Which of the following theories was NOT proposed by Sigmund Freud?
C. All of the theories listed in the question except Individual Psychology Theory were proposed by Sigmund Freud. Individual psychology theory was put forward by Alfred Adler. According to Freud’s Affect Trauma Theory, feelings that are connected to unacceptable memories are strangulated by mental mechanisms leading to neurosis. Freud divided neurosis into ‘actual’ and ‘psychoneurosis’. Actual neurosis manifested itself in anxiety neurosis or hypochondriasis. Psychoneurosis comprised of hysteria, obsessional neurosis, and phobias. Freud thought that psychoneurosis was amenable to psychoanalysis. In the Topographical Model, the mind is divided into the unconscious, preconscious, and conscious. The Structural Model of the Mind consists of the id, ego, and superego (a useful mnemonic is that S of structural model is shared with superego). Freud also came up with the stages of psychosexual development. In this, each stage of development is thought to build on and to subsume the accomplishments of the preceding stage: the oral stage (12 to 18 months of life), anal stage (18 to 36 months), phallic stage (3 to 5 years), latency stage (5 to 11 years), and genital stage (11 years to adulthood).
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Which of the following is true about primary process thinking?
B. Primary process thinking fulfills the pleasure principle. According to Freud, in the Topographical Model of the mind, the unconscious system is characterized by primary process thinking. Primary process thinking refers to a mode of thinking whose main aim is to facilitate wish fulfillment. It is governed by the pleasure principle and does not follow a logical course. The concept of time is not used to streamline primary process thinking. In addition, primary process thinking allows contradictions to exist simultaneously. The conscious system receives sense impressions from the outside world and follows secondary process thinking. This is ruled by time, rational–logical thinking, and the reality principle.
All of the following are functions of ego EXCEPT:
A. The important functions of ego include the capacity to control the discharge of instinctual drives, the capacity to test reality, mediating between the id and the realities of the outside world (reality principle as against pleasure principle), and thus facilitating the formation of relationships. Judgement, which involves the ability to anticipate the consequences of actions, is also a function of the ego. In Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of personality, the ego ideal is the part of the superego that includes the rules and standards for good behaviours (e.g. parental discipline).
Carol is undergoing psychotherapy. During her therapy sessions, she begins to argue with her therapist as she had argued with her deceased father.
Which of the following phenomenon is she demonstrating?
A. This is an example of transference during psychotherapy. Transference is the process by which the patient displaces wishes and feelings toward persons from the past onto the analyst. Sometimes this leads to the emergence of resistance as patients experience the psychiatrist as a parental figure from the past (in this case the patient’s dead father), and they seek to rebel against the perceived parental control. Resistance refers to an unconscious behaviour intended to frustrate the progress of therapy. Free association is the process where the client spontaneously expresses their thoughts and feelings as they occur. Repression is a defence mechanism.
Which of the following refers to the mechanism by which several unconscious wishes can be combined into a single image in the manifest dream content?
D. The phenomenon described is called condensation. According to Freud, a dream is the disguised fulfillment of an unconscious wish. Freud described two layers of dream content – the manifest and the latent. The manifest content is what the dreamer recalls; the latent content involves the unconscious thoughts and wishes that threaten to awaken the dreamer. The unconscious process by which latent dream content is changed into manifest dream is called the dream work. This dream work involves primary process revision (different from primary process thinking) and secondary revision/ elaboration. Primary process includes the mechanisms of condensation, displacement, and symbolic representation. Condensation, as described in this question, is the mechanism by which several unconscious wishes can be combined into a single image in the manifest dream content. Displacement refers to the transfer of energy from an original object to a different one. In symbolic representation of a wish or object, the original but highly unacceptable theme changes in physical qualities to a more acceptable object. This may be characterized by seemingly unrelated and absurd images. Secondary revision is the process by which dreams are made relevant and more rational when narrated to a third person.