“Repression is the process of forcing thoughts into the unconscious and preventing painful or dangerous thoughts from entering consciousness” (Furnham, 2015). The unconscious, as explained by Freud, involves the “broad spectrum of human behavior [as] explicable only in terms of the usually hidden mental processes or states which determine it” (Thornton). The idea of repression and motivated forgetting was refined by psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud in his 1853-1864 works. Freud’s works suggest that “repression is thus one of the central defense mechanisms by which the ego seeks to avoid internal conflict and pain, and to reconcile reality with the demands of both id and super-ego” (Thornton). It is suggested by psychologists, psychoanalysts,
In Freud’s view, childhood experiences of seduction that are later recalled in adulthood bring shame and guilt (Fonagy & Sandler, 1997, p. 164), and therefore, repression may also be used for this reason. In Freudian repression, “the ego seeks to avoid internal conflict and pain, and to reconcile reality with the demands of both id and super-ego” (Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy). The id, ego, and super-ego are Freud’s division of personality. According to Freud’s psychoanalytic theory (1923), the “id” deals with primitive needs and instinct, the “ego” with the external world and with unrealistic primitive needs, and the “super-ego” with the morals and values inflicted by society (McLeod,
For instance, they can be recovered in a dream or various dreams, in a spur of the moment flashback triggered by something in the environment, or through therapy which is legally known as hypnosis. Considering hypnosis, a therapist analyzes a patient’s behaviors and reactions to certain things and asks whether abuse or something of a similar nature has happened to them. As suggested by Loftus and Palmer’s (1974) study on leading questions, if abuse is the case, then the patient will be triggered by the suggestion and recover the memory. However, there exists the possibility of the memory being a false one that was constructed by the unconscious with help from cognitive schemas or themes presented to them. External factors that trigger repressed memories can include a person or a weapon that one would associate with the memory. The theory of repressed memories and their true existence still lacks evidence; therefore, in theory, a memory may be able to be recovered anywhere, and at any time by
In conclusion, memory errors can be made by the retrieval stage of memory. The false memory syndrome and coerced confessions can take place in this stage. Both of these concepts can be unconscious
Sigmund Freud first theorized the psychosexual theory after studying a patients mental health. The theory states that a human develops from underlying unconscious motives in order to achieve sensual satisfaction.
In addition, some argue that the recovery of repressed memories during psychotherapy might be a result of suggestive practices employed by the therapist (Madill & Holch, 2004). This has raised questions among scholars who have suggested that the creation of false memories is plausible, especially if repressed memories have been recovered in therapy where suggestive techniques, such as hypnosis, have been used by the therapist in treatment. Ms. Jaynor stated that after experiencing symptoms of depression and low self-esteem, she decided to seek help and started therapy to treat her symptoms. Ms. Jaynor mentioned to therapist Janet Balderston that she did not recall any traumatic experiences as a child. Memories of her childhood were not clear but she remembered it as being average, neither terrible nor extremely happy. Ms. Jaynor’s therapist suggested hypnosis and dream interpretation as part of treatment since Cindy’s description of her childhood was typical of a person who suffered from
Freud’s theory is based on the idea that ones personality is derived from conflicts that stem from both our conscious and unconscious mind. To better understand how these conflicts arise he divided the mind into theoretical categories which include the id, ego, and superego.
False memories being created is obvious through many different ways, such as eye-witness testimonies and past experiments that were conducted, however repression is an issue that has many baffled. There seems to be little evidence on the factual basis of repressed memories, and many argue that it does not exist. The evidence for repression in laboratories is slowly emerging, but not as rapidly as the evidence for false memories. It has been hard to clinically experiment with repressed memories because most memories are unable to be examined during the actual event to corroborate stories. Experimenters are discovering new ways to eliminate this barrier by creating memories within the experiment’s initial phase. This is important for examining the creation of false memories during the study phase. This research study will explore the differences between recovered memories and false memories through research and experiments. Other terms and closely related terms will be discussed, while examining any differences, in relation to repressed memories. The possibility of decoding an actual difference between recovered memories and false memories, through biological techniques. Because false memories can be created, examining these creations in a laboratory setting can shed light on facts overlooked. Exploring these issues will also help with the development of better therapeutic techniques for therapists in dealing with memories. This can lead to an easier process for patients and therapists if they must go through the legal system in relation to an uncovered memory.
