15 differences between Freud and Jung

There are innumerable, and in many cases heated, controversies that have been generated around the figures of Sigmund Freud and Carl Gustav Jung. In general, for each of its proposals we find experts who position themselves for and against, each with their own nuances. However, have you ever wondered what the differences are between Freud and Jung?

The differences between Freud and Jung are interesting because, paradoxically, In the beginning they coincided in thoughts and theoretical approaches. In fact, the initial coincidence causes in some cases doubts to arise about the author of a certain idea; However, over time, their differences increased and each one’s seal became much more particular.

One way or another, the walk we propose through the history of these two great authors becomes interesting, will you join us?

Why differentiate between Freud and Jung?

Sigmund Freud was a doctor of Austrian origin that gave rise and shape to one of the most powerful and long-established psychological trends: psychoanalysis. Furthermore, he is considered by many, both followers and critics, to be one of the most important intellectuals of the 20th century.

Being a neurologist, his initial interest as a field of study was neurology; It is there where we can locate the origin of his evolution, which gradually leads to a more psychological aspect: both in the analysis of the causes, as well as in the course and consequences of the disorders that he studied.

On the other hand, Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist and essayist. He served as a key figure in the beginnings of psychoanalysis. Later, he founded his own school of “analytical psychology,” also known as depth or complex psychology.

Jung was interested in Freud’s work to the point of naming the latter as his “successor.” Nevertheless, It did not take long for the Vienna master and the Zurich master, as a result of their theoretical and personal disagreements, to separate. In this way, Jung was expelled from the International Psychoanalytic Society of that time, the same one that he presided over at the time (1910).

Differences between Freud and Jung

Perhaps a good differential starting point can be seen by consulting the correspondence between the two authors based on Freud’s text “Introduction to Narcissism”, as supported by research published by the University journal of psychoanalysis.

Besides, Although there are many differences between Freud and Jung, in this article we focus on the most relevant ones.s. These first orientations of both psychology celebrities, which have been analyzed and endorsed by Dr. Juan Carlos Alonso González, from the Universidad Pontificia Javeriana, serve as the first starting point to delve into Analytical Psychology.

1. Be a psychoanalyst

Although it is not unusual to hear the term “Jungian psychoanalyst” – to those trained in Jung’s theory – it is a nominative error. Jung is not considered a psychoanalystIn fact, he himself decided to completely separate from this school and founded his own.

2. The term “complex”

Freud recognized and gave the authorship of this term to Jung. Freud used this term always accompanied by a surname in his theory: “Oedipus Complex” or “Castration Complex” in order to explain the sexual theory and the psychic dynamics that occurred there.

Instead, For Jung, the term complex has to do with the set of emotionally charged concepts or images. that acts as a split autonomous personality. At the core of these complexes is the archetype, which in turn is related to the concept of trauma.

3. Parapsychology and occult phenomena

Jung attached great importance to parapsychology and the authenticity of what were then called “occult phenomena.”as stated in a work published by the Journal of the history of psychology. Freud, on the other hand, was opposed to studying these questions and linking them to psychoanalysis; He considered that they would do a lot of damage to the theory and, in addition, he expressed himself in an atheistic position.

4. Concept of «archaic remains»

For Freud, “archaic remains” have to do with certain unconscious contents and with the concept of memory trace that this created.

Instead, For Jung, archaic remains were more than that. In fact, allowed him to create a topology of the unconscious different from that of psychoanalysis – the collective unconscious.. To do this, he made use of the analysis of his patients’ dreams, interpreted different myths produced by various cultures and added them to the research of alchemical symbology.

According to Jung, the collective unconscious is something common to human nature. You are born with it and it is made up of archetypal structures derived from the most transcendent emotional moments of humanity that result in the ancestral fear of darkness, the idea of ​​God, the good, the demonic, among others.

5. Historical factors and the importance of the present, one of the main differences between Freud and Jung

For Freud, both in the development of neurosis and psychosis, historical factors prevailed. of each individual about current factors or circumstances. That is, historical factors would determine current and future behaviors.

