So tomorrow is my big test on the personality development theories of Freud, Jung and Adler. They have been most fascinating to study because each of them influenced another but they each had to break away and develop their own style of therapy which met needs that they thought were lacking in the one they learned from their mentor.
So why don’t you help me review? I’ll post some of the most interesting observations about personality development according to these three theorists.
Freud wrote that human beings strive to return to their an inorganic state of balance that preceded life, in which there is no painful struggle to satisfy biological needs. There are certain “life instincts” which ensures that death is delayed as long as possible so that humans can obtain many satisfactions before attaining nirvana. Basically to me this says that our souls are striving to return to God but God made our bodies to repel death so that we can have the various experiences of life. Think about it, we have an immune system, a reflex which causes us to move our hand from fire and our bones are repairable for the most part.
God wanted us here and when the time comes that we do die, it is because we have experienced all that was planned for us to experience. Our souls should rejoice at the chance to return to God. Our families should rejoice too.
I don’t want to die yet God because I really want to see the fulfillment of my dreams which glorify you but if it is not meant for me to experience, I’ll understand and I will keep pushing toward them anyway. Maybe the joy is not in the fulfillment maybe it’s in the gratitude for the promise along the way.
Ok..next theory. Freud’s Id, Ego and Superego.
He thought the Id was the original aspect of personality, rooted in the biological makeup of an individual. He stressed that in this original aspect there were unconcious sexual and aggressive instincts that yearned to be expressed. He spoke about the pleasure principle which explains that the aim of these sexual and aggressive impulses was immediate and complete discharge and satisfaction. Individuals always strive to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. The Id is the most basic instinct.
The Ego is basically the big brother to the Id. He keeps the Id in line and according to social constructs. He looks for more acceptable ways to express the basic instincts, which Freud labels as sexual and aggressive.
The Superego is the individual’s internalization of societal values. I guess that means the way we process the information about society’s expectations of behavior. It prevents us from expressing primitive urges publicly and encourages us to act as society dictates. There’s a downside to the supergo, it is constantly demanding alignment. If a child believes that sex is dirty and sinful, the superego will continually remind the individual of that belief well into adulthood and will cause the adult to have trouble forming intimate relationships.
So I guess the Superego is that part of you that helps you when your co worker is reading your computer screen over your shoulder and your Id tells you to stab her with the scissors on your desk. The Superego steps in and says, “No. You have a job and career goals. You can roll your eyes instead or ask her if you can help her.”
I got it!
Regression- This is when the ego is threatened or pride is wounded. The person will revert back to immature behaviour as a way of coping with stress.
This dude said that women envy men because we don’t have a penis. He says we seek to obtain a penis of our own.
Ahhh…..Yeahhhh…..Right.
LOL! He says that girls resent their mothers for bringing them into the world without a penis and turn to love their fathers because they have the desired object. ha, ha! He crazy.
Hmm…Then why do I like to pee standing up?
Well..listen to this shit!
Freud says that harsh and demanding treatment and overprotection of dependent personality type children creates conflist in them and may lead them to intensely and often indiscrimately seek the guidance of others even in situations where they are capable of solving the problem on their own. Dayum!
Now on to Jung…
Jung believed that all men and women have elements of the opposite sex within them. This concept was based on the fact that men and women both have varying amounts of male and female hormones. Jung called the feminine archetype in the man, the anima and the male archetype in the women, animus.
Listen to this…
Jung said the negative aspects of the anima are seen when men act moody, bitchy or catty and the animus in women shows up when it produces arguments based on reason and logic. Huh? Craziness! So women can’t think reasonably without attributing the reason to the male part of her?
Anyway….
Jung’s work on the personality types influenced the Myers Brigg’s Type Indicator, of which I consistently score as an INFP.
What’s cool about Jung is that he recognized the impact of goal setting in his therapeutic practices. He believed behavior was not only determined by past experiences but also by future goals. He wrote that through life a person is constantly moving toward self realization.
He wrote that many individuals experience their most severe crises during the middle years. Adequate resolution of these crises helps move people toward a more accurate perception and a fuller understanding of themselves. The outcome is that the person becomes all he or she is capable of becoming as a human being.
Jung was into dream analysis very heavily. He wrote that recurring dreams indicate that the conflict has not been resolved and is associated with stress, anxiety and a lack of psychological well being.
~sigh~ wait!
I am STILL HAVING MY RECURRING DREAM THAT STARTED IN JUNE 2007.
It won’t go away. I dreamt it two days ago and when I woke up I realized that it was a repeat except everytime it has a different ending. This time the ending was stressful. I don’t know what’s going on. I swear. The dream haunts me.
I keep dreaming that I’m going back to work at the website. (The website was a place I worked last year that allowed me complete creative freedom which was the job of my dreams but I left it because, among other reasons, I felt like it was time for me to go, my self inflicted stress level was too high to remain. I have not been gainfully employed since but I do have a better relationship with my kids.)
The dream of going back there just won’t go away. It’s not even a thought in my mind anymore. The only time I think of it is when I have that dream. Everytime I have the dream, it’s the same thing, it’s my first day back at their office and I’m dealing with some kind of drama like I can’t find my pens or a fire alarm sounds off or I’m about to kiss The Prez or I’m walking around in my bikini or the other night in my dream I was about to quit because my chair wouldn’t work right and I couldn’t fit at my desk, sometimes I do wake up from that dream feeling peaceful, but not often.
I don’t get it. Man, is it because I’m stressed about school right now? I’m trying to do the best I can but I think getting that ‘B’ last semester fucked my head up. I need something to flourish and flow for me. I’m starting all of these projects and then I can’t even finish them because something crazy happens or school gets rough and then I don’t see what I’m doing right now. I’m trying my best to make something happen I’m putting my talents out there and trying to be there to support others but even still I’m still just surviving. I want to scream because noone has yet to see what I can do and pay me to do it. I’m doing it for fun as much as I can but I would really like my work to be appreciated and compensated.
~deep breath~
Sorry…
Ok, let’s move on to Adler.
Adler believed that we all strive for perfection. He says that movement toward perfection is driven by feelings of inferiority. Dayum!
So you’re saying that those who feel they HAVE to succeed do so out of a feeling that they are less than everyone else? Whoa… Well, I have to admit, I am one of those people and do I feel less than?
He may be right, there are so many occasions where I feel less than. And for some reason it has nothing to do with accomplishments, physical looks or future potential. I think I still feel less than regardless of all that my life has experienced and I think it’s just…at my core, I just feel like I’m not as good as other people, like maybe God loves me less and I have to prove my goodness to Him by doing something spectacular so He will notice me and approve of me.
Wow. So here I am, projecting my own image of the love I received from my father onto God.
~sigh~
I do apologize. Studying is so draining.
I’m gonna wrap up for tonight and then meet my classmate for lunch to discuss this shit before the test.
Goodnight.