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Psychoanalytic And Classical Conditioning School Of Thought

Decent Essays
It is the twentieth-century, and psychology is becoming more than just an idea, but a way to explain human mental process and behavior. That there might actually be a reason why people are the way that they are. Though there were several influential theories that emerged to explain human behavior, the first two were psychoanalytic and Classical Conditioning school of thought. These two completely different schools of thought attempted to explain human behavior, either based on the reason for the behavior or the behavior itself. So with these in mind, are humans thoughts and behaviors merely things that can be controlled or fixed or is there a more complex reason behind the thoughts and behaviors?

While previous theories focused on conscious behavior, it was not until Sigmund Freud, a neurologist, proposed the idea of psychoanalysis, that thoughts and behaviors exist not only in the conscious mind but unconscious as well. Freud believed that the human mind is made up of the id (consisting of primal urges), the ego (the component of the personality charged with dealing with reality), and the superego (the part of the personality that holds all of the ideals and values we internalize from our parents and culture) (7 major schools). Freud believed that the interaction of these three elements was what led to all of the complex human behaviors( “Schools of Thought”). He developed his theory by the detailed observations of his patients. According to Ronald Comer and Elizabeth
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