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Sigmund Freud: The Main Theories Behind The Psychodynamic Approach

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The main theorist behind the psychodynamic approach is Sigmund Freud. ‘Psychodynamic theorists look for the causes of behaviour in a dynamic interplay of motivational forces that often conflict with one another. They also suggest that many of these motivational determinants of behaviour are unconscious’ (Holt N., Bremner A., Sutherland E. et al. 2015 p.628). Psychodynamics and psychoanalysis looks at the ways in which the unconscious mind influences our behaviour. When it comes to Freud’s psychanalytical theory, he considered our personalities and behaviours to stem from three different structures: the id, the ego and the superego. The id is totally unconscious. It operates in a totally irrational way, seeking only pleasure. The ego is driven …show more content…

The main research methods in behaviourism were based on observation, from which a hypothesis can be drawn and tested, with the results recorded. Behaviours can be measured thus allowing us to be able to quantify results. Psychodynamics on the other hand, although aimed to be scientific in its methods, would be perceived as being qualitative. The concepts and research methods that psychodynamics focused on and used were not very measureable. However, Psychodynamics did still build theories such as that of defence mechanisms. Although not provable through the use of statistics, can’t be denied as not being applicable to everyday …show more content…

Some of the main principles when it comes to ethics is to always consider the wellbeing of the participant, consider the risk of the research, consider the confidentiality of any information gathered and debriefing of the subject. When it comes to the experimentation carried out in Behaviourism, one of the main experiments that raised serious questions about ethics, was that of ‘Little Albert’. The premise behind this experiment was to observe how fears can be conditioned using that of classical conditioning. Albert was conditioned into fearing small white fluffy animals. He was only 11 months old at the time of experimentation. Once he had been conditioned to fearing such, his mother pulled him from the experiment and moved away. Meaning that Albert was never unconditioned of his fears. Experiments like this, put the participant in a position of distress and should never be allowed. By doing so, the researcher is potentially putting the participant’s mental health at risk in order to record results. When it comes to psychodynamics, issues could be raised regarding the confidentiality of the information collected. Consent was also another issue when it came to

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John B. Watson and his assistant Rosalie Rayner conducted an experiment called the “Little Albert” experiment. It was a psychology experiment performed to demonstrate the effects of behavioral conditioning in humans. John was influence by the studies of Ivan Pavlov, where he used conditioning process in dogs. John want to prove that taking Pavlov’s research a step further could show how emotional reactions could be classically conditioned in humans. John used an 9 month old boy to be the subject of the little Albert experiment.

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Conditioned Emotional Reactions John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner conducted an experiment to show how natural stimuli could cause fear if closely linked to traumatic events. The experiment involved a nine-month-old infant who they called Albert B. Albert B was a healthy unemotional infant who never cried. Which made him a good candidate for the experiment. The experiment involved teaching the infant to fear a variety of animals and objects. The first test done was to assess any current fears to loud noises.

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This research raised a lot of ethical issues as a lot of people argued if it is ethically right or wrong. In this essay, I will talk about this experiment and its results. I will also mention the ethical view of both Utilitarian and Kantian moral theories. Finally, I will state my opinion regarding the ethicality of this experiment.

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Classical conditioning focuses on using a conditioned response to change behavioural reaction. I will start of by discussing the theory of behaviourism by elaborating more on the theory and how it came about, with evidence on how Watson applied Ivan Pavlov’s theory under his. It will be followed up by the experiment performed on a baby boy called little Albert and then I will finally state the ethical views about classical conditioning on humans. John. B, Watson led the development of behaviourism as a distinctive approach to psychology.

