Because of these mechanisms, mental disorders can be the result of unresolved childhood conflicts. Freud believed that we repressed the painful memories from our childhood into the unconscious section of our minds. For instance, anorexia might be a result of sexual abuse as a child. As our ego isn’t developed enough at that age, it cannot deal with trauma. The sufferer may not be actively aware of it having happened, but the memory could have leaked out as an eating disorder. A similar experience in later life could cause a person to re-experience the childhood trauma, causing abnormality as the anxiety is directed towards the self.
As Freud believed that there was a strong link between childhood experiences and adult functioning, he devised the theory of five psychosexual stages. These are oral (0-2 years), anal (2-3 years), phallic (5-7 years), genital (teenage years). Frustration will occur if the needs of each stage are not satisfied, and over gratification can prevent progress to the next stage. This may result in fixation in adulthood, where they regress back to a particular psychosexual stage. Someone with OCD, for instance, may be regressing back to the anal stage.
A strength of this approach is that it is the only one that focuses on the cause of abnormality, rather than the symptoms. It has ecological validity as it can be used in therapy to uncover what is hidden. This means lasting recover is possible.
However, other people receive the blame for the abnormality. This is unethical as it can put distress and guilt on a family if they believe they could have prevented the abnormality in childhood.
The concepts in the approach are vague and impossible to test. The Id, Ego and Superego cannot be proven. Most of the evidence has come from case studies, which are subjective and unreliable.
The psychodynamic approach is deterministic – it assumes humans have no free will, and all abnormal thoughts and behaviours from our unconscious mind. This leads to moral implications – it is not seen as a rapist’s fault, as a trauma in childhood could have made them this way.
It also lacks historical validity. Freud’s theories were devised in a time and society that was very close-minded towards sex. The approach is sexist, as it states that women have a weaker superego and should be blamed for their child’s internal conflicts.
by
emilymunoz (student)
