Sigmund Freud is arguably one of the most influential psychologists on the field of psychology that has ever lived. The methods he developed are still frequently used today, and his theories are still widely taught and accepted.
Freud's Early Life and Education.
Sigmund Freud was born in Frieberg, Morovia on May 6, 1856. When he was four or five years old, he and his family moved to Vienna, Austria, where he would live and work until the last year of his life. As a young child, he always did well in school; he was even allowed to enroll in high school a year earlier than his classmates. Freud's parents weren't typical parents of the era, either. They encouraged their son to be creative and to pursue his interests. After he graduated from high school, Freud had few viable career options. His choices were basically limited to business, law, or medicine. Although he didn't feel especially called to medicine, he chose to pursue it (Jones, 1953). He was accepted to and enrolled in medical school at the University of Vienna in 1873. It was here that Freud became involved in physiological research under the direction of Ernst Brucke. Brucke introduced Freud to the theory of reductionism, which states that, "No other forces than the common physical-chemical ones are active within the organism" (Boeree, 1997, p. 2). This theory was very popular at the time, and Freud spent a great deal of time trying to integrate this theory into his theory of personality. He eventually gave up on this, however. While in medical school, he received several grants to do research with psychiatrists who were studying the effects of hypnosis on patients with hysteria. Although Freud was good at this research, it didn't offer the financial security he desired, nor did it offer him many opportunities for advancement, however it did provide a background to his later work. He decided to take more secure work at the Vienna General Hospital after he graduated in 1881.