Describe and evaluate one psychodynamic theory of personality development
The basis of Freud’s psychoanalytic theory was that the mind contained three parts: The Id, Ego, and Superego. He argued that the Id controlled the primal instincts such as aggression and sexual desire (‘libido’), and was found in the unconscious mind. Its purpose is to gain immediate gratification, according to the ‘pleasure principle’. The Id, he said, was in competition with the ego. This is because the ego, working on the reality principle, is the more rational, and conscious mind. The superego oversees the Id and ego, and creates the sense of what is right and wrong. Freud believed that the Id was innate, that the Ego developed by the age of 2, and the superego by the age of 5. This aspect of Freud’s theory is supported by research carried out by Dr. Solms. In his study, PET scans illustrated that during REM sleep (where the participant was dreaming), brain activity in the limbic system (the part of the brain that controls emotions, senses and long-term memory) was active, while the prefrontal cortex was not. Psychoanalysts would argue that this was because of the activity of the subconscious Id, and the inactivity of the Id. However, since the personality divisions are not physical, there is no way to prove that they do or do not exist.
