Problem

Too much Focus on Sex and Childhood Development

The psychoanalytic approach offers no proper scientific evidence for the ideas it
proposes. That is because Freud’s theories do not follow the standard scientific
protocol that is used in most scientific disciplines (i.e., physics, chemistry, etc.). If a
theory is to be considered scientific, it must be put forward in such a way that it can’t
be proven but can be disproven. The psychoanalytic theory cannot be adequately
tested because it was created in such a manner that the evidence to support the theory
could not possibly be refuted.
Ignorance of Sleep in Shaping Dreams
Freud offered many theories about why we dream what we dream in his wish-
fulfillment theory by claiming that dreams are reflective of our unconscious desires.
However, he showed no interest in studying the role of sleep and dismissed it as a
nightly biological re-occurrence that all mammals experience. Freud believed that
dreaming needed only to be understood in terms of their attached meanings. Though,
research in other psychological domains has revealed that dreaming can largely be
affected by our sleep patterns.

Citation: https://medium.com/predict/the-problems-with-sigmund-freuds-
psychoanalytic-theory-c830bb119807#:~:text=Too%20much%20Focus%20on
%20Sex%20and%20Childhood%20Development&text=He%20made%20clear
%20that%20Psychoanalysis,also%20takes%20place%20during%20adulthood.

Research Methodology:
1. Single Case studies:
Freud used this method extensively in his study. Although the majority of his case
studies are lost in time, 6 of his studies have been published and well reviewed. Freud
was a scientist by nature, though critics won’t concur. His way of science was of
Inductive reasoning and internal consistencies as opposed to a hypothesis and
deductive implications.
2. Free association & Dream analysis:
These 2 methods were almost exclusively paired in his clinical setting. By free
association, Freud meant, speaking anything and everything that comes to one’s mind
no matter how ridiculous the patient might judge it to be. He posited that all free
association content will eventually exhibit a pattern, much like the statement of the
Chaos theory (Poincare, 1890). These free associations will eventually be paired with
his method of dream analysis where, conflicts, sexual tensions, repressions, etc. will
symbolize leading to the symptoms. Hence his method here would give him a gateway
to the intra-psychic tension and would be used to ‘cure’ the patient.
3. Cathartic method:
As mentioned earlier, Freud spent his initial time with Joseph Breuer who advocated
this method. This method involved hypnosis to recollect the original incident which
was usually repressed leading to the symptoms. In his work with Anna O, he found
that by tracing her associations in an autohypnotic state, he could not only find an
original repressed incident but could actually cure her of her symptoms. When she
related an event to a symptom while in a hypnotic state, her symptom would become
terribly powerful and dramatic, but would then be purged, never to trouble her again
(Stevenson, 1996).
This method was never popular is psychoanalysis in the future as Freud opted for a
conscious method of psychoanalysis. Modern studies do show a significant amount of
evidence which proved the logic of catharsis; primarily Theta wave states linked to
memory recollection and object representation (Buzsaki, 2005).
4.Observation/couch-method:
As evidently shown in movies, this method is that of the classical-clinical setting for
Freud. He requested his patients to lie down on a comfortable couch in a manner that
made sure that Freud was not seen (a control for killing inhibitions) directly. In this
setting, he first used hypnosis during his hysteria study days and later on dream
analysis and free association. He also used this setting for standard conversations and
observing the patient. There is logic in this method which adds to his overall
methodology.
5. Self analysis:
Freud relied on his own experiences for intuition and retrospective observation. He
began self analysing his dreams in 1897 (Jones, 1953). To his satisfaction, he
confirmed his psychosexual stages in his self-analysis. He found the existence of the
conflicts in himself. It is unknown how he resolved his deepest conflicts but they have
generated insight into his therapy strategies. Critics state that this type of evidence
was too metaphysical and pseudoscientific (Crew, 1996).
Citation: https://cognitiontoday.com/2018/06/psychoanalytic-research-methods-
description-overview/

Findings

Models of the Mind

Perhaps the most impactful idea put forth by Freud was his model of the human mind.
His model divides the mind into three layers, or regions:

1. Conscious: This is where our current thoughts, feelings, and focus live;
2. Preconscious (sometimes called the subconscious): This is the home of
everything we can recall or retrieve from our memory;
 3. Unconscious: At the deepest level of our minds resides a repository of the
processes that drive our behavior, including primitive and instinctual desires
(McLeod, 2013).

