Psychology Flashcards
3 Theories in Psychology
- Psychodynamic Theory: Unconcious mind
- Behavioural Theory: Learned behaviour and personality development
- Humanistic: Personal growth
Psychodynamic Theory
- Focus: Unconscious mind, childhood experiences, and internal conflicts.
- Key Idea: Behavior is influenced by unconscious desires and unresolved childhood experiences. Early life events shape our thoughts and actions later in life.
- Example: A person’s fear of failure may stem from early childhood experiences or repressed emotions.
Behavioural Theory
- Focus: Observable behavior and how it is learned or reinforced.
- Key Idea: Behavior is learned through interactions with the environment, especially through rewards, punishments, and observation of others.
- Example: A student procrastinates because they have been rewarded for last-minute work in the past.
Humanistic Theory
- Focus: Personal growth, self-actualization, and free will.
- Key Idea: Humans are inherently good and motivated to achieve their full potential. The need for self-esteem, personal growth, and meaningful relationships influences behavior.
- Example: A person struggling with self-esteem may seek self-actualization through therapy and positive relationships.
What do psychologists do?
-Discover patterns in human personality (how humans think, act, and feel)
- Use a scientific approach to study behaviour and the human mind
- Produce conclusions and theories that will help people
Main Goals of Psychologists
PECD:
- Predict behaviour
- Explain behaviour
- Change behaviour
- Describe behaviour
Branches of Psychology
- Experimental (Research and experiments)
- Applied/Clinical (Therapy)
Psychodynamic Theory
Includes all theories in psychology
- Particularly the unconscious drives and forces within a person
Refers to Freud’s theories and those of his followers
Psychoanalytic Theory
Sigmund Freud’s Theory
- All human behaviour is influenced by early childhood, and that childhood experiences influence the unconscious mind throughout life
Sigmund Freud
Made the idea of the conscious versus unconscious mind very popular
Believed that important things that happened in the past can help explain current behaviours
Believed the unconscious speaks to us in dreams and slips of the tongue (Freudian Slips)
Josef Breuer, Anna O → “talking cure”
The Preconscious Mind
Memories we can easily recall
The Unconscious Mind
Hidden thoughts, desires, and memories. Things the brain is unaware of
The Conscious Mind
Thoughts we are aware of - what we are experiencing right now
Ego Defense Mechanisms
Repression, regression, reaction formation, projection, rationalization, displacement, denial, sublimation, intellectualization, suppression
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Repression
Blocking unwanted memories or thoughts
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Regression
Acting younger than your age/being immature
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Reaction formation
Acting opposite to how you feel
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Projection
Attributing your feelings to someone else
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Displacement
Taking out emotions on a safer target
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Denial
Refusing to accept reality
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Sublimation
Channelling impulses into acceptable behaviour
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Intellectualization
Focusing on logic to avoid emotions
Ego Defense Mechanisms: Suppression
Consciously pushing thoughts away
Structure of Personality
Id, Superego, Ego
Id
- Unconscious, operates on the pleasure principle
- Wants instant gratification
- Present at birth
- Five drives: Sex, Thirst, Hunger, Elimination, Warmth
Superego
- Moral center, follows societal values
- Develops around ages 4-5
- Controls the id’s impulses
Ego
- Mediates between the id and superego
- Operates on the reality principle
What is Personality?
Characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting
Personality Theories
Nature vs Nurture: Inherited or learned?
