Psychodynamic Perspective and Cognitive Perspective:

Psychology is characterised by a variety of different approaches, each emphasising different

factors in their explanations of mind and behaviour. This essay is going to outline two of the
five approaches which are psychodynamic and cognitive approaches.

The Psychodynamic approach was mainly initiated by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) and he
explained behaviour in terms of unconscious drives and the dynamics of the id, ego and
superego. However the cognitive approach was developed by Piaget in the (1950’s) and this
was because of a growing dissatisfaction with the behaviourist approach. In the
psychodynamic approach, focus is more on what takes place in human heads, in other words
it is a natural process which humans are born with and it determines behaviour patterns
concerning relationships, experience and surroundings. However the cognitive approach
focuses on how humans process information (stimuli/input) and how we respond to what we
have processed in (output) which is also a natural process as humans are born with this
function. The main areas of study in cognitive psychology are perception, attention, memory
and language.

Freud assumed that the mind is divided into three parts; conscious, unconscious and
preconscious and that sex was the central motivating force, although subsequent
psychoanalysts’ preferred to emphasise the importance of social factors, and they highlighted
the importance of childhood experience. The three components id, ego, and superego
influence the mind or human behaviour in four different categories. The first one is the
unconscious process, which humans have no direct awareness of. Psychodynamic conflict is
the second one where by different parts of the mind are in constant struggle with each other.
The third is emotional drives which Freud believed that behaviour is motivated by sexual and
aggressive drives. And the fourth is development, which brings out personality in humans
through relationships particularly during child hood.

Cognitive psychologists assume that the study of internal mental process is important in
understanding behaviour. Their focus is upon the role of mental process in activities such as
learning and visual perception. Compared with computers, cognitive processes actively
organise and manipulate the information we receive. Because analogies and metaphors are
used in cognitive psychology to help us understand how the brain operates, there is no
unifying theory and cognitive psychology faces opposition from other psychologists. This is
due to the fact that the human brain is, not like other organs of the body, its structure does not
reveal anything about how it functions, and it is a large mass of cells and fibres.

The main method Freud used in his investigations was the case study method, when treating
his clients and also used clinical interview methods to probe their past and question to their
behaviour. This is similar to the cognitive approach, where evidence of case studying has
been used to study brain damaged patients which is crucial in memory research.

The psychodynamic approach was the first approach to try and attempt to explain mental
illness in psychological terms and has had an enormous influence on the understanding and
treatment of mental disorders. An example of this is Psychoanalysis and Dream Therapy
which aims to make the unconscious material conscious so it is easier to deal with as Freud
believed that dreams showed our hidden thoughts and wishes. Evidence to support this was
carried out by Sandell (1999) who studied the symptoms of 756 patients before and after
three years or state-funded psychoanalysis and found that patients had significantly fewer
symptoms after the therapy.

Cognitive approach on the other hand, investigates using rigorous scientific methods and has
provided explanations of many aspects of human behaviour and has had useful practical
applications. The fact that it makes use of experimental research, studies on brain damaged
patients, computer stimulations and advanced techniques of studying the brain. The other
approaches have also confirmed the distinction between short term memory and long term
memory. Both approaches claim that children are qualitatively different from adults. Freud’s
theory is centred largely on emotional and social development, whereas Piaget’s concern is
with intellectual growth which he sees as arising from an interaction between biological
growth and environmental stimulation.

Research methods such as free association and dream analysis in psychodynamic approach
have been widely used but experimentations have been used in the cognitive approach. Both
approaches have similar contributions to psychology such as memory where in
psychodynamic approach Freud explained theoretically that forgetting is caused by
repression, and cognitive psychologists gave an example of Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968)
multi-store model which suggested that memory is made up of a series of stores. Abnormality
is another similarity in which both approaches have identified the cause of trauma and
depression found in individuals. Psychologists in both approaches have introduced therapies
that can be of good use in the treatment of depression and mental disorders.

Other contributions made to psychology in both approaches have had effective explanations
in a vast number of topics; such as personality development, moral gender development and
aggression in the psychodynamic approach. On the other hand cognitive approach has
contributed to a broad range of applications such as education, and health promotion.

Both approaches have had a large impact on psychology. For example a hundred years on
Freud’s ideas and psychiatry are still discussed and used in both theoretical and practical
manner. Cognitive approach has also influenced and integrated with all the other approaches
in the areas of study to produce social learning theory, social cognition, cognitive
neuropsychology and artificial intelligence.

Major weaknesses have been identified in both approaches, due to the type of methods used
in their research programmes. The unscientific approach adopted by Freud, makes it very
hard to test most of his theories. He never carried out any experiments to test his ideas and he
relied on the observation methods. The fact that he used very small numbers of people in his
experiments, convincing evidence was hugely lacked. Every class and culture of people have
differ ways and values, so his findings cannot be generalized to all cultures.

Cognitive models have been accused of ignoring the huge complexity of human functioning,
unrealistic and ignoring the biological influences and grounding of mental processes. They
have also been accused of being too cold therefore ignoring the emotional life of humans and
their conscious experience and possible use of free will. Genetic factors like hereditary
correlations of mental disorders are not taken into account. The approach depends largely on
controlled experiments to observe human behaviour may lack ecological validity.

Despite some weaknesses in both psychodynamic and cognitive approaches, humans today
have achieved treatment to various disorders of the mind and brain through theories and
practical treatments such as psychoanalysis therapy which is an effective form of treatment
but little is known to why it is effective. Cognitive behavioural therapy is also a popular and
successful form of treatment for issues such as obsessive disorders. “Piaget’s theory
emphasises the fundamentally rational nature of human beings and also sees immature
reasoning and intellectual functioning as being profoundly different from that of mature
adults”. {Taylor I 1999 Active psychology Pearson publishers}

Bibliography:

 Eysenck M.W 2000 Psychology A Students

 Gross R 2001 Psychology the Science of Mind and Behaviour Fourth Edition Green
Gate Publishers
 Hand Book Psychology Press Ltd
 Hill G 2001 AS & A Level Psychology Oxford University Press
 Taylor I 1999 Active psychology Pearson publishers
 http://www.psychologistworld.com/cognitive