Personality & Psychopathology Flashcards
temperament
inherited physiological processes that predispose a child to display certain behaviors and emotions in particular contexts
kagan’s research
proves that temperament can predict personality in certain situations
inclination for shyness or outgoingness can be predicted by an infants reaction to stimuli
if an infant is irritable or stressed by the stimuli, they will most likely be shy
if an infant is still in face of stimuli, most likely outgoing
Difference between theories of attachment and Kagan’s research
Kagan believes that biological temperament can predict personality
Theories of attachment state that attachment style to the mother can predict future personality
personality
pattern of psychological qualities and behavioral characteristics by which each person can be compared to other people by
personality is more what we project to others than temperament
5 theories of pesonality
1) Dispositional (trait) approach
2) Behavioral approach
3) Cognitive-behavorial
4) Phenomenological/humanistic
5) Psychodynamic
traits
define a person’s relatively stable patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
Big 5 Personality dimensions
five crucial dimensions of personality determined through factor analysis of trait terms: extraversion neuroticism agreeableness conscientiousness openness to experience
How are the Big 5 personality dimensions normally measured?
by self-reporting and informant data
personality paradox
people behave differently in different situations
ex: may be outgoing with friends and shy at work
Self-Monitoring Scale
a personality measure that seeks to determine the degree to which a person alters or adjusts their behavior in order to act appropriately in new circumstances
ex: Mr. Ripley has high degree of self-monitoring
Genetic influence on personality
there is a high level of association in the Big Five Traits of monozygotic twins
shows that there is a genetic influence on personality
National character
the idea that people in different cultures have different personalities
ex: neuroticism is geographically distributed across the US
Psychogenic symptoms
Symptoms believed to result from some psychological cause rather than from tissue damage
Freud believed in psychological causes to hysteria rather than tissue damage
What did Freud believe about human nature?
He was pessimistic
Believes that natural tendencies are bad when we are motivated towards immediate satisfaction
repression
in psychoanalytic theory, a mechanism of defense by which thoughts, impulses, or memories that give rise to anxiety are pushed out of consciousness
psychoanalysis
a theory of human personality development formulated by Freud, based on assertions about unconscious conflict and early psychosexual development
ID
most primitive reactions of human personality
focuses on immediate biological satistifaction and the pleasure-seeking principle
ID is unconscious
Pleasure seeking principle
satisfaction now and not later, regardless of the cost
ego
a set of reactions that try to reconcile ID-driven needs with actual realities of the world (reality principle)
makes up preconscious and conscious
superego
reaction patterns that emerge from within the ego
represent internalized societal rules
come to control the ego by punishment and guilt
Different types of defense mechanisms
1) displacement
2) reaction formation
3) rationalization
4) projection
Displacement
a redirection of an impulse from a blocked channel to another, more available outlet
Reaction formation
a mechanism of defense in which a forbidden impulse is turned into its opposite
Rationalization
a mechanism where forbidden impulses are reinterpreted into more acceptable and less anxiety arousing impulses
Projection
a mechanism of defense where forbidden thoughts and impulses are attributed to another person rather than the self
collective unconscious
part of the unconscious mind that is shared by all human beings
Humanistic approach to personality
what is most important is how people achieve their own selfhood and actualize their potential
Phenomenology
the study of each person’s own, unique first-person conscious experience
self theory
Carl Roger’s theory of personality which emphasizes the individuals active attempts to satisfy his needs in a way that is consistent with his self-concept
Social cognitive approach to personality
focus on various cognitive characteristics along which personalities may differ
Development of the Self
At birth, there is the implicit “I” experience
Move towards the explicit “me” experience (money, family, other outside factors)
What does Rochat’s research on the development of the self try to show?
Babies are not born in confusion, but with a sense of who we are (debunks Piaget and Freud)
What 3 aspect does the social cognitive approach emphasize?
Control- being in control of your actions
Attributional style- how you talk about events in your life
Self-control- being able to delay gratification
psychopathology
the study of mental illness and mental disorders
General models of mental illness
Demonological Medical Psychodynamic Behavorial Phenomenological Diathesis
Psychodynamic approach to mental illness
reconstruct infantile trauma and repression
How do we assess mental illness?
clinical interview, self-report, behavorial observation, and neuropsych tests
Diathesis-stress model of mental illness
a conception of psychopathology that distinguishes factors that create a risk of illness (diathesis, predisposition) and factors that trigger the risk into a problem (stress)
multi-causal model of mental illness
a conception of mental illness arising from many different factors
Biopsychosocial
a perspective on psychopathology that emphasizes the biological, psychological, and social factors that contribute to mental illness
Elyn Saks
offers first person perspective on living with schizoprenia
is an example of a phenomenlogical approach (first-hand account of self)
Somatogenic hypothesis
early thoughts on mental disease that disorders are the result of a specific injury or infection
Psychogenic hypothesis
offered by freud
approach to psychopathology that argues that mental disorders are rooted in psychological processes
Examples of anxiety disorders
Phobias, panic disorder, general anxiety disorder, OCD, PTSH
Mood disorders
a group of disorders distinguished primarily by changes in positive and negative affective states
exampls of mood disorders
depression and bipolar disorder
Schizophrenia
a group of severe mental disorders characterized by at least some of the following: marked disturbance of thought, withdrawal, inappropriate or flat emotions, delusions and hallucinations
Psychosis
loss of contact with reality, most often evidenced as delusions or hallucinations
seen in schizophrenics
Positive schizophrenic symptoms
behaviors not evident in healthy people
halucinations, delusions, etc.
Negative schizophrenic symptoms
behaviors in healthy people that are absent
ex: emotional expression
Cognitive schizophrenic symptoms
impairment in working memory and attentional control
What causes schizophrenia?
Genetic predisposition, diminished O2 supply, prenatal infections
this is a neurodevelopment disorder (early brain abnormalities)
Dissociative disorders
involve extreme responses to horrific events
