familiar with arguments like hers, having heard * For a response to this response, see “Don Quixote & the ‘Third Term’ as Solvent of Binary Dualisms: A Response to Howard Mancing”, by Henry W. Sullivan, Cervantes 19.1 (1999): 177-97. -F.J. 158 19.1 (1999) Against Dualisms: A Response to Henry Sullivan 159 them often enough specifically with respect to Cervantes. The case made in terms of fictional characters here is part of a...
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...the course of time, two of those theories of personality are called psychoanalytical and humanistic theories. This paper will further explain each of them, their strengths and limitations, their assumption, amongst other crucial factors for each approach. Psychodynamic Theories Various psychologists contributed to the formation of psychodynamic theories of personality including Carl Jung, Alfred Adler, Karen Horney, Melanie Klein, Harry S. Sullivan, along with others, yet one of the most influential psychologists in psychodynamic theories was Sigmund Freud. While Freud’s theories were later changed or dismissed, his ideas and research were used by many others and have greatly influenced society as it is currently known; moreover his psychoanalytic theory was the original and primary psychodynamic theory which was adjusted by some of his followers previously mentioned. According to McLeod (2007), the psychodynamic approach see human functioning based upon the interaction of drives and forces within the person, particularly unconscious, and between the different structures of the personality. Basic and Underlying Assumptions There are specific principles and beliefs in which each personality theory is based on. The psychodynamic theory assumes that human behavior and feelings are vigorously...
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...distinctions that contribute to variety in human thought and behavior (Feist & Feist, 2009). To enable more precise understandings of such differences and distinctions, psychological theorists develop explanations and parameters from various contexts. Psychoanalytic, humanistic and/or existential, dispositional, and learning theories help psychologists account for why and how people develop such individual and specific characteristics. They study these characteristics and the significant affects that the characteristics have on human development, as well as, the whole of human nature. Personality Defined According to Feist,& Feist (2009) personality is a global concept referring to a relatively permanent pattern of traits, dispositions, or characteristics that give some degree of consistency to a person’s behavior. Feist & Feist (2009) also wrote "Although no single definition is acceptable to all personality theorists, we can say that personality is a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to a person's behavior."(Feist and Feist, 2009) There are many different theories of personality which can be grouped into one of four classes: traits, psychoanalytic, social learning, and humanistic personality. At the begining an individual needs to understand exactly what is meant when viewing the term “personality”. The word personality itself stems from the Latin word persona, which referred to...
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