The psychodynamic approach | AQA A-Level Psychology Revision

For 7182 specification, first teach in September 2025

AQA A-Level Psychology | Free Revision Notes

Estimated study time: 50 minutes

These The psychodynamic approach A-Level Psychology revision notes explain how behaviour may be influenced by unconscious processes and conflicts within personality. You will examine the roles of the Id, Ego and Superego before learning how repression, denial and displacement protect an individual from psychologically threatening thoughts or feelings. The approach offers a very different explanation from the study of conscious information processing and provides the foundation for studying early development in the psychodynamic approach.

Learning Objectives 🎯

By the end of this revision page, you should be able to:

• Define the unconscious.

• Explain how unconscious processes may influence behaviour.

• Describe the roles of the Id, Ego and Superego.

• Explain how conflict can arise between the different parts of personality.

• Explain repression, denial and displacement.

• Apply the psychodynamic approach to unfamiliar situations.

Revision Notes 📚

The psychodynamic approach A-Level Psychology revision overview

The psychodynamic approach proposes that behaviour is influenced by processes outside conscious awareness.

According to the approach:

• Much of the mind is unconscious.

• Unconscious wishes, memories and conflicts can influence behaviour.

• Personality consists of the Id, Ego and Superego.

• Conflict may occur between these different parts of personality.

• The Ego may use defence mechanisms to manage psychologically threatening thoughts and feelings.

• Early experiences are important in personality development.

This lesson concentrates on the unconscious, the structure of personality and three defence mechanisms:

1. Repression

2. Denial

3. Displacement

The role of early development is covered separately through the psychosexual stages of development.

What is the unconscious?

The unconscious is the part of the mind containing thoughts, wishes, memories and impulses that are outside conscious awareness.

A person is not directly aware of unconscious material, but the psychodynamic approach proposes that it can still influence:

• Behaviour

• Emotions

• Choices

• Relationships

• Reactions to situations

This means that a person may not fully understand why they behave in a particular way.

For example, someone may experience a strong emotional response without being consciously aware of the underlying conflict or memory contributing to it.

Conscious and unconscious influences

A conscious thought is something a person is currently aware of.

An unconscious influence operates without the person being directly aware of it.

Conscious influence	Unconscious influence
The person is aware of the thought or reason	The person is not directly aware of the cause
Can be reported deliberately	May be inferred from behaviour
May involve a planned decision	May involve hidden wishes, memories or conflicts
The reason for behaviour may be understood	The person may not understand the real reason for the behaviour

The psychodynamic approach does not assume that every action is consciously planned. It proposes that behaviour may have hidden psychological causes.

How can unconscious processes be studied?

The unconscious cannot be observed directly.

Psychologists may instead use behaviour as evidence and make an inference about the unconscious processes that might be involved.

For example:

• Observation: A person repeatedly redirects anger towards someone who did not cause it.

• Possible inference: The person may be using displacement.

The behaviour is observable, but the proposed unconscious mechanism is inferred.

This is similar to the way cognitive psychologists make inferences about mental processing, although the two approaches focus on different psychological processes.

Cognitive approach	Psychodynamic approach
Makes inferences about information processing	Makes inferences about unconscious wishes and conflicts
Uses models to explain mental processes	Uses the Id, Ego and Superego to explain personality
Focuses on processes such as interpretation and memory	Focuses on unconscious influences and defence mechanisms

The structure of personality

The psychodynamic approach divides personality into three interacting parts:

• The Id

• The Ego

• The Superego

These are not physical areas of the brain. They are theoretical parts of personality used to explain psychological conflict and behaviour.

Each part has a different role.

Part of personality	Main role
Id	Seeks the immediate satisfaction of basic urges and wishes
Ego	Balances the demands of the Id, the Superego and external reality
Superego	Represents moral standards and judges whether behaviour is right or wrong

The Id

The Id is the part of personality concerned with the immediate satisfaction of basic urges, wishes and desires.

The Id:

• Seeks immediate satisfaction.

• Does not consider whether a behaviour is realistic.

• Does not focus on social rules or moral standards.

• Operates unconsciously.

For example, a person may feel a strong urge to express anger immediately. The Id is concerned with satisfying this urge rather than considering the possible consequences.

The Id does not ask:

• Is this sensible?

• Is this socially acceptable?

• What might happen afterwards?

