lect 1

Question 1

Nature

Answer 1

Nature here refers to ‘human biology’- that is approaching the human organism within its ecology and as part of an evolutionary history. The natural sciences (mainly biology) are most appropriate here.

Question 2

Culture

Answer 2

Refers to the development of a specifically human ecology which is characterized by ‘joint intentionality’ and ‘symbolic interaction’ and is part of a cultural history which is traditionally referred to as ‘civilization’.The humanities (anthropology, sociology, political economy) are most appropriate here.

Question 3

Subject

Answer 3

Refers to the undeniable first-person experience that emerges from the birth of a new human organism (nature) into a pre-existing world (culture). It is part of the individual live history. Phenomenology, existentialism and life stories are most appropriate here

Question 4

‘first nature’

Answer 4

The influence of human evolutionary history on individual development

Question 5

‘second nature

Answer 5

The influence of human cultural history on individual development.

Question 6

nurture

Answer 6

The specific ways in which the direct environment in which we are born shapes us into an individual (interaction of first and second nature).

Question 7

Joint intentionality

Answer 7

A concept used (by Tomasello) to describe a uniquely human evolutionary adaptation. It implies that humans are extremely attuned to sharing their intentions and working towards joint intentions. This sets the stage for forms of intensive cooperation far surpassing that of other mammals

Question 8

Conventional cultural practices

Answer 8

A concept used for a second step in evolution, in which humans are starting to understand themselves as part of a shared community of ‘us’. Cultural traditions are distinguished from behavioral traditons. In the latter useful behaviors are learned, but only in the first conventions (that may not have direct use) are transmitted over generations. This allows for much more complex symbolic interaction and sets the stage for cultural development (and intergroup conflict).

Question 9

‘symbolic
order

Answer 9

Concept referring to the fact that the world into which we are born is structured by the symbolic interactions over the generations which have shaped a particular pre-formed understanding of the world that shapes our world-understanding and our ‘being-in-the-world’

Question 10

Schema

Answer 10

A particular memory-pattern resulting from nurture (learning history, interaction of first and second nature), which pre-structures our understanding of new situations

Question 11

The psychological self

Answer 11

“The psychological self may be construed as a reflexive arrangement of the subjective “I” and the constructed “Me,” evolving and expanding over the human life course. “. The subjective I refers to the phenomenological first-person perspective. The constructed ‘me’ refers to what is made of the person in the interactions with the world. The reflexive arrangement refers to the bi-drectional proces in which the construction is shaped by the first-person self-awareness AND how this first-person self-awareness is shaped by the constructions.

Question 12

Actor

Answer 12

The first layer of the ‘psychological self’ as envisioned by McAdams. It portrays the human being as an actor on the social stage of life. Temperamental features result in typical interactional patterns with others that can be interpreted as agentic and communal strivings and that result in the stable patterns known as the BIG 5 traits.

Question 13

Agent

Answer 13

The second layer of the ‘psychological self’, which constitutes a reflexive move from the standpoint of the actor. The toddler starts to envision himself er herself as having certain aims, goals, desires and means. In the
‘actor’ stage the behaviors associated with those strivings were present and interpreted by others, but now the toddler starts to understand them as óf him or herself.

Question 14

what do all personality theories include

Answer 14

• scientific theories and research
• personal narratives
• cultural perspectives
• your own development as a person

Question 14

Author

Answer 14

The third layer of the ‘psychological self’, which constitutes a reflexive move from the standpoint of the
agent. Here individual identity is shaped by a larger individual narrative (life story) with a past, present and anticipated future. Self-understanding now means to see oneself as being shaped by the past and as anticipating the future in understanding the present. The individual narrative is not pure individual, but acopy-paste and adaptationist version of big and small stories internalized from the broader cultural surroundings

Question 15

what are the 3 perspectives on personality

Answer 15

1. Universal human nature
2. Particular human cultures
3. Singular human life

Question 16

what are the 3 origins of personalities

Answer 16

1. natural origin
2. cultural origin
3. individual origin

Question 17

Common confusions and mistakes

Answer 17

1. Naturalizing cultural categories – no such a thing as human races
2. Reducing every aspect of cultural narratives – man vs woman,
3. Forgetting the cultural and subjective position from where the author speaks
4. Treating all accounts as equally subjective opinions

Question 18

what are the 2 key steps in the evolution of human cooperation

Answer 18

1- obligate collaborative foraging
2 - group - mindedness

Question 19

what is collaborative foraging

Answer 19

➢ Humans have developed very strong skills for collaborating with each other
➢ joint intentionality and intersubjectivity.

Question 20

what is group mindedness

Answer 20

• humans have a developed a capability for conventions
• they are introduced into a pre-existing symbolic order

the beliefs and desires common to a social group as a whole

Question 21

what are the 3 perennial problems for the self and connect them to author, agent or actor

Answer 21

1. self regulation - actor
   * As a social actor, the self must manage its performance in social settings to gain approval and avoid punishment.
2. self esteem - agent
   As a motivated agent, the self sets goals and judges its worth based on achievements and failures.
3. self continuity - author
   * As an autobiographical author, the self creates a coherent life story that integrates past experiences and future aspirations, creates a sense of continuity

Question 22

what tere the 2 forms of coninuity and explain them

Answer 22

1. phenomenological continuity - basic moment-to-moment feeling of existing as the same locus of consciousness and thought
2. narrative continuity - involves constructing a coherent story that links the past present and future, including both semantic and episodic memory

Question 23

culture and the self

Answer 23

social actor - culture shapes how individuals express traits and perform social roles
agent - culture influences the goals values and priorities
Author-culture provides the narrative structures, metaphors and themes that individuals use to construct their life stories