Amelia Anandh
2538050
PSYC3017A
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, David, a thirty-six-year-old, mixed race South African man, is seeking psychoanalytic
therapy for many reasons. He is under pressure dealing with his job as CFO of the family
business and familial responsibilities. David has subsequently become irritable, frustrated and
sleep deprived due to this anxiety. His relationship with his wife, Boitumelo, has deteriorated,
and he is also resentful of his eldest brother, Thabo. To understand David’s presentation,
Freud’s psychoanalysis will be utilised in this essay. From there, psychoanalytic techniques
which may assist David will be discussed. Finally, the limits of using the psychoanalytic
approach to conceptualize and resolve David’s case will be unpacked in relation to race and
culture.
According to Freudian theory, human behaviour is a result of unconscious forces and instincts
which progress throughout childhood in psychosexual stages (Corey, 2013; Hemmings,
2019). These instincts are what drives human action (Swartz et al., 2016). When one is
hungry the instinct is to satisfy this feeling or tension (Swartz et al., 2016). Humans are
driven by life and death instincts, where all favourable acts are driven by said life instincts,
while all destructive acts are driven by death instincts (Corey, 2013; Swartz et al., 2016).
Freud used these concepts to structure the personality as consisting of the id, ego, and
superego which all function together (Corey, 2013; Hemmings, 2019). The id, which is the
unconscious part of the psyche, is present from birth and consists of the aforementioned
instincts (Corey, 2013; Swartz et al., 2016). The id operates according to the pleasure
principle, which aims to maximise on pleasure and reduce tensions generated by impulses
(Corey, 2013; Hemmings, 2019). As tension to satisfy impulses brought on by instincts
develops, the id seeks immediate gratification, no matter the circumstance, with the main goal
being to maintain a state of equilibrium (Swartz et al., 2016).
The mostly conscious part, the ego, develops in childhood and limits the id and the dangers
that arise from indefinitely giving into id impulses (Corey, 2013; Swartz et al., 2016). It
operates according to the reality principal, as it is realistic and allows the ids impulses to be
satisfied in appropriate ways (Corey, 2013; Swartz et al., 2016). The ego does not remove the
satisfaction the id gets, but controls how this satisfaction is appropriately gained (Swartz et
al., 2016).
The superego then is a moral system, which develops based on moral teachings in childhood
from parents (Corey, 2013; Swartz et al., 2016; Hemmings, 2019). A conscience is developed
due to reward and punishment techniques utilised in parenting (Swartz et al., 2016). Behaving
against one’s conscience causes guilt and shame as the superego often develops to be harsh
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