Sigmund Freud postulated that every individual has two levels of consciousness:
1. Conscious
2. Unconscious 

Levels of Consciousness

- id = a source of psychic energy that is ruled by the pleasure principle in order to receive the maximum amount of instant gratification (eating, drinking, comfort, etc.)
- ego = the resulting thoughts and behaviors that try to mediate the desires of the id and the constraints from the outside world
- superego = conscious thoughts that try to reconcile the sexual desires a child is having with what their parents deem as their standard of behavior (trying to avoid things like guilt)

Personality Structures in Freud's Psychosexual Theory of Development

Which of the Following Describes Freud's Theory of Personality Development?

Although modern research has not substantiated many of Sigmund Freud's theories, particularly his psychosexual stages, his impact on psychology remains significant. Freud was the first to emphasize that a substantial portion of our mental life operates outside of conscious awareness and is heavily shaped by early childhood experiences. These foundational ideas have had a lasting influence and paved the way for future psychological theories.

Modern Evaluation of Freud's Personality Theory

The study of Freud's psychodynamic theory involves understanding several key components. These include the fundamental assumptions of the perspective, the structural model of personality (id, ego, and superego), the function of defense mechanisms, and the progression through the psychosexual stages of development.

Key Concepts in Freud's Psychodynamic Theory

A key contribution of Sigmund Freud was his pioneering approach to the mind. He is credited as being the first to systematically study and develop theories about the workings of the unconscious, establishing a method of inquiry that aligns with the principles of modern psychology.

Freud's Pioneering Role in Studying the Unconscious

To illustrate the relationship between the conscious and unconscious mind, Sigmund Freud used the metaphor of an iceberg. He proposed that the conscious mind, representing our current awareness, is merely the small, visible tip of the iceberg, constituting only about one-tenth of our total mind. The vast, submerged portion of the iceberg represents the unconscious, which contains the bulk of our mental activity that we are unaware of and cannot easily access.

Freud's Iceberg Metaphor for Consciousness

According to Sigmund Freud, personality emerges from a fundamental conflict between two opposing forces: innate biological drives for aggression and pleasure, and the internalized social controls that restrain these urges. An individual's personality is therefore the outcome of their efforts to balance these competing dynamics.

Freudian Conflict Model of Personality

In Freudian theory, the unconscious mind is a repository of feelings, urges, and memories that exist outside of conscious awareness. Freud posited that these hidden elements significantly influence behavior and that gaining access to the unconscious was crucial for successfully resolving a patient's psychological problems.

Freud's Concept of the Unconscious Mind

Freud's emphasis on biological drives was challenged by his followers, who found it insufficient to explain the human diversity they observed as psychoanalysis expanded, particularly during the era of the Nazi Holocaust. The widespread antisemitism of that period is thought to have influenced mainstream psychoanalysts to shift their focus toward the universal aspects of the mind's psychological structures, moving away from a purely biological explanation of personality.

Limitations of Freud's Biological Determinism and the Sociocultural Shift in Psychoanalysis

According to Freud, adult personality is the direct result of resolving conflicts that occur during a series of psychosexual stages. He theorized that these conflicts center on the migration of erogenous, or sexual pleasure-producing, zones from the oral (mouth) to the anus, then the phallus, and finally the genitals. A successful resolution of the conflicts at each stage leads to a healthy adult personality, while failure to resolve them can lead to fixation and unhealthy traits.

Outcomes of Freud's Psychosexual Stages

Sigmund Freud developed his theory of human personality by conducting in-depth interviews over an extended period of time with a few clients, a research approach known as a case study.

Freud's Use of Case Studies

Sigmund Freud's psychodynamic perspective was the first comprehensive theory of personality, designed to explain a wide range of both normal and abnormal behaviors. Freud proposed that personality is fundamentally shaped by unconscious drives, particularly those related to sex and aggression, as well as by experiences during childhood. These elements create lifelong conflicts between the conscious and unconscious mind that define an individual's character.

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The psychoanalytic approach focuses on the unconscious mind and internal conflict. Mainly described by Freud and Erikson, this approach is motivated by the need to satisfy basic drives.  This approach also emphasizes the importance of early childhood experiences, as they impact different aspects of development over time.

Theory of Psychoanalytic Approach

The study of personality has a long history, with early theories contributed by figures like Hippocrates and Galen. In the modern era, foundational work was done by theorists such as Sigmund Freud, Abraham Maslow, and Gordon Allport, who each attempted to explain how personality develops from their unique perspectives, paving the way for later theoretical approaches.

Historical Perspectives on Personality

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020, April 22). Psychology (2nd ed.). OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

OpenStax Psychology (2nd ed.) Textbook

- Freud's Theory of Psychosexual Development
- Erikson's Theory of Psychosocial Development

Psychoanalytical Theories

Freud's Psychodynamic Theory of Personality

A therapist is working with a client who, despite a stated desire for a stable and loving partnership, consistently gets involved in tumultuous relationships with emotionally unavailable partners. The client cannot consciously explain this self-sabotaging pattern. If the therapist operates from a perspective that prioritizes the influence of unconscious conflicts and unresolved issues from early childhood, what would be the most likely explanation for the client's behavior?

Originating around 370 BCE, Hippocrates' theory proposed that personality traits and behaviors are determined by four distinct temperaments. Each temperament is linked to a specific bodily fluid, or 'humor': the choleric temperament to yellow bile from the liver, the melancholic to black bile from the kidneys, the sanguine to red blood from the heart, and the phlegmatic to white phlegm from the lungs.

Hippocrates' Theory of Four Temperaments

The Greek physician Galen expanded upon Hippocrates' theory of the four temperaments. He proposed that imbalances in the four humors could explain not only personality differences but also various diseases. Galen's view, which posited that every individual displays one of the four primary temperaments, became a dominant theory in medicine and philosophy for over a millennium, lasting through the Middle Ages.

Galen's Expansion of the Four Temperaments Theory

In 1780, German physician Franz Gall introduced the theory that a person's personality, character, and mental faculties could be understood by examining the bumps on their skull. Gall believed that measuring the distances between these bumps would reveal the size of the underlying brain regions, which in turn would indicate specific traits such as friendliness, pride, or kindness. Although this practice, known as phrenology, gained initial popularity, it was eventually discredited as a pseudoscience due to a lack of empirical support.

Franz Gall's Theory of Personality

In the 18th century, philosopher Immanuel Kant expanded on Galen's temperament theory. He concurred with the idea that every individual fits into one of four distinct, non-overlapping temperament categories. Kant's main contribution was the creation of a detailed list of traits to describe the personality of a person corresponding to each of the four temperaments.

Immanuel Kant's Contribution to Temperament Theory

In the 19th century, psychologist Wilhelm Wundt proposed that personality could be more effectively described using a two-dimensional model rather than discrete categories. He introduced two primary axes: one distinguishing between emotional and nonemotional tendencies, and another between changeable and unchangeable traits. This model provided a more nuanced way to map and understand the four classical temperaments.

Wilhelm Wundt's Two-Dimensional Model of Personality

Read the following scenario and analyze the fundamental assumption being made about the connection between the physical body and personality.

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