Freud and Erikson

Paper Summary:

The paper states that many of the seminal works associated with psychology are complementary and build upon accepted ideals associated with human motivation for behavior, while others challenge each other's accepted ideas of the structure of the psychology that motivates behavior. The paper relates that understanding the development of psychology in general requires a knowledge of the basic works associated with its growth and development, and refers to the two theorists, Sigmund Freud and Erik Erikson. The paper analyzes the two foundational theories that they furthered i.e. Freud's theory of psychosexual development and Erikson's theory of psychosocial development.

From the Paper:

"In the past many people have compared and contrasted these two theories, seeking to understand how they are similar and how they are different. The similarities of the two theories are relatively easy to summarize. Both theories attest that development is a staged process that follows a discrete pattern each stage building upon itself, to create a normal or in that case where a stage goes undeveloped an abnormal psychology in the individual. Each concludes that the inner mind will dictate behavior, depending on what psychosexual or psychosocial stage the individual is working through and both to one degree or another determines that the drives associated with behavior may be unknown to the individual, and might need to be discovered by another and related to the individual so the stage can be surmounted effectively."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Fine, R. D. (1962). Freud: A Critical Re-Evaluation of His Theories. New York: David McKay.
• Guntrip, H. (1971). Psychoanalytic Theory, Therapy, and the Self: A Basic Guide to the Human Personality in Freud, Erikson, Klein, Sullivan, Fairbairn, Hartmann, Jacobson, and Winnicott. New York: Basic Books.
• Mitchell, S. A., & Black, M. J. (1995). Freud and Beyond: A History of Modern Psychoanalytic Thought. New York: Basic Books.
• Webster, R. (1995). Why Freud Was Wrong: Sin, Science, and Psychoanalysis. New York: Basic Books.

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