However, For Jung this worked the other way around. It relativizes the preeminence of historical factors in the Freudian foundation. And even though Freud did not disagree with this peculiarity, he would do so in general terms, given Jung’s focus on highlighting, with respect to the field of study of neuroses, the present to the detriment of the past.

6. Élan vital vs. libido

For Jung, the concept of libido would define a vital energy of a general nature. that would take the most important form for the organism at each moment of its biological evolution (feeding, elimination or sex).

On the other hand, Freud’s conception of libido was an energy, above all, sexual, and that was concentrated in different areas of the body throughout the psychosexual development of the individual.

7. Psychic topology

For Freud, the psychic structure was composed of three levels: conscious, preconscious and unconscious. For Jung, on the other hand, there was a conscious level, but it referred to two unconscious levels: the personal unconscious and the collective unconscious.

8. The transfer

Another difference between Freud and Jung is in how they understood the phenomenon of transference. They both contemplated this concept. Freud conceived that, for this to occur, a certain asymmetry must exist where the analyst serves as the object.: a blank screen where the patient can place -transfer- fantasies, representative figures, etc., from here the analytical work begins.

On the other hand, although for Jung transference is the central problem of analysis, he does not share his orthodox praxis. Once part of his knowledge of alchemy, he defines the therapeutic relationship from the metaphor of two different chemical bodies that, when brought into contact, modify each other.

9. The couch

For Freud, the use of the couch tool was essential to be able to carry out analysis. In this way, the analyst is always out of sight of the patient. Quite the opposite of Jung, who did the sessions face to face, sitting in front of the patient while maintaining a constant direct interaction. He dispensed with the couch.

10. Frequency of sessions

The frequency of the sessions is another of the differences between Freud and Jung. Carl Gustav Jung initially saw his patients twice a week. about an hour per session. Later, he proposed that they move to a weekly session in a usual three-year treatment.

Freud, on the other hand, saw his patients six times a week, for 45 or 50 minutes for each session strictly.

11. Death drive

According to an article published by the Chilean journal of neuro-psychiatry, Freud defended the existence of two types of drives: the death drive (or Thanatos), which represents the tendency of every living being to return to the inorganic (that is, to that state from which it emerged). On the other hand, the life drive (or Eros) that leads us to preserve life through impulses and behaviors such as sex, the fight or flight response and creation.

However, For Jung, psychic energy has a nonspecific characterso he did not agree with this distinction between drives.

12. The finalist principle

As an article published in Universitas psychologica points out, for Jung, mental activity has an objective (finalist principle), while for Freud the mind only has conditions determined by past experiences.

Jung takes into account the past, but accepts that human life is also thrown into the future. The existence of every man is not only determined by his past.

13. The clinical approach

Freud’s approach was focused on abnormality, that is, on the pathological. On the other hand, Jung’s focused more on the healthy, the normal. For him it was not logical to extract the normal from the pathological. For this reason, he advocated creating a psychology of the normal human being to then understand the disease. Jung opposed the use of labels or labels to classify the mentally ill.

14. Interpretation of dreams

Another distinction between both authors was the analysis of the dream world. Freud’s interpretation of dreams was too restrictive and sometimes erred on the side of focusing too much on sexuality. For Jung, dreams could not be interpreted based on fixed and rigid rules; since they had to, however, also be analyzed from the person’s external world. In summary, Freud’s interpretation focused on the internal, while Jung’s focused on the external and internal.

15. The unconscious

The unconscious is an important topic in both thinkers, although they see it from different perspectives. For Freud, the unconscious has a somewhat negative nuance, it is a kind of baggage from which repressed experiences emerge. On the other hand, Jung believed that it was also possible to extract positive things from the unconscious; From his perspective, it is an endless source of creativity.

Jung and Freud, two unforgettable thinkers

Now we understand a little why such heated debates occur between the followers of both thinkers. Regardless of the discrepancies, we must recognize that Freud and Jung have left a legacy that remains valid to this day. His contributions to the understanding of the human psyche are invaluable.

In closing, although we have only mentioned fifteen differences between Freud and Jung here, many more could be found. The…