Introduction to Psychology

Introduction to Psychology of 97 Freud divided personality into three separate but interacting structures: id, ego, and superego. • Id- Is the innermost core of the personality, the only structure present at birth, and the source of all psychic energy. It exists totally within the unconscious mind. The id has no direct contact with reality and functions in a totally irrational manner. Operating according to the pleasure principle, it seeks immediate gratification or release, regardless of rational considerations and environmental realities. • Ego- Has direct contact with reality and functions primarily at a conscious level. It operates according to the reality principle, testing reality to decide when and under what conditions the id can safely discharge its impulses and satisfy its needs. • Superego- The moral arm of the personality. Developing by age four or five, the superego contains the traditional values and ideals of family and society. Defense Mechanisms- Unconscious mental operations that deny or distort reality. Some of the defense mechanisms permit the release of impulses from the id in disguised forms that will not conflict with forces in the external world or with the prohibitions of the superego. Repression- An active defense process pushes anxiety-arousing impulses or memories into the unconscious mind. Denial- A person refuses to acknowledge anxiety-arousing aspects of the environment. The denial may involve either the emotions connected with the event or the event itself. Displacement- An unacceptable or dangerous impulse is regressed, then directed at a safer substitute target. Intellectualization- The emotion connected with an upsetting event is repressed, and the situation is dealt with as an intellectually interesting event. Projection- An unacceptable impulse is regressed, then attributed to (projected onto) other people. Rationalization- A person constructs a false but plausible explanation or excuse for an anxiety- arousing behavior or event that has already occurred. Reaction Formation- An anxiety-arousing impulse is repressed, and its psychic energy finds release in an exaggerated expression of the opposite behavior. Sublimation- A repressed impulse is released in the form of a socially acceptable or even admired behavior. Psychosexual Stages- Freud proposed that children pass through a series of psychosexual stages during which the id’s pleasure-seeking tendencies are focused on specific pleasure-sensitive areas of the body. Potential deprivations or overindulgence can arise during any of these stages, resulting in fixation, a state of arrested psychosexual development in which instincts are focused on a particular psychic theme. Regression is a psychological retreat to an earlier psychosexual stage. © 2015 Achieve Page 67