Behavioral Vs. Psychoalytical Opposing Psychological Views

Behavioral Vs. Psychoanalytical

Opposing Psychological Views

Behavioral perspective Vs. Psychoanalytical perspective, two views about human behavior and human dynamics that are on almost opposite sides of the psychological spectrum. John Watson and B. F. Skinner are the founding fathers of the behavioral perspective and Sigmund Freud is the founder of the Psychoanalytic perspective. Freud's theory dealt mostly with the idea that our unconscious influences who and how we are and act today. Watson and Skinner's theory dealt with behavior being formed and modified by the environment around us. This paper delves deeper into these two perspectives and how they may or may not be actualized. I will attempt to dissuade Freud's theory of the unconscious influences and boast Watson and Skinners theory of the environment affecting us.

The Psychoanalytical Perspective

Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud bases the theory of Psychoanalysis on the:

"Importance of unconscious influences,

early life experiences, and interpersonal

relationships. In explaining the underlying

dynamics of behavior or in treating people

with psychological problems."

He thought that the drives and urges within the unconscious was a component in our behavior today. He believed that there were four developmental stages in life that we went through but sometimes became fixated on one, the Oral, Anal, Penial and Genital stages of life. He also believed that there was a constant inner struggle for balance between the Id, Ego, and Superego. The Id is our child within that operates on the pleasure principle. The Ego is our reality principle, and the Superego is like the nagging parent keeping us out of trouble or our morality.

The reason I feel that this school of thought is of base with how to describe human behavior is that, yes sometimes what happened in our childhood or how we were raised may affect our behavior. But, isn't how we were raised and what happened an effect of our environment?

Behavioral Perspective

Watson and Skinner

The