Genetic Studies: Suggest personality traits are heritable
Learned Components: Environmental factors shape personality
Sigmund Freud - Psychodynamic Theory
Personality consists of multiple unconscious structures:
- Id (instinctual desires)
- Ego (rational self)
- Superego (moral conscience)
Balance of Personality Structures
Id too strong → Selfish, uncaring
Ego too strong → Cold, distant
Superego too strong → Overly guilty, rigidly moralistic
Freud’s Psychosexual Stages
Oral Stage (0-1.5 years)
Anal Stage (1.5-3 years)
Phallic Stage (3-6 years)
Latency Period (6-Puberty)
Genital Stage (Puberty onward)
Oral Stage
Oral Stage (0-1.5 years)
Zone: Mouth (sucking, biting)
Task: Weaning
Overindulged → Optimistic, gullible
Under-indulged → Pessimistic, envious
Anal Stage
(1.5-3 years)
Zone: Bowel control
Task: Potty training
Anal Retentive → Neat, organized
Anal Expulsive → Messy, reckless
Phallic Stage
(3-6 years)
Zone: Genitals
Task: Overcome Oedipus/Electra complex
Fixation → Fear of intimacy
Latency Period
(6-Puberty)
Sexual drives dormant
Focus on friendships
Genital Stage
(Puberty onward)
Libido (sexual desire) returns to genitals
Healthy development = Stable relationships
Oedipus Complex (Boys)
Desire for mother, fear of father (castration anxiety)
Identifies with father → Moral development
Electra Complex (Girls)
Attraction to father, competition with mother
“Penis envy” → Identifies with mother
Psychosocial Development: 8 Stages of Development (lifelong process)
- Trust vs. Mistrust (0-1 yr)
- Autonomy vs. Shame & Doubt (1-3 yrs)
- Initiative vs. Guilt (3-6 yrs)
- Industry vs. Inferiority (6-Adolescence)
- Identity vs. Identity Confusion (Adolescence)
- Intimacy vs. Isolation (Young Adulthood)
- Generativity vs. Stagnation (Middle Adulthood)
- Integrity vs. Despair (Late Life)
Psychosocial Development: Key Concepts
Virtues: Positive traits gained from each stage
Maladaptation: Too much of the positive
Malignancy: Too much of the negative
Analytical Psychology
Personal unconscious: Unique to each person
Collective unconscious: Shared human experiences
Archetypes: Universal symbols (e.g., hero, mother)
Introverts: Focus inward, introspective
Extroverts: Outward-focused, social
Led to psychometrics (personality tests)
Inspired the MBTI
Trait Theory
Two key dimensions:
- Extroversion vs. Introversion
- Neuroticism vs. Stability
Birth Order & Personality
Birth order can shape personality
Influences include sibling age gaps, parenting styles, and family dynamics
Twin Studies
Nature vs. Nurture Debate
Identical Twins (Monozygotic) → Genetically identical
Fraternal Twins (Dizygotic) → Different genetic makeup
Studies show both genetics and environment influence personality
Humanistic Theory
- Rejects quantitative research (experiments)
- Prefers qualitative research (diary accounts, open-ended questions, unstructured interviews, observations)
Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)
- Founder of Humanistic Psychology
- Focused on studying healthy, thriving people
- Believed human nature is good and people strive for self-actualization
Maslow’s Assumptions
- Human nature is inherently good
- Normal development = actualizing this goodness
- Self-actualization is the central human motive
Hierarchy of Needs (Basic needs must be met first)
- Physiological – Food, water, shelter
- Safety – Security, stability
- Love/Belonging – Relationships, friendship
- Esteem – Achievement, respect
- Self-actualization – Reaching full potential
Viktor Frankl (1905-1997)
- Developed Logotherapy
- Inspired by experiences in Auschwitz concentration camp
- Survivors found strength in meaning (family, faith, purpose)
Logotherapy – Root of Motivation
Freud – Need for pleasure
Adler – Need for power
Frankl – Need for meaning (without it, people feel empty & depressed)
Carl Rogers (1902-1987)
- Developed Client-Centered Therapy
- Emphasized self-awareness & self-fulfillment
Congruence vs. Incongruence
- Congruence: When a person’s real self aligns with their ideal self
-Incongruence: Psychological distress from acting as others expect instead of being true to oneself
Client-Centered Therapy
- Helps individuals achieve personal growth
- Focuses on understanding & self-acceptance
When Should Therapists Be Directive?
