Unit 7: Personality, Motivation, and Emotion Flashcards
Free Association
Freud’s method of exploring the unconscious. The person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing
Psychoanalysis
Freud’s theory of personality. Attributes thoughts + actions to unconscious motives and conflicts. Treatment seeks to expose & interpret unconscious tensions
Unconscious
A reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, withies, feelings, and memories. Also refers to information processing we are not aware of
Id
Reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives. Operates on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification. One of the three parts, alongside Ego and Superego
Ego
The mostly conscious executive part of the personality that mediated among the demands of the ID, superego, and reality. Operates on the reality principle, satisfying the Id’s desires in ways that will realistically bring pleasure rather than pain
Superego
Personality part that represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgement and future asperations. A result of the morality principle - the internalized need to comply with parental & other authority
Defense Mechanism
The Ego’s protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality
Repression
Basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from the consciousness
Psychosexual Stages
The childhood stages of development during which the Id’s pleasure-seeking energies focus on erogenous zones
Oedipus Complex
A boy’s sexual desires toward his mother, and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the ‘rival’ father
Identification
The process by which children incorporate their parent’s values into their developing superegos
Fixation
A lingering focus of pleasure-seeking energies at an earlier psychosexual stage, in which conflicts do not allow the stage to end.
Alfred Adler
Disagreed with Freud’s emphasis on biological sexual impulses, and believed that aggression or willpower was the more important drive
Individual Psychology
Emphasized the drive to reach goals and find purpose
Compensation
Involves dealing with feelings of inferiority, real or imagined, by developing one’s abilities
Inferiority Complex (Overcompensation)
Hiding feelings of inferiority by flaunting superficial indicators of superiority, such as wealth, status, or good looks
Karen Horney
Rejected Freud’s emphasis on sex. Argued that women envied men’s superior status in society and that culture was the main driver in the formation of personality, not body anatomy.
Emphasized children’s need for love and security in the formation of a health personality. Not having those things could lead to anxiety or hostility
Carl Jung
Concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species’s history. Saw the unconscious as two parts, personal and collective
Personal Unconscious
Contains all of one’s repressed thoughts, memories, and emotions
Collective Unconscious
Stores the shared sense of universal experiences common to hall human beings. Organized into 3archetypes (universal concepts that influence our behavior and personality), the Shadow, Animus, and Anima
Shadow
One of the 3 collective unconscious archetypes. Represents the evil or dark side of human nature.
Animus
One of the 3 collective unconscious archetypes. Represents the masculine archetypes in women
Anima
One of the 3 collective unconscious archetypes. Represents the feminine archetype in med
Projective Test
Personality test that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of one’s inner dynamics
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
A projective test in which people express their inner feeling and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes
Rorschach Inkblot Test
The most widely used projective test. A set of 10 inkblots, designed by Hermann Rorschach, that seeks to identify one’s inner feelings by analyzing their interpretation of the blots
False Consensus Effect
The tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and our behaviors
Terror-Management Theory
A theory of death-related anxiety. Explores people’s emotional and behavioral responses to reminders of their impending death
Trait Theorists
Focus on the hidden forces behind behavior and personality, and on observable/measurable traits
Traits
Stable personality characteristic of behavior, thought processes, and emotions. Also includes conscious motives
Personality Inventories
Longer questionnaires covering a wide range of feelings and behaviors, assessing several traits at once.
Minnesota multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
Assesses abnormal personality tendencies and illustrates a good way of developing a personality inventory
Gordon Albert
First psychologist to develop a comprehensive theory centered on traits. Rejected psychoanalysis and unscientific & impractical
Raymond Cattel
Used the statistical method (factor analysis) to identify clusters of traits that are related to each other.
