To describe how the personality is structured

Describe what is meant by defence mechanisms and explain the role they play in reducing conflict

To understand the role of the unconscious mind (homework task)

Starter

What would you do?

What is stopping you from doing that?

The thing you wanted to do was dictated by your ‘Id’, the thing which is stopping you is your ‘Superego’ – this is Freud’s structure of personality

Introduction

Miss Earl’s example…..

ID: Eat the entire chocolate cake eat it all!

SUPEREGO: Think of how much you will ruin your diet, you should definitely not have any

EGO: Maybe you could have one slice, that wouldn’t ruin your diet too much…

THINK OF YOUR OWN!

Mini Plenary:

According to the psychodynamic approach, how is our personality structured? (3 marks)

Success Criteria? ID = pleasure principle, instant gratification

of needs / desires SUPEREGO = internalisation of parental

values / social standards, morality principle, right / wrong

EGO = reality principle, reduce conflicts that arise from the demands of the id and the moral views of the superego

A problem for the ego….

It’s my job to deal with the conflict

between the ID and the SUPEREGO, I

use DEFENCE MECHANISMS to

do that

Defence Mechanisms

On your sheets you have definitions of each of the defence mechanisms

Around the room are different (lettered) scenarios, you must decide which defence mechanism the person in the scenario is using and why….

The scenarios will be on the website so you can print them off so they correspond with your notes

Scenarios: Denial

G A student sees that he has a poor grade in his school report but tells himself it doesn’t matter

D In war, a mother receives word that her Son has been killed, and yet refuses to believe it, still setting the table for him, keeping his room and clothes current F Troy breaks up with his girlfriend

because he is unable to control his anger, and then blames her for everything that ever happened.

Scenarios: Displacement

E An employee is really angry with their boss. Rather than punching their boss they punch a pillow instead

H Joe is upset about his grade on his test because he feels like the teacher did not make it fair, Joe goes home and snaps at his mum

Scenarios: Rationalisation B Eric is an alcoholic and drinks red wine.

However, he tells himself that he drinks it as it has health benefits, in order to avoid facing his alcoholism

I A woman is the victim of domestic violence she takes her hurt and anger out on her children by hitting them as ‘punishment’ for something minor

A A woman who starts dating a man she really, really likes and thinks the world of is suddenly dumped by the man for no reason. She tells her friend “I suspected he was a loser all along.”

Scenarios: Sublimation

K An person with the urge to kill others may join the army

C A person who has sexual impulses they do not want to act upon may turn this into creative energy

J A person who is very aggressive may take up kickboxing

Mini-plenary

(a) Name and briefly describe one defence mechanism. Suggest how this defence mechanism might help a person to cope with the breakdown of a close relationship. (3 marks) (PPQ JUNE 09)

1 (a) Name and briefly describe one defence mechanism. Suggest how this defence mechanism might help a person to cope with the breakdown of a close relationship. (3 marks)

AO1 One mark for naming a correct defence mechanism eg denial; repression; displacement, etc. One further mark for brief description of the defence mechanism.

AO2 One mark for an appropriate suggestion in relation to the breakdown of a close relationship. Possible answer: Displacement (AO1, 1) is where the mind redirects emotions from a dangerous object to a safer outlet (AO1, 1). A person joins a kickboxing class which relieves his stress by redirecting his anger about his failed relationship (AO2, 1)

If a candidate describes and provides an appropriate example of a defence mechanism but gives an incorrect name award a maximum 2 marks.

(a) Candidates were generally able to name an appropriate defence mechanism with denial and repression being the most common answers. Descriptions of the defence mechanisms varied in accuracy and detail. Very often candidates would simply reiterate the term as part of the description. In relation to the stem, most candidates provided a plausible suggestion of how the defence mechanism could help somebody to cope with the breakdown of a relationship. Very few candidates offered their own example as part of the answer.

To describe how the personality is structured Describe what is meant by defence

mechanisms and explain the role they play in reducing conflict

To understand the role of the unconscious mind (homework task)

Summarise your learning today in 3 sentences

Summarise each sentence into one word

A man is chatting to his friends at a bar, another man comes along and barges into him

a)Knock him out! What an absolute tool, you should just go for him

b)Social niceties would dictate that you should apologise and not cause any trouble

c)Maybe you could just look a bit cross and see if he apologises to you

A boy is in a lesson at school and is feeling sleepy

a)Just go to sleep

b)You cannot possibly go to sleep you are in the middle of a lesson

c)Maybe you could rest your head on the table when the teacher isn’t looking

A woman is on a strict diet and sees a slice of delicious chocolate cake on the kitchen table

a)You know you really don’t want to, think of all the good work you have done and how eating that will un-do it all

b)Maybe you could just eat half of the cake or go in the other room where you won’t be tempted by it

a)It’s just one piece, eat it eat it!

Can you think of your own example?