Psychodynamic Theorist
Throughout psychology, many theorists are remembered for his or her work in specialized areas. Sigmund Freud, Erik Erikson, Alfred Adler, and Carl Jung were psychoanalysts. Each theorist had his own view and that view was brought into the psychology field and has earned its own right to become a theory. Many of the theories are still used today and may continue to be used in future studies.
Sigmund Freud became known as the founding father of psychoanalysis. Freud’s work and theories helped shape a person’s view of childhood, personality, memory, sexuality, and therapy. Freud did not believe that important psychoanalytic phenomena could be studied in any manner other than in therapy (Cervone & Pervin, 2010). After the death of his father, Freud had problems with depression and anxiety. He began to work on an activity that became fundamental to the development of psychoanalysis: this activity was self-analysis (Cervone & Pervin, 2010). He began to use hypnosis but learned not all patients could be hypnotized; he came up with the theory of free-association. His theory of free-association is still being used today.
According to Macmillan 2001, Freud’s method is the foundation of psychoanalysis and interpretations of the data gathered provides the basis of psychoanalytic theoretical concepts Freud did not pay attention to development after the early years. He believed all action in the personality development ended by the end of the phallic stage (Cervone & Pervin, 2010). Psychoanalysis remains influential in psychology today.
Erik Erikson believed that development did not end at the phallic stage as Freud believed. Erikson believed development was not just psychosexual but also psychosocial (Cervone & Pervin, 2010). Erikson became best known for his development the eight-stage chart of the life cycle (Weiland, 1993). His psychosocial development theory had two possible outcomes, according to
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