Also added to Spearman’s idea of general intelligence - believed there were two distinct types of intelligence, fluid and crystalized
Factor Analysis
Analyzes multiple variable that are correlated and identifies how those correlations connect with each other
Surface Traits
Observable behaviors
Source Traits
Fundamental characteristics that drive personality and result in the observable surface traits
Julian Rotter
Developed two key concepts: cognitive expectancy and locus of control
Cognitive Expectancy
The belief that one’s behavior will yield the desired outcome
Locus of Control
One’s belief about where the forces that determine outcome are. Internal locus believe their actions will result in the desired outcome, external locus believe in things like luck or fate
George Kelly
Developed cognitive theory of personality (people’s knowledge about the world)
Fundamental Postulate
States that long-term patterns of behavior are based on how people view the world. EX if people view the world as threatening, they are more cautious interacting with others
Personal-Construct Theory
Personality is the compilation of all the mental constructs they have when cognitively processing the world around them, as well as the behavior they exhibit based on those constructs
Albert Bandura
Proposed that 3 factors interact to determine patterns of behavior and thus personality. Factors: person, environment, and behavior
Reciprocal Determinism
A person’s behavior (actions or decisions), environment, and personal factors interact to determine behavior
Observational Learning
People see other’s actions and the consequences of those actions, then incorporate those behaviors into their own behavior
EX: Bandura’s bobo doll experiment
Hans and Sybil Eysenck
Used factor analysis to analyze traits. Arrive at 3 genetically influenced dimensions of personality, called temperament. Included: Extraversion/Introversions, Neuroticism/Stability, and Psychoticism/Socialization
Extraversion/Introversions
Needing either more or less external stimuli
Neurodicism/Stability
The degree of emotional stability
Psychoticism/Socialization
The degree of aggression and nonconformity
Costa and Robert McCrae
Developed list of 5 traits/factors, currently the most widely accepted model of traits. Demonstrated that their traits are stable in adulthood, are influenced by genetics, and predict behavior
Humanistic Theories
View personality with a focus on the potential for healthy personal growth
Abraham Maslow
Created hierarchy of needs and embraced the basic goodness in human nature
Self-Actualization
According to Maslow, one of the ultimate psychological needs. Arises after basic physical & psychological needs are met and self-esteem is achieved. AKA the motivation to fulfill one’s potential
Unconditional Positive Regard
According to Rogers, an attitude of total acceptance towards another person. EX parent’s unconditional love/acceptance of children regardless of behavior
Self-Concept
All of our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, answering the question of “who am I?”
Carl Rogers
Believed people have an innate drive towards reaching their full potential. Also believed that people are born naturally good + born congruent between the real self and the ideal self
Real Self
The recognition and acceptance of one’s natural self
Ideal Self
Emerges as the result of interactions with the significant people in an individual’s life, particularly parents
Conditions of Worth
Implicit or explicit standards for acceptance and love
Fully Functioning Person
A person who strives to become and accept their genuine self
Cultural Psychology
The study of how behavior and personality are both imbedded in cultures & influential in shaping that culture
Cultural/Indigenous Approach
Focuses on studying the unique aspects of a culture, without reference to another culture
Emic
From a perspective that is inside the culture, and looks at a single culture. Uses a bottom-up approach
Cross-Cultural Approach
Focuses on understanding human behavior and thought in diverse cultural settings
Cultural Relativism
The principle that a people’s customs, beliefs, and attitudes should be viewed from a neutral, unbiased perspective. And that there are no universal standards
Early 20th Century Cultural Psychology
Before the early 20th century, Western culture dominated the field of anthropology (the study of human societies and cultures)
Fran Boas
The first to reject scientific racism. Became the leading proponent of the idea that human behavior was a result of cultural differences and acquired through socialization. Coined Cultural Relativism
Ruth Benedict
Continued Boas’ research into links between culture and personality. Studied culturally derived personality characteristic of American Indians and indigenous people near Papua New Guinea. Found that personality traits were fundamentally linked to the culture in which the people are socialized