In recent years there has been a hot debate between "repressed" vs. "false" memories. Neurobiological studies show that both suppression and recall and the creation of false memories are possible. This paper evaluates the evidence but forth by both sides of the controversy and concludes that both are feasible and separate phenomenon, which occur at significant rates in our society.
I believe that having a false memory is more likely to occur because if our real memories change over time the story, arguing that a repressed memory stays intact after years of being blocked, is illogical. Most of the cases, the repressed memory came back because it was forced by external factors that may have altered the veracity of the memory, which makes repressed memories unreliable as testimonies. I believe that there is truth in both topics, however, the cases presented in the film, and how the victims reacted to the memories gives the viewer a sign that most of the cases were under the influence of false memories.
Sigmund Freud believed that society has instilled morality upon us, exterminating our individualism. This morality eventually leads to neurosis, in which it becomes more difficult for us to maintain ourselves through the stress of society’s morality. I disagree with Freud, because I believe that morality isn’t forced on us externally, but internally through reason. As humans developed reason, we also developed a sense of morality through that reason. Freud believes that humans should do what they want because we shouldn’t restrict ourselves on society 's behalf. However, I believe that restriction is an essential part of our character, and allows humanity to advance further than any other race. Morality, like reason, keeps us safe from the
Another way memories can lose ownership is through the implantation of memories. The most common way to achieve that is through the familial informant false-narrative procedure. In this method, the researcher will asks parents for information about their children’s childhood. During the experiment, a true memory and a false memory will be presented. After a few interviews, researchers are successful in convincing some interviewees that the false events that were implanted actually happened (Loftus,
An alternative view to this debate, are from practicing therapist who argue that most recovered memories are true, and that there is still some evidence to support the concept of repressed memories (Briere & Conte, 1993). They claim that traumatic memories such as sexual abuse tend to be different from ordinary memories because they are encoded in a way that prevents them from being accessible in everyday life. In addition, they argue that certain procedures during therapy are necessary in order to bring the repressed memories back into conscious awareness, and this is deemed necessary in order to help the patient recover. Despite these claims, there is little evidence to support the validity of reported cases of recovered memories, and most of the theories are mainly based on speculation rather than scientific evidence. However, there have been some cases in which a recovered memory did corresponded to an actual event that occurred. For example, an article by Freyd (1999), reported a case in which a man called Frank Fitzpatrick recovered memories of sexual abuse from childhood. Although this
Sigmund Freud believed that adults seduced children and this is where their problems came up in adulthood. As for all things, many people did not agree with Freud’s theory. “Freud believed that people could be cured by making conscious their unconscious thoughts and motivations, thus gaining insight” (McLeod, “Psychoanalysis”). According to Freud’s Psychoanalytical Theory, there are three elements of personality the id, ego and superego. The id is an individual’s inner child.
The aim of this essay is to clarify the basic principles of Freud’s theories and to raise the main issues.
From a Freudian perspective, human development is based on psychosexual theory (Wedding & Corsini, 2014). Psychosexual theory indicates that maturation of the sex drives underlies stages of personality development (Shaffer et al., 2010). It was Freud’s perspective that there are three components of personality (the id, ego, and superego) that become integrated into his five stage theoretical model. The id was the biological or drive component that is innate from birth. The sole purpose of the Id is satiate an individual’s internal drives (Wedding & Corsini, 2014). The ego is the conscious portion of our personality that mediates between our id and superego. Throughout development the ego reflects the child’s emerging ability to...
Their knowledge in the unconscious system is repressed and unavailable to consciousness without overcoming resistance (e.g., defense mechanisms). Thereby, the repression does not allow unconscious knowledge to be completely aware; rather, it is construed by means of concealing and compromise, but only interpretable through its derivatives dream and parapraxes that overcome resistance by means of disguise and compromise. Within the preconscious system, the contents could be accessible, although only a small portion at any given moment. Unconscious thought is characterized by primary process thinking that lacks negation or logical connections and favors the over-inclusions and 'just-as' relationships evident in condensed dream images and displacements. Freud asserted that primary process of thinking was phylogenetically, and continues to be ontogenetically, prior to secondary process or logical thought, acquired later in childhood and familiar to us in our waking life (1900, 1915a).