Psychological Science & Society: Summer@USC

More contemporary research on "Freudian slips" suggests that they occur when people have two different concepts or words in their mind at one time, like "great" and "cool," rather than because of any covertly sexual motivations. 

And finally denial. This one is exactly what it sounds like--refusing to accept what everyone else knows to be true. 

Projection is when you attribute your own threatening impulses/desires to other people. So, for example, when people go on Maury accusing their partners of cheating, but then end up confessing to cheating themselves. 

Rationalization: When you offer self-justifying explanations after something doesn't work out so that you can make yourself feel better. See above. 

Side note: I have it on good authority that this works really well to talk your way out of traffic tickets. One of my mentors has used "Oh my dad's a cop! He's going to be so mad at me!" every single time and she says it has never failed her once. 

We're not here yet, but it's also worth noting that cathartically venting your anger actually makes you *angrier* in the long term. More on that later.

Granted, he thought boys did this to buffer against the anxiety of wanting to kill their fathers and do their moms, but whatever. People do this all the time, but, hopefully, for other reasons. 

According to the story, Oedipus gouged his eyes out once he realized that he had, in fact, killed his father and married his mother. Although this isn't something people do in the Freudian context, it's worth noting that auto-enucleation (removing one's eyeballs) is a very real, although very rare, thing. In particular, a new study has looked at this very specific kind of self-mutilation around the world and found that it's most often due to undiagnosed psychosis (e.g., the belief that your eyeballs are possessed, etc.)

Presented without comment. 

Crazy, right? Here are some puppets. 

In addition to believing that most of our thoughts were unconscious and out of our control, Freud believed that the mind had three parts: the id, the ego, and the superego. I usually liken these terms to your shoulder devil, your shoulder referee, and your shoulder angel, but this picture does it even better. 

Freudian slips that have appeared on live newscasts. Oops. 

But, if you ask me, I think the term just refers to how Freud came up with all of his ideas in the first place. 

Mr. Ismay is talking about the sheer size and strength of the ship and then she drops this masterful line asking whether he's ever heard of Dr. Freud. BURN. 

But sometimes, really most times, a cigar is just a cigar.

In the inimitable words of one of my students, "Fuck this. I thought Freud was right!" 

Your friendly reminder to always look out for conflicts of interest in scientific findings.