Sigmund Freud:

The Psychoanalytic Theory of Self

 Sigmund Freud’s asserts that the
human psyche (personality) is structured into
three parts (tripartite).
These structures are develop at
different stages in a person’s life. They are
systems and not physical parts of the brain.
Although each part comprises unique
features and contributes to an individual’s
behavior, they interact to form a whole.
Parts of Personality
The Id The Ego The Superego

INSTINCTS REALITY MORALITY

Id (Internal Desires)
 Also called internal drives or instinctive drives.
 It consists of the body’s primitive biological drives and urges which
are concerned only with achieving pleasures and self- satisfaction.
 Id lives completely in the unconscious.
Id (Internal Desires)
 It comprises two kinds of biological instincts (or drives):
EROS
(Life instinct)
It helps the individual to
survive and directs life-
sustaining activities such as
respiration, eating, and sex.
The energy created by the
Eros is known as libido.
THANATOS
(Death instinct)
It was viewed as a set of
destructive forces present in all
human beings. When this
energy is directed outward
onto others, it is expressed as
aggression and violence.
Ego (Reality)
 It is the “I” part of the individual that gives him/her the sense of
his/her own identity.
 The ego is the rational part of the personality.
 The ego’s goal is to satisfy the demands of the Id in a safe and
socially acceptable way. It follows the reality principle as it operates
in both the conscious and unconscious mind.
Superego (Conscience)
 It is concerned with morals, precepts, standards, and ideas.
 The superego is the critical faculty of the personality.
 The Id The Superego

“I want chocolate.” “You’re on a diet.“

The Ego

Eat a small bar of

chocolate
DEFENSE MECHANISMS
• The ego can deploy various defense mechanisms (Freud, 1894,
1896) to prevent it from becoming overwhelmed by anxiety.
DEFENSE MECHANISMS
MECHANISM DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
Repression It is an unconscious mechanism employed During the Oedipus complex, aggressive
by the ego to keep disturbing or thoughts about the sex parents are
threatening thoughts from becoming repressed.
conscious.

Denial It involves blocking external events from Smokers may refuse to admit to
awareness. If some situation is just too themselves that smoking is bad for their
much to handle, the person just refuses to health.
experience it.
Projection This involves individuals attributing their You might hate someone, but your
own unacceptable thoughts, feelings and superego tells you that such hatred is
motives to another person. unacceptable. You can solve the
problem by believing that they hate you.
DEFENSE MECHANISMS
MECHANISM DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
Displacement Satisfying an impulse (e.g. aggression) Someone who is frustrated by his or her
with a substitute object. boss at work may go home and kick the
dog.

Regression This is a movement back in psychological A child may begin to suck their thumb
time when one is faced with stress. again when they need to spend some
time in the hospital.

Sublimation Satisfying an impulse (e.g. aggression) Sports is an example of putting our

with a substitute object in a socially emotions (e.g. aggression) into
acceptable way. something constructive.
Freudian Stages of Psychosexual Development
Freud’s theory of psychosexual
development is the most controversial
part of Freud’s work. He believed that
children are born with a libido- a sexual
(pleasure) urge.
Freud also argues that the
development of an individual can be
divided into distinct stages characterized
by sexual drives. As a person grows,
certain areas become sources of pleasure,
frustration or both.
ORAL
 From birth to the end of the first year, the mouth becomes the part of the
body through which gratifications is secured.

ANAL
 Expulsive phase
 From the age of 2-3 years, the child derives
the feelings of pleasure or pain from
defecating. It covers the toilet-training period.
PHALLIC
 From the age 3-6 years, the child gets curious about his/her genitals and
becomes attached to the parent of the opposite sex.
 The attraction of a boy to his mother is called Oedipus complex, while that of a
girl to her father is called Electra complex.

LATENCY
 From the age 10-12 years, sexual motivations
presumably recede in importance as the child
becomes preoccupied with developing skills
and other activities.
GENITAL
 After puberty, the deepest feelings of pleasure presumably come from
heterosexual relations.
Psychosexual Stages
ORAL The mouth – sucking,
swallowing, etc. EGO develops

ANAL The anus – withholding or

expelling feces

PHALLIC The penis or clitoris – SUPEREGO

masturbation develops

LATENCY Little or no sexual present

GENITAL The penis or vagina – sexual

intercourse
 To be psychologically healthy, we
must successfully complete each stage.
Mental abnormality can occur if a stage is
not completed successfully and the person
becomes “fixated” in a particular stage. The
particular theory shows how adult
personality is determined by childhood
experiences.
FIXATION
Forceful feeding Oral activities (e.g. smoking),
ORAL Deprivation dependency, aggression
Early weaning

Toilet training: Obsessiveness, tidiness, mean-

ANAL Too harsh ness, untidiness, generosity
Too lax

Abnormal family set-up leading Vanity, self-obsession, sexual

to unusual relationship with anxiety, inadequacy, inferiority,
PHALLIC
mother/ father envy
THANK YOU 