Discuss the interaction between id, ego, and superego

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Id: Pleasure Seeker
Freud believed that mental processes must have a source of energy, which he called the id.
The id, which is Freud's first division of the mind to develop, contains two biological drives—sex and aggression—that are the source of all psychic or mental energy; the id's goal is to pursue pleasure and satisfy the biological drives. Freud assumed that the id operated at a totally unconscious level, which is analogous to an iceberg's massive underwater bulk. The id operates according to the pleasure principle. The pleasure principle operates to satisfy drives and avoid pain, without concern for moral restrictions or society's regulations.

Ego: Executive Negotiator Between Id and Superego
As infants discover that parents put restrictions on satisfying their wishes, infants learn to control their wishes through the development of an ego. The ego, which is Freud's second division of the mind, develops from the id during infancy; the ego's goal is to find safe and socially acceptable ways of satisfying the id's desires and to negotiate between the id's wants and the superego's prohibitions. Freud said that a relatively large part of the ego's material is conscious, such as information that we have gathered in adapting to our environments. A smaller part of the ego's material is unconscious, such as threatening wishes that have been repressed. In contrast to the id's pleasure principle, the ego follows the reality principle. The reality principle is a policy of satisfying a wish or desire only if there is a socially acceptable outlet available.

Superego: Regulator
As children learn that they must follow rules and regulations in satisfying their wishes, they develop a superego. The superego, which is Freud's third division of the mind, develops from the ego during early childhood; the superego's goal is to apply the moral values and standards
of one's parents or caregivers and society in satisfying one's wishes. Think of the iceberg's visible tip as representing that part of the superego's moral standards of which we are conscious or aware and the huge underwater bulk as representing the part of the superego's moral standards that are unconscious or outside our awareness.

Anxiety, in Freudian theory, is an uncomfortable feeling that results from inner conflicts between the primitive desires of the id and the moral goals of the superego.

Defense mechanisms are Freudian processes that operate at unconscious levels and use self-deception or untrue explanations to protect the ego from being overwhelmed by anxiety.