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PSYC 315 Personality > Chapter 9: Psychoanalytic Approaches to Personality > Flashcards

Chapter 9: Psychoanalytic Approaches to Personality Flashcards

1
Q

describe the notion of psychic energy (Freud)

A
  • his model of human nature relied on psychic energy as a motivation for all human activity
  • what are forces that motivate people to do things
  • psychic energy was within the person and gave them motivation
  • believed it operated according to law of conservation of energy –> amount of psychic energy remained constant throughout life
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2
Q

what did Freud believe personality change was the result of

A

redirection of a person’s psychic energy

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3
Q

what did Freud believe were the basic sources of psychic energy

A
  • believed there were strong innate forces that provided all the energy in the psychic system –> “instincts”
  • highly influenced by Darwin
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4
Q

what were the two fundamental categories of instincts, according to Freud’s initial formulation

A
  • self-preservational instincts
  • sexual instincts
  • these correspond directly to Darwin’s theory of natural selection (survival and reproduction)
  • later collapsed these into one –> “life instinct”
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5
Q

how did Freud’s theories of instincts change through time

A
  • collapsed the self-preservational and sexual instincts into one, called the “life” instinct
  • later developed idea of the death instinct too (in WWII)–> instinct toward destruction, aggression towards others
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6
Q

what are Freud’s life and death instincts typically referred to as

A
  • libido (life, need satisfying, life sustaining, pleasure-oriented)
  • thanatos (death, urges to destroy or harm others/self)
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7
Q

describe how Freud described libido and thanatos working together/combining

A
  • eating involves serving the life instinct (surviving), but means of attaining food involves tearing, biting and chewing (destructive)
  • rape is expression of extreme death instinct, but is fused with sexual energy
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8
Q

how did Freud believe psychic energy was divided amongst behaviours

A
  • he thought the energy used to direct one type of behaviour was not available to drive other types of behaviour
  • directing energy in a socially acceptable way (e.g. sports) = less energy available to dedicate to destruction
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9
Q

what are the three parts of the human mind, according to Freud

A
  • conscious mind (thoughts, feelings, perceptions you are aware of in any current moment) –> ego
  • preconscious (easy bring to conscious mind if you desired, e.g. memories) –> superego
  • unconscious (largest part, totally hidden from view) –> id
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10
Q

why does the unconscious exist (Freud)

A

society does not allow people to freely express all their sexual and aggressive urges –> we need to learn to control these, and one way to do these is by keeping them away from conscious awareness

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11
Q

what was the main idea of psychic determinism (Freud)

A
  • nothing happens by chance
  • there is a reason behind every act, thought and feeling
  • everything we do, think, say, feel is an expression of some part of the mind
  • even little “accidents” are expressions of the motivated unconscious (e.g. being late, breaking something)
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12
Q

what did Freud believe symptoms of mental illness were caused by

A
  • unconscious motivations (memories and desires)
  • e.g. a woman’s hysteria was treated by talk therapy (administered by Breuer –> had developed a cough similar to that of her father’s (who had died from tuberculosis)
  • believed these symptoms of hysteria were expressions of repressed traumatic experiences
  • believed catharsis could be reached by expressing these feelings –> relieves the person of symptoms
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13
Q

what is blindsight

A
  • after suffering a stroke that damages V1 (but not the eyes), people lose ability to see –> show increasing ability to make judgements about objects they truly cannot see (e.g. can guess the colour at levels higher than chance)
  • some take this as evidence of the unconscious –> the information is being processed somewhere else in the mind even if the person cannot consciously see what is in front of them
  • can even perceive emotional significance of objects that cannot be seen (e.g. fear response to a circle that was paired with a shock, not to other shapes)
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14
Q

what is deliberation-without-attention

A
  • “let me sleep on it” effect, “unconscious decision making”
  • if a person is confronted with a difficult decision can put it out of conscious mind for a period of time, the unconscious mind will continue to deliberate it outside of awareness
  • eventually reach a “sudden” and often correct decision sometime later
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15
Q

which decisions are best made by deliberation-without-attention

A
  • simple decisions are best made with conscious deliberation
  • complex decisions are best made without deliberation-without-attention
  • e.g. can make better decisions about something with more aspects (i.e. choose option with more positive attributes)
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16
Q

describe what is theorized by psychoanalytic personality theory

A
  • investigates how people cope with sexual and aggressive instincts within the constraints of civilized society
  • one part of mind creates urges, another has the sense of what civilized society expects, another tries to satisfy the urges within the bounds of society
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17
Q

describe Freud’s notion of the Id

A
  • born with this, source of all drives and urges
  • operates according to pleasure principle (immediate gratification) and primary process thinking
  • dominates during infancy
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18
Q

what is primary process thinking

A
  • thinking without logical rules of conscious thought
  • how the id operates
  • e.g. dreams and fantasies (id creates these mental images to satisfy needs that cannot be physically met) –> wish fulfillment
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19
Q

what is wish fulfillment

A

something unavailable is conjured up and the image of it is temporarily satisfying (dream, fantasy)

