What’s the true driving force behind all of our thoughts and actions? How do our unconscious desires affect our everyday lives, even when we’re not aware of them?
In his book The Interpretation of Dreams, Sigmund Freud writes that wishes form the foundation of all mental activity. Freud’s theory of mind explores how these wishes operate across three distinct layers of consciousness and why some desires become repressed.
Read on to discover how your unconscious mind influences your behavior and why the thoughts you’re actively pushing away might still be shaping your mental health.
Freud’s Theory of Mind
Freud’s theory of mind addresses the importance of wishes and how they can become repressed. He also posits that the mind has three layers.
The Importance of Wishes
Freud asserts that the core activity of your mind is wishing—that every thought or mental action is driven by an underlying desire or motivation, even though you may not be aware of those wishes. These wishes may be simple, such as a desire to alleviate boredom, or they may be much deeper, such as a longing for connection and purpose in life.
| Why Do We Wish for Things? If all thought is driven by wishes, why do we wish for things? Psychologists have put forth a range of theories. Here we’ll explore three perspectives. Evolutionary psychologists assert that humans evolved motivational drives: Certain behaviors increased our ancestors’ chances of reproduction, and humans developed desires for these behaviors that were then passed on to subsequent generations. Thus, we humans have innate instincts to find mates, gain access to resources, maintain our social standing in groups, take care of family members, and form alliances with friends, as all of these activities have historically increased our chances of survival and reproduction. These instincts manifest as wishes. Behaviorist psychologist B.F. Skinner offers a different theory: He argues that motivation is shaped by conditioning and external rewards. That is, people repeat actions that result in pleasure while avoiding actions that result in pain. Thus, he maintains that human motivation is the product of external rewards rather than innate, internal drives. In this view, you wish for the things that have rewarded you in the past. Finally, in Man’s Search for Meaning, the psychologist and holocaust survivor Victor Frankl argues that humans are fundamentally driven to pursue meaning in life. He explains that all humans long to experience a sense of purpose, and he suggests three paths: producing achievements and good deeds, having positive and memorable experiences, or finding meaning in suffering and self-sacrifice. Thus, what you wish for at a given time may be whatever brings you closer to a sense of purpose in your life. |
The Repression of Wishes and the Censor
Freud argues that many of our wishes are repressed. This means that our minds are actively pushing against them, trying to prevent them from expressing themselves. These wishes are repressed because they’re in direct conflict with other wishes. For example, someone’s desire to be a faithful spouse may conflict with a romantic desire toward someone other than their partner. This means that the desire to be faithful may repress the desire for the extramarital affair and prevent the person from experiencing it.
Freud posits that a part of your mind is dedicated to repressing thoughts and feelings that would allow you to experience unacceptable wishes. He calls this part “The Censor” because it censors the activity of your mind. However, Freud explains that repressed wishes don’t disappear. Instead, they remain part of our minds and influence our mental health and dreams.
(Shortform note: Since Freud’s time, researchers have sought to understand the effects of emotional repression on our mental and physical health. Studies have found that men who regularly repress their emotions are at higher risk of heart disease than those who don’t. Researchers have also found that repressing emotions increases rates of anxiety and depression in people in Western cultures. However, the same link has not been found in Eastern cultures, and more research is needed to understand why.)
The Three Layers of the Mind
Freud conceives of the mind in three layers: the conscious, the preconscious, and the unconscious. The differences between these layers lies in your ability to access the thoughts and feelings they contain.
1) The Conscious Mind
According to Freud, your conscious mind is your waking mind, encompassing your current awareness and thoughts. This is the part of your psyche that you actively engage with and can readily access. For instance, as you read this paragraph, your understanding of these words and your immediate thoughts about them are part of your conscious mind. Similarly, when you deliberately recall a memory or solve a problem, you’re operating within the realm of consciousness.
2) The Preconscious Mind
Freud describes your preconscious mind as a layer that consists of thoughts and memories not currently in conscious awareness, but which can be easily accessed by your conscious mind. For example, your home address or the name of your first-grade teacher might reside in your preconscious until you need to remember it.
3) The Unconscious Mind
Finally, Freud writes that your unconscious mind is the deepest layer of your psyche, consisting of thoughts, feelings, and memories that your conscious mind can’t directly access because they’ve been repressed by your censor. These are often primitive urges, traumatic experiences, or socially unacceptable desires that your conscious mind finds too threatening or disturbing to acknowledge.
