May - Existential Psychology Flashcards
What’s is May’s focus?
Existential psychology
May: What are four existentialism beliefs?
- Existence (growth) above essence (stagnation), ie: actions are more important than what ppl are.
- People are subjective & objective – ie: thinking & acting.
- Ppl search for meaning in their lives
- We’re each responsible for who we are & become.
Existing submissive men rock.
What does May mean by existence?
To emerge or become. Growth and change. Action.
What does May mean by essence?
Static, immutable substance. A product.
May: The unity of people and the world is expressed by what term?
Dasein or being-in-the-world
May: What are the three modes of being-in-the-world?
- Umwelt – relationship with objects/environment.
- Mitwelt – relationship with world of people
- Eigenwelt – Relationship with oneself.
May: People are motivated to search for answers to important questions regarding ____.
The meaning of life.
May: If you treat people as objects, you’re likely living in _____.
Umwelt
May: Healthy people live in….?
Umwelt, Mitwelt, and Eigenwelt simultaneously.
May: What is meant by non-being?
Awareness of the possibility of not being through death or loss of awareness (e.g. due to drugs, alcohol).
To May, what causes anxiety?
- Awareness of the possibility of nonbeing
2. Freedom and responsibility
May: Anxiety and ___ each cannot exist with the other.
Freedom
Normal (constructive) anxiety, according to May, is….?
Experienced by everyone and is proportionate to the threat.
Describe neurotic anxiety, per May.
Disproportionate to the threat, involves repression, and is handled in a self-defeating manner.
What causes guilt, according to May?
- Separation from nature
- Inability to anticipate needs of others
- Denying or failing to fulfill own potentialities
May: The structure giving meaning to experience and allowing people to make decisions for the future is ____.
Intentionality
How does May define love?
Taking delight in the presence of the other person and affirming their value as much as one’s own.
How does May define sex?
A basic form of love, and a biological function that seeks satisfaction through the release of sexual tension.
May: ___ is a higher form of love, seeking an enduring union with a loved one.
Eros
May: ____ is the form of love that seeks a nonsexual friendship.
Philia
May: What is the highest form of love, altruistic and seeks nothing from the other?
Agape
What are the four forms of love, according to May?
Sex, eros, philia, agape.
What are two forms of freedom discussed by May?
Existential – freedom of action
Essential – freedom of being, of the conscious mind.
May: Freedom and ____ are a paradox of life.
Destiny
May: How is freedom gained?
Through confrontation with one’s destiny and through an understanding that death/nonbeing is possible at any moment.
May: ___ ___ are belief systems, conscious and unconscious, that explain personal and social problems.
Cultural myths
May: Three types of ontological guilt are…
- Separation (from nature)
- Inability to anticipate needs of others
- Denying or failing to fulfill own potentialities
May: Without ____ people couldn’t choose or act on their choice.
Intentionality
May: ____ ____ are belief systems, both conscious and unconscious, that explain personal and social problems.
Cultural myths
May: People have an equal degree of __ and __.
Freedom and responsibility.
Summarize May’s Existential Psychology
- Ppl suffer GUILT from a) separation from the natural world b) inability to judge needs of others and c) denial of their own potentialities.
- They need Dasein – unity of self and world.
- Three modes of Dasein: a) Umwelt – relationship w/ things b) Mitwelt – w/ ppl c) Eigenwelt – w/ oneself.
- Intentionality gives meaning to experiences, allows ppl to make decisions for the future.
- Anxiety from awareness of poss. of nonbeing & when aware they are free to choose.
- Freedom is gained by facing one’s destiny and understanding nonbeing can happen anytime.
May: What is essential freedom?
The freedom of being, thinking, planning, hoping.
May: What is existential freedom?
Freedom of action, to move about, to pursue tangible goals.
