Chapter 12 Flashcards
Personality
A pattern of enduring, distinctive thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that characterize the way an individual adapts to the world.
Psychodynamic perspectives
Theoretical views emphasizing that personality is primarily unconscious (beyond awareness). Understanding personality involves exploring the symbolic meanings of behavior and the unconscious mind. Early childhood experiences sculpt the individual’s perspective.
Id
The Freudian structure of personality consisting of unconscious drives; the individual’s reservoirs of psychic and sexual energy. Includes the pleasure principle-do it if it makes you happy, doesn’t matter if it will hurt another.
Ego
The Freudian structure of personality that deals with the demands of reality. Abides by the reality principle. It tries to get the Id what it wants within the norms of society.
Superego
The Freudian structure of personality that serves as the harsh internal judge of our behavior; what we often call conscience. (Moral branch of personality) Jimminy Cricket.
What can conflicts between the Id, Ego, and Superego lead to?
Anxiety which creates defense mechanisms.
Defense mechanisms
The Freudian term for tactics the ego uses to reduce anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality. Not necessarily unhealthy.
Repression
Pushes unacceptable impulses out of awareness. Foundation for all defense mechanisms. Young girl forgets being abused by uncle when she is older.
Rationalization
Replaces a less acceptable motive with a more acceptable one. Doesn’t get into fraternity so tells himself that the fraternity is very exclusive, and a lot of people do not get into it.
Displacement
Shifts feelings from an unacceptable object to an acceptable one. Lady made at her boss, so she takes it out on her husband.
Sublimation
Replaces unacceptable impulse with a socially acceptable one. A man with strong sexual urges paints nudes.
Projection
Attributes own faults to others. Man, who has strong urges to cheat accuses his wife of flirting with other men.
Reaction Formation
Convert to opposite emotion. Young boys pick on crush.
Denial
Disbelieve present reality. Doesn’t believe the death of a family member.
Regression
Revert to earlier, “safer” periods. A woman returns home to mother every time her and her husband fight.
Oral stage
From 0-18 months. Infant’s pleasure centers on the mouth.
Anal stage
From 18-36 months. Children’s pleasure involves eliminative functions. Potty training happens during this stage.
Phallic Stage
From 3-6 years. Child’s pleasure focuses on the genitals. Consists of the oedipal complex and castration anxiety.
Oedipal complex
According to Freud, a boy’s intense desire to replace his father and enjoy the affections of his mother.
Castration anxiety
Boy’s intense fear of being mutilated by his father.
Latency Stage
From 6-puberty. psychic “time-out” Interest in sexuality is repressed.
Genital Stage
From adolescence and adulthood. Sexual reawakening. Source of sexual pleasure is someone else.
Fixation
Remain locked in particular developmental stage (anal retentive) Cannot move to other stages. Ex: if someone is locked in oral stage, may smoke cigarettes, chew on fingers.
What were the criticism of Freud?
- Sexuality is not the pervasive force behind personality. Not erogenous zones: part of body that have especially strong pleasure-giving qualities at a particular stage of development.
- Early experience is not as powerful as Freud thought
- Didn’t not consider how important conscious thought is in personality.
- Sociocultural influences he did not think about.
There is no research for this. He only did case studies of rich, white women in Vienna.
Horney’s Sociocultural approach
Both sexes envy the attributes of the other. Need for security, not sex, is primary motivator.
Jung’s Analytical Theory
Consisted of collective unconscious and archetypes.
Collective unsonscious
Jung’s term for the impersonal, deepest layer of the unconscious mind, shared by all human beings because of their common ancestral past.
Archetypes
Emotionally laden ideas and images in the collective unconscious that have rich and symbolic meaning for all people.
Adler’s individual psychology
Views that people are motivated by purposes and goals and that perfection, not pleasure, is the key motivator in human life.
What were the criticisms of the psychodynamic theory?
- too much emphasis on early experiences.
- too much faith in unconscious mind’s control
- too much emphasis on sexual instincts
- theory cannot be tested.