Freuds concepts and their value for contemporary psychology

Freuds concepts and their value for contemporary psychology Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) is well known as the founder of psychoanalysis in psychiatry and is thought of by many as a key figure in psychology. Throughout his work Freud came up with numerous concepts and theories, many of which still cause a lot of debate amongst psychologists. In this essay I will discuss some of Freuds key concepts including; development of personality, personality structures and defence mechanisms. After which I will attempt to assess their significance in modern psychology and conclude whether or not I believe Freuds concepts are of value to contemporary psychology and if we should continue to look into his work. One key concept developed by Freud is the development of personality. He came up with five distinct stages, known as the psychosexual stage, to describe how our personalities develop from birth to about 18 years of age. He places particular emphasis on the development of sexual drives and how this shapes our personalities. Furthermore, each stage has a region, known as the erogenous zone, where the libidinal energy is focused. The five stages are: Oral stage (birth one year old), in this stage Freud (1901) suggests that events around feeding are the focal point of pleasure for the infant, the erogenous zone includes the lips, mouth and tongue (Maltby, Day and Macaskill; 2007). Anal stage (1year -2 years), Freud believed that bowel movement gives the baby sensual pleasure, also at this stage the child is rewarded for bladder and bowel control (Maltby et al., 2007). The anal region becomes the new erogenous zone. Phallic stage (3 years -5 years), at this stage the child starts to mature physiologically and the libidinal energy is transferred to genital region (new erogenous zone). At this stage gratification is gained from masturbation (Maltby et al., 2007). Freud thought that girls experienced what he called penis envy as they become aware that boys have penises and the do not. In addition, boys become sexually aware of their mother and start to view their father as a sexual rival (and experience castration anxiety fear of losing their penis), this is known as the Oedipal complex. Latency stage (5 years -12 years) can be seen as a resting period of the psychosexual stage. Social interactions are most important in this stage, children develop friendships with same sexed peers, as well as, identifying with the same sexed parent (Maltby et al., 2007) resulting in socialisation of gender roles. Genital stage (12 years +) as this stage puberty begins, which reawakens the libidinal energy, resulting in a more mature sexual attachment, in normal development the main sexual objects are members of the opposite sex (Maltby et al., 2007). Freud also developed the idea of personality structures. He identifies three personality structures that develop in every person, these are the; ID (present from birth), EGO and superEGO (these two form later on in development). The ID is the primitive, pleasure seeking part of the personality, it strives for immediate gratification (i.e. I want X and I want it now!). The EGO plays an important role as the mediator and is the rational aspect of our personalities (i.e. You will find a way to get X, just be patient). Finally the superEGO is the moral, guilt driven side of the personality which then becomes our conscience (i.e. You cant have X because its wrong). And finally I will talk about defence mechanisms, a well-known concept developed by Freud. Defence mechanisms can be described as the minds way of protecting itself from unacceptable or painful thoughts, as well as, conflict from the three personality structures. Freud mentions eleven defence mechanisms: Repression, denial, projection, reaction formation, rationalisation, conversion reaction, phobic avoidance, displacement, regression, isolation and undoing. The two most known defences are: repression the idea that we push undesirable thoughts, feelings and impulses from our conscious mind into our unconscious in order to shield ourselves from pain and protect our self-esteem. In other words Freud saw repression as the Ego and superEGOs way of supressing the ID. Denial is simply when we refuse to face certain situations or realities as we do not find them acceptable. Cramer (1991) states that the boundaries between these two defence mechanisms are often hard to distinguish between (cited in Baumeister, Dale and Sommer Freudian Defence mechanisms and empirical findings in modern social psychology; 1998). The next part of the essay will aim to assess the value of some of Freuds work in contemporary psychology. The concept of personality development is solely based on how libidinal instincts shape us. Maltby, Day and Macaskill (2007), state that Freud does not meet the parsimony criteria in his explanation of the motivational basis of behaviour, Freud implies that sexual and aggressive instincts are the only motivators of human behaviour (Maltby et al., 2007). The psychosexual stages, do not fully explain human behaviour as they are highly reductionist and ignore the complexity of the human mind, as well as, being bias in only emphasising one aspect as the basis of all behaviour, therefore, it