Introduction Sigmund Freud is one of the earliest pioneers of psychology. He is among a team of people whose discoveries have led to the development of psychology from one level to another. Currently, this subject is considered to be the broadest of all scientific subjects. This is not a small achievement considering the fact that psychology was just a miniature subject a few centuries ago. This essay will discuss the major theories of Sigmund Freud as far as the psychodynamic approach to human behaviour is concerned. The essay will also look at the strong points in support of and against the theories. Finally, the essay will describe the cognitive approach to psychology as an alternative to Freud’s theories. Background Of Psychodynamics Psychodynamics is a type of study that focuses on the relationship between parts of the brain which coordinate to yield a certain human behaviour. The main components of psychodynamics are the human psyche, the personality of an individual and the mind. The organization of these three elements gives way to an effect on a person’s mental activity, emotional control and motivational forces. This study also holds that the power of the mind which influences the states of the mind can be divided into emotional forces and inner forces that affect human behaviour. The following are theories that Sigmund Freud developed in his course of study of psychodynamics. The Psyche Sigmund Freud suggests that the unconscious state of the human mind is the major cause of the way individuals behave (Ahles 2004). Freud explains that the exact character of a person can only be determined through the knowledge of such a person’s unconscious state of mind. He explains that no action or deed is ever done without the preconception of the mind and the coordination of the elements of the mind. A surprising discovery that Freud made states that people rarely if ever know what goes on in their mind. Freud holds that most of the actions of people are beyond their control. The decisions made are actually determined by their psyche. Unlike the personality of an individual, this component of the human mind consists of various parts which are in constant conflict with each other. These components include the ego, the id and the superego. According to Freud, these are the elements which are believed to be in control of the human behaviour. The disagreement among the superego, the ego and the id usually leads to a decision that is favourable to all of them. The disagreement among these three goes on in the unconscious and so the person cannot really tell what is going on in his or her mind. However, this person may be in a position to feel the repercussions of the conflict. For instance, he or she may experience excitement, depression or even a headache as a result of what is going on in the unconscious state of mind. The superego, the ego and the id each have different roles to play in the whole process of decision making and influence of human behaviour in the mind. Their roles can be summarised into three forces which are the instinctual drive, the moral constraint and the consideration of realistic possibilities at the time of decision making. The id is controlled by instinctual