How do the three work together to form personality?
According toSigmund Freud, human personality is complex and has more than a single component.
These elements work together to create complex human behaviors.
Verywell
“The superego is ones conscience and is established via identification with parental figures or social groups at large.
Each element of personality emerges at different points in life.
For example, an increase in hunger or thirst should produce an immediate attempt to eat or drink.
The id is very important early in life because it ensures that an infant’s needs are met.
If the infant is hungry or uncomfortable, they will cry until the demands of the id are satisfied.
However, immediately fulfilling these needs is not always realistic or even possible.
This behavior would be both disruptive and socially unacceptable.
The Ego
Everyone has an ego.
The ego represents just one component of your full personality.
The reality principle weighs the costs and benefits of an action before deciding to act upon or abandon impulses.
The term ego is often used informally to suggest that someone has an inflated sense of self.
However, the ego in personality has a positive effect.
Having a strong ego means having a strong sense of self-awareness.
Freud compared the id to a horse and the ego to the horse’s rider.
The horse provides power and motion, while the rider provides direction and guidance.
Without its rider, the horse would wander wherever it wished and do whatever it pleased.
The rider gives the horse directions and commands to get it where it wants it to go.
Examples of the Ego
Imagine that you are stuck in a long meeting at work.
You find yourself growing increasingly hungry as the meeting drags on.
The Superego
The last component of personality to develop isthe superego.
The superego has two parts:
The superego tries to perfect and civilize our behavior.
The superego is present in the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious.
The superego may help you feel good about your behavior when you suppress your most primal urges.
These aspects are dynamic and always interacting to influence an individual’s overall personality and behavior.
What Happens If There Is an Imbalance?
Freud believed that an imbalance between these elements would lead to amaladaptivepersonality.
For example, an individual with an overly dominant id might become impulsive, uncontrollable, or even criminal.
“People began to question whether differences in peoples personalities could accurately be reduced to sexual and aggressive impulses.
In fact, there is limited research support for Freuds theories.”
While the ego has a tough job to do, it does not have to act alone.
