Asceticism (psychoanalysis) (from the Russian asceticism , from the Greek. Ασκεσις - “exercise”) is an adaptive mechanism of psychological defense , in which in thinking there is a realization that what is achieved in a certain area is less significant compared to the achievements of others. The term was proposed by Sigmund Freud , the founder of psychoanalysis, later the concept was developed by his daughter Anna Freud . Subsequently, the term went into "self-restraint" and began to be defined as one of the secondary protective adaptive mechanisms .
Asceticism in psychology should be understood as a denial, rejection and suppression of sensory aspirations in oneself. With the manifestation of the protective mechanism, the desire and craving to achieve certain dominant social goals disappears. The very manifestation of asceticism without coercion (of one's own free will), in the absence of a desire for domination, can be one of the paths to spiritual self-knowledge.
Asceticism was initially described as a psychological defense mechanism in Anna Freud 's Psychology of Self and Defense Mechanisms, and was defined as the suppression and denial of all instinctual impulses.
When describing this protective mechanism, Anna Freud was based on the behavior of adolescents, citing their problems as an example of the manifestation of asceticism.
A. Freud pointed out that this mechanism is more characteristic of the age category of adolescents. An example of this mechanism in practice is dissatisfaction with one’s appearance and the desire to change it. A consequence of this type of situation is defensive behavior, namely asceticism (self-restraint).
Sources
- Sigmund Freud . The neuro-psychoses of defense // The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud = Die Abwehr-Neuropsychosen (1894). - London: Hogarth press and the Institute of Psychoanalysis, 1962.
- Sigmund Freud . Mass Psychology and the Analysis of the Human Self (1921)
- Anna Freud . Psychology of I and defense mechanisms = Das Ich und die Abwehrmechanismen. - Moscow: Pedagogy-Press, 1993.
- S. A. Zelinsky. "Control of the psyche through manipulative influence"
- Nancy Mc-Williams , “Psychoanalytic Diagnostics: Understanding Personality Structures in the Clinical Process,” ed. “Class”, 1998.
- Sigmund Freud , “I and It”, 1923
- Ed. Mikhailova L.A. Psychological protection in emergency situations. Textbook for high schools . Peter (2009).
- Obukhova L.F. Age psychology: a textbook. - M .: URIGHT, 2011 .-- ISBN 978-5-9916-1280-7 .