Later, Freud posited a more structured model of the mind, one that can coexist with
his original ideas about consciousness and unconsciousness.

In this model, there are three metaphorical parts to the mind:

 1. Id: The id operates at an unconscious level and focuses solely on instinctual
drives and desires. Two biological instincts make up the id, according to Freud:
eros, or the instinct to survive that drives us to engage in life-sustaining
activities, and thanatos, or the death instinct that drives destructive, aggressive,
and violent behavior.

2. Ego: The ego acts as both a conduit for and a check on the id, working to meet
the id’s needs in a socially appropriate way. It is the most tied to reality and
begins to develop in infancy;

3. Superego: The superego is the portion of the mind in which morality and higher
principles reside, encouraging us to act in socially and morally acceptable ways
(McLeod, 2013).

The image above offers a context of this “iceberg” model wherein much of our mind
exists in the realm of the unconscious impulses and drives.

If you’ve ever read the book “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding, then you have
enjoyed the allegory of Freud’s mind as personified by Jack as the Id, Piggy as the
ego, and Ralph as the superego.

Citation: https://positivepsychology.com/psychoanalysis/

Conclusion
There is no doubt that the study of psychoanalysis still very much remains a large area
of study discussion in the field though it has very much become outdated. For the
points discussed above, it has undoubtedly been dismissed as weird and whacky by
the scientific community. The study of psychology is becoming more scientifically
advanced from Freud’s time, making psychoanalysis very much an outdated approach.
If psychologists are to devise a theory, they must follow the standard scientific
procedure that I mentioned earlier in the article. That is to make a theory testable so
that it cannot be proven but can be disproven and use experimental research methods
to test the validity of the theory by comparing research results. Freud did not do this,
and so there is no scientific basis for his claims. Theories must also not be over-
simplistic, and if they happen to be over-simplified, then these over-simplicities
should be accounted for. This is another area where Freud got it wrong, and his rival-
friend Jung would only go on to expand it a little more. It comes as no real surprise
why the psychoanalytic approach has been widely rejected and still is today.
Citation: https://medium.com/predict/the-problems-with-sigmund-freuds-
psychoanalytic-theory-c830bb119807#:~:text=Too%20much%20Focus%20on
%20Sex%20and%20Childhood%20Development&text=He%20made%20clear
%20that%20Psychoanalysis,also%20takes%20place%20during%20adulthood.

We should study Good Citizenship Core Values because it is a big part of being a good
citizen and its the ability to be able to challenge injustice and helps to enable fairness. It
also helps us to learn how to find common ground with people who are different from
themselves, especially when it comes to upholding basic human rights. We must
develop deep values that will make us want to be good citizens. These values include
responsibility, compassion, honesty, integrity, and tolerance. As those values become
second nature, we students also will grow into good citizens. We can explore how each
person showed good citizenship and how that act made a difference. Teaching
citizenship also allows students to understand the difference between being a citizen
and practicing citizenship.

We should study Good Citizenship Core Values because it is a big part of being a good
citizen and it's the ability to be able to challenge injustice and helps to enable fairness. It
also helps us to learn how to find common ground with people who are different from
themselves, especially when it comes to upholding basic human rights. We must
develop deep values that will make us want to be good citizens. These values include
responsibility, compassion, honesty, integrity, and tolerance. As those values become
second nature, we students also will grow into good citizens. We can explore how each
person showed good citizenship and how that act made a difference. Teaching
citizenship also allows students to understand the difference between being a citizen
and practicing citizenship.