Miss.Nobody

I think 1veedo summersized it best with Contempory Psychology is very passionate about being viewed as a science on par with the harder sciences such as chemistry and physics. So, to that end, the academic psychological community tends to shuns non-scientific theories such as Freud's. (His theories are non-scientific as they cannot be disproved - any evidence coming to light being construed in terms of the theory rather than revising or abolishing it.) The popularity of Freud in the public eye, however, can be explained in part due to the work of Edward Bernays- Freud's nephew in Amercia. Bernays was the founding father of Public Relations and used his uncle's ideas about the irrational subconscious in order to produce more effective advertising. He was therefore a very influentail figure and a master of selling things to people, so that when Freud came into financial difficulties Bernays did what he did best - published and pushed his uncle's works in Amercia. Bernays use of his uncle's ideas can also explain to some extent the period of political and social influence psychoanaylsis enjoyed in the 20th century.