Psychodynamics is the theory and systematic study of the psychological forces that underlie human behavior, especially the dynamic relations between conscious motivation and unconscious motivation. Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) developed “psychodynamics” to describe the processes of the mind as flows of psychological energy (Libido) in an organically complex brain.
In medical praxis, psychodynamic psychotherapy is a less intensive, once- or twice-weekly modality than the classical Freudian psychoanalysis treatment of 3-5 sessions per week. Psychodynamic therapies depend upon a theory of inner conflict, wherein repressed behaviours and emotions surface into the patient’s consciousness; generally, one conflict is subconscious.
In general, psychodynamics, also known as dynamic psychology, is the study of the interrelationship of various parts of the mind, personality, or psyche as they relate to mental, emotional, or motivational forces especially at the unconscious level. The mental forces involved in psychodynamics are often divided into two parts: (a) interaction of emotional forces: the interaction of the emotional and motivational forces that affect behavior and mental states, especially on a subconscious level; (b) inner forces affecting behavior: the study of the emotional and motivational forces that affect behavior and states of mind.
Freud proposed that psychological energy was constant (hence, emotional changes consisted only in displacements) and that it tended to rest (point attractor) through discharge (catharsis).
In mate selection psychology, psychodynamics is defined as the study of the forces, motives, and energy generated by the deepest of human needs.
In general, psychodynamics studies the transformations and exchanges of “psychic energy” within the personality. A focus in psychodynamics is the connection between the energetics of emotional states in the id, ego, and superego as they relate to early childhood developments and processes. At the heart of psychological processes, according to Freud, is the ego, which he envisions as battling with three forces: the id, the super-ego, and the outside world. The id is the unconscious reservoir of libido, the psychic energy that fuels instincts and psychic processes. The ego serves as the general manager of personality, making decisions regarding the pleasured that will be pursued at the id’s demand, the person’s safety requirements, and the moral dictates of the superego the will be followed. The superego refers to the repository of an individual’s moral values, divided into the conscience – the internalization of a society’s rules and regulations – and the ego-ideal – the internalization of one’s goals. Hence, the basic psychodynamic model focuses on the dynamic interactions between the id, ego, and superego. Psychodynamics, subsequently, attempts to explain or interpret behavior or mental states in terms of innate emotional forces or processes.
At the heart of psychological processes, according to Freud, is the ego, which he sees battling with three forces: the id, the super-ego, and the outside world. Hence, the basic psychodynamic model focuses on the dynamic interactions between the id, ego, and superego. Psychodynamics, subsequently, attempts to explain or interpret behavior or mental states in terms of innate emotional forces or processes. In his writings about the “engines of human behavior”, Freud used the German word Trieb, a word that can be translated into English as either instinct or drive.
In the 1930s, Freud’s daughter Anna Freud began to apply Freud’s psychodynamic theories of the “ego” to the study of parent-child attachment and especially deprivation and in doing so developed ego psychology.
At the turn of the 20th century, during these decisive years, a young Swiss psychiatrist named Carl Jung had been following Freud’s writings and had sent him copies of his articles and his first book, the 1907 Psychology of Dementia Praecox, in which he upheld the Freudian psychodynamic viewpoint, although with some reservations. That year, Freud invited Jung to visit him in Vienna. The two men, it is said, were greatly attracted to each other, and they talked continuously for thirteen hours. This led to a professional relationship in which they corresponded on a weekly basis, for a period of six years.
Carl Jung’s contributions in psychodynamic psychology include:
- The psyche tends toward wholeness
- The self is composed of the ego, the personal unconscious, the collective unconscious. The collective unconcsious contains the archetypes which manifest in ways particular to each individual.
- The Transcendent Function: The emergence of the third resolves the split between dynamic polar tensions within the archetypal structure.
- The recognition of the spiritual dimension of the human psyche.
- The role of images which spontaneously arise in the human psyche (images include the interconnection between affect, images, and instinct) to communicate the dynamic processes taking place in the personal and collective unconscious, images which can be used to help the ego move in the direction of psychic wholeness.
- Recognition of the multiplicity of psyche and psychic life, that there are several organizing principles within the psyche, and that they are at times in conflict.
At present, psychodynamics is an evolving multi-disciplinary field which analyzes and studies human thought process, response patterns, and influences. Research in this field provides insights into a number of areas, including:
- Understanding and anticipating the range of specific conscious and unconscious responses to specific sensory inputs, as images, colors, textures, sounds, etc.
- Utilizing the communicative nature of movement and primal physiological gestures to affect and study specific mind-body states.
- Examining the capacity for the mind and senses to directly affect physiological response and biological change.
In psychodynamic psychotherapy, patients become increasingly aware of dynamic conflicts and tensions that are manifesting as a symptom or challenge in their lives. Together with the clinician, patients are assisted to bring conflicting aspects of their self into awareness, and through time, begin to integrate the conflicting parts and resolve aspects of the tension. This is talked about in different ways in each of the psycho dynamic psychological theories, but all share the common goal of attempting to describe the dynamic nature of the tension between conflicting parts, assist the client in coming to terms with the tension, and begin the process of integration and healing.