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Dr. Sigmund Freud has managed to become one of the most controversial and paradoxical figures in the universe of academia. This paper was written as an evaluation of Freud, as a man and a scientist, in an attempt to decide if his work is suitable for the modern classroom. This essay will question Freud's methods of validity and ethics in his theories and case studies. The theories discussed will include beginning treatment, dream interpretation, and instinct theory. The case studies will include The History if Infantile Neurosis and An Analysis of a Case of Hysteria. The topic of Freud’s validity was not easily determined. Nuanced work with the unconscious may not always demand empirical evidence to support it and many scholars hold conflicting beliefs on this area of Freud’s work. While Freud’s ethics, against modern standards, do not hold up to any APA ethical guidelines that now exist.
In Section 1, I highlighted the 8-year struggle that I faced that had a central focus and emphasis on bullying. I discussed many important ideals, including how grave the bullying in elementary and middle school was and how it shaped me as an individual. I also discussed how sibling overshadowing and comparison contributed to my struggle and growth over the 8-year period in chronological order.
After telling the story in Section 1, I then discussed and did an unbiased theory exploration that attempted to discuss and uncover the theories, relationships, and trends found across three central “themes” presented in Section 1: Sibling Relationships, Self-Identity, and Self-Confidence. I discussed what theories were argued and presented across many famous and well-known researchers, how their work relates to the central theme of interest, and how these theories relate to each other. I found that there were many theories from Stets, Brody, Kohlberg, and Hetherington that provided insight as to why I felt weak and frail. I also found that there was significant research that confirmed my inability to trust compliments and feedback. I lastly discussed some opposing theories by individuals who argued against these same ideas along with the respective amount of weight that they carry over others.
In Section 3, I then took the theories, trends, and relationships presented on these themes in Section 2 from various researchers and integrated them with Section 1, my life experience. Section 3 represents a hybrid discussion of how the theories argued, debated, and explored by researchers relate specifically to moments throughout my life and 8-year struggle. In this section, my goal is to help readers understand how these theories can or can’t relate to someone’s personal experience. I also discussed which theories carry more weight than others based on the volume of research conducted.