Describe the Psychodynamic Approach to explaining Human Behaviour The psychodynamic approach – a theory first proposed by Sigmund Freud in the early 1900’s – include all the psychological theories that human behaviour is revolved around the unconscious influences that structure ones personality. Freud’s original psychodynamic theory was called psychoanalysis; a method which ignored all scientific – particularly biological ­ reasoning and instead focused on getting inside the head of an individual. Freud was arguably the most influential person in the creation and development of the psychodynamic theory, not only by proposing his own arguments towards what shapes human behaviour, but also by collecting research and proposals from other researchers who believed in the psychodynamic theory.
The main and possibly the most important of Freud’s proposals is that the psyche is made up of three separate elements. This was named the ‘Tripartite Personality Structure’ and Freud stated that the separate elements of the psyche each controlled behaviour in their own way. The id is the instinctive, animalistic part of the psyche concerned with the satisfaction of desires. Often described as being the pleasure principle; it is destined to achieve pleasure through an unconscious thought process. The second element of the psyche was named the superego. The part of the psyche concerned with the moral components of personality. Freud argued that the superego learns its