CriticaLink | Freud: On Narcissism | Terms

An obsession is a neurosis in which an idea or image persistantly recurs in the mind. An obsession is usually an unwelcome thought and is often accompanied by a compulsion to perform certain actions. People suffering from obsessions cannot stop the thoughts from recurring, and can be forced to organize their lives around their obsessive behavior. A person may need to wash her hands every few minutes; another might need to arrange his belongings in a particular order. Today the term "obsessive-compulsive disorder" is sometimes applied to such conditions.

• Adler, Alfred
• Bleuler, Eugen
• Busch, Wilhelm
• Ferenczi, Sándor
• Heine, Heinrich
• Jung, Carl Gustav
• Kraepelin, Emil

• anaclitic object choice
• anxiety neurosis
• cathexis
• Cogito
• dementia praecox
• erotogenicity
• hypochondria
• hysteria
• idealization
• instinct
• introversion
• libido
• narcissism
• narcissistic object choice
• neurasthenia
• neurosis
• Oedipus complex
• paraphrenia
• primary narcissism
• retrogression
• schizophrenia
• sublimation
• superego
• transference neuroses
• Umwelt
• vicissitude