Final Exam Flashcards
The Learning Perspective
Personality is shaped through learning
- learning: the change of behaviour as a function of experience
Two varieties of the learning perspective
- behaviourist theories
- social learning theories
Behaviourism
the theoretical view of personality that focuses on overt behaviour and the ways in which it can be affected by rewards and punishments in the environment
Habituation
the decrease in response to a stimulus on repeated applications
The simplest kind of learning
habituation
Generalization
responding in a similar way to somewhat different stimuli
Discrimination
responding in a different manner to different stimuli
Extinction
the reduction of a conditioned response by repeating the conditioned stimulus without the unconditioned stimulus
Emotional conditioning
classical conditioning in which the conditioned response is an emotional reaction
Higher order conditioning
an event in which a former conditioned stimulus now acts as an unconditioned stimulus in a new instance of conditioning
Skinner’s term for the process of learning in which an organism’s behaviour is shaped by the effect of the behaviour on the environment
Operant or Instrumental conditioning
T or F. Continuous rf leads to slower learning
F! Continuous = faster! Partial = more persistent learning!
Vicarious conditioning
- seeing someone else getting punished; associate punishment with behaviour (ex: cheating and getting expelled)
- basic conditioning responses; happening vicariously through someone else but also tends to be stubborn
Social Learning Theory
- the general view that learning is largely or wholly due to modelling, imitation, and other social interactions
- we learn a lot through our social interactions
- aspects of some social learning theories reinterpret ideas rooted in more classic behaviourism
- two perspectives: Rotter and Bandura
Expectancy Value Theory
behavioural decisions are determined not just by the presence or size of rf, but also by beliefs about the likely results of behaviour
Classic behaviourism focuses on the actual rewards/punishments, whereas Rotter…
focuses on the beliefs about reward/punishment
Specific expectancies
the belief that a certain behaviour at a certain time and place will lead to a specific outcome
Generalized expectancies
general beliefs about whether anything you do is likely to make a difference
Two subsets of generalized expectancies
- internal locus of control: those with high generalized expectancies and thus tend to think that what they do affects what happens to them
- external locus of control: those with low generalized expectancies and tend to think that what they do will not make much difference
MAY VARY ACROSS DOMAINS
Efficacy expectations should be the key target for therapeutic interventions
Bandura’s Model of Social Learning
- efficacies can create capacities
Observational learning
- learning a behaviour vicariously. by seeing someone else do it
- other animals also do this
- humans can learn nearly everything from observational learning
- more observational learning shortly right after birth = within hours - newborns can mimic faces ; even if doesn’t mean anything, see someone do it then u will too
- ages 3 -5 = mimicking gender identity; same sex parent
Observational learning requires: (4)
- attention
- retention
- production
- performance
Does engaging with violent media cause violence?
Learning perspective says yes!
- acquiring potential violent behaviours
- rewards for violent behaviours (war hero, etc.)
- desensitization
- BUT other factors need to be considered too so “yes” would be an oversimplification
Problems of Learning Approach
- Oversimplification of situations
- Artificiality of experimental control
- Theories about determinants of behaviour, not personality
A branch of psychology that emphasizes the universal capacity for personal growth
Humanistic Psychology
Psychology is not like any other science as humans are unique
Humanistic Psychology
Eight elements of Humanistic Psychology:
- humanistic: study of humans, not animals
- holistic: human system is greater than sum of its parts
- historic: whole person from birth to death
- phenomenological: focus on interior, experiential, and existential aspects of personality
- real life: person in nature, society, and culture (not just exp lab)
- positivity: joy, fruitful activities, virtuous actions and attributes
- will: choices, decisions, voluntary actions
- value: a philosophy that describes what is valuable
Phenomenology
one’s conscious experience of the world
- construal
- choosing your construal as a way to achieve free will
- use of introspection
Construal
your particular experience of the world
Introspection
the task of observing one’s own mental processes
Existentialism
a philosophical theory or approach which emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free and responsible agent determining their own development through acts of the will
Key questions of existentialists
what is the nature of existence?
how does it feel?
what does it mean?
