Psychological Theories Flashcards
psychoanalytic theory
model of personality proposed by Sigmund Freud that focuses on the role of childhood experiences and unconscious motivation in determining behavior
libido
energy source that causes an unconscious drive for sex and survival that Freud thought underlied much of a person’s behavior
psychosexual development
stages that Freud believed every person passed through during maturation, due to the drive from the libido
fixation
the inability to move on from a certain psychosexual stage of development, due to either too much or too little gratification in that stage
conscious
thoughts that we are aware of that partially influence our behavior and personality
unconscious
thoughts, memories, and drives that we are now aware of
Freud believed that this plays a large role in personality and behavior
id
unconscious structure of the mind in Freud’s psychoanalytic theory
strives for instant gratification
ego
partially conscious structure of the mind in Freud’s psychoanalytic theory
strives for long-term gratification and mediates between the drive of the id and moral guidelines of the superego
superego
partially conscious structure of the mind in Freud’s psychoanalytic theory
serves as the conscience and holds the moral values of society
defense mechanism
ways of coping with anxiety that are carried out by the unconscious part of the mind
pathological defense mechanisms
group of coping strategies in which reality is distorted by the unconscious to help alleviate anxiety
eg denial
denial
pathological defense mechanism that describes when a person ignores the truth to eliminate anxiety
main defense mechanism used by most people
immature defense mechanisms
coping strategies carried by the unconscious that are typically employed by children
eg projection, projective identification, passive aggression
projection
immature defense mechanism that describes when a person attributes their negative thoughts or qualities to someone else
projective identification
possible effect of projection in which the person who is having the negative qualities projected onto them starts to actually behave in that way
passive aggression
immature defense mechanism in which a person will express frustration or anger towards another by failing to do something or completing it slowly
neurotic defense mechanisms
group of coping strategies carried out by the unconscious that often have positive short term effects and negative long term effects
intellectualization
neurotic defense mechanism in which a person focuses on the logical parts of a situation to ignore the emotional aspects
rationalization
neurotic defense mechanism in which a person uses (possibly faulty) logic to prove to themselves that they were not at fault in a situation
regression
neurotic defense mechanism in which a person behaves as if they were much younger
repression
neurotic defense mechanism in which a person pushes unpleasant conscious thoughts into the unconscious
displacement
neurotic defense mechanism in which a person expresses their negative emotion felt towards one person at another person
mature defense mechanisms
group of coping strategies that lead a person to feel happier or more satisfied in both the short and long term
humor
mature defense mechanism in which a person makes light of a situation or engages in self-deprecation
can be done for the entertainment of others and for making a situation seem less grave
sublimation
mature defense mechanism in which a person takes unhelpful or aggressive thoughts and behaviors and channels them into positive, socially acceptable behavior
suppression
mature defense mechanism in which a person consciously decides to push a thought into the unconscious
altruism
mature defense mechanism in which a person engages in service for others and receives satisfaction
humanistic theory
model of personality that focuses on free will and the drive for self-actualization
based on the idea that all people are good and are driven by the conscious desire to improve
growth promoting climate
environment that is capable of contributing to self-actualization by allowing a person to be their genuine self and providing acceptance of the genuine self
Carl Rogers proposed that this was necessary to reach self-actualization
unconditional positive regard
acceptance of a person’s genuine self that is given regardless of circumstances or what the genuine self is like
key aspect in creating a growth promoting climate
self-concept
the way in which a person views their own personality and behaviors that is created through being genuine and receiving acceptance
biological theory of personality
idea that thought and behavior patterns are determined through inherited genetics and physiology
twin studies
research that gives insight in the nature vs. nurture debate by allowing the comparison of people that either have the same genome and the same environment or the different genomes and the same environment
social potency trait
degree to which a person is inclined to take on leadership roles amongst peers
twin studies have shown that this has a strong genetic basis
traditionalism trait
degree to which a person is inclined to listen to authority
twin studies have shown that this has a strong genetic basis
achievement trait
amount of success a person has in life
twin studies have shown little biological basis
closeness trait
degree to which a person is inclined to foster tight-knit relationships
little biological basis
dopamine-4-receptor
having a longer gene for this receptor has been linked to thrill-seeking behavior and risk taking
temperament
person or infant’s nature or characteristic emotional reactivity that seems to be relatively stable throughout life and have a biological basis
easy, difficult, and withdrawn are common examples of this
trait theory
model of personality that aims to describe the consistent patterns of behavior that make up a person’s personality
trait
characteristic that causes a stable pattern of behavior
Allport’s trait theory
model of personality that states that there are 4,500 different personality characteristics and each person has a specific set of these characteristics
cardinal traits
characteristics that dominate the majority of a person’s personality and influence all behaviors
central traits
characteristics that are expressed to a lesser degree than cardinal traits, but still have a large influence on personality and some behaviors
secondary traits
characteristics that influence only a small subset of behaviors
Cattell’s Trait Theory
model of personality that states that there are 16 different characteristics that we all possess, just in varying levels
Eysenck’s Trait Theory
model of personality based on 3 characteristics that every person has in varying levels
psychoticism, extraversion, and neuroticism
Big 5 Personality Theory
model of personality based on the idea that there are 5 universal traits that every person has in varying levels
openness, conscientious, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism
factor analysis
statistical analysis that determines the relationship between variables
use of this analysis technique allowed for the creation of Cattell’s Theory, Eysenck’s Theory, and the Big 5 Theory
behavioral theory of personality
idea that thought and behavior patterns are entirely determined by interactions with the environment
states that personality can develop throughout the lifespan and is focused on behaviors that can be measured and observed
operant conditioning
learning mechanism that uses rewards and punishments to make behavior more or less likely to occur again
first identified by BF Skinner
classical conditioning
learning mechanism that pairs two stimuli to create a novel involuntary response
Pavlov’s Dog Experiment
study that demonstrated the idea of classical conditioning by ringing a bell every time food was given to a dog
over time, the dog salivated in response to the bell, even without the food being present
social cognitive theory of personality
idea that thought and behavior patterns are learned and developed from paying attention to other’s behavior, memory of their actions, the ability to imitate, and an innate motivation to imitate
observational learning
the way in which watching another individual’s behaviors can cause replication of these behaviors in the onlooker
Bobo Doll Experiment
study conducted by Albert Bandura that consisted of adults displaying violent behaviors towards a blow up toy and observing the children’s interactions with the toy after they watched this
the result was that most children showed the same violent behavior towards the toy, demonstrating the idea of observational learning
learning-performance distinction
idea that just because a behavior is not displayed, this does not mean the behavior was not acquired
demonstrated through Bobo Doll experiment that bribes the kids to behave in the way the adults did towards the doll when they originally were not engaging in the behavior
