Freud's Psychological Approach to Conscience

Definition

Freud explains conscience as a psychological mechanism, not a spiritual or rational one. Conscience is the superego—an internalized system of parental and social rules that operates largely in the unconscious mind.

1. The Id (The Instinctive Child)

• Operates on the pleasure principle—seeks immediate gratification
• Wants food, sleep, sexual satisfaction, aggression without limitation
• Entirely non-moral—has no sense of right or wrong
• Operates in the unconscious mind

2. The Ego (The Rational Mediator)

• Operates on the reality principle—balances the Id's desires with reality
• Develops around ages 1-3 as the child learns reality constraints
• Rational and conscious, but also uses defence mechanisms (repression, denial, projection) to manage unconscious conflicts
• Must mediate between the Id ("I want!") and the Superego ("You must not!")

3. The Superego (The Internalized Moral Parent)

• Develops around ages 3-6 during the phallic stage of development
• Operates on the morality principle—judges actions as right or wrong
• Represents internalized parental rules and social norms
• Operates largely in the unconscious but also the preconscious (accessible but not currently in awareness)

The Critical Moment

Around ages 3-6, the child enters the phallic stage and develops the Oedipus Complex:

• For boys: The boy desires his mother (sexually, though unconsciously) and sees his father as a rival
• For girls: The girl desires her father and sees her mother as a rival (the Electra Complex)

The Source of Anxiety

• The boy fears his father will castrate him (castration anxiety) as punishment for his desires
• This intolerable fear forces the boy to give up his desire for his mother

The Resolution Through Identification

To resolve the conflict and reduce anxiety, the boy identifies with his father. By becoming like the father, the boy:

• Gains a share of the father's power and authority
• Internalizes the father's rules, values, and moral codes
• Transforms his rivalry with the father into a psychological structure (the superego)

The Birth of the Superego

• The external conflict with the father becomes an internal moral voice
• The superego is essentially the internalized father or parental authority watching and judging the ego's actions

1. The Conscience

• The part that punishes through guilt and shame
• Says "You should not do that" and makes you feel guilty when you do it
• Based on internalized prohibitions ("Thou shalt not...")

2. The Ego Ideal

• The part that rewards through pride and self-esteem
• Represents aspirations and ideals—how you should be
• Makes you feel pride when you live up to these standards

Step 1: The Id Desires
An impulse arises (aggression, sexuality, selfishness).

Step 2: The Superego Objects
The internalized parental voice says "That's wrong!"

Step 3: Anxiety and Guilt
The conflict between Id and Superego creates anxiety and guilt. The ego uses defence mechanisms to manage this conflict.

Step 4: Behavior Adjustment
To reduce guilt and anxiety, the person obeys the superego (acts morally).

The Deeper Level

• Freud proposed that unconscious guilt is a fundamental part of human psychology
• This guilt exists even before the Oedipus Complex
• It's a deeper, underlying feeling that drives behavior without conscious awareness
• The superego is one manifestation of this underlying unconscious guilt

Overly Strong Superego

If the superego is too strong or punitive, it can cause:

• Excessive guilt and shame, even for minor actions or mere thoughts
• Anxiety and depression
• Obsessive neurosis with compulsive, repetitive behaviors
• Self-punishment and self-harm

Overly Weak Superego

If the superego is too weak, it can cause:

• Lack of guilt for wrongdoing (sociopathic behavior)
• Antisocial behavior without remorse

Explains Guilt and Shame

• Accounts for why we feel guilty even when no one knows about our actions
• Guilt is the internalized fear of parental punishment

Explains Moral Development

• Shows how children acquire moral standards through identification with parents
• Explains why moral standards are often irrational (we obey rules without understanding why)

Explains the Power of the Unconscious

• Recognizes that much of moral behavior is driven by unconscious processes, not conscious reasoning
• Explains why we sometimes act against our conscious beliefs

Practical Clinical Application

• Helps psychotherapists understand and treat guilt, shame, and neurosis

Not Grounded in Reason

• Conscience becomes arbitrary—based on what your particular parents taught, not on universal moral principles
• Makes conscience culturally and individually relative, not objective

Ignores Divine or Natural Law

• Rejects the idea that conscience might reflect God's law or human nature's purpose
• Offers no account of why conscience often points toward universal moral truths (e.g., that murder is wrong)

Overemphasis on Childhood and Sex

• The Oedipus Complex is controversial and not universally accepted
• Not clear that the superego develops primarily from the Oedipus Complex

Difficult to Verify

• The unconscious mind is hard to observe and test scientifically
• Psychoanalytic claims are difficult to falsify

Explains Away Morality

• Reduces moral truth to psychological mechanisms, which many find unsatisfying
• Seems to suggest that moral convictions are just internalized parental voice, not real moral knowledge