Umwelt
biological experiences
Mitwelt
social experiences
Eigenwelt
inner/psychological experiences
Thrown-ness
the time, place, and circumstances which you happened to be born into
- has a strong influence on our experiences and existence
Angst
unpleasant feelings caused by contemplating the existential concerns
- anguish, forlornness, and despair
Existential guilt
guilt from failing to completely fulfill your possibilities
Forlornness
isolation ; never fully connected to someone so we feel a sense of isolation in the world ; when we feel ppl don’t really know who we fully are as a person ; you are alone in the different choices u make
Facing the existential truths of mortality and meaninglessness requires this
optimistic toughness
What does living in bad faith mean?
living in bad faith entails denying existential concerns through (choosing) adhering to external pressure rather than internal values
3 problems of living in “bad faith”
- immoral and amounts to selling your soul
- surrounding oneself in material “comforts” does not lead to (TRUE) happiness
- it is impossible to not choose as not choosing is a choice
Authentic existence
- alternative to bad faith
- courageously come to terms with the facts of our short mortal lives in which we are the masters of our own destiny within those limits
- the only way to achieve “freedom”, earn dignity, and become more than an object
Yalom’s 4 existential concerns
- death
- freedom
- isolation
- meaninglessness
** existential psychotherapy helps the indiv come to grips with each concern **
The person can only be understood from the perspective of their phenomenal field, the entire panorama of conscious experience
Self-Actualization
The Fully Functioning Person
- Self-actualization
- faces the world without fear, self-doubt, or neurotic defenses (lives a happier version of the authentic existence)
- stems from unconditional positive regard from important people in your life
Authentic Existence vs Fully functioning person (Rogers)
ffp = happier version bc authentic = lots of cruelty in world, no inherent meaning/purpose, we gotta create that ourselves but fully functional person for Rogers = same person but with a bit more optimistic view of person and others as well; neurotic distortion or defense? Up for debate
T or F. Self actualization is more viewed in indiv cultures but humanistic = universal drives
T!
Maslow vs Rogers
Maslow shared Rogers’ basic assumption that a person’s ultimate need or motive is to self-actualize HOWEVER, this only becomes active after more basic needs are met
- hierarchy of needs
- may explain various differences in motivations and perceptions/attitudes
Humanistic Psychotherapy goal
- help client become a fully functioning person
- therapist develops a genuine and caring relationship with the client and provides unconditional positive regard
- brings true selves more in alignment with ideal selves through adjusting understandings of both
**therapist can’t be changing person!! patient must want to change themselves!!! **
Ideal vs. Actual Selves
- ideal = who we want to be, what we would love to be as our more perfect ideas of ourselves
- actual = who we actually are
- should be some gap; something we are trying to accomplish BUT large gap = depression, anxiety bc feel like failing to achieve what we want to be
Incongruence vs Congruence when it comes to ideal and actual selves
- incongruence between ideal and actual selves = the more open we are to guilt, shame, anxiety, and depression
- congruence = sense of security, high levels of self-esteem, psych well-being, self-actualization
Self-verification
the idea that people like to have their self-concepts confirmed by experience
- self-verification can be harmful = will accept failure
- example: person w negative self concept will react negatively to positive feed back (if suffer from depression or just down in the dumps; only want to hear something bad about them); the + feedback shakes their fundamental view of themselves
People defend against anxiety (caused by incongruence) through __________ of experience and preventing awareness of threatening experiences
- distortion
- musician example
- THE MORE u distort reality, the more problems are gonna come = more anxious, can’t fix heart of issue
- generally, ppl have positive view of self and make excuses to maintain self-esteem
Self-handicapping
acting in a way to create the very conditions that tend to produce a failure
- requires lack of awareness one is using it
Kelly’s Personal Constructs
- emphasized how one’s cognitive system assembles one’s various construals of the world into individually held theories (personal constructs) which determine the construal of new experiences
