psychoanalysis
Theory and treatment method for neuroses, developed by Sigmund Freud in the 1890s. Psychoanalysis asserts that the impact of early childhood sexuality and experiences, stored in the unconscious, can lead to the development of adult emotional problems. The main treatment method involves the free association of ideas, and their interpretation by patient and analyst, in order to discover these long-buried events and to grasp their significance to the patient, linking aspects of the patient's historical past with the present relationship to the analyst. Psychoanalytic treatment aims to free the patient from specific symptoms and from irrational inhibitions and anxieties.
Concepts
As a theoretical system, psychoanalysis rests on three basic concepts. The central concept is that of the
unconscious, a reservoir within one's mental state which contains elements and experiences of which one is unaware, but which may to some extent be brought into preconscious and conscious awareness, or inferred from aspects of behaviour. The second and related basic concept is that of
resistance, a process by which unconscious elements are forcibly kept out of the conscious awareness by an active repressive force. Freud came to experience the third basic concept in his work, known as
transference, with his earliest patients, who transferred to him aspects of their past relationships with others, so that their relationship with him was coloured by their previous feelings. The analysis of the transference in all its manifestations has become a vital aspect of current psychoanalytic practice.
Id, ego, and superego
Freud proposed a model of human psychology based on the concept of the conflicting
id,
ego, and
superego. The id is the mind's instinctual element which demands pleasure and satisfaction; the ego is the conscious mind which deals with the demands of the id and superego; the superego is the ethical element which acts as a conscience and may produce feelings of guilt. The conflicts between these three elements can be used to explain a range of neurotic symptoms.
Other schools
In the early 1900s a group of psychoanalysts gathered around Freud. Some of these later broke away and formed their own schools, notably Alfred
Adler in 1911 and Carl
Jung in 1913. The significance of early infantile experience has been further elaborated in the field of child analysis, particularly in the work of Melanie
Klein and her students, who pay particular attention to the development of the infant in the first six to eight months of life.
