noun
- Plural of cathexis; instances of emotional energy or mental investment directed toward a person, object, or idea.
Usage: psychology; psychoanalysis; formal
Examples
- In psychoanalytic theory, cathexes represent the ways individuals invest emotional energy in different aspects of their lives.
- The therapist explored the patient's various cathexes to understand what motivated their behavior.
- Multiple cathexes toward family members can influence personality development.
- Freud believed that cathexes could be redirected through therapeutic intervention.
- The study examined how cathexes shift during adolescence.