- constructs are on a bipolar dimension (good-bad) where other people/objects are also arranged; Role Construct Repertory (Rep) Test
- certain people have certain chronically accessible constructs
- sociality corollary
Sociality Corollary
understanding someone else means understanding their personal construct system
Constructive alternativism
the idea that you are not bound to any particular construct and you can choose from the numerous construals available to you
- many ways to view a single problem/event
- ex: poor grade on an assignment = this is a dumb class vs oh this is where I need to do better
Maximizers
- seek to get as much out of an interaction/transaction ; try to get best deals or if selling something try to sell for highest price; relationship = try to get most out of that interaction
- BUT don’t have to stick to just one thing… if maximizer and wanna be happier -> satisfier
- there is choice and flexibility!! will take a while and some effort but still
Satisficers
- some outcomes short of max are good enough ; try to get something reasonable ; if they don’t get a lot for something oh well nbd ; relationship = happy w dinner and a movie; better life satisfaction
- less likely to experience regret, even if a better option presents itself after a decision has already been made
Positive Psychology
- rxn against the focus on pathology and malfunction
- resurgence in 21st century
- rebirth of humanistic perspective; puts the meaning of life front and center
- investigates traits, processes, and social institutions that promote a happy and meaningful life
- spirituality is big here as well ; ties ppl to something beyond themselves
This focuses on strengths as opposed to weaknesses
Positive Psychology
- includes a promotion of “virtues”
What are virtues?
evolutionarily, each virtue counteracts a threat to survival for individuals and cultures
- six core virtues: courage, justice, humanity (compassion), temperance, wisdom, and transcendence
- > supported by cross-cultural work
Being explicitly aware of and in control of every moment of your experience
Mindfulness
- acknowledge feelings and move on so it does not build up
A state of conscious where you lose track of time and self by becoming completely absorbed in what you are doing
Flow
- “being in the zone”
- occurs when challenge and skills are well-matched
- perhaps only works for those high in locus of control
Happiness contains 3 components:
- overall satisfaction with life
- satisfaction with how things are going in particular life domains
- generally high levels of positive emotions and low levels of negative emotions
T or F. Happinness is static
F! more dynamic; shifts across ages
Happiness when younger = Intense positive emotions = giddy excited , stoked! ; higher intensity!
Older = relaxed, or low level of intensity, contentness, serenity , calmness etc.
Hedonic vs. Eudaimonic
Hedonic = pleasure seeking (only care about good time without thinking of consequences)
Eudemonic = seeking a meaningful life; happiness with meaning
3 primary sources of happiness
- an individual set point (genetic influence and based on extraversion and neuroticism)
- objective life circumstances
- intentional activities
For higher levels of happiness
- spend $ on experiences, not things
- list things you are thankful for
Self-Determination Theory
- the concept that regulation of behaviour varies along a continuum from externally controlled (ex: to obtain rewards or avoid punishments) to autonomous or intrinsically motivated (ex: to have fun or explore interests)
- the theory emphasizes the importance of intrinsic motivation for producing healthy adjustment and asserts that negative outcomes ensue when people feel they are driven mainly by external forces and extrinsic rewards
T or F. More driven to do things that are intrinsically important to us
T!
Introjected regulation
when a person treats a behaviour as a “should” or an “ought”
- controlled from within
- rooted in the desire to be accepted
Identified regulation
when a person has come to hold the behaviour as personally meaningful and valuable
Strengths of Humanistic/Existential Psychology
- offers a look at the positive/optimistic side of humanity/psychology
- strong focus on individual experiences
- outlines strategies towards growth and personal development
Limitations of Humanistic/Existential Psychology
- ignores a lot of human experience/psychology
- precision
- some concepts are difficult to study (hard to operationalize or manipulate things bc abstract ideas)
- should we be so accepting of everyone and promote everyone’s self-actualization processes?
- Free Will: fact or fiction?
