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unconscious |
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unconscious, in psychology, that aspect of mental life that is separate from immediate consciousness and is not subject to recall at will. Sigmund Freud Freud, Sigmund (froid), 1856–1939, Austrian psychiatrist, founder of psychoanalysis . ..... Click the link for more information. regarded the unconscious as a submerged but vast portion of the mind. In his view, the unconscious was composed of the id, which accounts for instinctual drives, acts as the motivating force in human behavior, and contains desires and wishes that the individual hides—or represses—from conscious recognition; and part of the superego, the system that acts to restrain and control id impulses. Conscious cognitive processes, such as thinking, are performed by the ego and part of the superego (see psychoanalysis psychoanalysis, name given by Sigmund Freud to a system of interpretation and therapeutic treatment of psychological disorders. Psychoanalysis began after Freud studied (1885–86) with the French neurologist J. M. ..... Click the link for more information. ). Conflict between conscious and unconscious impulses are said to give rise to anxiety anxiety, anticipatory tension or vague dread persisting in the absence of a specific threat. In contrast to fear, which is a realistic reaction to actual danger, anxiety is generally related to an unconscious threat. ..... Click the link for more information. , then to defense mechanisms defense mechanism, in psychoanalysis, any of a variety of unconscious personality reactions which the ego uses to protect the conscious mind from threatening feelings and perceptions. ..... Click the link for more information. , which counteract this anxiety. To tap the unconscious, Freud used a variety of techniques, including hypnosis, free association, and dream interpretation. C. G. Jung Jung, Carl Gustav (kärl g s`täf y..... Click the link for more information. expanded on the Freudian concept, adding the idea of an inherited unconscious, known as the collective unconscious. The idea of the unconscious has been rejected by some psychological schools, although it is still used by many psychoanalysts. The term unconscious is also used to describe latent, or unretrieved, memories, or to describe stimuli too weak to enter an individual's conscious awareness. unconsciousor subconsciousIn psychoanalysis, the part of the psychic apparatus that does not ordinarily enter the individual's awareness but may be manifested by slips of the tongue, dreams, or neurotic symptoms (see neurosis). The existence of unconscious mental activities was first elaborated by Sigmund Freud and is now a well-established principle of psychiatry. The origin of many neurotic symptoms is said to depend on conflicts that have been removed from consciousness by repression and maintained in the unconscious through various defense mechanisms. Recent biopsychological explorations have shed light on the relationship between brain physiology and the levels of consciousness at which people retain memories. unconscious 1. lacking normal sensory awareness of the environment; insensible 2. coming from or produced by the unconscious 3. Psychoanal the part of the mind containing instincts, impulses, images, and ideas that are not available for direct examination unconscious [¦ən′kän·shəs] (medicine) Insensible; in a state lacking conscious awareness, with reflexes abolished. (psychology) Pertaining to behavior or experience not controlled by the ego. The part of the mind, mental functioning, or personality not in the immediate field of awareness. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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| It is matter of common observation that "so-and-so does not know his own motives," or that "A is envious of B and malicious about him, but quite unconscious of being so. They groped their way towards the unconscious man, Gerald still gripping the dressing-case with both hands. She sits, as I am informed, perfectly silent, and perfectly unconscious of what goes on about her, for hours together, with a letter in her hand which she will allow nobody to take from her. |
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