A Primer of Freudian Psychology [Paperback]

Calvin S. Hall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1999

Culled from forty years of writing by the founder of psychoanalysis, A Primer Of Freudian Psychology introduces Freud's theories on the dynamics and development of the human mind. Hall also provides a brief biography of Sigmund Freud and examines how he arrived at his groundbreaking conclusions. In discussing the elements that form personality, the author explains the pioneer thinker's ideas on defense mechanisms, the channeling of instinctual drives, and the role of sex in male and female maturation. Lucid, illuminating, and instructive, this is an important book for all who seek to understand human behavior, in themselves and others.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Plume (January 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452011833
• ISBN-13: 978-0452011830
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #49,381 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars well organized summary of Freud's work, August 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Primer of Freudian Psychology (Mentor) (Paperback)

As would be expected, the Ego, Superego, and Id are prominent players in Professor Hall's summation of Freudian theory. A less well known facet of Freudian principles, the role of psychic energy in the development of personality, is prominently featured; Hall labels this Freud's most brilliant discovery. Thought it is a slim volume, the information is dense. The entire body of Freud's work that Hall is summarizing was originally published in several thousand pages. To attempt to highlight the more important passages would result in the entire text colored in yellow highlighter. In short, the book itself is a well-organized, clearly presented set of notes on Freudian theory.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars PERSONALITY CONCEPTS, June 4, 2004

By 

Bud (Muskegon, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Primer of Freudian Psychology (Paperback)

TITLE

A PRIMER OF FREUDIAN PSYCHOLOGY

AUTHOR:

By Calvin S. Hall

Publisher:

Published in the United States by the New American Library, Inc.,

1301 Avenue of the Americas,

New York, New York 10019

COPYRIGHT:

1954, By the World Publishing Company
This is an important book for everyone who wants to understand human behavior in himself, and in others.

Calvin S. Hall outlines Freud's diagnosis of the balances existing between the mind and emotions, and points out his important discoveries about the parts played by instincts, the conscious and unconscious, and anxiety in the functioning of the human psyche.
The Author explains the ideas of Sigmund Freud's psychology on defense mechanisms, the channeling of instinctual drives, and the role of sex in the boy/girl maturing into man and women.

Sigmund Freud's ideas are scattered throughout his writings from the early 1890's to the late 1930's. The stabilized personality is one in which the psychic energy has found more or less permanent and constant ways of expending itself in performing psychological work. The precise nature of this work is determined by the interactions, between them, and by the developmental history of the id, ego and the superego.

The breakdown of the personality follows:

The ID:
Sometimes called the "pleasure principle" is to rid the person of tension, or, reduce the amount of tension to a low level and to keep it as constant as possible. Tension is experienced as pain or discomfort, while relief from tension is experienced as pleasure or satisfaction, avoiding pain, and finding pleasure.

The EGO:
Instead of the "pleasure principle", the ego is governed by the "reality principle". Reality means that which exists. The aim of the "reality principle", is to postpone the discharge of energy until the actural object that will satisfy the need has been discovered or produced. The ego may be thought of as a complex organization of Psychological processes that acts as an intermediary between the id, and the external World. This is called the "secondary process", because it is developed after, and overlays the primary process of the id.

The SUPEREGO:
The superego is made up of two subsystems, the ego-ideal, and the conscience. The ego-ideal corresponds to the child's conception of what his parents consider to be morally good. The conscience corresponds to the child's conceptions of what the parents feel is morally bad, and these are established through experiences with punishment. So, ego-ideal and conscience are opposite sides of the same coin. The ego is formed out of the id, and the superego is formed out of the ego. They continue to interact and blend with each other throughout life.

The Dynamics of Personality:
The following list is used in the book to show how the three systems operate and how they interact with one another, and with the environment.

Psychic Energy: is the form of energy which operates the three systems of personality.

Instinct: is an inborn condition which imparts direction to psychological processes. An instinct has a source, an aim, an object, and an impetus. (strength or force)

The Distribution and Disposal Of Psychic Energy: The aim of both of these processes is to expend the instinctual energy in ways that will elimate the need, and bring repose to the individual.

Cathexis and Anti-cathexis: The urging forces are cathexes, and the checking forces are anti-cathexis. The id has only cathexis while the ego and superego also posses anti-cathexis.
If the anti-cathexis outweigh the cathexis, the action, or the thought will be repressed.

Consciousness and unconsciousness: Conscious and unconscious are retained in psychologanalytic theory after 1920 as qualities of mental phemomena.

The Instincts: Life, death, sex, Instincts

Anxiety: Anxiety is a painful emotional experience which is produced by excitations in the internal organs of the body. Anxiety is one of the most important concepts in psychoanalytic theory. It plays an important role in the development of personality functioning.
Three types of anxiety are reality anxiety, neurotic anxiety, and moral anxiety.
The first time I came accross this book was when I took Applied Psychology with Dr. Harrison, which was along time ago. I really do like this book, and it has alot of understanding of the personality.

Well, I say understanding, but it gives the reader appreication of the breakdown of the id, ego and the superego. As it states in the beginning, it is very useful in understanding yourself, and others you may work with. It will help me in the Substance Abuse Field, when I am not only working with clients, but also in group therapy.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clear, and presented in a well integrated manner, December 5, 2001

By 

Michael Strassberg - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Primer of Freudian Psychology (Paperback)

This book covers all of Freud's work in a brief, yet complete manner. It is a short book, but very full of information. The author's approach truly fulfills his mission. He starts the book talking about Freud and his times, and how his background and natural curiosity led him eventually to found psychoanalysis. In discussing the theories of Freud, Hall begins with basics and sequentially builds to a thorough review of the theories. Some writers are bewildering because they begin discussing more advanced theories before laying the groundwork. Not so here; the author provides all you need to know in a clear, stimulating manner before proceeding to the next level of complexity. Whether you are interested in psychology, psychoanalysis in the arts, psychoanalysis as an historical phenomenon or otherwise, this book is a great resource.