Freud revolutionized how we think about and treat mental health conditions.
Freud founded psychoanalysis as a way of listening to patients and better understanding how their minds work.
Psychoanalysis continues to have an enormous influence on modern psychology and psychiatry.
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He was the oldest of eight children.
Freud earned a medical degree and began practicing as a doctor in Vienna.
He was appointed Lecturer on Nervous Diseases at the University of Vienna in 1885.
When their friendship ended, Freud continued to publish his own works on psychoanalysis.
Freud and his family left Vienna due to discrimination against Jewish people.
He moved to England in 1938 and died in 1939.
Psychoanalysis has had a lasting impact on both the study of psychology and the practice of psychotherapy.
Psychoanalysis sought to bring unconscious information into conscious awareness for inducecatharsis.
Catharsis is an emotional release that may bring about relief from psychological distress.
Research has found that psychoanalysis can be an effective treatment for a number of mental health conditions.
The self-examination that is involved in the therapy process can help people achieve long-term growth and improvement.
These patients helped shape his theories and many have become well known.
Some of these individuals included:
Anna O. was never actually a patient of Freud’s.
She was a patient of Freud’s colleague Josef Breuer.
The two men often corresponded about Anna O’s symptoms, eventually publishing the bookStudies on Hysteriaon her case.
It was through their work and correspondence that the technique known astalk therapyemerged.
Major Works by Freud
Freud’s writingsdetail many of his major theories and ideas.
Insight such as this falls to one’s lot but once in a lifetime."
Views on Religion
Freud was born and raised Jewish but described himself as an atheist in adulthood.
Freud’s Contributions to Psychology
Freud’s theories are highly controversial today.
However, it remains true that Freud had a significant and lasting influence on the field of psychology.
He provided a foundation for many concepts that psychologists used and continue to use to make new discoveries.
The Unconscious
Prior to the works of Freud, many people believed that behavior was inexplicable.
He developed the idea of the unconscious as being the hidden motivation behind what we do.
Literary Theory
Literary scholars and students alike often analyze texts through a Freudian lens.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sigmund Freud was an Austrian neurologist who founded psychoanalysis.
Also known as the father of modern psychology, he was born in 1856 and died in 1939.
Sigmund Freud founded psychoanalysis and published many influential works such as “The Interpretation of Dreams.”
Sigmund Freud was born in a town called Freiberg in Moravia, which is now the Czech Republic.
However, most of his childhood years were spent in Vienna.
It’s likely that Freud died by natural means.
Freud believed this would help his patients change their maladaptive behaviors.
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