Comparing Freud's Theoretic Determinism And The Unconscious Mind

According to Freud’s theory of psychoanalysis, psychic determinism is the concept that behavior doesn’t simply happen by chance. Instead, Freud theorized that there is almost always a reason for individual actions or behaviors. More specifically, he believed that the cause was the result of the unconscious. According to Cloninger (2013), the unconscious mind is defined as a mental process that a person is not aware of. For example, traumatic events, such as the death of a loved one, are possibly repressed into a person’s unconscious as a form of coping mechanism. In psychic determinism, however, some people repress their thoughts or behaviors if they perceive them as being inappropriate or if they go against social norms. Seeing as though the
26), that Freud believed to be strongly connected with a person’s unconscious. Although there are a number of ways in which Freudian slips may present themselves through daily life, a common example is when an individual has a misstatement or the slip of the tongue (Cloninger, 2013). While the person might mean to say one thing out loud or in public, they actually blurt out something completely different and, more than likely, not in the manner they likely intended as well (Cloninger, 2013). For example, calling your current boyfriend or husband by your ex’s name may be the result of a Freudian slip. Other types of Freudian slips include slips of the pen (which is similar to the slips of the tongue – only in paper format), misremembrances of information or events (such as forgetting another birthday when you didn’t really like them anyway), and errors of language (both in writing and in interpretation). As Cloninger (2013) explains, “such so-called accidents, to a Freudian, are motivated by unconscious wishes. Psychic determinism holds us strictly accountable for all of our actions” (p.