Psychoanalytic approaches: Contemporary issues Flashcards
In the case of Ramona v. Isabella, what was Gary Ramona’s accusation against the therapists?
That they implanted false memories of incest in his daughter’s mind through suggestion and use of sodium amytal.
What role did Elizabeth Loftus play in the Ramona trial?
She testified that there is no support for the idea that one can be raped repeatedly over years and completely forget it.
What is motivated repression?
The psychoanalytic idea that the mind can unconsciously bury horrifying memories and later retrieve them accurately.
What are Westen’s five postulates of contemporary psychoanalysis?
- The unconscious plays a large role in life.
- Behavior reflects compromises among mental processes.
- Childhood shapes adult relationship styles.
- Early mental representations guide later relationships.
- Development involves moving toward mature relationship styles.
According to Elizabeth Loftus, what factors can contribute to the creation of false memories?
Leading questions, suggestive therapy techniques, hypnosis, popular books, authority pressure, and the imagination inflation effect.
What is the imagination inflation effect?
When imagining an event increases the confidence that the event actually happened.
What did the False Memory Syndrome Foundation (FMSF) aim to do?
Prevent therapists from implanting false memories and assist families harmed by false memory accusations.
What are the three steps of memory formation?
Attend to information, encode the information, recall the information.
Name one factor that makes false information more likely to be encoded into memory.
Repetition, source expertise, familiarity, fluency, or perceived consensus.
What is subliminal priming in the context of unconscious influence?
Exposure to stimuli below conscious awareness that can influence reactions, but rarely complex behaviors.
What is the difference between the cognitive unconscious and the motivated unconscious?
Cognitive unconscious involves passive mental processes without awareness; motivated unconscious involves repressed urges influencing behavior.
What is ego psychology?
A branch of psychoanalysis focusing on the ego’s role in mastering the environment and developing identity, rather than id impulses.
What is Erikson’s concept of identity crisis?
Confusion or despair when a person has not developed a strong, coherent sense of self.
What is the primary developmental task during adolescence according to Erikson?
Achieving identity versus experiencing role confusion.
What does identity foreclosure refer to?
Accepting an identity without exploring alternatives, often adopting parents’ or authority figures’ values uncritically.
What is a moratorium in identity development?
A socially approved period (e.g., college) for exploring different roles before committing to an identity.
What developmental conflict characterizes young adulthood according to Erikson?
Intimacy vs. isolation.
What is the main task of middle adulthood according to Erikson?
Generativity versus stagnation – caring about and contributing to future generations.
What is integrity versus despair in Erikson’s stages?
Reflecting on life with satisfaction or regret in old age.
What was Karen Horney’s feminist critique of Freudian theory?
She argued that penis envy was symbolic of social power envy, and stressed cultural rather than biological influences on gender roles.
What is fear of success according to Karen Horney?
The belief that women might lose friends if they succeed, discouraging them from pursuing achievement.
What is narcissism in contemporary psychoanalysis?
Extreme self-focus, inflated self-admiration, entitlement, and a fragile sense of self-worth.
What is the narcissistic paradox?
Narcissists appear confident but are actually insecure and vulnerable to criticism.
How do narcissists typically respond to criticism?
With aggression or vengefulness to protect their fragile self-esteem.