can be said that they are of little value to contemporary psychology. Freud also identified problems that may occur as a result of fixation in anyone of the five psychosexual stages. He then developed treatment, known as free association, which would allow the patients to resolve their emotional conflicts, which involved catharsis, where the patients discharged their emotions by speaking freely about anything they want, leading to resolution of these issues. This method has been widely reviewed and is still used in contemporary psychology. Greenberg (2002) concluded that emotional arousal and processing within a supportive therapeutic relationship is the core element for positive change in therapy. He emphasized the cognitive aspect of catharsis and the need to understand and make sense of emotions. (Esta Powell; 2007). Free association is replicable making it reliable and has many applications to contemporary psychology making it valid. Conversely, much of Freuds work on the psychosexual stages was largely based on his interpretations of observations of young children or self-reports of dreams and thoughts. Freud used Little Hans primarily to support his theory of the Oedipus complex (Jennifer Stuart; 2007). Critics contend that Freuds theory is lacking in empirical evidence and relies too heavily on therapeutic achievements, whereas others assert that even Freuds clinical data are flawed, inaccurate, and selective at best (Beystehner; 1998). Thus, the validity of his work is very much in question. As these concepts, such as the psychosexual stages, cannot be operationalized and tested they are not falsifiable and are of little relevance to contemporary research. Many of Freuds theories are simple in a way that they are not comprised of many concepts, for example, his theory on personality structure consists of three clearly definable structures. In this sense his work can be said to be parsimonious and has formed a basis for further research. According to Dangleish and Power (1999) the personality structure purposed by Freud has face validity as we are all aware of anxiety and conflicts in everyday life decision making (as cited in Maltby, Day and Macaskill, Personality, Individual Differences and Intelligence; 2007: 34). Face validity implies that there is support for his theory on personality structures, and so this theory can be operationalized and tested to see how personalities coexist within us and data from these tests can have practical applications. Furthermore, Freuds work on defence mechanisms was widely accepted and leads to follow up research, such as that by Brewin and Andrews. After reviewing this area of psychology, Brewin and Andrews (1998) concluded that 20% to 60% of therapy patients who had been victims of sexual abuse in their childhood reported not being able to recall being abused for large periods of time in their lives (cited in Maltby et al., Personality, Individual Differences and Intelligence; 2007: 36,37). This shows us that the mind does use methods, such as repression, to protect itself from indecent memories. This shows falsifiability as it is replicable and has practical applications in life which can be used and developed in contemporary psychology. Freuds work is very controversial and has provoked enormous debate, much of which has led to the development of novel ideas in psychology. Not only has his work been expanded upon and developed (e.g. to better treatment of mental patients) but many breakthroughs have been made in trying to disprove his theories. Although many of Freuds theories are subjective and based on his interpretation of dreams and thoughts which cannot be empirically tested, he has made many valuable contributions to psychology. These include the use of defence mechanisms and the idea of personality structures, both of which have supporting evidence from contemporary psychologists, e.g. Brewin and Andrews (1998) work supports the concept of defence mechanisms. As well as this he created clinical practice of psychoanalysis for treating psychopathology, developed therapeutic techniques such as the use of free association and concluded dreams are the primary insight into the unconscious mind. All of these have ha d practical applications and have formed the foundation of contemporary psychology. Thus, I believe that it is potent that Freuds theories and concepts continue to be revised. Referencing: Maltby, J., Day, L Macaskill, A. (2007). Personality, Individual Differences and Intelligence (2nd Ed.). London: Prentice Hall Baumeister, R.F., Dale, K. Sommer, K. L. (1998). Freudian Defence mechanisms and empirical findings in modern social psychology: Reaction Formal, Projection, Displacement, Undoing, Isolation, Sublimation and Denial. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. Stuart, J. (2007). Little Hans and Freuds Self-Analysis: A Biographical View of Clinical Theory in the Making, 55, (3), 799-819. Beystehner, K. M. (1998). Psychoanalysis: Freuds revolutionary approach to human personality. Retrieved October 22, 2010, from Personality Papers Web site: http://www.personalityresearch.org/papers/beystehner.html Powell, E. (2007). Catharsis in Psychology and Beyond: A Historical overview. Visited on October 25, 2010, Web site: http://www.primalmatters.com/images/Catharsis%20.pdf