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20
Q

what is the ego

A
  • part of mind that constrains the id to reality
  • develops within first 2-3 years of life (after the terrible twos)
  • operates according to reality principle (understands urges are in conflict with social and physical reality) –> direct expressions of id must be avoided, redirected or postponed
  • follows secondary process thinking
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21
Q

what is ego depletion

A
  • occurs as a result of attempts at self control
  • psychic energy can be depleted by efforts towards self-control –> leaves less energy available for subsequent self-control situations
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22
Q

what is secondary process thinking

A
  • development of strategies for solving problems and obtaining satisfaction
  • takes into account the constraints of physical reality about when/how to express urges
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23
Q

describe the study that showed evidence of ego depletion

A
  • participants were asked to skip a meal prior to session, and were instructed to either eat radishes and avoid cookies, or eat cookies and avoid radishes, or were not exposed to food at all
  • those in radish-eating condition gave up on a subsequent puzzle sooner (other two conditions did not differ from one another)
  • exertion of self-control in the face of temptation results in decreased psychic energy available to work on a puzzle
  • similar results show that after engaging in self control, people act more aggressively, less sexual restraint, etc.
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24
Q

what is the muscle metaphor of ego depletion

A
  • self control is like a muscle –> can be overused, causing it to be temporarily weak and unable to respond adequately, but with some effort or external motivation this can be overcome
  • practise can increase capacity of self control
  • some states (e.g. positive emotion, humour) can counteract effects of ego depletion
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25
Q

what are some examples of responses that require our self control

A
  • controlling thoughts, emotions, attention, behaviour
  • overcoming unwanted impulses
  • making many choices
    –> these can all result in ego depletion
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26
Q

what are some behaviours that are sensitive to ego depletion

A
  • eating among dieters
  • overspending
  • aggression after being provoked
  • sexual impulses
  • logical/intelligent decision making
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27
Q

what are some social behaviours that demand self control

A
  • self-presentation for impression management
  • kindness in response to bad behaviour
  • dealing with demanding/difficult people
  • interracial interactions
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28
Q

what are five ways to counteract the harmful effects of ego depletion

A
  • humour/laughter
  • positive emotions
  • cash incentives
  • implementing intentions to cope with temptations with a specific plan
  • pursuing social values (e.g. wanting to help people, wanting to be a good relationship partner)
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29
Q

what is the superego

A
  • part of mind that internalizes the values, moral and ideals of society
  • instilled into the child by society’s various socializing agents (parents, schools, religions)
  • makes us feel guilty, ashamed, embarrassed when we do something “wrong”, pride when we do things “right”
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30
Q

is the superego bound by reality

A
  • no, it is free to set standards that are unrealistic, harsh and perfectionistic
  • some children develop very powerful internal standards due to superego demanding perfection
  • some children develop low moral standards –> don’t feel guilt if hurt others
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31
Q

what does anxiety result from

A

when the ego feels threatened by reality (by impulses from the id) or by harsh controls by the superego –> defence mechanisms try to protect us from anxiety

32
Q

what are the three types of anxiety defined by Freud

A

objective, neurotic and moral anxiety

33
Q

what is objective anxiety (Freud)

A
  • fear
  • response to real, external threat to the person
  • control of ego is being threatened by an external factor (not an internal conflict)
34
Q

what is neurotic anxiety

A
  • direct conflict between the id and ego
  • danger that ego may lose control over an unacceptable desire of the id
  • e.g. panic at idea of sexual arousal
35
Q

what is moral anxiety

A
  • conflict between ego and superego
  • chronic shame over not living up to “proper” standards
  • e.g. eating disorders (not living up to a standard of weight)
36
Q

how did Freud think that conflicts among the id, superego and ego could be revealed

A
  • dreams
  • hypnosis
  • free association (saying whatever comes to mind)
  • projective assessment instruments (e.g. inkblot test)
37
Q

what are defence mechanisms

A
  • enable to ego to control anxiety (even objective anxiety) –> anxiety might still be occurring unconsciously
  • two functions: protect ego and minimize anxiety/distress
38
Q

what is conversion reaction

A

conflict is converted to a physical symptom –> symptoms help them avoid the anxiety, and even the symptoms do not make them anxious

