Energy (psychological)

Energy (psychological) refers to a concept used in various philosophical and psychological theories to describe a hypothesised force or dynamic underlying mental processes. The idea has roots in classical philosophy and was developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries within psychoanalysis, particularly by Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, who used it to explain motivation, instinct, and the structure of the psyche. In later psychology and neuroscience, mental energy has sometimes been compared metaphorically to physical energy or associated with brain metabolism, though the concept has been criticized for lacking clear empirical or neurological correlates. Related notions also appear in contemporary approaches such as energy psychology, whose theoretical claims and reported empirical findings remain the subject of debate.