Freud's first concept of repression was an intentional effort to avoid upsetting experiences from entering consciousness. “Repression is Psychological repression, or simply repression, is the psychological attempt made by an individual to direct one's own desires and impulses toward pleasurable instincts by excluding the desire from one's consciousness and holding or subduing it in the unconscious.” (Boag, 2012) This paper will be a brief literature review for the intervention proposal. This paper will touch upon both sides of repression, is it real or not, a research question and studies upon the research question. There has been debate on whether repression exists. The debate mainly focuses on if an individual remembers or forget trauma. “Sigmund Freud observed repression as the foundation stone on which the whole structure of psychoanalysis rests.” (Rofe, 2008) However, notwithstanding incredible research efforts, the psychology community is divided concerning the legitimacy of this idea. Nonetheless, in the same side with unforgiving criticism against psychoanalysis overall, several investigators request the legitimacy of repression, appealing that it needs to be abandoned.
Repression became an experimental fact that is at once apparent and challenging. “Fragmented clinical and laboratory traditions and disputed terminology have resulted in a Babel of misunderstandings in which false distinctions are imposed and necessary distinctions not drawn.” (Erdelvi, 2007)
Repression is a process of continual re-working on the latent dream-thoughts to distort or unrecognizable forms. During the state of repression, the censorship is relaxed and therefore the wish can be presented free. However the relaxed censorship still has control of the material and the material must submit to certain alterations (166) to satisfy the repression level. The obscurity of dreams is due to the censorship between the unconsciousness and consciousness. That is why repression exists “What is rejected by the censorship is in a state of repression (166)” so dreams can be regarded as undisguised wish fulfillments. In Freud’s hypothesis, there are two thought-constructing agencies in our mind, the first is in the unconscious and the second agency has free access to the consciousness. In between the first and the second agency, there is a censorship, which is a conflicting force opposing each other. It acts as a guard preventing certain repressed emotions or thoughts from coming to the surface. During our sleep the censorship is relaxed for some reasons, thus the repressed material can no longer be held back. Even though the censorship is relaxed, it still exists therefore a compromise between two agencies is established.
Sigmund Freud and Carl Rogers are two extremely renowned individuals who have greatly contributed to the history of psychology. Their contributions are the foundation for the tools, techniques, and methodologies used by psychologist today. Although, each psychologist is from different times and developed different methods, they shared a passion for the workings of the human mind. As a result, their drive and foundation has motivated and prompted new theories and research for the future. This paper will provide a summary of two articles highlighting the processes contemporary psychologists use to develop the theories of Freud and Rogers. It also explains their views of human nature and worldviews as
Freud’s theory of personality examined the interplay between the primitive, instinctual urges—the ‘id’; the practical and rational ‘ego’; and the morally attuned ‘superego’; ‘object relations’ refer to the "object" of an instinct”, which is “the agent through which the instinctual aim is achieved”—most often a person and, according to Freud, most often the mother (Ainsworth 1969, p. 1). The psychosexual development theory that Freud launched reduces our behaviour to mechanistic responses to an instinctive need for pleasure fueled by the ‘libido’ and barriers or distortions to the gratification of the libido at various delineated stages of development were responsible for later problems in life (Kail & Zolner 2012, p. 5). Erik Erikson later added depth to the approach by including more humanistic elements to Freud’s stages and including more periods of development (p.
Following the publication of Freud’s ‘Papers on Technique’ between 1912 and 1917, there have been papers and symposia on the subject. Four symposia in 1937, 1948, 1958, and 1961 were devoted to the examination of therapeutic results of psychoanalysis, the mechanisms behind its curative factors, variations in technique and the ego-psychological approach to interpretations (Rosenfeld, 1972, 454). In 1934, James Strachey published his paper on “The Nature of the Therapeutic Action of Psychoanalysis,” which has since been considered one of the most seminal works on the subject. He holds that his paper is “not a practical discussion upon psychoanalytic technique,” and that “it’s immediate bearings are theoretical” (Strachey, 1934, 127). However, as Herbert Rosenfeld points out in his 1972 critical appreciation of Strachey’s paper, “this is clearly an understatement; the paper both challenges one’s clinical experience and has important clinical implications even though actual case material is not quoted” (Rosenfeld, 1972, 454). It would not be difficult to summarize Strachey’s main points regarding therapeutic action and mutative interpretation, and it would prove similarly sterile to simply compare his ideas with the views of other psychoanalysts, contemporaneous and contemporary. Instead, as Strachey concerns himself primarily with the structural nature of mutative change, this paper will aim to delineate a more in-depth exploration of the way different structures of the
Robin Wood, the author of "The American Nightmare: Horror in the 70s" does an extraordinary job in explaining American Horror Films and how it is that they provokes fear to the public. A very important topic in his article is the topic of repression. Wood takes the term repression (a type of holding down) a step further and categorizes it into two different types. One type being basic repression and the second one being surplus repression. Basic repression is described by Wood as "universal, necessary, and inescapable." Robin would argue that basic repression is a process in which all humans have or will go through at some point in their life. Basic repression is what allows us to become distinguishable mammals. It's the ability to remain
The Freudian Regression theory states that Psychological repression, “is the psychological attempt made by an individual to repel one's own desires and impulses toward pleasurable instincts by excluding the desire from one's consciousness and holding or subduing it in the unconscious”. Sigmund Freud believed that In order to face problems in life, the ego employs defense mechanisms. These mechanisms function unconsciously to keep away unpleasant feelings. Repression was the first defense mechanism that Freud discovered and is thought to be the most important. Repression is one of the unconscious mechanisms employed by the ego to avoid a disturbing thought from being conscious. Normally the thoughts that are repressed are those of guilt. Freud believed that repression could sometimes have two stages which had to do with the aspects of personality “ego” and “super ego” and the individual’s sense of “good” and “bad”. The first stage of Repression which is called “Primary Repression” is realizing and determining what is good and what is bad The Second stage of repression starts to take place when a person notices that acting on some desires could cause anxiety. Repression is seen in “The Story of an Hour” and in “The Yellow Wallpaper” in different ways. We can see that in “The Yellow Wallpaper” Jane is a depressed woman who can’t handle to be alone
This text is centered on discussing how the choice of objects in men is primarily dominated by fetish. However, the choice of analyzing men is not caused by men’s account on fetish. Even though a fetish is often is deemed to have a close connection to abnormality, men rarely feel that it is a symptom of an ailment which eventually comes with a lot of suffering. For most men, they find themselves satisfied with fetishes to the extent of praising how they make their sexual and erotic life easier. Therefore, Freud’s text is centered on analyzing a fetish as a subsidiary finding in men.