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Little Albert was the fabricated name given to an unknown 9-month-old infant who was subjected to an experiment in classical conditioning by John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner at John Hopkins University, in 1920. The objective of the experiment conducted by Watson was to induce phobias in an emotionally stable child, through the process of conditioning. The experiment could not be conducted by today’s standards in psychology because it broke the ethical rules for psychological research those being the lack of informed consent from the subject or his mother and the prime principle of “do no harm”. According to the American Psychological Association (APA) code of conduct, subjects have to be given as much information about the study as possible

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The behavioral approach is pretty basic and deals with traits to better understand how an individual behaves. The psychodynamic approach has to do with outside influences like our parents affecting our personality

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The Little Albert experiment was a case study showing empirical evidence of classical conditioning in humans. The study also provides an example of stimulus generalization. It was carried out by John B. Watson and his graduate student, Rosalie Rayner, at Johns Hopkins University. The results were first published in the February 1920 issue of the Journal of Experimental Psychology. After observing children in the field, Watson hypothesized that the fearful response of children to loud noises is an innate unconditioned response.

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There are several similarities and differences between behaviorism (skinner) and psychoanalysis (Freud). Both behaviorism and psychoanalysis do not believe in the concept of free will in humans and they are both deterministic. Behavioral approach assets that the environment and the consequences of behavior control people while psychoanalysis believe that people are controlled by their unconscious drives. Through his observations, Freud believed that childhood experiences could lead to emotional problems in adulthood. Skinner in his experiment proved that behavior that produces pleasurable consequences is likely to be repeated whilst that which produces negative consequences is stamped out.

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(2009) and Fridlund et al. (2012) respectively. However, these hypotheses have gained much traction in the wider psychological community despite Powell, Digdon, Harris and Smithson (in press) theorizing a much more compelling candidate, Albert Barger. Ethics in psychology is a contemporary consideration and this fresh perspective has dictated a popular practice of re-examining the ethics of historical experiments with superfluous criticism. It is plausible that the outrage over possible unethical practice has distracted from the more parsimonious option presented by Powell et al.

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For this paper, I chose to write about the Little Albert experiment The overall importance of this study was to discover if a human could be conditioned to develop a bias, fear, or generalized fear of an animal, object, or person based the stimuli placed around the involved person, animal or object. Watson & Rayner (1920) suggested that “in infancy the original emotional reaction patterns are few, consisting so far as observed of fear, rage and love, then there must be some simple method by means of which the range of stimuli which can call out these emotions and their compounds is greatly increased.” This means that before any conditioning occurs, the subject should have a pure response, but after minor and simple experimentation and conditioning,

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Psychoanalysis was first introduced by Sigmund Freud and is now known as classical psychoanalysis. The theory, as defined by Sigmund Freud, is the dynamic between underlying forces that determine behavior and personality. He stressed the importance of human sexuality, childhood experiences, and the unconscious processes. However, his theory was seen as misogynistic and narrow focused. Consequently, classical psychoanalysis was criticized and rejected by many scholars.

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The classical and operant conditioning are also a strong point in this theory as it gives positives results in treating phobias. Although there are also some weaknesses that it is important to outline such as the problems that the use of animals in trials could be raised. Ethical issues raised by using animals in experiments. This is because animals can not consent to take part and are unable to withdraw.

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Recognizing the division of personality in the,”ID”Ego”, and Super ego and that the unconscious is an important part of who we are and noting that anxiety plays a big function in how one reacts to the world at large and highlighting Freud’s theory on defense mechanism to help one cope with such anxieties. Core Philosophy of the Therapeutic Approach The most important underlying ideas relating to the psychoanalytic theory was mainly influenced by Sigmund Freud, one of the most famous names in Psychology, his Psychoanalytic Theory formed the bases of many current psychoanalytic theories. He was the first to discuss the unconscious mind and its role in human behaviour. Freud believed that there were three levels consciousness the first he labeled s the unconscious mind which exist outside of an individual’s awareness at all times.

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The common use of the this theory has been well set up. In a book named Introduction of Psychodynamics, during 1988 the psychologist, HoroWits mentions that his interest and eagerness for psychodynamic began during the 1950s. Hornist widely explained neurotic behaviour and unconscious mental condition are directly correlated with the psychodynamic theory in the daily life. Sigmund Freud focused mainly on sexual feelings and thoughts. Emotional issues generate during the childhood.

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