Personality Life Span Development and Personality Sigmund Freud - Essay Example

Running Head: Life Span Development and Personality Paper Life Span Development and Personality Life Span Development and Personality Sigmund Freud Abstract Sigmund Freud is one of the leading figures in the field of psychology largely due to his contribution to this field. Based in Vienna, Austria, he developed one of the most important theories of psychology which completely redefined the way psychology is now practiced. His early life was troubled with poverty and relocation from his birth place however; this event seems to have greater impact on his life. His psychological development therefore was largely influenced by the external environment within which he lived. It is also important to note that his internal motives could also have contributed towards certain behaviors and attitudes which he showed throughout his life. The cognitive social theories of learning can better describe his psychological development. Introduction Sigmund Freud is considered as one of the most influential personalities in the subject of Psychology because of his tremendous contribution to the subject. Born in 1856 in Austria, he became neurologist and formed the so called Psychoanalysis technique which is still practiced by many psychologists. One of the key questions regarding the overall achievements of Freud and his personality revolves around the social, emotional as well as moral factors which could have contributed towards the development of Freud’s personality and his psychological development. One of the key debates in the psychology is based upon the notion of nature versus nurture. It is argued whether the human development is affected mostly by the nature itself or it is developed through the influence of the external environment. It is therefore believed that as humans evolve and grow, both the forces have an overall impact on their personality, behaviors, attitudes and outcomes in their lives. The element of heredity as well as environment therefore plays key role in determining the overall psychological development of an individual. The life of Sigmund Freud is interesting in the sense that he is considered as the key figure in the development of modern psychology. How he was able to achieve this feat and what factors actually contributed to the development of his personality therefore needs to be assessed from a very diversified perspective. This paper will therefore discuss the life of Sigmund Freud and will provide an assessment of the impact of environment and other factors on his personality development. The concept of Personality Development Personality is considered as the collection of different attitudes, thoughts as well as feelings which a person displays during given circumstances. The overall theoretical basis of defining personality is therefore divided into two different aspects of how the personality is structured as well as the individual differences between the different personalities of the individuals. The process of maturation i.e. the ageing of the physical body defines the physical progress of a body however; the development of the personality is largely influenced by the genes of an individual as well as the environment. This combination of both the forces therefore gives rise to the overall development of personality and how individuals behave and act in a given environment. (Kowalski & Westen, 2009) Sigmund Freud was probably the earliest person to describe the theoretical foundations of the personality and further refined it. Freud discussed personality by using different models by using psychodynamics approach. He used different concepts such as ambivalence to study the behavior patterns as we evolve and grow from the age of a child till our death. Considering above discussion the subsequent sections will discuss as to how different factors contributed towards the development of Sigmund Freud’s personality and how evolved to become one of the leading theorists in the field of psychology. Sigmund Freud- Life As discussed in the introductory paragraph, Sigmund Freud was born during 1856 in Austria to Jewish parents. The early life of Freud was not happy as his parents were relatively poor however, despite this poverty; Freud was provided the opportunity to receive better education. Due to frequent business failures, he was forced to relocate to different cities in search for better opportunities for his family. This aspect therefore clearly highlights that the early life of Freud that it was largely influenced by the economic conditions of the family. (Jones, 1953) He was also engaged in an affair with his sister in law and it is believed that they had a forced abortion in order to cover up their relationship. He was also considered as a secular Jew with little or no interest in the religion however, he seemed to have strong belief in his Jewish identity. This also outlines that the religion did not hold any significant position in his life however, he considered himself as a Jew with a strong sense of history and pride in his Jewish roots. The Impact The theoretical work of Sigmund Freud and his professional and personal life was greatly influenced by the way he spent his early life. It is important to consider that his childhood was spent in relative poverty and as such the life of Freud during critical periods could be termed as one which was relatively stressed. The relative poverty and relocation to different cities however, may have provided Freud an opportunity to learn to adapt to different environments. The overall influence of social environment on the personality of Freud was more of moral rather than emotional because on the one hand he was engaged in practices such as sex, drugs but he also deplored religion. Though he took pride in his Jewish roots however, he was not ready to give religion its due importance in one’s life. The psychoanalytic theory of personality outlines that a person’s personality is developed and determined by the childhood of an individual along with the past experiences. This therefore determines the overall perception about the current events and his life in future. The use of cocaine and tobacco by Freud is also remained one of the debatable issues in his life as it is generally believed that he was addicted to the cocaine. It is however, important to note that Freud has both the personal and medicinal reasons to use cocaine in his daily life. Though his scientific analysis of the substance has also been published however; he also seemed to have used this for his personal purposes. This aspect of life also suggests that the use of cocaine contained a relative degree of internal motivation for him. His own explanation of the ambivalence and its role in the development of personality outlined as to why he used certain substances during his life. It therefore can easily be assumed that the social environment and his different belief systems were instrumental in shaping his ideas and life. Social learning theory argues that a person’s past learning as well as current perceptions and higher level processes of learning. This theory therefore outline that the personality of a person is a direct result of the learning received by the person in his past. Sigmund Freud’s life can also be viewed from this perspective especially due to his reluctance to accept Vienna as his preferred city. He openly claimed that he never enjoyed living in the city of Vienna and remembered his childhood days. This conflict in the way he perceived two different cities where he lived therefore clearly outlined his representation of self and the significant other as well as his relationships with others. (Dufresne, 2003). It is critical to note that Freud found himself rather critical of his later life. The particular behaviors depicted by Freud during his later life therefore gave credibility to the cognitive social theories of personality that people are not driven by their internal stimuli but they are largely influenced by their external stimuli. Freud’s life seems to be influenced by the external environment rather than his own personal experiences. This approach therefore seems to more appropriate approach to define the psychological development of Sigmund Freud’s personality. Conclusion Sigmund Freud is considered as one of the leading figures in the field of psychology. His early life, social and economic background has created as significant influence on his psychological development. He seems to have been driven by external stimuli and his work was also influenced by the external environment. This was however, in relative conflict with psychodynamic theories which outlined that internal stimuli are the dominating forces to shape certain behavior in a person’s personality. Bibliography Dufresne, T. (2003). Killing Freud: Twentieth-Century Culture and the Death of Psychoanalysis. New York: Continuum. Jones, E. (1953). The Life and Work of Sigmund Freud. . New York: Basic Books. Kowalski, R., & Westen, D. (2009). Psychology . NJ: Wiley. . Read More