Sensation and Perception

Sigmund Freud's Classical Psychoanalysis

According to Freud's theory, the psyche is divided into the conscious, preconscious, and subconscious. Three structural components of personality interact continuously within this topographical model:

• Id ("It"). Located entirely within the subconscious. It represents a reservoir of biological instincts, including aggression and sexual drive. It operates on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification of desires regardless of reality.
• Superego ("Over-I"). Encompasses all levels of the psyche. Formed under the pressure of social norms and prohibitions. It functions on the basis of the principle of good and evil, acting as an internal moral censor.
• Ego ("I"). Exists predominantly in the conscious and preconscious. Operates on the reality principle. This is the personality itself, forced to navigate between the wild urges of the Id and the rigid constraints of the Superego.

Human behavior is determined by the dynamics of this interaction. When the Id demands pleasure and the Superego forbids it on moral grounds, the Ego analyzes the situation. The blocking of unacceptable urges occurs out of fear of punishment (childhood experience), which generates defensive anxiety. Freud considered this permanent internal conflict between antisocial impulses and societal morality to be the primary source of psychological problems.

The primary driving force is libido. If a child's needs are not met during the early stages of psychosexual development (up to age 5), fixation occurs. In adulthood, this leads to immature behavior and disorders. To protect the psyche from traumatic information, the mechanism of repression exists, while socially unacceptable impulses can be transformed into creativity or a career through sublimation.

Carl Gustav Jung's Analytical Psychology

Jung moved away from Freud's pansexualism, proposing his own concept in 1914. He believed that in addition to sexuality, humans are driven by the need for creativity and pleasure.

Central to his theory is the collective unconscious—the psychological foundation containing ancestral experience. This experience is realized through archetypes, universal images that influence the perception of the world (e.g., the image of Mother Nature).

Important concepts by Jung:

1. Gender-role behavior. Based on the internal conflict between the masculine (animus) and feminine (anima) principles.
2. The Shadow archetype. The epicenter of repressed, socially undesirable traits. The Shadow frequently breaks through via impulsive actions or dreams. Notably, in professions requiring high ethical standards (e.g., medicine), the Shadow may manifest as hidden self-interest or emotional coldness.
3. The Self (self). The ideal of personality development in which all opposing archetypes are integrated into a unified whole.
4. Personality orientation. Jung introduced the concepts of extraversion (orientation toward external interaction) and introversion (tendency toward self-analysis).

Alfred Adler's Individual Psychology

Adler completely rejected the primacy of sexuality and emphasized the positive influence of society on the individual. He identified social interest—an innate striving for cooperation and empathy—as the primary driving force.

A key factor in development according to Adler is the inferiority complex. It arises in childhood when a child realizes their weakness compared to adults. This feeling can be exacerbated by severe illnesses. To cope with the unbearable sensation of one's own vulnerability, the psyche triggers compensation—the superiority complex. The individual strives to develop traits that allow them to rise above others.

The reaction to one's own inferiority lies at the root of psychiatric disorders. Adler identified two pathological scenarios:

• Capitulation: giving up the struggle, "flight into illness," selfishness, and the development of neurosis.
• Concealing inferiority: masking weakness through aggressive behavior and the display of strength.

A person's lifestyle crystallizes definitively by ages 4–5 and is heavily influenced by family structure (relationships with siblings, being an only child).

Sociobiological Approach

This approach is rooted in evolutionary theory and asserts that many behavioral acts are genetically fixed and inherited from animals.

Primate experiments (by J. Goodall, H. Harlow) have demonstrated striking similarities in mental processes. It was discovered that chimpanzee facial expressions are identical to those of humans, and separating an infant from its mother provokes severe depression and impaired social adaptation. Furthermore, the successful teaching of sign language to monkeys proved that symbolic communication systems are not an exclusive human prerogative.

Sociobiologists (E.O. Wilson, V.P. Efroimson) believe that not only lower instincts (aggression) but also higher moral qualities are genetically determined. Altruism and self-sacrifice are viewed as evolutionary adaptations necessary for population survival and the preservation of the gene pool.

Although animal models are useful for studying the psyche, this approach is criticized for attempting to find biological meaning in all human actions, downplaying the role of upbringing, and failing to fully explain abstract thought.

Class and exam questions

What else to study on this topic

• Psychosexual development: the Oedipus and Electra complexes.
• Mechanisms of psychological defense: repression, projection, sublimation.
• Critique of classical psychoanalysis: the issue of lacking an instrumental base.
• Neo-Freudian theories (H.S. Sullivan, E. Erikson, K. Horney).
• Imprinting: the essence of the phenomenon and K. Lorenz's experiments.

Other topics in "Chapter 2. Psychological mechanisms of human behavior"

Prepared by WhiteCoat Pro faculty in accordance with the medical school curriculum. For educational purposes only.