Two assumptions of the cognitive perspective
- we integrate and organize bits of information
- life involves elaborate decisions that may be conscious or unconscious
Schemas
- mental organizations of information
- not all are conscious
- individualized but can also be culturally informed
- consists of exemplars and prototypes
Exemplar
a specific example of a category member
Prototype
the representation of a category in terms of the “best” member of the category
Fuzzy set
a category defined by a set of attributes that aren’t absolutely necessary for membership
Effects of schemas
- help with memory
- direct attention/focus
- can have predictive value
- brings in default information to fill gaps (default: something assume to be true until you learn otherwise)
Social cognition
cognitive processes that focus on socially meaningful stimuli
The schematic representation of the self
self-schema
- may be an important factor in processing information (for better or for worse)
Self-complexity
the degree to which your self-schema is differentiated and compartmentalized
- stable in an indiv but we can adjust it! It’s malleable, flexible … not set in stone
Self-knowledge can be split into 2 categories:
- declarative knowledge: facts and impressions that we consciously know and can describe
- procedural knowledge: what a person knows but cannot really talk about
- > implicit knowledge = occur more automatically, don’t think of procedural knowledge, just do it… might not think ur agreeable but u do it anyways
The Declarative Self
- an individual’s conscious opinions about their own personality traits and other relevant attitudes
- includes: self-esteem, self-concept, self-efficacy, self-schema
- self- reference helps with memory
Self-reference
the enhancement of long-term memory that comes from thinking about how information may be self-relevant
- tie material to urself in some sort of meaningful way
Possible selves
an image of yourself in the future (expected, desired, feared, etc.)
Self-discrepancy theory
a psychological theory concerned with the incongruity between different aspects of one’s self-concept, particularly between one’s actual self and either the ideal self or the ought self
Ideal vs Ought self
- ideal = reward/go system; who u want to be! Motivated for this (approach motivation)
- ought self is based on avoiding punishment and bad outcomes; stop system (avoidance perception); living to other’s ppls standards so they do not shun u
** ought self might take priority over ideal self in collectivistic cultures (honouring family)**
Patterns of behaviour that are characteristic of an individual
Procedural self
- made up of behaviours through which you express who you think you are, generally without knowing you are doing so
Epistemological self
- me
- knowledge of one’s own personality traits, experiences, and other attributes
- all that we hold dear too = like our body, homes, etc ; anything that we think is integral to us as a being
Ontological self
- I
- somewhat mysterious inner self of thinking, observation, and experience
- Freud’s ego
- the one doing the observing and describing rather than the one being observed and described
- homunculus making these descriptions
Attribution
inferring the cause of an event; informed by our schemas
Semantic memory
memory organized according to meaning
Episodic memory
memory organized according to sequences of events
Script
a memory structure used to represent a highly stereotyped category of events
- sequential schema = tells us how to act in a series of steps and in various types of situations
- we can understand how to behave based on diff types of cues; automatic
- we may have variations of scripts for similar but different experiences (ex: fast food vs fine dining)
“activated” nodes
- in consciousness
- may spread to nodes with strong links to the activated node
- partial activation may allow associated concepts to become more accessible to, yet still just outside of, conscious awareness
Priming
activating an element in memory by using information contained in it, leaving it partly activated
- subliminal: below consciousness
- supraliminal: above consciousness
Subliminal vs Supraliminal priming
- supraliminal priming = describes cases in which people are aware of an environmental cue, but are not aware of its influence on them
- subliminal priming = people are not even aware of an environmental cue, yet it still influences them
This makes information/concepts more accessible and partially activates associated nodes
Priming
An approach to understanding cognition based on the metaphor of interconnected neurons
Connectionism
- info processed through multiple neural pathways simultaneously as opposed to a singular node
- input => output
- things can be activated to decrease a behaviour!! not just bc its activated that it’s more likely to happen
Cognitive-experiential self-theory