When people think of memory repression, people think of child sexual abuse scandals, parental abuse, traumatic injuries, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Memory repression is thought by some to be a defense mechanism of the brain in the event of extreme distress. The memory of the event is pushed back into the corners of the unconscious, and is only recovered after a long period of time has passed. According to the American Psychological Association, both memory researchers and clinicians who work with trauma victims agree that memory can be forgotten and then remembered, and a ‘memory’ can be suggested and remembered as true (APA, n.d.). However, some believe this is not the case. Instead, they believe that these repressed memories are the result of over-eager therapists planting ideas in their clients’ heads. In a recent study, Harrsion Pope tried to find a case of memory repression in works of fiction and nonfiction prior to 1800, and didn’t find any cases which matched their definition of a repressed memory. They concluded from this that “the phenomenon is not a natural neurological function, but rather a ‘culture-bound’ syndrome rooted in the nineteenth century” (Pettus, 2008). Memory repression is an extremely controversial subject in the field of psychology. Further research into this topic could lead to better treatments for patients
They identified a set of people as 'repressors', and found that it took them longer to recall a childhood event than the control group. The study indicates that repression can be used as a defence. However, there is no way of checking the data the participants gave, and no way of confirming that repression had occurred. Freud also proposed that there were five distinct stages of psychosexual development, from birth until puberty. An innate driving force for satisfaction, called 'Libido', was responsible for the series of fixations on body parts.
Psychoanalytic criticism originated in the work of Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, who pioneered the technique of psychoanalysis. Freud developed a language that described, a model that explained, and a theory that encompassed human psychology. His theories are directly and indirectly concerned with the nature of the unconscious mind. Through his multiple case studies, Freud managed to find convincing evidence that most of our actions are motivated by psychological forces over which we have very limited control (Guerin 127). One of Freud’s most important contributions to the study of the psyche is his theory of repression: the unconscious mind is a repository of repressed desires,
Repression: shoving thoughts and urges that are unacceptable or distressing into our unconscious. This is what happens to the unacceptable urges of childhood--the ego represses them. Taboo ideas, like incest, would probably never get into consciousness or, if they got there, they'd be quickly repressed. Sometimes dreams or slips of the tongue or attempts at humor reveal our unconscious motives. For example, if a teacher ridiculed you in class, you might dream he/she had a horrible auto accident. Or, trying hard to say something nice to the teacher a few days later, you comment after class, "each of your lectures seems better than the next." Or, if you were unfortunate enough to be asked to introduce your former teacher at a symposium and said, "I'd like to prevent--huh--I mean present Dr.___," some might guess the truth. All these speculations about repressed feelings are just guesses.
to Freud is "the censor which allows nothing to pass without excersizng its rights and making such modification
Sigmund Freud’s influence on modern day thinking permeates into our lives every day whether or not we realize it. Although much of his work has either been refuted or revised, his ideas have influenced an enormous spectrum of psychology and how we view life through our own thoughts. While his influence is irrefutable, the opinions concerning Freud and his writings vary greatly throughout the world. Individuals may distinguish the great genius in his groundbreaking theories of psychoanalysis, or they may reject his writings arguing that he had pushed the envelope too far. Either way, it is safe to say that his theories still evoke a considerable amount of debate to this day. Out of all of Freud’s theories, however, it can be argued that his
In the textbook, the authors discuss Freud’s psychoanalytic theory in which, according to Freud, individuals acted out their desires and behaviors in response to a mental system made up of the ego, superego, and id (Cervone & Pervin, 2013). The ego seeks reality. On one hand the ego wants to meet the desires of the id, but at the same time the ego also wants to satisfy the demands of the superego. The superego controls the moral and social acceptable aspects of an individual’s behavior. The id is the part of the system that functions under the pleasure principle. Simply put, the id wants to achieve pleasure and it wants to avoid pain. Individuals entered states were they would seek to relive tension and to achieve pleasure. These states are called instincts or drives.
Sigmund Freud was the discoverer and inventor of psychoanalysis and coined the term in 1896 after publishing studies on Hysteria with Joseph Breuer in 1895. Psychoanalysis still remains unsurpassed in its approach to understanding human motivation, character development, and psychopathology. Freud’s insights and analyses of psychic determinism, early childhood sexual development, and unconscious processes have left an indelible mark on psychology (Korchin, 1983).