Unit 10: Personality

Question 1

Psychoanalytic Theory

Answer 1

Freud’s theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts; the techniques used in treating psychological disorders by seeking to expose and interpret unconscious tensions

Question 2

Free Association

Answer 2

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

Question 3

Unconscious

Answer 3

according to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories. According to contemporary psychologists, information processing of which we are unaware

Question 4

Id

Answer 4

a reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives. The id operates on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification

Question 5

Ego

Answer 5

the largely conscious, “executive” part of personality that, according to Freud, mediates among the demands of the id, superego, and reality. The ego operates on the reality principle, satisfying the id’s desires in ways that will realistically bring pleasure rather than pain

Question 6

Superego

Answer 6

the part of personality that, according to Freud, represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgment (the conscience) and for future aspirations

Question 7

Psychosexual States

Answer 7

oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital

Question 8

Repression

Answer 8

in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories

Question 9

Psychodynamic Theory

Answer 9

modern-day approaches that view personality with a focus on the unconscious and the importance of childhood experiences

Question 10

Projective Tests

Answer 10

a personality test, such as the Rorschach, that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of one’s inner dynamics

Question 11

Thermatic Apperception Test

Answer 11

a projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes

Question 12

Rorschach Inkblot Test

Answer 12

the most widely used projective test, a set of 10 inkblots, designed by Hermann Rorschach; seeks to indentify people’s inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of the blots

Question 13

Humanistic Theory

Answer 13

view personality with a focus on the potential for healthy personal growth

Question 14

Self-Actualization

Answer 14

according to Maslow, one of the ultimate psychological needs that arises after basic physical and psychological needs are met and self-esteem is achieved; the motivation to fulfill one’s potential

Question 15

Unconditional Positive Regard

Answer 15

according to Rogers, an attitude of total acceptance toward another person

Question 16

Self-Concept

Answer 16

all our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in answer to the question, “Who am I?”

Question 17

Trait Theory

Answer 17

a characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports

Question 18

Personality Inventory

Answer 18

a questionnaire (often with true-false or agree-disagree items) on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors; used to assess selected personality traits

Question 19

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

Answer 19

the most widely researched and clinically used of all personality tests. Originally developed to identify emotional disorders (still considered its most appropriate use), this test is now used for many other screening purposes

Question 20

Big Five Personality Factors

Answer 20

CANOE

• conscientiousness: organized, careful, disciplined
• agreeableness: soft-hearted, trusting, helpful
• neuroticism: anxious, insecure, self-pitying
• openness: imaginative, prefers variety, independent
• extraversion: sociable, fun-loving, affectionate

Question 21

Social-Cognitive Approach

Answer 21

views behavior as influenced by the interaction between people’s traits (including their thinking) and their social context

Question 22

Reciprocal Determinism

Answer 22

the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment

Question 23

Defense mechanisms

Answer 23

The ego’s protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality

Question 24

Personality

Answer 24

An individual’s characteristics pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting

Question 25

Transference

Answer 25

The patient’s transfer to the analyst of emotions linked with other relationships (such as love or hatred for a parent)

Question 26

Collective unconscious

Answer 26

Carl jung’s concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species’ history

Question 27

Oedipus complex

Answer 27

According to Freud, a boy’s sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealous and hatred for the rival father

Question 28

Self-efficacy

Answer 28

One’s sense of competence and effectiveness

Question 29

Temperament

Answer 29

A person’s characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity

Question 30

Fixation

Answer 30

According to Freud, a lingering focus of pleasure-seeking energies at an earlier psychosexual stage, in which conflicts were unresolved

Question 31

Internal locus of control

Answer 31

The perception that you control your own fate

Question 32

External locus of control

Answer 32

The perception that chance or outside forces beyond our personal control determine our fate