• Could this harm another person?

Its concern is immediate satisfaction.

The Ego

The Ego is the part of personality that manages the demands of the Id, the Superego and external reality.

The Ego attempts to find a realistic way of responding to the Id’s wishes.

It considers:

• What is possible.

• What is socially acceptable.

• What consequences may follow.

• How competing demands can be managed.

For example, a person may feel an urge to express anger but recognise that shouting during a formal meeting would have unwanted consequences.

The Ego might find a more realistic response, such as discussing the issue calmly later.

The Ego therefore acts as a mediator.

Id’s demands + Superego’s standards + external reality → Ego’s decision

This is not a mathematical equation. It represents the different pressures that the Ego attempts to balance.

The Superego

The Superego is the part of personality concerned with moral standards.

It judges behaviour according to ideas about what is right and wrong.

The Superego may:

• Encourage behaviour that meets moral standards.

• Oppose unacceptable urges from the Id.

• Judge the individual’s actions.

• Produce uncomfortable feelings when behaviour conflicts with moral expectations.

For example, the Id may encourage someone to act selfishly because this would provide immediate satisfaction. The Superego may oppose this behaviour because it conflicts with the person’s moral standards.

Comparing the Id, Ego and Superego

Feature	Id	Ego	Superego
Main concern	Immediate satisfaction	Realistic management of competing demands	Moral standards
Awareness	Unconscious	Has to respond to inner demands and external reality	Much of its influence may be unconscious
Considers consequences?	No	Yes	Judges consequences morally
Considers social reality?	No	Yes	Focuses on moral expectations
Typical demand	“I want this now”	“What can realistically be done?”	“Is this right or wrong?”

A strong examination answer should describe each part separately and explain how they interact.

Conflict within personality

The Id, Ego and Superego may make conflicting demands.

For example:

• The Id wants immediate satisfaction.

• The Superego demands morally acceptable behaviour.

• External reality places limits on what can happen.

• The Ego must manage all three pressures.

Consider the following scenario:

A student is angry with a teacher and wants to shout during a lesson. They also believe that shouting at the teacher would be wrong and know that it could lead to disciplinary consequences.

The conflict could be explained as follows:

• The Id demands the immediate expression of anger.

• The Superego judges shouting as morally unacceptable.

• External reality includes the possible disciplinary consequences.

• The Ego must find a realistic way to manage these competing demands.

If the conflict is difficult to manage, the Ego may use a defence mechanism.

What are defence mechanisms?

Defence mechanisms are unconscious strategies used by the Ego to manage psychologically threatening thoughts, feelings or conflicts.

The mechanisms operate without deliberate conscious planning.

Their purpose is to reduce psychological discomfort by changing the way a thought, feeling or situation is experienced.

The three defence mechanisms required in this lesson are:

• Repression

• Denial

• Displacement

Defence mechanisms do not necessarily remove the underlying conflict. Instead, they prevent the conflict from being experienced directly.

Repression

Repression involves pushing a threatening thought, wish or memory out of conscious awareness.

The material continues to exist unconsciously, but the person is not consciously aware of it.

The process can be represented as:

Threatening thought or memory → removed from conscious awareness → remains unconscious

For example, a person may be unable to consciously recall a psychologically upsetting event because the memory has been repressed.

According to the psychodynamic approach, the repressed material may still influence:

• Emotional reactions.

• Behaviour.

• Relationships.

• Responses to particular situations.

Repression is not the same as deliberately choosing not to think about something. It is an unconscious process.

Denial

Denial involves refusing to accept an unpleasant or threatening aspect of reality.

The event or situation exists, but the person acts as though it is not true.

For example, a student receives clear information that they have performed poorly in an assessment but insists that there is no problem and that their performance was excellent.

In denial:

• The external reality is threatening.

• Accepting it would create psychological discomfort.

• The person refuses to recognise or accept it.

Denial is not simply lying to another person. Within the psychodynamic explanation, the individual does not fully accept the reality themselves.

Displacement

Displacement involves redirecting an impulse or emotion from its original target towards a safer or more acceptable substitute.

The person may be unable to express an emotion towards the person or object that caused it.

The emotion is therefore directed elsewhere.

The process can be represented as:

Emotion towards original target → expression feels unsafe or unacceptable → emotion redirected towards substitute target

For example:

A person is angry with their manager but believes that expressing the anger at work would have serious consequences. They return home and shout at a family member.