39
Q

what is repression

A
  • defence mechanism Freud wrote about extensively
  • process of preventing unacceptable thoughts, feelings or urges from reaching conscious awareness
  • Freud found people were more likely to recall the pleasant circumstances surrounding the event more easily than the unpleasant ones
  • all other defence mechanisms Freud theorized include a degree of repression
40
Q

who was responsible for identifying the other mechanisms of defence besides repression

A

Anna Freud (daughter) –> believed ego could muster creative and effective mechanisms

41
Q

describe how Fenichel (Freud’s student) revised the idea of defence mechanisms

A
  • revised them to focus on how they protect against self-esteem
  • people have a preferred view of themselves and will defend against any blow to this self-view
42
Q

what is the most commonly used defence mechanism in adolescence versus older in life

A

identification in adolescence (part of phallic stage), denial in older adulthood

43
Q

what is denial

A
  • when reality of situation is anxiety provoking, people insist things are not the way they seem
  • refusing to see facts
  • e.g. dismissing unflattering feedback as wrong, fundamental attribution error (blame failure on something “out of our control”, but accept responsibility for success)
44
Q

what is the fundamental attribution error

A

blame failure on something “out of our control”, but accept responsibility for success –> form of denial

45
Q

how does denial show up in daydreams/fantasies

A
  • dreams focus on how things could have been otherwise –> lessen or defend against anxiety-provoking elements of the current situation
  • e.g. dreaming about how things would have been if they hadn’t done that embarrassing thing
46
Q

what is displacement

A
  • threatening/unacceptable impulse is channelled or redirected to a nonthreatening target
  • being angry at boss = ego prevents angry outburst to save their status at work = take out anger on significant other
  • can have a domino effect –> person who was target of displacement also engages in it
  • can also displace fear (e.g. fear of father translates into fear of horses)
47
Q

what has research found about the targets of displacement

A
  • student got frustrated by the experimenter
  • later acted aggressively to experimenter, experimenter’s assistant and another participant equally –> target didn’t matter
  • maybe angered people just act aggressive, and it is not defensive
  • but research on stress contagion suggests that people do bring home tension from work and release it at home
48
Q

what is rationalization

A
  • defence mechanism common in educated people
  • generating acceptable reasons for outcomes that might otherwise appear socially unacceptable
  • explanation that is easier to accept than the real one
  • e.g. bad grade = teacher didn’t give clear instructions
49
Q

what is reaction formation

A
  • defence mechanism that attempts to stifle the expression of an unacceptable urge –> behaviour that indicates the opposite impulse
  • e.g. being overly kind to boss you are mad at
  • e.g. continuously offering an umbrella to girlfriend you are mad at even though she keeps refusing
50
Q

what is projection

A
  • sometimes we see in others the traits and desires we find most upsetting in ourselves
  • we attribute our own qualities onto others
  • we can then hate them instead of hating ourselves, and critique qualities without admitting we possess them
51
Q

what is the false consensus effect

A
  • tendency many have to assume that others are similar to them (similar to projection)
  • e.g. extraverts assume others are extraverted
  • false consensus about one’s unflattering traits could be ego defensive –> we are not unique in our moral deficiency (e.g. everyone else is doing it)
52
Q

what is sublimation

A
  • according to Freud, the most adaptive defence mechanism
  • channelling of unacceptable sexual or aggressive instincts into socially desired activities
  • e.g. sports when you are angry, choice of career
53
Q

how do you know when your use of defence mechanisms is becoming a problem

A
  • when it begins inhibiting the ability to be projective
  • limits the ability to maintain relationships
  • sometimes defence mechanisms are useful temporarily when we don’t have the resources or energy to confront them
54
Q

describe the general theory of psychosexual development

A
  • people pass through a series of stages, each of which includes a conflict
  • how people deal with these conflict gives rise to aspects of personality and individual differences
  • first three stages involves overcoming a type of sexual gratification
  • getting stuck at a stage = “fixation” = less mature approach to obtaining sexual gratification
  • we are all born with a drive for sexual pleasure (id) but constraints of civilized society limit how we satisfy this
55
Q

what is the oral stage (and describe it in biological and psychological terms)

