The Dissection Of The Psychical Personality

During Freud’s time of theology his main focus was humanity. He predominately spent his time studying and observing the functioning of humans and the forces and drives of why individuals respond to things the way they do. Part of his studies also dealt with relating individual’s forces and drives to early experiences had during the growing stages of life. The term Freud decided to use to summarize his entire concept of study was Psychodynamics. The fundamental concept, Psychodynamics, is an approach that underlies human’s behavior, feelings, and emotions and how they might relate to early experiences.
Within the Pieces of the Personality Puzzle book in the section titled: The Dissection of the Psychical Personality written by Freud, he talks

about the topics of id, ego, and super-ego in relation to his psychodynamic theory. In one excerpt from the chapter Freud explained that people could contemplate on doing something that would bring them great pleasure, but then would decide not to move forward with the action due to their conscience not allowing them to do so. Freud classified this inner conscience as the super-ego and related it to the parental authority held over children during the growing stages. Freud expressed that as a child, parents had the power to provide love and disburse punishment at times where they saw fit. These actions caused the child to develop realistic anxiety about what they believed was to be right and wrong. Therefore, Freud embedded the idea that since parents had that form of power during the childhood stages, as growing into adulthood the super-ego took the place of the parental agency influence. The super-ego was now in charge of observing, directing, and threatening the ego from committing certain actions, which is what the parent would do with a child.
There are many real life experiences that can demonstrate the fundamental concept of Psychodynamics. I believe one real life experience that is very relatable and happens all the time is the dilemma between going to college after graduation or taking a year off to work and have a break from the school work stress. I believe this relates to the concept of Psychodynamics because a newly graduated high school student would believe there is great pleasure in taking a year off and just gaining time to work, have fun, and enjoy restful nights. However, the alternative thoughts, feelings, and/or conscience would have the graduate think that taking a year off could also lead to destruct as well. Taking a year off could lead to never going back to school to finish, never receiving that high paying job, never possibly being able to buy that new car off the lot etc. Therefore, as Freud states, the super-ego would threaten the ego to not commit certain actions no matter how much pleasure an action may bring a person. In the eyes of Freud, a parent would tell the graduate to attend college and get their education; the concept of work now and play later.
The other two fundamental concepts Freud emphasizes on are Compromise and Conflict. According to Freud’s Psychoanalysis theory, these two concepts come into play when the divided parts of the mind are at odds with each other. The basics of Psychoanalysis emphasizes that the mind is divided into many independent and distinct parts that can sometime result in conflict with itself. The concept compromise formation means to find a compromise among the different things the ego wants and the different structures of the mind all at the same time. An example from every day life that the concepts compromise and conflict would best illustrate would be a college student wanting to go to a party on campus during the weekend, while also having the need to study for an exam being held on Monday. To resolve this conflict and reach a compromise, the college student may decide to study a great amount on Friday, then study a little bit on Saturday, attend the campus party that night, and then continue the studying on Sunday. With this action plan, the student is able to still have fun and complete their academic work load as well.
Each example listed above relates to the topic of concepts in a way that Freud chose to describe these topics in his works. The first example for the concept Psychodynamics relates to the topic through Freud’s explanations of id, ego, super-ego, humans emotions, feelings, etc. Each of these sub-topics are all centered on the concept of Psychodynamics, and a high school graduate having a dilemma of whether to choose college or the time of freedom includes all focuses of these topics. The example used for the concepts of conflict and compromise relates in the way that college students are always at odds with the different parts of their brain. Considering there is so much time and freedom on their hands, he/she would always be at a dilemma of whether to have fun or be studious. The process of deciding whether to study for an important exam or attend an on campus party shows great conflict within the parts of the brain; which seems to be the most appropriate example for these topics.
2. Choose Adler’s Theory or Horney’s Theory, and then write an essay in which you explain:
In Adler’s theory he expresses many fundamental concepts in his excerpt, but the three main concepts he discussed were: Organ inferiority, Masculine Protest, and Social Interest. Alder explains the concept organ inferiority as an idea that implies that a person as a child felt as though that they were weak, stupid, or any other downgrading characteristics, and while in their adulthood he/she would strive to become the complete opposite of what he/she felt. Masculine Protest was explained as a kind of compensation for the past for the desire as an adult to become powerful due to the feelings of being the opposite as a child. Lastly, Alder explained his third concept, social interest, as a desire to wanting to relate to other people in the most positively and productive way possible.
Alder’s theory is similar to Freud’s work in one main way, but Alder is more neo-Freudian because he mainly talks about humanity from his perception.

