A Review of Karen Horney’s Work

Karen Horney was a Neo-Freudian who is mainly known for her contributions to psychoanalysis,

feminine psychology and the theory of neurosis. As a woman, Horney suffered the consequences

of being embedded in a patriarchal culture and an androcentric professional field (Debakcsy,

2018). She was exposed to a whirl of criticism and rejection for refuting some of Freud’s views.

However, despite the obstacles that she encountered while embarking on her professional

journey, she eventually became a renowned thinker in the field of psychology (Buck, 2017).

Thereby, this paper seeks to provide a brief review of Karen Horney’s theoretical work.

Horney was an advocate of some Freudian concepts, however she was highly critical of Freud’s

views on female sexuality (Carter, 2008). She contested Freud’s belief that the differences

existing between male and female personalities have biological basis. Rather, she argued that the

varying gender roles and restrictions that are dictated by a misogynistic culture, which pervaded

her own society, spawn these discrepancies (Brannon,1996).

Furthermore, Horney believed that Freud’s predispositions about female sexuality uncovered his

masculine narcissism and analytical subjectivity (Johnson,2017). She debunked Freud’s belief

that females are defective males and provided a symbolic interpretation of Freud’s concept of

penis envy; she believed that women desire to attain the inherent privileges that were culturally

valued as masculine, rather than male genitals in a literal sense (Carter, 2008). Moreover, Horney

introduced the concept of womb envy in males as she believed that men feel inferior to women

because they cannot give birth to and nurture children and therefore, they feel the need to

overcompensate (Buck, 2017).

Horney believed that all humans have the potential for benevolence and self-actualization,

however certain social forces may disrupt an individual’s healthy psychological development.
She suggested that neurotics and healthy people share similar conflicts, however they approach

them in varying intensities. Neurotic conflicts are perceived as insoluble problems, whereas

healthy conflicts are viewed as challenging yet manageable issues. Like Freud, Horney

recognized that the early childhood experience can be a main driver of neurosis in adults.

However, she believed that basic anxiety arises during childhood due to problematic

interpersonal relationships rather than biological instincts. As a result, children start to seek

safety rather than self-discovery in order to escape the unsettling feelings of anxiety. Further,

Horney outlined three anxiety coping strategies; moving towards others, moving against others

and moving away from others. These strategies tend to be excessively used by neurotic patients

to an extent where they become psychological needs. According to Horney, a healthy individual

would alternate between these coping strategies depending on what the situation necessitates,

whereas the neurotic person would be fixated on one of them (Ewen, 2009).

Horney clarified the inner conflicts that arise in the minds of neurotic patients and their struggles

with perfectionism through the concept of the “idealized image”. A neurotic patient creates an

idealized image of himself because he cannot accept his authentic self (Ewen, 2009). The bigger

the gap between the idealized image and the real self, the greater the feelings of self-hatred and

insecurity. To fulfill the idealized image, the neurotic person develops a list of “shoulds” which

become tyrannical as the person constantly strives to accomplish unrealistic goals which destine

him to perceived failure and brutal self-criticism (Horney,1950).

Finally, it can be concluded that Horney highlighted the key role that interpersonal relationships

and sociocultural forces play in the development of neurosis. She also shed a light on female

sexuality by drawing on her own experience as a woman rather than basing her theory on biased

preconceptions as Freud did.

 References

Brannon, L. (1996). Theories of Gender Development. In Gender: Psychological

perspectives(Sixth ed., pp. 104-108). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Buck, S. (2017). This pioneering female psychologist dismissed Freud’s ‘penis envy,’ and

feminists love her for it. Retrieved 9 October 2019, from https://timeline.com/karen-

horney-psychology-628eeba642be

Carter, C. J. (2008). The womb complex & womb envy in males (Order No. 3314594). Available

from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (304429756). Retrieved from

https://tc.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.tc.idm.oclc.org/docview/

304429756?accountid=14258

Debakcsy, D. (2018). Speaking Culture to Psychoanalysis: Karen Horney's Gender Revolution.

Retrieved 9 October 2019, from https://womenyoushouldknow.net/psychoanalysis-karen-

horney/

Ewen, B. R. (2009). An introduction to theories of personality: 7th edition. Retrieved from

https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.tc.idm.oclc.org

Horney, K. (1950). The tyranny of the should. Neurosis and Human Growth. The Struggle

Towards Self Realisation, 64-85.

Johnson, K. M. (2017). Eros and thanatos in contemporary art: Shifting power from the penis to

the womb (Order No. 10255524). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses

Global. (1882249705). Retrieved from https://tc.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search-

proquest-com.tc.idm.oclc.org/docview/1882249705?accountid=14258