The anger originated in the workplace, but it was redirected towards a safer target.

Comparing repression, denial and displacement

Defence mechanism	What happens?	Main focus
Repression	A threatening thought, wish or memory is pushed out of conscious awareness	Internal psychological material
Denial	An unpleasant part of external reality is refused or rejected	External reality
Displacement	An impulse or emotion is redirected towards a safer substitute	Target of the emotion or impulse

A useful way to distinguish them is:

• Repression: “I am not consciously aware of it.”

• Denial: “I refuse to accept that it is happening.”

• Displacement: “I direct the feeling somewhere safer.”

Repression and deliberate avoidance

Repression must be distinguished from consciously avoiding a topic.

Repression	Deliberate avoidance
Unconscious	Conscious
The material is outside awareness	The person knows what they are avoiding
The individual does not deliberately choose the process	The person intentionally chooses not to discuss or consider something

For example, deciding not to discuss an embarrassing event is not necessarily repression. The person remains aware of the event.

Repression requires the material to be removed from conscious awareness.

Denial and dishonesty

Denial must also be distinguished from deliberate dishonesty.

Denial	Dishonesty
The person does not accept the threatening reality	The person knows the truth but deliberately reports something different
Operates as an unconscious defence	Involves a conscious decision
Protects the individual from psychological discomfort	May be used to influence another person

A person who knows they received a low mark but tells a friend they received a high mark is not necessarily using denial. They may simply be lying.

Denial would involve refusing to accept the poor performance as real or meaningful.

Displacement and direct expression

Displacement occurs only when an emotion or impulse is redirected away from its original target.

Direct expression	Displacement
Emotion is expressed towards its original source	Emotion is expressed towards a substitute
A student is angry with a friend and tells the friend	A student is angry with a friend and shouts at someone else
The target remains the same	The target changes

The substitute target is often safer because expressing the emotion towards the original target might be difficult, unacceptable or risky.

Applying defence mechanisms to a scenario

Consider the following examples.

Example 1

After receiving repeated evidence that his project has failed, Daniel continues to insist that it has been completely successful.

Daniel may be using denial because he refuses to accept the threatening external reality of the project’s failure.

Example 2

Zara is angry with her sports coach but says nothing during training. Later, she becomes unnecessarily angry with her sister.

Zara may be using displacement because her anger has been redirected from the coach towards a safer target.

Example 3

An upsetting memory is no longer available to conscious awareness, although it may continue to influence a person’s emotional responses.

This illustrates repression because the threatening memory has been pushed outside conscious awareness.

A method for identifying defence mechanisms

Use the following questions.

Step 1: Is a thought or memory outside conscious awareness?

If yes, the defence mechanism may be repression.

Step 2: Is the person refusing to accept an unpleasant reality?

If yes, the defence mechanism may be denial.

Step 3: Has an emotion been redirected towards a different target?

If yes, the defence mechanism may be displacement.

Clue in the scenario	Likely defence mechanism
Cannot consciously access a threatening memory	Repression
Refuses to accept clear reality	Denial
Expresses an emotion towards a substitute target	Displacement

⚠️ Always explain your choice using details from the scenario. Naming the mechanism alone will not fully answer an application question.

How the unconscious and personality structure work together

The different concepts within the psychodynamic approach form one explanation.

1. The Id produces unconscious wishes or impulses.

2. The Superego judges these wishes according to moral standards.

3. Conflict may arise between the Id and Superego.

4. The Ego attempts to manage the conflict in a realistic way.

5. When the conflict is psychologically threatening, the Ego may use a defence mechanism.

6. The person may remain unaware of the real cause of their behaviour.

This means observable behaviour may be the result of an unconscious process rather than a fully conscious decision.

Psychodynamic explanations of behaviour

When applying the psychodynamic approach, a good answer should explain more than one stage.

Consider this scenario:

Isaac is criticised by his manager. He wants to respond angrily but believes that doing so would be wrong and knows it could place his job at risk. He says nothing at work but later becomes angry with a friend.

A developed explanation would state:

• The Id creates an impulse to express anger immediately.

• The Superego opposes behaviour judged to be unacceptable.

• The Ego recognises the consequences of confronting the manager.

• Conflict arises between the different demands.

