Simply Psychology, Second Edition

Product Information

Recent research shows the ongoing relevance of Erikson’s theory across the lifespan. A 2016 study found a correlation between middle-aged adults’ sense of generativity and their cognitive health, emotional resilience, and executive function. Stagnation: If individuals feel they are not making a positive impact or are not involved in productive or creative tasks, they may experience stagnation. Anthony Storr (1987), the well-known psychoanalyst appearing on TV and Radio 4’s “All in the Mind”, holds the view that whilst a great many psychoanalysts have a wealth of “data” at their fingertips from cases, these observations are bound to be contaminated with subjective personal opinion and should not be considered scientific. Attachment Theory vs Psychoanalysis

Freud’s life work was dominated by his attempts to penetrate this often subtle and elaborate camouflage that obscures the hidden structure and processes of personality. Identity: If adolescents are supported in their exploration and given the freedom to explore different roles, they are likely to emerge from this stage with a strong sense of self and a feeling of independence and control.A related problem is the greater likelihood of transference in depressive patients undergoing psychoanalysis. They are likely to show extreme dependency upon important people in their life (including their therapist) and more likely to develop transference (Comer, 1995). As an illustration, the identity crisis experienced in adolescence often resurfaces as adults transition into retirement (Logan, 1986). Although the context differs, managing similar emotional tensions promotes self-awareness and comprehension of lifelong developmental dynamics.

On the other hand, the presence of resistance (e.g., an excessively long pause) often provides a strong clue that the client is getting close to some important repressed idea in his or her thinking, and that further probing by the therapist is called for. It is hoped that fragments of repressed memories will emerge in the course of free association, giving an insight into the unconscious mind. Anna O. (Bertha Pappenheim): Known as the ‘birth of psychoanalysis,’ Anna O. was a patient of Freud’s colleague Josef Breuer. However, her case heavily influenced Freud’s thinking.

Trait Approach to Personality

According to Bee (1992), what should happen at the end of this stage is “a reintegrated sense of self, of what one wants to do or be, and of one’s appropriate sex role”. During this stage, the body image of the adolescent changes.

Despite the skepticism of the unconscious mind, cognitive psychology has identified unconscious processes, such as procedural memory (Tulving, 1972), automatic processing (Bargh & Chartrand, 1999; Stroop, 1935), and social psychology has shown the importance of implicit processing (Greenwald & Banaji, 1995). Such empirical findings have demonstrated the role of unconscious processes in human behavior. Rat Man (Ernst Lanzer): Rat Man came to Freud suffering from obsessive thoughts and fears related to rats, a condition known as obsessional neurosis.

Experimental Design

Freud felt that this transference was an inevitable aspect of psychoanalysis, and used it to explain to patients the childhood origins of many of the concerns and fears. Freud believed that by undoing the dreamwork, the analyst could study the manifest content (what they dreamt) and interpret the latent content ( what it meant) by understanding the symbols. Malone, J. C., Liu, S. R., Vaillant, G. E., Rentz, D. M., & Waldinger, R. J. (2016). Midlife Eriksonian psychosocial development: Setting the stage for late-life cognitive and emotional health. Developmental Psychology, 52(3), 496. Individuals who reflect on their lives and regret not achieving their goals will experience bitterness and despair. The nature of Psychoanalysis creates a power imbalance between therapist and client that could raise ethical issues.