Freud and Ecopsychology                     by Kelley Rambo 

Deborah DuNann Winter:
Ecological Psychology: Healing the Split Between Planet & Self
 

Introduction
The Link
Summary of Freud's Ideas
Conclusion
Bibliography

Introduction

    In Ecological Psychology, Deborah Winter covers a great deal of psychological theory as it pertains to the current environmental crisis.  Taking traditional ideas and applying them to understanding human environmental behavior is a key theme throughout the book.  Because of the immense amount of psychology present and my own lack of knowledge in that field (as it is still very new to me being trained primarily in field biology and agricultural sciences), I have chosen to summarize the information presented on Freud's ideas.  Freud has traditionally been, especially for me, a theorist with highly questionable ideas.  It has been helpful to gain a clearer understanding of his ideas.  Although I may not agree completely with all of the Freudian psychology presented, much of it does make sense in light of what environmental behaviors I have personally witnessed.  I feel that this information will add to my proficiency in understanding psychology's traditional theories.
 

The Link

    Stemming from interdisciplinary foundations, the emerging field of ecopsychology looks at the relationship of human beings with the more-than-human world and how these relationships influence behaviors and perceptions.  It offers a point of convergence for the more traditional disciplines.  Ecopsychology provides the opportunity for a common language to emerge and for the sharing of ideas that had once been restricted to specific fields of study.

    Due to their obvious involvement in its formation, ecopsychology strives to bring the fields of ecology and psychology, among others, to common ground.  These two fields have traditionally functioned separately and even, at times, at odds.  Biologists have questioned the scientific validity of psychology, whereas psychologists have doggedly defended the importance of the individual's story.  In today's world of toxic waste and ozone depletion, some type of action becomes necessary in order to curb the decline in the quality of human habitat.  In my opinion, this action starts with the sharing of information and the crossing of borders, networking with those that we haven't typically spoken with in the past, hence, many of the goals which ecopsychology seeks to obtain.

    As I attempt to explain ecopsychology to colleagues in the environmental studies field, they often respond with curiosity as to how psychology can benefit their own work as ecologists.  Where is the link between the two seemingly different fields of study?  One rarely finds an ecologist without an innate love of nature.  To this, the ecologist is often a type of activist.  I don't necessarily mean the type of activist chained to trees or hunting down whaling boats, but I am referring to the activist that takes the time to educate his neighbor on the importance of recycling or the one that finds it important to volunteer for a local environmental organization or conservation commission or yet the one that chooses to do without many products in order to personally conserve resources.  What makes one an environmental activist?  And how can an activist better educate others in order to make changes in society's behaviors towards nature to create something more positive?  These are important questions that decades of psychological research in regards to human behavior may be able to help answer.
 

Summary of Freud's Ideas

    What would Freud have said about the environmental crisis?  What would one of the most influential figures from the 19th century have offered as ways of curbing environmental degradation?  First though, how did Freud himself view the human relationship with nature?  Here he writes:
 

[T]he principal task of civilization...is to defend us against nature.  We all know that in many ways civilization does this fairly well already, and clearly as time goes on it will do it much better.  But no one is under the illusion that nature has already been vanquished; and few dare hope that she will ever be entirely subjected to man.  There are the elements which seem to mock at all human control: the earth, which quakes and is torn apart and buries all human life and its works; water, which deluges and drowns everything in turmoil; storms, which blow everything before them...With these forces nature rises up against us, majestic, cruel and inexorable; she brings to our mind once more our weakness and helplessness, which we thought to escape through the work of civilization (Winter, p. 114-5). 
 

    Freud's primary theories were based on four main concepts which included: 1) unconscious reasoning motivates much of our behavior, 2) "conflict is universal, chronic and inevitable" (Winter, p. 116), 3) personalities are formed "in the body," so to speak, at an early age, and 4) that in order to function at a "normal" level in society, we create a split of awareness between wanted and unwanted thoughts, feelings and desires and use defenses, which will be described later, to contain them.  Two other important ideas of Freud's included one which he called Eros and, the other,  Thanatos.  Eros, named for sexual instincts, Freud believed to be fundamental in the shaping of the adult personality.  Thanatos represents Freud's idea that humans have "an unconscious, inborn, irrational need for destruction (Winter, p. 118)." 