Alder’s theory relates to Freud’s work when he expresses that people tend to gain the insight to become powerful in their adult life due to experiences and feelings felt as a child. Freud always emphasized that he felt people functioned and responded in the ways that they do because of early experiences experienced in the stages of childhood and adolescents. Although both theorists believed forces and drives presented in adulthood are stemmed from childhood experiences, they both have two different views on what really motivates humans. Alder expressed that Freud focused more on that sex was the ultimate motivator and organizer for human’s behavior. While in actuality, Alder felt that human’s ultimate motivator is the desire to relate to other people in both positive and productive

ways.
Alder’s theory relates to some of the key features of Post-Freudian listed in chapter 12. Based off some of the excerpts expressed in chapter by Funder, one main topic that stood out to me was the concept of awareness. I believe this relates to Alder’s theory in the way that the people described in his theory as they reach adulthood they start to become aware of the world they are a part of and their conscience experience in it as well. As Funder states, Awareness is everything, and as these individuals reach adulthood they not only become of aware of the world they live in and its uniqueness of psychology, but they also become aware of themselves and who they want to become.
Alder’s theory relates to a similar story listed in the Pieces of the Personality Puzzle book. The title of the excerpt is Womb Envy, Testyria, and Breast Castration Anxiety: What If Freud Were Female? written by Gloria Steinem. Alder’s theory relates to certain aspects of Steinem’s writings that involve individuals wanting to become dominate within their life span. Although Steinem chapter is related more to the woman gender side, she explains how woman have the natural right to dominate and how they don’t have to live in the shadows of a man in order to be seen as a normal capable individual. She explained how women hold so much power greater than men just from the functions and capabilities of their bodies. Alder, on the hand, his theory was directed at both men and women, but coincidently men are more of the main subject in his theory. However, the general idea that men and women want to dominate and become more than what they feel they are or what others think they are is what is generated greatly from both of these texts. I believe both can receive some forms of valuable information from the other because both texts are centered on being an individual who is capable, powerful, and dominate of anything.
3. Explain carefully the following statement: “The concepts of organismic actualization tendency, conditions of worth, and self, are essential for an understanding of Rogers’ theory of the unhealthy and healthy personality.”
The sentence listed above appears to be stating the idea that in order for people to be able to understand the reality of whether a person has an unhealthy or healthy personality, they must first be able to understand if a person as a grasp on their actualization tendency, condition of their worth, and their identity.

Actualization tendency means for a person to have an idea of who they are or to have the tendency to be able to self-actualize and to achieve at the highest level they see fit. Conditions of worth emphasizes on the idea that people tend to gather particular conditions of what they feel they need to fulfill in order for people to view them as being worthy of their love or attention. The concept self plays hand in hand with the concept actualization. The concept self means to have an idea or clarification of what an individual’s identity is, and not simply what the world views them as being. A clear understanding of knowing whether a person achieved the highest level they see fit, has knowledge that the only condition of worth there is is to just be themselves, and to have a sense of identity are all key features to having a healthy

personality.
Rogers’s and Horney’s theories both have similar ideas, but they also share differences that makes them both stand out among each other. Roger implies that people reach certain obstacles that would get in the way of them fulfilling one’s potential and also that people create conditions of what they feel they need to fulfill in order to be considered worthy to someone. While Horney also states that women are destined to overcome obstacles that will allow them to develop issues such as anxiety and feelings of helplessness and loneliness in the world. Due to the way the world idealizes men, women are always striving to get out the shadows of a man and reach their full potential hoping to achieve at the highest level possible as well. Also, Horney expresses that women have the need to want to feel worthy, loved, important etc. to someone else; which is also a shared idea in Rogers’ theory.
The differences among the theories are quiet obvious when each excerpt is read carefully. Rogers’ theory is generated to relate to both men and women and is centered on the idea of self-fulfilling being characterized as a need within a life span. Horney’s theory is generated mainly for women to be able to relate to, and to basically compare and contrast a man and woman as they are idealized within the world. Horney talked more of how Freud portrayed women, and how she disagreed very strongly with him and his perceptions.
Rogers’ theory related to the text in the Pieces of the Personality Puzzle book titled: A Theory of Human Motivation written by Abraham H. Maslow. This text emphasizes all of the basic needs of humanity and what Maslow felt humans needed in order to survive. Maslow stated humans have physiological needs, safety needs, belongingness and love needs, esteem needs, and many more. Maslow also labeled a section as the need for self-actualization that states a very similar idea to Rogers’ theory. Both Roger and Maslow state and share the idea that an individual has a need to reach their full potential and have the satisfaction of being who they are destined to be in life.