Annotated Biblography Essay

Kristen E. Van Vonderen, M. S. , William Kinnally, Ph. D. (2012), â€Å"Media Effects on Body Image: Examining Media Exposure in the Broader Context of Internal and Other Social Factors†. Volume 14, Issue 2. 41-57. American Communication Journal. Summary: Vonderson and Kinnally’s article discusses the influence media has on women today and the way they see themselves. Being â€Å"overweight† has such negative stigmatism to it that women who are considered to be overweigh feel as though they are unlovable or unsuccessful because they don’t look like the women in magazines. They touch on the subject of the influence from parents and peers. Parents who comment on their child’s physical appearance convey body image norms that could lead to negative association with body shape. In the article they also talk about internal influences such as self-esteem and how, in part, it is a reflection of the opinion others hold of you. Analysis: Vonderson and Kinnally’s approach to informing us about how women are portrayed in magazines is both informative and surprising. I, myself being a young women was more than aware of the issue with body image and the media. I personally have thought less of myself after looking through a magazine or watching a movie because of how thin and beautiful those women are. But I was not aware of the many causes that influence women into thinking so negatively. Reflection: This particular article was very informative and helpful towards my research paper topic because it was exactly what I am writing about. Going into this project, I thought I knew quite a bit of information on this topic, but now reading these articles I realize that there is much more to the influence media has on women than I had imagined. Gemma Lopez- Guimera, Micheal P. Levine, David Sanchez-Carracedo, Jordi Fauquet. (2010),† Influence of Mass Media on Body Image and Eating Disordered Attitudes and Behavior in Females: A Review of Effects and Processes†. Media Psychology, 13:387– 416. Print Summary: This article reviews research on the effects of television and magazines on body image and on disordered eating attitudes and behaviors in females. Evidence from different types of studies in the fields of eating disorders, media psychology, health psychology, and mass communication indicates that mass media are an extremely important source of information and reinforcement in relation to the nature of the thin beauty ideal, its importance, and how to attain it. Although considerable research remains to be done, evidence is accumulating that repeated exposure to media and to both direct and indirect (via media’s effects on peers, parents, coaches, physicians, etc. ) pressures from media to be thin constitute risk factors for body dissatisfaction, concerns over weight and disordered eating behaviors in adolescent girls and young women. Analysis: I found this article to be both credible and reliable mainly on the fact that it’s research was conducted professionally. The multiple authors of this article are credible because they are head departments of psychology, clinical and health psychology, psychobiology, and methodology of health sciences all from admirable universities all over the world. Reflection: This article help shapes the arguments in my research paper. My research paper is on the topic of mass media and its influence on society and with an article that focuses just on the female aspect of it, it will really help my arguments. So, J. and Nabi, R. (2013), Reduction of Perceived Social Distance as an Explanation for Media’s Influence on Personal Risk Perceptions: A Test of the Risk Convergence Model. Human Communication Research, 39: 317–338. Print Summary: The aim of this study was to develop the Perceived Parental Media Mediation Scale (PPMMS). in an initial test of this model, 500 undergraduate students at the University of California, Santa Barbara, participated in an experiment. Participants were exposed to entertainment clips that either portrayed a main character who is diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease or thinks he/she might have caught an STD and gets scared of testing for it. Overall, the risk convergence model received solid support from the data, with all paths emerging as significant except for the link between perceived realism and social distance. Reduction of social distance completely mediated the relationship between identification, transportation and personal risk perceptions, thus suggesting social distance as a valid causal mechanism of the process involving the two variables. Analysis: This article is credible because studies were conducted at multiple universities such as University of Georgia and UC Santa Barbara by experts in the Department of Communications. I found this article to be non biased based on the fact that they had conducted numerous experiments and tests on a large number of students and still found that their risk perception was influenced by the media. Reflection: I found this article to be very helpful with my research paper, being that it was a rather long article with more than enough information explaining medias influence on personal risk perception.

The Insider Secrets for Evaluation Essay Topic Discovered

The Insider Secrets for Evaluation Essay Topic Discovered It's necessary that if you compose an essay it needs to have a superior flow, attempt to steer clear of unnecessary things and vagrancy. Most writing you are going to have to do in your professional life will involve a good deal of expository content also. Explain why it is you're interested in a specific career. You may also consider focusing on several different methods to take care of either disorder. The Foolproof Evaluation Essay Topic Strategy It is among the simplest kinds of essays you don't require any referencing material. Pupils that aren't creative usually become considerable issues as they can not really become instructions on the ideal approach to tackle their composition documents. Free range parenting since you can see, there are an excellent number of useful, informative and intriguing topics to write about and evaluate. 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Career Plateuing - 889 Words

Overview/Summary of Article This paper focuses on career plateauing and the relationship between job satisfaction, organizational commitment and turnover intentions and the alleviating effects of mentoring on the relationships between career plateauing and the three dependent variables. I reviewed Samuel O. Salami s article â€Å"Career plateauing and work attitudes: Moderating effects of mentoring others with Nigerian employees†, Salami collected data from 280 government employees in Nigeria, who were more than 30 years of age and came from a wide variety of organizations. The results showed that career plateau (job content and hierarchical) was negatively related to job satisfaction and organizational commitment and was positively related†¦show more content†¦Studies also have shown that mentors have a higher commitment to their organization, decreased intention to turnover and increased job performance. Mentoring provides benefits for its mentors as well, like, pro fessional enhancement, organizational and peer recognition, interpersonal relationship, meaningfulness and fulfillment and productivity. Salami says that mentoring others is plays a alleviating role in the relationship between career plateauing and work attitudes. He states that the alleviating effects of mentoring in the plateauing-work attitude link is based on the career and life stage writings particularly Levinson s life cycle theory. Levinson s middle adulthood stage and mid-life transition is at the center of this study. Salami explored mentoring others as a coping response to plateauing; in the article it was suggested that mentoring younger employees may help plateaued employees to cognitively manipulate the meaning of being plateaued. Salami s results indicated that mentoring others was associated with higher levels of satisfaction, commitment and performance among plateaued employees. Results from Salami s study also indicated that mentoring others was significantly and positively related to job satisfaction and organization commitment but negativelyShow MoreRelatedA Report on Current Hr Issues and Skills Required for Hr Managers2903 Words   |  12 Pages8 Figure 3: Organizational Strength 9 Figure 4: Management Level of Respondents 10 Figure 5: HR role of respondents 11 Figure 6: Gender of Respondents 12 Figure 7: Level at which respondents began their career 13 Figure 8: Field in which respondents began their career 14 Figure 9: Graphical representation of major issues 15 Figure 10: Graphical Representation of major skills required for a HR manager 17 INTRODUCTION This project aims at identifying the current issues