Rational (mostly conscious, effortful and slow) and Experiential (unconscious, intuitive, automatic, uses mental shortcuts (heuristics)) system
- behaviour determined by both systems but each can be more engaged/active than the other but this may require self-control
Cognitive-Affective Processing System
- CAPS
- a theoretical conception of personality structure as a complex system that features a large number of highly interconnected cognitions and emotional tendencies
- > emotion = important role in cognition
- personality schemas = if… then… contingencies
- > hedges; used for how we understand others as well as ourselves
- indiv differences due to accessibility/cues of schemas and their if… then… contingencies (behaviour signatures)
- one must know how someone construes the situation and their behaviour signatures to predict behavioural consistency
Hedges
conditions under which we think others act a particular way; if we really know someone we know what sets them off, what makes them drink, dance, etc = we have better understanding = can make better predictions about their behaviour bc we know if they do certain things and they are certain ways, then they’re likely to do x,y,z
Behaviour signatures
the unique profile of if… then.. relations
Assessing personality from a cognitive perspective
- think-aloud for problem solving
- self-monitoring for particular events (no schedule)- experience sampling for frequent reports of behaviour/thoughts
- contextualized assessments (surveys, interviews) can provide a more nuanced view of personality, especially for if… then.. type models
Problems in Behaviour and Behaviour Change
- some problems due to issue with cognitive functions
- depression as a result of automatic and unwanted thoughts from negative schemas
- > cognitive-based therapies (Ellis) help with cog. reframing
- various problems due to issues with attention (ex: depressed ppl focus on more neg aspects of their life, self and those around them; OCD => unable to direct their attention away from these obsessive thoughts unless they engage in compulsions ; attention focused and directed on things that they don’t want to be thinking about but can’t redirect their attention; try to get them to be comfortable w/ unwanted neg thoughts so they don’t give them so much of an attentional focus)
Self-regulation
The control of one’s behaviour through the use of self-monitoring (keeping a record of behaviour), self-evaluation (assessing the information obtained during self-monitoring), and self-reinforcement( rewarding oneself for appropriate behaviour or for attaining a goal)
Self-control
the ability to be in command of one’s behaviour (overt, covert, emotional, or physical) and to restrain or inhibit one’s impulses
- in circumstance in which short-term gain is pitted against long-term greater gain, self-control is the ability to opt for the long-term outcome
Attitudes
personal; individualistic understanding ; consists of belief that behaviour will lead to some sort of outcome that you’d like and desirability of outcome
- outcomes: if you have an intention to study, part of that is going to be driven based on how much do you think studying is going to have some sort of effect on an outcome such as passing an exam or doing well in a class; also contingent on desirability of outcome: if you don’t care if you pass with an A, B, C, or D, you just wanna pass… will lower your intentions to study profusely for exam
Subjective norms
your impression of how relevant others value an action and your interest in pleasing them
Goal intention
the intent to reach a particular outcome
–> main goals; like job as a lawyer = goal intention!
Implementation intention
the intentions to take specific actions in specific contexts
- concrete; serve goal intentions
- direct and redirect attention/focus to make goal satisfaction more likely
Following through with intentions requires two sequential mindsets
- deliberative and implemental
Deliberative mindset
a careful mindset used while deciding whether to take an action
- open-minded but careful; focused in the best choice
Implemental mindset
a positively biased mindset that’s used while implementing an intention to act
- important for persistence
This is important when it comes to behaving in line with intentions/goals
feedback control
Negative feedback loop
a self-regulating system that maintains conformity to some comparison value
- feedback for behaviours in relation to goals, values, expectations = reference pt ; helps us to make adjustments to better accomplish our goals
4 parts of the negative feedback loop:
- a value
- input
- comparator
- output
Comparator
- process of comparing
- will determine what output is going to be…
- if there is gap b/w input function and goal standard = some adjustments need to be made
- reducing goal to be something more attainable or increasing effort in terms of trying to meet goal
- want input function and goal to align!
