ipl-logo

Sigmund Freud's Psychoanalytic Theory Of Personality

1197 Words5 Pages
Sigmund Freud 's Psychoanalytic Theory of Personality Personality refers to individual differences in thinking, feeling and behaving patterns (American Psychological Association, 2016). To explain these differences, Sigmund Freud introduced the Psychoanalytic Theory of Personality. According to Freud, personality develops from the interaction between Structural Modal agencies: id, ego and superego (Magnavita, 2002). Interaction of agencies depends on ego strength, which refers to ego’s ability in effectively mediating between the id, superego and reality (Akhtar, 2009). High ego strength forms healthy personalities whilst low ego strength shapes maladaptive personalities. Freud’s theory faced controversy, specifically in the research methods and area of focus. This essay first elaborates Freud’s perception of personality, followed by evaluation of Psychoanalytic Theory of Personality. In the Structural Model, Freud divided human mind into three theoretical constructs: pleasure-seeking id, realistic ego and moralistic superego; each agency has distinct roles, components and principles (Carducci, 2009). Furthermore, agencies operate at different levels of awareness. Id is entirely unconscious, whilst ego and superego have conscious, preconscious and unconscious aspects. Id is the primitive and instinctive personality component, containing biological instincts: Eros and Thanatos (Rajamanickam, 2008). As the life instinct, Eros contains survival and sexual instincts for
Open Document