Freud - Psychodynamic Approach

According to Freud, our early childhood influences our personality. He said the personality consists of three parts: the ego, the ID and the superego.

ID

The ID develops first and is inborn. It lasts for two years and operates the Pleasure Principle. A baby seeks food and warmth.

Ego

The ego ensures the desires of the ID are expressed in a suitable way. It is based in reality principle (weighs up costs and benefits).

Superego

The superego begins development at age three and fully develops around puberty and is essentially the contious. 

'Active mind' - Freud coined the term psychoanalysis to describe his  theories and techniques for finding and curing the mental problems o his patients.

The conscious - Awareness when we are awake

Pre-conscious - Memories of dreams, gives clues about the unconscious mind.

The unconscious - Containing secret wishes and fears, trauma memories and these thoughts are unavailable to us while awake.

Psychoanalytic theories see anti-social behaviour as caused by an abnormal relationship with parents during early socialisation.

- A weakly developed superego

+ Individual feels less guilt

- Unforgiving superego

+ Feels deep guilt which manifests in offending

- Deviant superego

+ Socialised into a deviant moral code

Advantages

- Demonstrates the importance of early socialisation and family relationships

- Psychoanalytical explanations have had some influence on policies for dealing with crime and deviance

Disadvantages

- Critics doubt the existence of an 'unconcsious mind'. How can we know about it if we can't see it?

- Freud is seen to be unscientific and subjective