Unit 10 Flashcards
Freuds theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts
Psychoanalysis
According to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings and memories
Unconscious
A reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives
Id
The largely conscious, “executive” part of personality that according to Freud, mediates among the demands of the id, superego, and reality
Ego
The part of personality that, according to Freud, represents internalized ideals and provides standard for judgement and for future aspirations
Superego
The childhood stages of development (oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital).
Psychosexual stages
A boys sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father
Oedipus complex
Children incorporate their parents’ values into their developing superegos
Identification
A lingering focus of pleasure-seeking energies at an early psychosexual stage
Fixation
In psychoanalytic theory, the egos protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality
Defense mechanism
The basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories
Repression
Modern-day approaches that view personality with a focus on the unconscious and the importance of childhood experiences
Psychodynamic theories
Carl Jungs concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species’ history
Collective unconscious
A personality test that provides ambiguous stimuli destined to trigger projection of ones inner dynamics
Projective test
A projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes
TAT
The most widely used projective test, a set of 10 inkblots; seeks to identify people’s inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations
Rorschach inkblots test
The tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and our behaviors
False consensus effect
A theory of death-related anxiety; explores people’s emotional and behavioral responses to reminders of their impending death
Terror-management theory
in psychoanalysis, a method of exploring the unconscious in which the person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing.
Free association
View personality with a focus on the potential for healthy personal growth
Humanistic theories
One of the ultimate psychological needs that arises after basic physical and psychological needs are met and self-esteem is achieved
Self-actualization
An attitude of total acceptance toward another person
Unconditional positive regard
All our thoughts and feelings about ourselves
Self concept
A characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act
Trait
A questionnaire on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors
Personality inventory
Originally developed to identify emotional disorders considered its most appropriate
MMPI
A test developed by testing a pool of items and then selecting those that discriminate between groups
Empirically derived test