Why Is Freud Criticized?

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Sigmund Freud is highly renowned psychologists known for his most controversial theories in the history of psychology. He is also believed to be the father of modern psychiatry and psychology. His works are read widely and are criticized as well. He has left behind numerous theories regarding human mind and behavior out of which some are commonly accepted and some are widely debated. The question after that arises now is “Why did Freud’s theories get many criticisms?”
Freud was in his day an answer to many of society’s questions. As evolved and as the sciences evolved, we learned much more about Freud and his theories. Most of his work has been criticized most of the time. The criticisms of Freud and his theories have increased since 1970s (“Feminism and Psychoanalysis” 195). He has got lot of criticism from various scholars, philosophers, feminists, and historians (“Feminism and Psychoanalysis” 195).Warren R. Street classified the criticisms regarding Freud’s theory into seven basic categories: Method of data collection very subjective, Concepts poorly operationalzed, Dogmatic, charismatic personal style, Overemphasis on sex, Self-fulfilling research: Patients were guided to confirm Freud's theories, Psychoanalysis long and costly, Lack of a falsifiable theory. Freud’s critics increased manly because of these reasons. As the article “What Did Freud Get Right?” says, critics have questioned the originality of Freud’s works. “The article says that the most general problem with Freud’s theory is its originality and feasibility. It also says that Freud got most of his ideas from various people he lived with and though he was not the first one to put forward many of the ideas, he has been continuously criticized by the critics on tak...

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