Part II    Psychodynamic Theories68
fei75766_ch02_019-071.indd 68  02/19/20 08:59 AMbehavior is one long series of reactions. People constantly attempt to reduce 
tension; to relieve anxieties; to repress unpleasant experiences; to regress 
to earlier, more secure stages of development; and to compulsively repeat 
behaviors that are familiar and safe. Therefore, we rate Freud’s theory very 
high on causality.
On the dimension of conscious versus unconscious,  psychoanalytic the -
ory obviously leans heavily in the direction of unconscious motivation. Freud 
believed that everything from slips of the tongue to religious experiences 
is the result of a deep-rooted desire to satisfy sexual or aggressive drives. 
These motives make us slaves to our unconscious. Although we are aware of 
our actions, Freud believed that the motivations underlying those actions are 
deeply embedded in our unconscious and are frequently quite different from 
what we believe them to be.
The fifth dimension is social versus biological influences.  As a physician, 
Freud’s medical training disposed him to see human personality from a bio -
logical viewpoint. Yet Freud (1913/1953, 1985) frequently speculated about 
the consequences of prehistoric social units and about the consequences of 
an individual’s early social experiences. Because Freud believed that many 
infantile fantasies and anxieties are rooted in biology, we rate him low on 
social influences.
The sixth is the issue of uniqueness versus similarities.  On this dimension, 
psychoanalytic theory takes a middle position. Humanity’s evolutionary past 
gives rise to a great many similarities among people. Nevertheless, individual 
experiences, especially those of early childhood, shape people in a somewhat 
unique manner and account for many of the differences among personalities.
Key Terms and Concepts
•Freud identified three levels of mental life —unconscious, preconscious, and
conscious.
•Early childhood experiences thatcreate highlevels ofanxiety arerepressed 
intotheunconscious, where theymayinfluence behavior, emotions, and
attitudes foryears.
•Events thatarenotassociated withanxiety butaremerely forgotten make 
upthecontents ofthepreconscious.
•Conscious images arethose inawareness atanygiven time.
•Freud recognized three provinces of the mind —id,ego,andsuperego.
•Theidisunconscious, chaotic, outofcontact withreality, andinservice of
thepleasure principle.
•Theegoistheexecutive ofpersonality, incontact withtherealworld, andin
service ofthereality principle.
•Thesuperego serves themoral andidealistic principles andbegins toform 
aftertheOedipus complex isresolved.Final PDF to printer