Developmental Psychology - Freud, Little Hans (1909)

Developmental Psychology - Freud, Little Hans (1909)

Annotations:

• See Psychodynamic Perspective for more insight.

1. Aim
   1. To report the finding of a treatment for a five-year-old boy with a phobia, in this case Little Hans and his phobia of horses and the later phobia of leaving the house.
      1. To use Psychoanalysis in an attempt to figure out the root of Little Hans's phobia and in turn the treatment to solve the phobia.
2. Psychosexual stages of development

   Annotations:

   • For more indepth studies fo to Freud - Psycholodynamic Approach on my profile because i'm too lazy to repeat it all on this mind-map (it will be the purple node).

   Attachments:

   • The Psychodynamic Perspective
   1. Oral Stage - Obtaining pleasure from the mouth.

      Annotations:

      • From birth to around 16 months.
      1. Anal Stage - Children obtaining pleasure from retaining or excreting faeces.

         Annotations:

         • Starting from 16 months and lasting to about 3 years of age.
         1. Phallic Stage - Children focus on pleasure obtained from the genital area. Most relevant to this study.

            Annotations:

            • From 3 years and 6 years of age.
            1. Latency Stage - Sexual drives are repressed.

               Annotations:

               • From four/six years through to puberty.
               1. Genital Stage - Focus of pleasure is again in the genital area but through stimulation of the opposite sex.

                  Annotations:

                  • From puberty and onward.
3. Strengths
   1. Qualitative

      Annotations:

      • Vast amount of qualitative data means that what happened going towards the event and what happened after the event have been recorded and can offer proof, evidence and/or reasons as to why the event occured.
   2. Longitudinal data

      Annotations:

      • The case study was ongoing from when Little Hans was 3 up to the age of 5 meaning that is rich in data as Freud (Littles Han's father to be more accurate) is able to observe Hans growing, meaning he is able to give possible reasons for changed in behaviour.
      • A vast wealth of quantitative data.
   3. Relationship between Little Hans, his father and Professor.

      Annotations:

      • Allowed for information of a sensitive matter to be discussed as it were the norm. This may not have been achieveable if the relationship between father and son was not close.
      • Littles Hans' father being a follower (and friend) of Freud meant that information could have been relayed to the professor on a regular/constant basis.
   4. Ecological Validity

      Annotations:

      • Data was taken from Hans' every day life, not in laboratory conditions, but in a natural setting. Hans was asked to share his thoughts in a situation where the was no immediate pressure.
4. Weaknesses
   1. Professor, Father (bias) and Little Hans relationship.

      Annotations:

      • The relations between the three will not be able to replicated accurately.
      • Close relations could have created a bias.
   2. Represantivity

      Annotations:

      • It can not be generalised as Freud focused on a specific persons phobia and found an explanation through events that occurred to that individual meaning the data cannot generalised to the whole of a population.
   3. Reliability

      Annotations:

      • The study will not be able to be replicated. ~Frued was the one making the interpretations and he is no longer around to make them if an attempt of replicating the study was attempted. ~The close relationship between father and participant will not be able to exactly replicated and it helped provide rich information from Little Hans (the sensitive topic of conversation for example). ~The fathers friendship/followship of Freud allowed for a non-intrusive natural enviroment to be created and will not be easily replicated.
   4. Validity

      Annotations:

      • Relating to Loftus and Palmers study on leading questions, the instance where Little Hans' father asked him "Did you want to hurt your sister?" can be deemed a leading question. Han's may have only said yes in accordance to demand characteristics. 
5. Method/Proceedure
   1. A Case Study was the method used to investigate Little Hans' phobia.