    In regards to these last two ideas, it is important to take into context the world in which Freud conducted his work.  Freud, born in 1856, was a part of the Jewish urbanization of Vienna during his youth.  The influx of Jews into the city paralleled a rise in anti-Semitic feelings.  Freud, enlisting into academia, felt himself pushed outside of mainstream academics. His comfortability with his role as an outsider, though, may have influenced his later style of psychotherapy, one of an objective observer simply witnessing the client, making notes of his own which may or may not become known to the client in future sessions.  Freud also conducted much of his research "in a sexually repressive society which forbade his patients, mostly female, opportunities for expressing their sexual desires (Winter, p. 117)."  Based on what was considered bizarre behaviors, "Freud came to believe that psychological functioning is a creative outcome of the interplay between physical, instinctually based drives and the social, cultural, and moral pressures to tame, channel, subdue or repress them (Winter, p. 117)."   It was from these experiences and the emergence of both World Wars that Freud developed his ideas regarding human nature and behavior.

    As mentioned before, one of the main ideas of Freud's theories was that "the human psyche...is predominately unconscious and unobservable (Winter, p. 118)."   Our behavior is driven by selfish desires and fears which, in Freud's ideas, are hidden from the conscious leading us to believe that our actions are instead linked to moral or rational reasons.  The infamous Freudian slip refers to the times when the unconscious reveals itself through things such as racist or sexist jokes or slips of the tongue.  Winter uses the example here of "a student who 'accidentally' misspells Freud as Fraud, thereby unconsciously verbalizing rejection of his ideas (Winter, p. 119)." 

    The second main idea of Freud's work was that conflict is central.  Freud named three psychological structures:  the id -- the pleasure seeking structure; the ego -- the pragmatic structure; and the superego -- the moral structure influenced by parents and society.  These three structures, as Freud believed, operate on a daily basis, influencing our decision making process, continually creating a sense of inner conflict.  Winter uses the example here of "the experience of buying a fast-food hamburger.  The id experiences hunger; the ego considers price, convenience and nutrition; the superego might...[question]...the moral implications of contributing to rain forest destruction" through the purchase of beef products imported from cleared Third World rain forests (Winter, p. 121).   One structure may out win the other.  For instance, the moral superego may lose out as the id grows hungrier, or the id, advised by the pragmatic ego, may not be hungry enough to wait in a long line.  Winter writes that "many of our environmental choices involve conflicts of just this sort (Winter, p. 121)."   Our consumerism allows us to enact pro-environmental choices, as long as price and convenience are also available.  Likewise, the superego can cause anxiety, guilt or shame when the consumerist appetite of the id goes unchecked.

    Probably one of the most well-known and questioned principles of Freud's theory is the bodily basis of adult personality.  Terms like "penis envy" and "Oedipal complex" are seemingly well known, though possibly not well understood.  This aside, however, another application of this idea is in that Freud believed that our adult personality has foundations in our bodily life experiences.  For example, trauma or other physical experiences that may have occurred early in life can "give rise to character traits later in life (Winter, p. 123)."   Some alternative physical therapies, such as cranio-sacral therapy, believe that our bodily cells hold memories of our experiences as well (Feltman, p. 66-74).

    The fourth Freudian principle is one in which he believed that in order to function normally in society, individuals "split" their awareness in order to defend themselves from anxiety.  We can continue a behavior, in essence, without full acknowledgment of the long-term consequences.  Winter uses the example of continuing behaviors that are environmentally destructive without regard to long-term ecological effects.  Freud discussed several defense mechanisms, specific ways in which we are able to avoid feelings of anxiety.  These mechanisms include:
 

• rationalism -- when we try to "create an attractive but untrue explanation for our behavior" (Winter, p. 127-8)
• intellectualization -- distancing ourselves emotionally by describing the problem in abstract or "scientific" terms
• displacement -- expressing feelings toward a less-threatening or safer object. For example, buying a t-shirt with a picture of a whale on it which doesn't actually benefit the whale, although we think it does
• suppression -- a conscious avoidance of the anxiety
• repression -- an unconscious avoidance which is the most effective defense, but the least easy to maintain
• denial -- insisting that the cause of the anxiety "does not exist, while simultaneously expressing [the] anxiety in the form of impatience, irritation or even anger" (Winter, p. 130)
• reaction formation -- denying the impulse, but giving intense energy to supporting the opposite.  For instance, some people will show anger towards recycling and purposely throw garbage out their car windows in front of others they know to be recyclers.
• projection -- perceiving in others what we fail to perceive in ourselves, usually involving judgments or criticisms of others
• sublimation -- channeling unconscious anxiety into socially acceptable projects where the full extent of the anxiety is never really felt because it is transformed into a socially useful creation

    Using these four main principles, Freud developed what is called the object relations theory. In essence, it says "that we construct our sense of self from our interactions with others, particularly the person who was our primary caretaker (Winter, p. 135)."  Winter believes that "our relationship to our caretaker sets the foundation for our relationship with the planet (Winter, p. 138)."  Theories that discuss early relationships with the primary caretaker often refer to the self/other split that occurs at a point in early childhood development.  It is at this point that the child becomes aware of himself as an organism separate from others.  This point is critical in the child's development as it could lead to later psychological difficulties if one of at least three circumstances occur.  These include:
 