• The Ego uses displacement.

• Anger is redirected from the manager towards the safer target of the friend.

This is stronger than simply stating, “Isaac uses displacement.”

The psychodynamic approach and psychic determinism

The psychodynamic approach proposes that behaviour has underlying psychological causes, even when those causes are unconscious.

This links with psychic causes of behaviour.

A person may believe that their behaviour was a free and fully conscious choice, while the psychodynamic approach suggests that unconscious conflict influenced it.

This does not mean that every possible behaviour can be explained confidently. Unconscious causes cannot be directly observed and must be inferred from evidence.

The psychodynamic approach and levels of explanation

The psychodynamic approach explains behaviour using:

• Unconscious processes.

• Conflict within personality.

• Defence mechanisms.

• Early experience.

This differs from:

• Behaviourist explanations based on conditioning.

• Cognitive explanations based on information processing.

• Biological explanations based on genetics, structures and neurochemistry.

The psychodynamic approach therefore operates at a different level of explanation.

The advantages and limitations of focusing on one level are explored through different levels of psychological explanation.

Applying the approach carefully

Psychodynamic concepts are often used too loosely in everyday language.

For example, it would be inaccurate to label every failure to remember as repression. Forgetting may occur for many reasons.

Similarly:

• Disagreeing with evidence is not automatically denial.

• Expressing anger is not automatically displacement.

• Wanting something is not automatically evidence that the Id controlled behaviour.

Application requires a clear match between the scenario and the defining features of the concept.

Comparing the psychodynamic approach with the cognitive approach

Psychodynamic approach	Cognitive approach
Emphasises unconscious processes	Emphasises information processing
Explains personality through the Id, Ego and Superego	Explains mental processing using schemas and models
Uses defence mechanisms to explain responses to conflict	Uses inferences to explain processes such as interpretation
Gives an important role to hidden wishes and conflicts	Gives an important role to active processing
Mental processes are inferred	Mental processes are also inferred

Both approaches recognise that behaviour cannot be understood only by observing the external environment.

However, they propose different types of internal explanation.

Comparing the psychodynamic and behaviourist approaches

Psychodynamic approach	Behaviourist approach
Focuses on unconscious psychological causes	Focuses on learning from the environment
Uses the Id, Ego, Superego and defence mechanisms	Uses classical and operant conditioning
Explains behaviour through internal conflict	Explains behaviour through associations and consequences
Behaviour may have hidden symbolic or emotional causes	Behaviour is explained using observable learning processes

These differences are developed fully through comparing the assumptions of psychological approaches.

Writing an effective explanation of the psychodynamic approach

A strong answer connects the concepts rather than listing definitions.

For example:

The psychodynamic approach proposes that behaviour is influenced by unconscious processes. Personality consists of the Id, Ego and Superego. The Id seeks immediate satisfaction, while the Superego represents moral standards. The Ego attempts to balance these competing demands with external reality. When conflict becomes psychologically threatening, the Ego may use an unconscious defence mechanism, such as repression, denial or displacement.

This answer:

1. Explains the role of the unconscious.

2. Describes all three parts of personality.

3. Explains the conflict between them.

4. Connects the conflict with defence mechanisms.

5. Uses appropriate specialist terminology.

Key Words 🔑

Key word	Student-friendly definition	How it may be used in an exam
Psychodynamic approach	An approach that explains behaviour through unconscious processes, personality conflict and early experience.	Outline the assumptions of the approach.
Unconscious	The part of the mind containing wishes, thoughts, memories and impulses outside conscious awareness.	Explain why people may not understand the causes of their behaviour.
Personality	The psychological characteristics and processes that influence how a person behaves.	Introduce the roles of the Id, Ego and Superego.
Id	The part of personality that seeks the immediate satisfaction of basic urges and wishes.	Identify the source of an immediate unconscious impulse.
Ego	The part of personality that balances the Id, Superego and external reality.	Explain how competing demands are managed.
Superego	The part of personality that represents moral standards and judges behaviour.	Explain why an impulse may create psychological conflict.
Conflict	A clash between different demands, wishes or standards within personality.	Explain why the Ego may need to use a defence mechanism.
Defence mechanism	An unconscious strategy used by the Ego to manage psychologically threatening thoughts or conflicts.	Introduce repression, denial or displacement.
Repression	Unconsciously pushing a threatening thought, wish or memory out of conscious awareness.	Explain why material may no longer be consciously accessible.
Denial	Refusing to accept an unpleasant or threatening aspect of reality.	Apply the approach when a person rejects clear evidence.
Displacement	Redirecting an impulse or emotion from its original target towards a safer substitute.	Explain why an emotion is expressed towards a different person or object.
Psychic determinism	The view that behaviour is caused by psychological processes, including unconscious influences.	Link the approach to free will and determinism.
External reality	The circumstances, limits and consequences that the Ego must consider.	Explain how the Ego responds realistically to the Id.
Inference	A conclusion about an unobservable process based on evidence.	Explain how unconscious processes may be investigated.

