Midterm Flashcards
SELF PSYCHOLOGY
Kohut: a theory that the self is the center of psychological motivation, organization, and change in personality. It also assumes that psychological damage to the self produces psychopathology.
Object Relations Theory
Kohut and Mahler. States that the course of human development depends on the quality
of the relationships established between individuals, particularly between parents and their
children.
Self Objects
Kohut. representations of psychologically important people who can help us cope
with and resolve problems.
Primary Narcissism
Kohut. initial state of well-being and satisfaction in which all of the infant’s
needs are gratified and the infant feels an oceanic perfection and bliss
Grandiose Self
Kohut. the primitive view of oneself as great. The is a need for the baby to be
MIRRORED (parent reflects child’s feeling i.e. when child is sad the parent’s face shows sad,
when child is happy, parents face reflects child’s feeling)- a child’s yearning for admiration and
approval.
Idealized Parental Image
Kohut. the child’s initial view of their parents as perfect, that is, as all knowing and all-powerful. The child’s need to idealize is a need to seek security by identifying with all-powerful figures, usually parents.
Empathic Parents
Kohut. parents capable of assuming the perspective of the child, to know and understand his or her experiences.
Optimal Frustration
Kohut. ideal, not traumatic, frustration of a person’s needs (by parents) that fosters new learning and personal growth. Delayed gratification. Knowing that they will
eventually be there.
Nuclear Self
Kohut. the foundation of personality, established through a learning process that is
initiated by empathic parents, in which individuals modify their unrealistic beliefs about
themselves and their caretakers.
Psychosis
Kohut. a severe disturbance of the self in which defenses do not cover major defects in the self.
Borderline States
Kohut. a disorder of the self in which damage to the self is permanent or protracted. In contrast to the psychoses, the central defect is better covered by major
defenses.
Schizoid Personality Disorders
Kohut. Borderline State. The defective self structures are protected against further damage by aloofness and superficial involvement in relationships.
Paranoid Personality Disorders
Kohut. Borderline State. Deficiencies in self structures are shielded against further damage by using hostility and suspicion to keep potentially injurious objects at a safe
distance.
Understimulated Self
Kohut. Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Leaves individuals with an empty feeling, bored and depressed
because their parents have failed to respond empathically to their mirroring and idealizing
needs.
Overstimulated Self
Kohut. Narcissistic Personality Disorders. is when individuals exposed to excessive stimulation in childhood,
because their fantasies of greatness were continually reinforced by unempathic caregivers.
Overburdened Self
Kohut. Narcissistic Personality Disorders. is when a person has not had an opportunity to merge with the calmness
of an omnipotent self-object, usually a parent. The result is lack of self-soothing capacity that
could have been learned through such contact.
Mirror-Hungry Personalities
Kohut. Narcissistic Behavior Disorders. are individuals who crave self-objects whose confirming and
admiring responses will increase their feelings of self worth.
Ideal-Hungry Personalities
Kohut. Narcissistic Behavior Disorders. are individuals who experience themselves as worthwhile as
long as they can related to people they can admire.
Alter-Ego Personalities
Kohut. Narcissistic Behavior Disorders. are individuals who feel worthwhile only if they have a relationship
with a self-object who looks and dresses like them and has similar opinions and values.
Merger-Hungry Personalities
Kohut. Narcissistic Behavior Disorders. individuals who experience others as their own self.
Contact-Shunning Personalities
Kohut. Narcissistic Behavior Disorders. the intense longing to merge with self-objects, such individuals are highly sensitive to rejection. To avoid this pain, they avoid social contact.
Empathy (Kohut)
Kohut THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUE. plays a big role, it is the ability to assume the perspective of another person, to know and understand his or her experiences.
Mirror Transference
Kohut THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUE. Transference in which a person who had not been adequately mirrored
that is, confirmed and given approval by his mother relives these experiences with the
therapist.
Idealizing Transference
Kohut THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUE. the process in which a patient whose needs to be protected by
an admired, powerful parent in early childhood were frustrated relives these experiences.
Alter-Ego Transference
Kohut THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUE. the process in which a patient whose needs for belonging as
a member of the group have not been met by family members relives these experiences with an accepting therapist
Counter-Transference (Kohut)
Kohut THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUE. the therapist's tendency to react to the patient on the basis of his or her (therapist's) own narcissistic needs and conflicts.
Kohut goal of therapy
to redirect narcissistic energies from the unrealistic self structures to the nuclear self and ego……reparenting
INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOLOGY
Adler. a theory that seeks to understand the behavior of each
person as a complex, organized entity operating within a society.
Social Interest
Adler. the innate tendency in human beings to help and cooperate with one
another as a means of establishing a harmonious and productive society.
Style of life
Adler. Life style or Style of life is the individual’s distinctive personality pattern, which is basically
shaped by the end of early childhood.
Birth Order
Adler. how each child is treated by parents depends to a large extent on the child’s
order of birth within the family.
first born understands the importance of power, dominance, responsibility and
intellectual achievement.
second born (and later born) likely to be rebellious and highly competitive. Also could be
opposite of first born qualities.
youngest born family members tend to spoil them.
only born likely to lack social competence (Falbo proved Adler wrong on this one)
ruling-person type
Adler. Destructive life style. Person who strives for personal superiority by trying to exploit and control others
getting-person
Adler. Destructive life style. attains personal goals by relying indiscriminately on others for help.
avoiding-person
Adler. Destructive life style. lacks the confidence to confront problems and avoids or ignores
them.
feelings of inferiority
Adler. striving for superiority in accordance with social interest vs
feelings of inferiority and striving for superiority in a selfish, uncooperative way
behavior is purposeful and goal-directed
Adler
Faulty Motivations
Adler. Goal of therapy was to change faulty motivations
Can change our lives through education, goals
Adler
Autistic Phase
Mahler. 0-1 months. “wow”
Symbiotic Phase
Mahler. 1-6 months. One with the world
Separation Individuation Phase
Mahler. 6-32 months. “I am”
Rapprochement Phase
Mahler’s focus 18-32 months.
Mahler’s Focus
Attachment and early childhood development
SPLITTING
Mahler defense mechanism. separate objects and feelings into good and bad. Just like a child, at time of need can’t hold good mom and bad mom. Either one.