Psychoanalytic Theories Essay

The psychoanalytic theories of Freud, Jung, and Adler are similar in so many ways, but different at the same time. Each one starts their theories of by studying the behavior of young children as they developed into young adults. By studying their behavior as a child showed that, the events and activities that the child experience affected them as adults. What the child experienced at a young age affected each child differently, from making them feel inferior or powerless to their peers and parents. These feelings led to them having inferior complex as adults. Freud, Jung and Adler had their own view on the human behavior. Jung is unique in recognizing that the ‘dissociability of the psyche’ is a fundamental process that extends along the continuum from ‘normal’ mental functioning to ‘abnormal’ states. However, when the cohesion of consciousness is shattered by extreme childhood traumata, as it is in the development of multiple personality, this natural differentiation of function is intensified and the dissociative splits between autonomous forces in the psyche become more extreme. In addition, the phenomenon of multiple personality is, in turn, important for realizing the central significance of dissociation in the complex theory and provides an excellent contemporary clinical example of the archetypal ground of the psyche (1989). Freud’s speculative reconstruction of the original human family consisting of a dominant, powerful man governing over a subordinate group of women and younger men, and accounting for the origin of behaviors such as the incest taboo, guilt, totemism, and marriage outside one’s own social group. His approach, theories, and methods have been criticized for several reasons: the unsystematic and uncontrolled manner of data collection and interpretation; an overemphasis on biological factors, especially sex, as the major force in personality development, and an excessive deterministic or mechanistic view of the influence of past behavior on a person’s present functioning (2006). Adler theory was different from Jung’s and Freud’s, his theory was based on human motivation, individual psychology, inferiority and superiority complex, organ inferiority and aggression driven. Unlike Jung and Freud their theories were more based on the sexual behavior of a person, Adler studied each person’s motivation for their actions. During his studies he discovered femininity in women and the masculinity in men. He believed that all children were powerless and dependent because of the position in today’s sociality. This did not only play a role in sociality but as well in the order in which you were born in your family. Throughout each chapter I found numerous traits and characteristics that I agreed with but the two that stands out the most to me are superiority complex and the aggression drive found in Adler theories. Superiority complex is in everyone someway shape of fashion; it is just human nature to want to control someone or something in life. As a child we are looking up to everyone and wanting to be in their position because it looks a lot better from where we stand. The superiority complex goes hand in hand with the aggression drive due to the fact that we are so ready to be an adult. The aggression drive trait pushes us to be more aggressive in accomplishing our goals to be a successful adult and have the finer things in life. We all have different personalities however the superiority complex and aggression drive characteristics is majority of all of us, however in Freud’s studies he created several stages they he believed people go through for example the phallic and oral stage as a child. These stages are something that children go through but grow out of them as an adult, I disagree with these stages because as a child you are learning new things every day and by learning something different your judgment will become better and you will know what and what not to do. Adler, Freud and Jung had their own personal psychoanalytic theories based on sexual behavior, childhood experiences, and other major events that happen throughout their lives. The study of the human personality is always changing and developing new traits and characteristics, no one person is the same but we all have similar traits and characteristics. Psychoanalytic theories are good to help better understand a person’s personality but it is not a tool that can really be reliable if you do not study the individual’s background and religion. ?