The neurotic CONFLICT according to FREUD

In this lesson from a TEACHER we explain the concept of neurotic conflict according to Freud, father of psychoanalysis and one of the greatest thinkers of the twentieth century. For this neurologist, neurosis, typical of the human being, is a consequence of the desire and the prohibition of the same, otherwise it would not exist.

Desire is something natural, instinctive against the prohibition, which is the product of a sociocultural element. Therefore, it is within society that neurotic conflict originates. The human psyche, says Freud, is structured in a very special way and many of its mechanisms are not conscious.

If you want to know more about the psychoanalysis and neurotic conflict, continue reading this article by a TEACHER.

Freud affirms that all human beings have a neurotic conflict that arises from the fact that we we wish and we forbid ourselves the same. If we wanted one thing, and prohibited ourselves another, this conflict would not exist.

Keep in mind that desire is born from a

clearly natural element, instinctive, while the prohibition arises from a cultural and social element, therefore, the root of the problem arises from the social coexistence from natural instincts.

Neurotic conflict arises from the concepts of second topic: Ello, Yo, Super Yo.

Freud speaks of a special structure divided into three parts (topics) that would regulate the behavior of the human psyche. At first, between the years 1913 and 195, he would speak of three parts (first topic): Conscious, Preconscious and Unconscious. But from the 1920s on, he develops his second topic, and completes his theory with the concepts of I, It and Superego, and from these, he will explain his neurotic conflict theory.

This would be the mind structure of the human being:

• It: what the human being want. The mental expression of the drives (love and death)
• Me: it is aimed at defense and self-preservation. It is the part with which the individual identifies
• Superego: it opposes the It by prohibiting desire, taking into account that this prohibition comes from within the subject, it is not something external to him. It's about the moral prohibitions that the individual imposes himself on himself by considering that he should not do, and in many cases this coincides with what he wants. According to Freud, it is born out of the Oedipus complex and unresolved childhood traumas.

These three parts are found together in the brain and share functions, but most of their mechanisms act at the unconscious level.

To continue talking about neurotic conflict according to Freud we have to know that, according to Freud contemporary philosopher, the human mind develops different defense mechanisms to mitigate neurotic conflict, explains Freud. But on many occasions, these mechanisms, which try to solve a problem, become the problem itself. Freud speaks of different defense mechanisms mainly.

Main defense mechanisms

• Repression: consists of ignoring the desire, repressing it, living as if that desire did not exist, which does not mean that the desire does not exist. Denial of desire favors the development of different mental or behavioral pathologies.
• Regression: it is about reproducing behaviors from the past, especially from childhood. For example, the immaturity of some people when they face a problem that they do not know how to solve.
• Sublimation: the individual makes the object of desire the most important thing, allowing it instead of denying it, and therefore has no problem in satisfying it.
• Projection: it is the attitude of the individual who blames something external for his problems and is not able to accept responsibility for it. In this way, the problem is not solved, because it is not understood as one's own, but as someone else's.
• Displacement: it is about blaming other individuals for their own problems. Neurotic conflict is caused by other people and never by yourself
• Reaction: it consists of behaving in a way that is totally opposite to desire.

The unconscious operates on it and both maintain an intimate relationship, especially during the first years of life, where stimuli from outside will end up determine what the self is ultimately, which constitutes the preconscious part.

Thus, part of the unconscious becomes preconscious and part, it continues to remain in the unconscious. The I, therefore, is determined by the unconscious, but it is not accessible to it. This will constitute the repressed part. The id and the repressed coexist until the ego develops.

Of I would say Freud:

“His psychological operation consists of raising the courses of the id to a higher dynamic level (p. g., in changing freely mobile energy into bound energy, as corresponds to the preconscious state); and his constructive operation, in interpolating between instinctual demand and satisfying action the activity of thinking, which tries to deduce the success of the companies attempted through challenging actions, after focusing on the present and valuing experiences previous. In this way, the ego decides whether the attempt will lead to satisfaction or must be displaced, or whether the demand of the drive does not have to be completely stifled as dangerous ”(principle of reality).

An action would be correct if it corresponds to the joint action of the three elements, I, It and Super-ego. The relationship between the ego and the superego has its origin in childhood when parents influence their children by trying to instill in them their values. That is, by "the influence, propagated by them, of the tradition of the family, the race and the people, as well as the requirements of the respective social environment."

In addition to the father figure, all those that the individual perceives as being involved are involved in the formation of the superego. authority in the sphere of society. The id and the superego receive the influence of the past, although it is a different past. This is where the ego separates itself from the id and the superego to give a response to what is experienced beforehand.

If you have any questions or comments about the neurotic conflict according to Freud, you can do so through our website. And if you want to practice more, below you will find some printable exercises with solutions for you to do.