- continue to loop until no more discrepancies and then continue onto the next; self-regulating in the sense that if there is an issue, will try to change behaviour in order to get it back in line
Feedback hierarchy
an organization of feedback loops, in which superordinate loops act by providing reference values to subordinate loops (larger ideas; provide different types of implementation intentions to serve as their own individual feedback loops; 3 diff levels)
> system concepts, principle control, program
- each level may have several ways to be successfully completed
System concepts
- abstract qualities
- like ideal self-image (may be your highest level goal)
Principle control
- traits or values
- things that are characteristics of that higher level goal
Program
- scripts
- behaviours that reflect those principles that are part of those systems concepts
Hierarchal organization
- not all levels may be active at the same time
- lower levels may (temporarily) take priority over high levels
- lower levels may be shared across different higher level
- lower levels of different goals can disrupt each other
- people generally construe their actions in the highest-level possible but this is a dynamic process
- HOWEVER, another perspective = psychological distance => more abstract (higher level)
Assessment from the Self-Regulation Perspective
- private self-consciousness, as the tendency to be self-reflective, has important implications for self-regulation
- two aspects of self-consciousness measured via the Rumination-Reflection Questionnaire (curiosity, desire to probe negative feeling states)
- Behaviour Identification Form assesses higher- and lower-level construal of behaviour
Problems for Self-Regulation Perspective
- conflict in goals
- unclear implementation intentions/sub-goals/principles/programs
- unable to quit/disengage
Self-regulation as a foundation for therapy
- make automatic habits conscious
- may follow a dynamic feedback system of itself
- means-end analysis: the process of creating a plan to attain an overall goal (end) by breaking it into successively more concrete goals (means)
Similarities across Social Learning, Cognitive, and Social Regulation perspectives
- cognitive representations of the world and self are important but are understood to have different roles across these perspectives
- consideration of expectancies
- incentives and goals (being used in largely the same way)
- reinforcement (some differences across perspectives)
- Learning theory: looking at it more in terms of operant conditioning - reinforced behaviour u want to see continued in the future
- Social learning perspective (Bandura) - rf in terms of mental representations – future incentives; things that u would see in the future through mental reps that were desirable and u wanted to obtained
Self-reg = break it down to self rf and external rf; self rf strongest influence of indiv
Social Learning Theory
understanding of self is going to be crucial for engaging and learning in behavioural change
5 general characteristics of personality disorders
- unusual (deviance)
- cause problems (dysfunction)
- affect social relations
- stable over time
- individual may not see it as a disorder (dystonic and syntonic)
Ego-syntonic
thoughts, feelings, beliefs, or behaviours that one accepts as part of oneself and does not want to be cured of, even if others find them difficult to deal with
Ego-dystonic
troubling thoughts, feelings, beliefs, or behaviours that one experiences as alien or foreign and want to be rid of
A new section in the DSM-5 offers a new set of steps in diagnosing
- assess whether the personality functioning is seriously impaired (and if so, rate the degree of the dysfunction)
- assess whether or not at least one of the six defined types of personality disorder is present
- assess the degree to which the client is characterized by each of the 5 maladaptive traits
The Bad Five
negative affectivity, detachment, antagonism, disinhibition, psychoticism
Negative affectivity
a tendency to feel negative emotions such as anxiety, depression, and suspicion
Detachment
a tendency to withdraw from and to avoid emotional contacts with other people
Includes deceitfulness, grandiosity, callousness, and manipulativeness (some hallmarks of narcissism)
Antagonism
Disinhibition
characterized by careless and impulsive behaviour (opposite of this trait, compulsivity, involves a kind of rigid overcontrol and perfectionism that can be almost equally maladaptive )
A tendency to have bizarre thoughts or experiences, and to exhibit eccentric behaviour
Psychoticism
Schizotypal Personality Disorder
- extreme pattern of odd beliefs, and of difficulties relating to others (believe they have ESP, or ability to see the future)
- extreme levels can approach schizophrenia
- prevalence rates = 0.6%-4.6%
- higher in M slightly
- stable throughout lifetime
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
- an extreme pattern of arrogant, exploitative behaviour combined with a notable lack of empathy
- great first impression (can last a long time) which comes to end after a while
- admiration and special treatment from others is not desired but rather needed
- it being ego-syntonic makes it difficult or impossible to treat
- extreme estimation of prevalence = >0% to 6%
Antisocial Personality Disorder
- extreme pattern of deceitful, manipulative, and sometimes dangerous behaviour
- harming others does not bother them and they rationalize it through various reasons
- not same as psychopathy
- relationship b/w APD and SES?