Common Mistakes ⚠️

Mistake: Describing the unconscious as information a person is currently thinking about.

Why this is incorrect:The unconscious contains material outside conscious awareness.

How to improve:Explain that the person is not directly aware of the unconscious thought, wish, memory or impulse.

Mistake: Saying that the Id makes realistic decisions.

Why this is incorrect:The Id seeks immediate satisfaction without considering consequences or external limits.

How to improve:Attribute realistic decision-making and the management of consequences to the Ego.

Mistake: Describing the Ego as the selfish part of personality.

Why this is incorrect:The Ego attempts to balance the demands of the Id, the Superego and external reality.

How to improve:Use the word mediator and explain which competing demands are being managed.

Mistake: Saying that the Superego seeks immediate satisfaction.

Why this is incorrect:Immediate satisfaction is associated with the Id. The Superego represents moral standards.

How to improve:Remember: Id wants, Superego judges, Ego manages.

Mistake: Treating defence mechanisms as conscious decisions.

Why this is incorrect:Within the psychodynamic approach, defence mechanisms operate unconsciously.

How to improve:State that the person does not deliberately decide to repress, deny or displace.

Mistake: Confusing repression with choosing not to discuss something.

Why this is incorrect:Someone who deliberately avoids a topic remains consciously aware of it. Repression places the material outside conscious awareness.

How to improve:Look for evidence that the person cannot consciously access the thought or memory.

Mistake: Describing lying as denial.

Why this is incorrect:A person who lies may consciously know the truth. Denial involves refusing to accept the threatening reality.

How to improve:Explain whether the individual themselves accepts or rejects the reality.

Mistake: Describing direct anger as displacement.

Why this is incorrect:Displacement requires the emotion to be redirected away from its original target.

How to improve:Identify both the original source of the emotion and the substitute target.

Mistake: Naming a defence mechanism without explaining it.

Why this is incorrect:An application answer must show how the details of the scenario match the mechanism.

How to improve:Identify the threatening thought or emotion and explain exactly what happens to it.

Mistake: Treating the Id, Ego and Superego as physical parts of the brain.

Why this is incorrect:They are theoretical components of personality, not biological structures.

How to improve:Describe their psychological roles rather than giving them physical locations.

Exam-Style Questions ✍️

Question 1

Which one of the following is the main role of the Ego?

A. To seek immediate satisfaction

B. To store all conscious memories

C. To balance competing demands and external reality

D. To represent biological structures

[1 mark]

Question 2

Define the unconscious.

[2 marks]

Question 3

Distinguish between the Id and the Superego.

[4 marks]

Question 4

Explain the role of the Ego in the psychodynamic approach.

[3 marks]

Question 5

Explain one difference between repression and denial.

[4 marks]

Question 6

Mariam is angry with her course leader after receiving critical feedback. She believes it would be risky to express her anger directly. Later that evening, she becomes unnecessarily angry with her brother.

Using your knowledge of the psychodynamic approach, explain Mariam’s behaviour.

[4 marks]

Question 7

Read the following descriptions:

• Alex refuses to accept clear evidence that a project has failed.

• Ben cannot consciously access a psychologically threatening memory.

• Charlie is angry with a manager but directs the anger towards a friend.

For each person, identify and explain the defence mechanism being used.

[6 marks]

Question 8

A student says:

The Id, Ego and Superego all have the same aim, so conflict between them is unlikely.

Explain why this statement is incorrect.

[4 marks]

Question 9

Explain the psychodynamic approach.

Refer to the unconscious, the Id, Ego and Superego, and defence mechanisms in your answer.

[8 marks]