Study of Sigmund Freud
Alexandria Bartels
Front Range Community College
Introduction Sigmund Freud was an Austrian physician whose main study and focus was on psychoanalysis. Before the twentieth century, psychologist’s main focus was the study of the conscious mind. For example, William Wundt the father of experimental psychology studied and experimented on conscious experiences. As the twentieth century approached, many changes to conscious actions such as functionalism and structuralism came about. Freud began experimenting with the idea that we behave the way we do sometimes because of the unconscious mind or from maybe from what is “hidden from [a] person’s conscious awareness” (Hockenbury, 2014). Some of Freud’s theories …show more content…
He started the base of all his work with psychanalysis- a set of psychotherapeutic theories. Topographic theory was a theory first brought about in Freud’s Interpretation of Dreams. The theory states that our mental is broken into three stages starting with the conscious, the preconscious and then the unconscious. Later in Freud’s life he replaced this theory with the Structural theory. This is one of Freud’s more popular theories which divides the psyche into the id, the ego and the super-ego. The id is the part of the personality that is instinctual and is the only one of the three that is present since birth. It is our sexual and aggressive drive as well as our wants, needs and desires. According to Freud it is the ‘unconscious by definition” (Bernstein, 2001). The ego is the realistic side of id. The ego is the side of the personality that includes executive functions such as judgment, tolerance, memory, planning etc. It helps us distinguish what is real to organize our thoughts and although it has a lot to do with our awareness, ego is not always conscious. Super-ego is what you internalize from your surroundings. It forms the organized part of your personality and it aims for perfection that includes your spiritual ideals, but also your fantasies, feelings and
Alexandria Bartels
Front Range Community College
Introduction Sigmund Freud was an Austrian physician whose main study and focus was on psychoanalysis. Before the twentieth century, psychologist’s main focus was the study of the conscious mind. For example, William Wundt the father of experimental psychology studied and experimented on conscious experiences. As the twentieth century approached, many changes to conscious actions such as functionalism and structuralism came about. Freud began experimenting with the idea that we behave the way we do sometimes because of the unconscious mind or from maybe from what is “hidden from [a] person’s conscious awareness” (Hockenbury, 2014). Some of Freud’s theories …show more content…
He started the base of all his work with psychanalysis- a set of psychotherapeutic theories. Topographic theory was a theory first brought about in Freud’s Interpretation of Dreams. The theory states that our mental is broken into three stages starting with the conscious, the preconscious and then the unconscious. Later in Freud’s life he replaced this theory with the Structural theory. This is one of Freud’s more popular theories which divides the psyche into the id, the ego and the super-ego. The id is the part of the personality that is instinctual and is the only one of the three that is present since birth. It is our sexual and aggressive drive as well as our wants, needs and desires. According to Freud it is the ‘unconscious by definition” (Bernstein, 2001). The ego is the realistic side of id. The ego is the side of the personality that includes executive functions such as judgment, tolerance, memory, planning etc. It helps us distinguish what is real to organize our thoughts and although it has a lot to do with our awareness, ego is not always conscious. Super-ego is what you internalize from your surroundings. It forms the organized part of your personality and it aims for perfection that includes your spiritual ideals, but also your fantasies, feelings and