Psychology Report: Donny Osmond's Anxiety Disorder and Psychoanalysis

This report delves into the psychological analysis of Donny Osmond's anxiety disorder, examining his experiences through the lens of psychoanalytic theory. It explores how his celebrity status, the pressure to maintain his success, and the fear of losing his position in the entertainment industry contributed to his mental health struggles. The report discusses the application of Sigmund Freud's theories on personality, particularly the roles of the id, ego, and superego, to understand the internal conflicts that arose. Additionally, it references cognitive behavioral therapy as a treatment approach. The report highlights the impact of the disorder on his life and behavior, including the panic attacks he experienced. The analysis emphasizes the dynamic interplay of his internal mental state and external pressures, providing insights into the causes and treatment of his anxiety disorder. Access to this and other solved assignments is available on Desklib.

Running head: PSYCHOLOGY 1
PSYCHOLOGY

PSYCHOLOGY 2
Introduction
Donald Clark Osmond a famous American actor gained popularity by performing with his
four elder brothers under the name of ‘Osmonds’. He was a great singer and has earned
numerous top hits and gold albums. The former teen idol acquired lots of fame and
recognition from his “self-title variety series”. He had a successful journey and his career was
documented in a programmed by BBC Whales known as “Donny Osmond Coming Home”
(Hofmann and Otto, 2017).
Theories
According to Jones (2019), Sigmund Freud was a neurologist in Australia who formulated
psychoanalysis, a process by which the analyst unfolds the unconscious struggles in human.
He constructed numerous theories that clears the concept of ego, personality in humans,
sexuality in a child and other areas related to psychology. As opined by Silverberg (2013),
Freud established various sets of therapeutic systems that revolves around talk therapy and
involves using of approaches and vision interpretations. Freud stated that through his
psychoanalytical theory that the development of personality is through numerous stages, each
of which is categorized by certain internal mental conflicts. Sigmund Freud’s argues in his
psychoanalytic theory of personality that the human behaviour is the outcome of
communications amongst 3 section of the mind which is id, ego and superego.
Donny Osmond was diagnosed with severe anxiety disorder which led to numerous panic
attacks which made him crumble up at the corner and curl up in a foetus position. During
these attacks it become difficult for the actor to tackle the situation. As stated by Hofmann
and Otto (2017), the anxiety and stress he experienced was triggered by his own celebrity
status. The worry of him losing his position in the entertainment business was affecting this

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mental health. He sought for professional advice and his treatment involved medication that
would control his anxiety symptoms and panic attacks.
Interpretation
The psychoanalytic theory of personality as discussed also referred to as Freud’s structural
personality theory, emphasizes on the impact of unconscious psychological battles in
determining the personality and behaviour pattern in human. For various individuals suffering
from anxiety disorder, the continuous existence of uneasiness about traumatic triggers is
practically an unbearable hurdle to get over. Donny Osmond dealing with this struggle was
due to his overriding ego that was driven by his success and fame gained during his career.
His worry of not being successful, losing his fame and letting down himself as well as his
family had a negative and traumatic impact in his mind which worsened his condition.
As opined by Cervone and Pervin (2015), the dynamic relations amongst the central and
fundamental portions of the mind are assumed to advance through various diverse personality
stages of development. The constant battle in his mind made him aggressive and
unacceptable to the future situation. His desire of being in the top for the rest of his life made
him unable to accept the reality resulting in conflict and unbalance situation in his mind that
gave rise to behaviours discrepancies.

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References
Cervone, D., & Pervin, L. A. (2015). Personality: Theory and research. John Wiley & Sons.
Hofmann, S. G., & Otto, M. W. (2017). Cognitive behavioral therapy for social anxiety
disorder: Evidence-based and disorder specific treatment techniques. Abingdon: UK;
Routledge.
Jones, E. (2019). The life and work of Sigmund Freud. Plunkett Lake Press.
Silverberg, W. V. (2013). Childhood experience and personal destiny: A psychoanalytic
theory of neurosis. Springer.