Section 2.2 Psychoanalytic theory: The structure of personality | University of Rwanda

2. The structure of personality

Sigmund Freud believes that human personality is intricate and has multiple components. Freud’s well known psychoanalytic theory suggests that personality is made up of three key elements: the id, the ego, and the superego. These factors combine to produce intricate human behaviours. Each component uniquely contributes to personality, and their interactions significantly influence the individual. Different aspects of personality emerge at distinct stages throughout an individual’s life. This provides an in depth examination of each essential component of personality, its respective functions, and its interactions.

• The id is present from birth and operates on the pleasure principle (seeks immediate gratification of desirers like hunger, sex and aggression. It is unconscious and irrational and is the source of instinctual drives.

• The ego develops in early childhood. It operates on the reality principle and mediates between the unrealistic id and the demands of the external world. It is a rational and conscious decision-maker. It balances the id and the superego to avoid internal conflict.

• The superego develops around age 5. It represents internalized moral standards from parents and society and acts as a moral conscience. In other words, it acts on moral principal. It can cause guilt and shame if rules are violated.

Table 1: Comparison of id, ego and superego

Component	Description	Operating principle	Levels of consciousness	Development stage	Examples
Id	Source of all psychological energy; instinctive and primitive behaviours.	Pleasure principle seeks immediate gratification.	Entirely unconscious	Present from birth	A baby crying until fed, acting impulsively to satisfy desires without concern of consequences
Ego	Develops from the id; manages the id’s impulses in socially acceptable ways.	Reality principle balances desires with real-world constraints	Operates in conscious, preconscious, and unconscious levels.	Develops soon after birth.	Delaying hunger during a meeting until it’s appropriate to eat.
Superego	Internalized moral from parents and society; government judgement.	Idealistic principle strives for perfection and morality.	Operates in all levels of consciousness	Begins forming around age of five.	Feeling guilt for stealing; feeling virtuous for resisting temptation.