Freud sees personality as having three aspects, each aspect works
together to produce all of behaviors: the id, the ego and the superego. All 3 components need to be well-balanced in
order to have reasonable mental health.
The Id
~functions in the irrational and
often times emotional part of the mind
~An Example:
At birth a baby is the mindset
of getting what it wants for no other reason other than they want it. The Id is primitive in the way that it does what
it wants in order to survive and better the life for themselves. The Id contains all the basic needs and feelings
and has also been referred to as the libido.
~ Operates on pleasure principle
of "I want it and I want it now."
The Ego
~Functions with the rational part of the mind.
~The Ego develops out of growing awareness that you can’t always get what
you want.
~The Ego relates to the real world and operates via the “reality principle”. It
realizes the need for compromise and negotiates between the Id and the Superego. The Ego's job is to get the Id's pleasures
but to keep in mind the consequences that could come from the action.
~The Ego denies both instant gratification and the delayment of gratification.
~If someone's ego is too strong then usually they are extremely rational
and efficient, but cold and distant from other people.
The Superego
~The Superego is the last part of the mind to develop and
could also be referred to as the moral part of the mind.
~ The Superego begins to put together everything
our parents and society teaches us. It stores and enforces rules. I
The Superegot constantly strives for perfection, even though
the idea could be far from reality.
~The Superego is known to create anxiety because of its
ability to enforce rules.
~If the superego is too strong the person will tend to
feel guilty all of the time.