A
  • first 18 months of life
  • pleasure and tension reduction at mouth, lips and tongue
  • conflict is weaning –> withdrawing from breast/bottle
  • biologically, id wants immediate gratification from nourishment
  • psychologically, excessive pleasure versus dependency (fear of being left to fend for self)
56
Q

what does oral fixation look like as an adult

A
  • adults who still obtain pleasure from “taking in”
  • overeating, smoking, nail biting, thump sucking, drug addiction
  • overly dependent (want to be nurtured and taken care of, have others make decisions for them)
  • personalities that are hostile, quarrelsome or mocking –> psychologically “biting” and verbally attacking
57
Q

what is the anal stage

A
  • 18 months - 3 years
  • obtaining pleasure from expelling feces and then retaining feces
  • initially, id desires immediate tension reduction –> conflicts arise during toilet training process (self control learning)
58
Q

what does anal fixation look like in adulthood

A
  • some achieve too little self control –> grow up sloppy and dirty
  • others develop too much self-control and take pleasure in little acts of self control
  • adults who are compulsive, overly neat and never messy –> stubborn and willful
59
Q

what is the phallic stage

A
  • child discovers they have (or do not have) a penis and pleasure can be derived from touching them
  • sexual desire is outwardly directed towards parent of opposite sex
60
Q

describe the idea of Oedipal conflict

A
  • boy unconsciously lusts for his mother and sees father as the competitor
  • wants to act aggressively towards father, but grows to fear him because he thinks father will take away his penis (castration anxiety)
  • eventually decides to identify with him (resolution)
61
Q

what is identification

A
  • process of boy wanting to become like his father –> in oedipal conflict, believes best option is to become like the guy who has his mother
  • marks beginning of resolution of oedipal conflict
  • believed this resolution was also beginning of morality and superego and male gender role
62
Q

what is penis envy

A
  • young girl desires her father yet at the same time envies him for his penis
  • counterpart of castration anxiety in young boys
  • does not fear mother, no strong motivation to give up desire for father
  • Jung termed this to Electra complex, but Freud rejected this term
63
Q

what did Freud believe about the resolution of the phallic stage in women

A
  • unclear about how it was resolved
  • suggested it may never be resolved –> thus, women must be morally inferior to men because they don’t have development of the superego
64
Q

what is the latency stage

A
  • 6 - puberty
  • little psychological development
  • child goes to school and learns adulting
  • subsequent psychoanalysts argue much development occurs during this point (e.g. decision making, social interaction, identity, etc.)
  • ends with sexual awakening at puberty
65
Q

what is the genital stage

A
  • begins around puberty and lasts through adult life
  • libido focussed on genitals (but not self manipulation)
  • no specific conflict
  • reach this only if other conflicts have been resolved
66
Q

describe Freud’s metaphor of an army in the psychosexual stages

A
  • if the resolution of a stage is incomplete, some soldiers must be left behind to monitor that conflict
  • some psychic energy must stand guard in case a psychosexual conflict breaks out again
  • poorer resolution = more soldiers left behind = less psychic energy available for subsequent tasks of maturity
67
Q

what was the main focus of Freud’s psychosexual theory

A

it did not include happiness or life satisfaction –> success was all about being productive and maintaining loving relationships

68
Q

what parts of psychoanalysis do most psychotherapists engage with today

A

free association (saying whatever comes to mind), transference (patient re-creates interpersonal problems with the therapist)

69
Q

what Freudian ideas still exist in research today

A

the unconscious, psychic energy and defence mechanisms

70
Q

what are some Freudian themes that are in pop culture today

A

ideas about behaviour or current problems being the result of poor parenting, conflicted sexuality, or problems with authority

71
Q

what are the four main lasting influences that Freudian theory has had in society

A
  • talk therapy and other methods in psychotherapy (e.g. free association)
  • research focussed on the unconscious, psychic energy and defence mechanisms
  • pop culture influences visible in our languages (e.g. current problems stemming from poor parenting)
  • laid foundation for many topics still being addressed (e.g. developmental sequence of personality)
72
Q

describe the controversy surrounding psychoanalysis

A
  • some argue it is unnecessary and should be abandoned –> accuse Freud of being a con
  • some argue it is the most complete theory of human nature
  • the truth is probably somewhere between these two perspectives
73
Q

describe how Freudian theory influenced different fields of psychology today

A
  • psychosexual theory initiated the field of developmental psychology
  • views on anxiety, defence and the unconscious show up in clinical psychology
  • psychoanalysis influenced counselling psychology
74
Q

what are the most important criticisms of Freudian theory

A
  • Freud did not believe in the scientific method –> cannot disprove theories
  • Freud derived his theories based on case studies with WEIRD people
  • wrote about his interpretations of behaviour rather than reporting or describing the behaviour
75
Q

what do people disagree on in Freudian theory

A
  • some believe emphasis on sexual drives in childhood is inappropriate
  • some disagree that personality development ends around age 5 –> profound changes in adolescence
  • some take issue with negative view of human nature
  • misogynistic views suggesting women are less moral than men

PSYC 315 Personality (16 decks)

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