Let’s Talk About Freud: Ego Defense Mechanisms

Sigmund Freud— probably the most misunderstood doctor in the history of psychology.

To start off:

No, Freud didn’t just go around telling people they had unconscious desires to have sexual intercourse with their parents. (Oedipus complex, anyone?)

No, Freud was not crazy and he did not prescribe cocaine to all of his patients as a quick fix.

No, Freud didn’t just talk about sex all the time, especially when talking about his mental “iceberg” theory of consciousness.

Yes, Freud was a genius that re-conceptualized and pioneered psychology (and general thinking, for that matter).

Yes, Freud was the father of psychotherapy and his ideas, whether you like them or not, have influenced every field of psychology.

Yes, Freud did all of this in the 1800’s– when scientific research and the field of psychology was nowhere as vast and knowledgeable as it is today.

Freud_Iceberg

Now that we have a basic introduction on Freud, let’s talk about his theories.

His theory of consciousness suggested an iceberg diagram– the tip of the iceberg that we see is the conscious mind, with the massive chunk of ice underwater that we couldn’t see from above: the unconscious mind.

The ID was the hedonist: irrational with unrealistic wishes for everything pleasurable; only concerned with self-gratification, operating completely in our unconsciousness.

The SUPEREGO was the morality police: the sense of right and wrong with social rules and values; our conscience, punishing misbehavior with feelings of guilt (operating on all levels of consciousness), and the complete opposite of the ego

The EGO was the mediator: one’s sense of self, mediating between the two extreme desires of the id and superego by finding an effective and realistic middle ground; no moral sense, pragmatic, and value-free.

 

Since the ego’s job was to mediate the intrapsychic conflict between the id and superego (also referred to as ego strength), it had a couple of tricks up its sleeve to reduce the anxiety caused by the errant (and often conflicting) desires, thoughts, or impulses all throughout our consciousness.  These tricks are known as ego defense mechanisms.

There are a lot of defense mechanisms, but Freud said there were four main types of defense mechanisms:

  1. Pathological (irrational, psychotic defenses; eliminate the need to cope with reality)
  2. Immature (socially undesirable, out of touch with reality,
  3. Neurotic (distorted view of reality)
  4. Mature (optimize success in society and interpersonal relationships; integrates aspects of conflicts while simultaneously resolving them).

These can be helpful short term by reducing anxiety, but quite unhealthy long term– at that point, it wouldn’t be a defense mechanism; instead, a maladaptive habit that distorts reality.

Some examples of defense mechanisms include:

  • Displacement (neurotic) – changing the way a blocked impulse is expressed through a less threatening transfer object; i.e. anger towards your boss taken out on your husband instead
  • Sublimation (mature) – transfer of negative energy or instincts so expression becomes socially acceptable; i.e. severe aggression channeled into playing American football

(These two are responsible for individual diversity in personality.)

 

So, most of what I’ve explained makes sense so far.

The only problem with Freud’s ideas is that most of them lack empirical support (scientific evidence).

However, the reason that Sigmund Freud is still relevant after all these years (and having high rates of inaccuracy in most of his theories) is because he jump-started this train of thought. He was the catalyst for psychological thinking in his era, and is still discussed today.

After all, as the great Albert Einstein once said, “a person who never made a mistake never tried anything new”.

So think outside the box.  Who knows– your ideas might end up influencing countless others for years to come.


http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8qme0-Z8mh4/TuzzlFloUbI/AAAAAAAAACE/dBoWuHa0QT0/s1600/Freud_Iceberg.gif

American Psychological Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). American Psychological Association.

Carver, C. S. (2011). Perspectives on Personality (7th ed.).

Freud, S. (2013). A General Introduction to Psychoanalysis. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.

Myers, D. G. (2011). Psychology (10th ed.). Worth Publishers.

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