      Annotations:

      • The first report was documented to be when Little Hans was 3 years of age.
      1. Technically the study was conducted by Little Hans' father who relayed the information, via reports, back to Freud who then interpreted it.
         1. Freud himself notes that the close relationship between father and son allowed for indepth discussions between the two that may not have been acheivable between another father and son who's relationship was not as close as little hans' and his fathers.
6. Arguments
   1. Free Will VS Determinism
      1. This is a deterministic study.
         1. Deterministic Defintion

            Annotations:

            • The deterministic argument is where we have no control over our actions as we act solely on out genes/biology and the way we have been brought up.
7. Oedipus/Electra Complex and Infant Sexuality
   1. Oedipus complex is where a male child has the desire to posess his mother, the Electra complex is where a female child has the desire to poses her father.
   2. The Psychosexual stages can be found, in detail, on the Psychodynamic Perspective mindmap.
8. Psychoanalytical Interpretations
   1. Dreams
      1. Widdler Exchange

         Annotations:

         • 'Widdler' is the term little Hans uses for the penis.
         • This dream was towards the end of the time Hans was being observed by his father. In the dream a plumber exchanged Little Hans' widdler and bottom for a larger pair which were bigger than his fathers.
         1. In obtaining a pair larger than his fathers, Freud believed that this mean he no longer felt 'over shadowed' by his father and his unconscious
      2. Mother Marriage

         Annotations:

         • Hans dreams of him and his mother surrounded by children (their children) and Hans' father having been promoted to grandfather so that Hans is married to his mother and not his father.
         1. Hans describes himself being marrying his mother, with his father becoming a grandfather. Freud analysed this by saying it was proof that Hans sexually wanted his mother as he wanted to be her husband and have her children.
      3. Giraffe Girth

         Annotations:

         • In Littles Hans' dream there is a big giraffe (with a long neck) and a crumpled giraffe (with a smaller neck) in a room. Hans said he takes the crumpled giraffe away from the big giraffe causing the big giraffe to start crying out. Once it stops, Hans sits on the little giraffe.
         1. Both Freud and Hans' father believe that the big giraffe is the father, its long neck representing a larger widdler. Hans liked to get into bed with his parents in some mornings and Freud (and the father) believe that the big giraffe's caling out as the crunpled giraffe (the mother) is taken away is the equivilant to the father objecting to Hans getting into the bed.
   2. The Horse and the Father

      Annotations:

      • Freud established possible similarities between the type of horse Little Hans was afraid of and Little Hans' father.
      • The horse type Little Hans was afraid of were white with black around their mouths and wearing blinkers. This was said to be similar to Hans' father as the father had white hair, a dark moustache and black framed glasses.
      • This was the first connection between, or leap, towards what was causing little Hans' 'fear' of his father.
   3. The Mother

      Annotations:

      • Hans was constantly jealous for his mothers attention. When asked he admitted that he wanted his mother to hold his sister head underwater. When his father came home from a long trip he hugged his father but alternated between beating him with his fist (a sign or anger/annoyance at him being home) and hugging him (Hans missing his fathers presence),
      • The Mother marriage dream also indicates to Hans wanting to take his fathers place, to have more attention from his mother.
      • The Giraffe Girth dream also does this. Hans took his mother away from his father and then sat on 'her'.
9. Conclusion/Explanation
   1. Proof of Oedipus/Electra complex

      Annotations:

      • The proof of the Oedipus complex was the dreams in which Little Hans had (marrying his mother and his father becoming his grandfather for example) meaning that, as disturbing as it is, there was some proof to Oedipus complex - the idea that Hans wanted his mother as a substitute for his father was somewhat proved by this dream.
   2. What it means for Psychotherapy

      Annotations:

      • As Freud theory did indeed work - Freud found what he believed to be the root of the problem and it explained to Hans which allowed Hans to get over the Phobia - it meant that people could now take the theory and use it.
10. Type of Data
    1. Vast amount of Qualitative data.

       Annotations:

       • The qualitative data collected started when Hans was 3 years of age going up to the age of 5, consisting of conversations Hans and his parents, dreams and behaviour.
11. Is this study useful?
    1. Yes. Whilst the exact same analysing techniques cannot be used, it did give the proof to the theory of psychoanalysing.
12. Design
    1. A Case Study

       Annotations:

       • The study is focused on solely one subject - Little Hans.
       1. As a case study, a lot of time was able to be devoted to analysing Hans' behaviour.

          Annotations:

          • Ergo, the study was rich in data.