- When a client needs guidance & structure
- When a client struggles with decision-making
- In crises requiring immediate intervention
Behaviorism
Focuses on how we learn through associations (classical conditioning) and consequences (operant conditioning).
John B. Watson & The Little Albert Experiment
- John B. Watson: Founder of behaviorism. Believed all behaviors are learned through the environment.
- Little Albert Experiment: Watson conditioned a baby to fear a white rat by pairing it with a loud noise. This demonstrated classical conditioning in humans.
Learning & Classical Conditioning
- Learning: A change in behavior due to experience.
- Classical Conditioning: A neutral stimulus (e.g., a bell) becomes associated with an unconditioned stimulus (e.g., food) and triggers a conditioned response (e.g., salivation).
Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
Triggers a natural response (e.g., food).
Unconditioned Response (UCR)
The natural response (e.g., salivation).
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
A previously neutral stimulus that, after association, triggers a response (e.g., a bell).
Conditioned Response (CR)
The learned response to the conditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation when hearing the bell).
Operant Conditioning
Learning through consequences (rewards & punishments)
Types of Operant Conditioning: Positive Reinforcement
A behavior is strengthened by adding a pleasant reward.
Ex. Giving a child candy for sharing.
Types of Operant Conditioning: Negative Reinforcement
A behavior is strengthened by removing something unpleasant.
Ex. Taking painkillers to remove a headache.
Types of Operant Conditioning: Punishment
A behavior is weakened by introducing an unpleasant consequence.
Ex. A child is scolded for hitting their sibling.
Types of Operant Conditioning: Extinction
A behavior is weakened by removing a positive consequence.
Ex. Ignoring a child’s whining until they stop.
Reinforcer Effectiveness
- Best when given immediately after the behavior.
- Consistency is key
Social Psychology
Social Psychology is the scientific study of how an individual’s thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are affected by the people around them.
The Bystander Effect
The Bystander Effect refers to the tendency for individuals to be less likely to help in an emergency when others are present.
Compliance
Compliance occurs when an individual outwardly agrees with a group’s behavior but does not change their internal attitudes or beliefs.
Acceptance
Acceptance is when individuals genuinely accept group norms and change their inner attitudes as well as their behaviour.
Obedience
Obedience is the act of following direct instructions from an authority figure.
Diffusion of Responsibility
Diffusion of Responsibility describes the phenomenon in which individuals assume others will take action, leading to inaction by all.
Pluralistic
When people in a group look to others to determine if a situation is an emergency and no one acts because they believe others understand the situation better, it is called Pluralistic Ignorance
Ambiguity
If a situation is unclear and witnesses are unsure about what is happening, they may hesitate to help. This is known as Ambiguity.
The Digital Bystander Effect
The Digital Bystander Effect refers to how bystander inaction is often amplified in online settings due to anonymity, information overload, and social detachment.
Conformity
When people change their behaviour due to pressure or influence from a group, this is called Conformity.
Three key elements of a cult
- Led by a charismatic leader
- Mind control
- Exploitation
What are the 7 elements that social scientists can lead to indoctrination into a cult?
- Transitions/crossroads
- The soft sell
- A new reality
- The dear leader
- The enemy
- Peer pressure
- A sociopathic Narcissist
Cognitive Dissonance
A situation involving conflicting attitudes, beliefs or behaviours.
Produces a feeling of mental discomfort that changes one of the attitudes, beliefs or behaviours to reduce the discomfort and restore balance.
Nature vs. Nurture
ID is nature, SUPEREGO is nurture
Inherited vs. learned
Libido
An individual’s sexual desire or drive
Twin Studies
- Twin studies suggests that a large part of personality is nature
- Jimt twin study → identical twins raised apart but grew up very, very similarly
Malignancy
The bad you get from being unable to overcome it
Maladaptation
When you do too well and you have too much good
