Unconscious Desires
It is possible to apply scientific methods to the study of unconscious desires and urges, as postulated by Freuds theory of personality. In recent years, there have been multiple attempts to use cognitive science approaches, such as statistical modeling of behavior, functional neuroimaging, and machine learning algorithms, to better understand the underlying psychological processes related to unconscious desires and urges. These approaches have yielded promising results in terms of increasing our understanding of the unconscious mind (Weiten et al., 2018). Granted, not all psychologists and theorists believe in the existence of unconscious desires: Adler, for instance, rejected Freuds notion that personality was shaped by unconscious desires and rather postulated that people can and do know what drives them and act accordingly. Really, applying the scientific method to the study of unconscious desires depends upon the ability to verify that these desires and urges exist, how they manifest themselves, and so on. This can be done through both qualitative and quantitative research (exploratory and experimental...
By measuring the activation of different areas of the brain while...…adopts, Freuds or Adlers, one will have a different interpretation of the so-called unconscious desires/urges. The data does not really indicate the extent to which these urges are hidden from the individual. That is still very much a topic of debate in the field of psychology. One reason cognitive behavioral therapy has emerged as a treatment approach is because it bypasses the debate and focuses solely on getting results by changing patterns of thinking and acting. Therefore, ultimately, while the scientific approach can be applied to the study of unconscious desires, the interpretation of the data is still subject to a…
