Cathexis
WordNet
noun
(1) (psychoanalysis) the libidinal energy invested in some idea or person or object
"Freud thought of cathexis as a psychic analog of an electrical charge"
WiktionaryText
Etymology
κάθεξις . Entered English language as a translation for the common everyday German word Besetzung, which in this context means "occupation" in the sense of a position or something being occupied or filled, and not a military occupation of a place or the filling of job positions (although it can also mean either of these in other contexts). In English translations, a Greek word was used to be more scientific.
Noun
- the concentration of libido or emotional energy on a single object or idea