- 0.2-3.3%
- more common in M
- overrepresented in business world
Psychopathy
emotionally cold, disregard social norms, manipulative and cunning
Cutthroat businessmen
not rooted in psychoticism; trying to make as much money as possible - not like Ted Bundy situation
Borderline Personality Disorder
- an extreme and sometimes dangerous pattern of emotional instability, emotional emptiness, confused identity, and tendencies toward self-harm
- argued to be one of the most dangerous
- extreme mood change from one moment to the next and extremely sensitive emotionally
- ~2%; higher in W
Extreme self-harm
BPD
- suicide attempts are common (8%-10% do succeed)
Treating BPD
- challenging for therapists to try and stop the cycle of self-harm
- emotional training can also be used to help with the overall disorder
Interpersonal relationships are filled with confusion, chaos, and instability
BPD
- largely due to splitting (viewing ppl as wholly good or bad)
Avoidant Personality Disorder
- extreme pattern of feelings of inadequacy accompanied by fear of social contact (extreme shyness)
- have a deep desire to feel connected to others
- expect the worse from interactions with others
- may inhibit behaviours and expressions to avoid rejection
- may start as severe shyness in childhood & develop more into adulthood
- ~2.4%
Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder
- Freud’s anal character
- workaholics (don’t get much done usually) and hoarding behaviour
- might ego-syntonic for many and some traits are seen as more or less positive
- NOT SAME AS OCD; people with OCD are ego-dystonic = disrupting their lives!!; OCPD’s compulsions are less specific and may be more far reaching; OCD may be easier to treat
- 2.1% to 7.9%
- anti-depressants
An extreme pattern of rigidly conscientious behaviour, including an anxious and inflexible adherence to rules and rituals, perfectionism, and a stubborn resistance to change
OCPD
Psychodynamic/Existential Perspective
TMT
- existential threat
- “anxiety is the existential awareness of nonbeing”
Individuality-within-finitude
humanity as part physical and part symbolic
Basic elements of TMT
- humans are animals: drive towards survival & inevitable failure of this instinct
- humans are different than other animals: abstract and temporal thought & the awareness we will inevitably die
- drive towards survival + knowledge of death = TERROR! (great anxiety)
Cultural worldview
socially-constructed, shared, symbolic conceptions of reality that infuse human existence with a sense of meaning, order, and permanence
the perception that one is an object of value in a meaningful world
self-esteem
- based on how well one meets the standards of their cultural worldview
First empirically tested model of self-esteem
TMT
Literal immortality
the literal persistence of one’s life (ex: soul) after physical death
-> heaven, reincarnation/transmigration, ancestral spirits
Symbolic immortality
the persistence of one’s abstract or symbolic self after physical death
-> ex: writing a book, having children, having your name on a building, transferring your identity to a larger, more resilient construct like one’s country
Literal and Symbolic Immortality
Occurs at unconscious level!!! Death-related thoughts could become closer to consciousness when u threaten various types of anxiety-buffering systems
Accommodation
incorporating aspects of other worldviews to one’s own
Assimilation
converting others to one’s own worldview
Derogation
belittling rival worldviews and their adherents
Annihilation
eliminating rival worldviews
The 3 Critical TMT Hypotheses
- Mortality Salience Hypothesis
- Death-Thought Accessibility (DTA) Hypothesis
- Anxiety Buffer Hypothesis
Mortality Salience Hypothesis
if a construct (world view and self-esteem) reduces thoughts and concerns about death, then reminding people of death should increase their need for that construct
Death-Thought Accessibility Hypothesis
if a construct reduces thoughts and concerns about death, then threatening that construct should increase the accessibility of death-thoughts
Anxiety Buffer Hypothesis
if a construct reduces anxiety (including thoughts and concerns about death), then bolstering that construct should reduce anxiety
T or F. People willing to sacrifice physical self for symbolic identity
T! = increase prestige; ppl think highly of u
Most common ways to measure accessibility of death-related thoughts
Word fragments and lexical decision task
Most common way to remind people of their mortality
writing prompts
This predicts higher levels of death-anxiety and more likely to ruminate about death
Traditional neuroticism
- high traditional neuroticism predicts aversion to the physical aspects of being human
Personal need for structure (PNS)
a dispositional preference for clear, coherent knowledge and a corresponding aversion to ambiguity and disorder