1. 1. If the caretaker puts excessive demands on the child.  The result is the development of a "false self."  As it pertains to our environmental behavior, a sense of "false self" may lead us to use external objects to express who we are, such as clothes or material luxuries.  "Overconsumption," Winter writes, "may be driven by a "false self" system (Winter, p. 138)."
2. 2. If the child's needs were never adequately met.  The result here are severely blurred boundaries between self and nonself.  Though the person with an inability to distinguish between self and nonself is particularly prone to psychosis, Winter takes this idea a step further by saying that "in a phase-appropriate developmental sequence..., [one can discover] the intimate interconnectedness and mutuality between planet and self (Winter, p. 140)."  The merging "of self and other, as in developing a sense of interconnectedness, is possible only after object relations are firmly structured (Winter, p. 140)."  As she quotes object relations theorist Jack Engler, "You have to be somebody before you can be nobody (Winter, p. 140)."
3. 3. "If the caretaker withdraws attention too quickly the sense of self will be constructed, but trust in the outer world will be damaged (Winter, p. 137)."  This damage can result in a variety of neurotic reactions.  Winter believes that three types of these are likely to impact environmental behavior.
• narcissism -- Winter believes that, in regards to our environmental situation, we are suffering from a "mass narcissism" believing "that nature exists [only] for our need gratification...[O]ther species' well-being is jeopardized because we consider them either useful for our purposes or harmful to our comfort  (Winter, p. 141)."
• depression -- The phrase "think globally, act locally" may be too much for some to comprehend.  By thinking globally, an individual with poor development of object relations may experience depression or despair.  The extent of environmental degradation may become so overwhelming that a lack of trust in that the earth will provide may develop, leading to even greater psychosis.
• paranoia -- More subtle versions of paranoia occur more often than full-scale pathology.  From Freud's viewpoint, the Western view of nature as separate and threatening may illustrate a pattern of decreasing trust projected onto nature (Winter, p. 143).  For example, women typically will not venture alone into natural areas, whether a city park or a wilderness area, due to perceived risk or harm.

Conclusion

    Whenever one uses a psychological theory to explain an individual's behavior, it is important to look at the person in a holistic light.  There typically is not just one reason why a person behaves the way they do.  More often it is a composite picture made up of various experiences.  Central to Freud's ideas, however, behavior, hence "environmental behavior," is developed in early childhood.  It is from the experiences we have as children that lead to our development of positive relationships with others and with the earth.  Using Freud's theory, how does one develop positive environmental behavior, then?  It seems that it first begins by establishing healthy human relationships, ones where trust is foremost and expectations are realistic and present.  I have spent half of my life educating children of all ages and socio-economic backgrounds in the natural sciences and cultural history.  In my experiences, it has always been a challenge to nurture positive relationships between the earth and children of troubled homes or inconsistent parenting, let alone aid them in establishing trust in others.

    As there is hope in Freud's view of nature, there is also hope that as adults we can repair any developmental damage experienced as children, otherwise there would be no reason for psychotherapy to exist!  Probably the best way to do this is through developing awareness.  Freudian practitioners hope to bring a person's unconscious motivations into their conscious awareness so that they may be dealt with and the associated anxiety lessened.  Winter points out that the defenses that we use to block environmentally related anxiety take up energy that could otherwise be put to more creative uses.  Like Freud, she suggests that the best way to overcome these defenses is to become aware of them.  It is important to become aware not only of one's own defenses, but that those defenses are used by others as well.  It is often important for individuals to know that they are not alone in their feelings.  The same sense of awareness is also necessary in combating narcissism, depression or paranoia.  For instance, sometimes there is a real risk involved if women enter natural areas alone.  It is important for them to realize the motivation behind why they do not go for walks in the park and possibly even find another woman or a group of women to go walking with them.  This also relates back to the development of positive human relationships, trust and eventually positive environmental relationships.

    Freud's theories, when explained, can be helpful in encouraging the development of positive environmental behaviors as well as, for the activist, understanding some of the negative behaviors related to the environmental crisis. It's not to say that because your neighbor throws his garbage in your recycling bins that he has poor object relations development...but then again, maybe it could!  The key is by creating understanding we can create relationship and trust of other human beings which will then filter over into our relationships with the more-than-human world.
 
 

    DuNann Winter, D. Ecological Psychology: Healing the Split Between Planet and Self  (New York: HarperCollins Pub, 1996)

    Feltman, J.  Hands-On Healing: Massage Remedies for Hundreds of Health Problems  (Emmaus, PA: Rodale Press, 1989)