Margaret Mead
Rejected the idea that intelligence was a product soley of biology. Demonstrated that environmental factors, like family and socioeconomic factors, played a large role. Conducted research on differences between males and females - found that indigenous cultures and Papua New Guinea had different gender-specific personality traits
Individualistic Cultures
The needs and desires of the individual take priority over needs of the group
Collectivistic Cultures
The needs and desires of the group take priority over the individual
Ego-Focused Emotions
Centered on internal independent attributions. Reinforce our independent, autonomous, and self-defining sense of self (anger, pride, and happiness)
Other-Focused Emotions
Experienced in a social context or relational situation, serve to reinforce the interdependent needs of the group or relationship
Ecology
The study of how organisms interact with one another and their nonliving environment
The physical environment, including natural resources, terrain, and climate significantly influence development of culture. EX cultures of NA Inuit groups, Japan, Austraulia, etc
Cultural Syndrome
A pattern of behaviors unique to a specific culture
Construal
How people perceive themselves and interpret interactions with others
Independent Self-Construal
People look at their identity by looking at qualities
Interdependent Slef-Construal
Social relationships take priority, not ones identity as an individual
Intelligence
Many definitions
- Success
- One’s ability to successfully navigate day-to-day life
- Ability to solve novel problems
- More…
Achievement Tests
Identify what individuals know and their skill level in different areas (like a unit test/final exam)
Aptitude Test
Measures ability in certain areas (ex numerical, verbal or mechanical reasoning, problem solving, spatial awareness, etc)
Intelligence Tests
Measure individual differences by comparing one’s results to others that have taken the same test
Psychometric Psychologists
Focus on measuring and assessing a number of traits, including intelligence
Sir Francis Galton
One of the first to attempt to measure levels of intelligence. Created concept of correlation and nature vs nurture. Believed tests of physical and sensory strength revealed mental capacity. Believed in heritability and eugenics
Heritability
Genetic basis for intelligence
Eugenics
Promoting reproduction for the highly intelligent, and sterilization / no reproduction for those with “less desirable traits”
Binet-Simon Intelligence Scale
Intelligence scale made for French Government to identify children that would benefit from extra help before starting formal education. Gave takers a mental age, allowing assessors to identify children ahead/behind their peers
Stanford-Binet Intelligence Test
Modified test to be more appropriate for American audiences. Had wider range of subjects
Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
Created by William Stern. Took one’s mental age, divided it by chronological age, and multiplied that by 100, to show if a child was ahead or behind peers
Wechsler Intelligence Scales
Weschler believed Stanford-Binet assessment did not measure all of someone’s intelligence, so he made new one. Kept visual scale (including traditional intelligence test components), and added performance test
Performance Test
Measured perceptual organization and processing speed
Factory Analysis
Spearman found that individuals that scored high on one measure of intelligence (like vocab) often also scored high on other measures of intelligence (like math)
Primary Mental Abilities
Thurstone identified 7 primary factors that composed intelligence
- Memory
- Numerical Ability
- Work Fluency
- Verbal Comprehension
- Spatial Ability
- Perceptual SPeed
- Inductive Reasoning
Fluid Factor
One type of intelligence proposed by Cattell. Demonstrated by recognizing patterns, seeing relationships, and using logic to solve novel problems w/ using past knowledge
Crystallized Intelligence
Represents one’s accumulated knowledge
Standardization
The procedures by which an exam is created, administered, and scored
Norms
The distribution of scores of a clearly defined group
Norm-Referenced Test
Test that allows you to be compared to the sample group of test takers and determine your relative position in the testing group
Percentile Rank
Used to indicate the percentage of people in a population who scored equal to or above an individuals score
Validity
The degree to which assessments succeed in measuring what they are designed to measure
Content Validity
When a test measures the content/subject of what it was desigened to measure
Face Validity
To degree to which a test appears valid to the test taker
Construct Validity
How well it represents/reflects a concept that is not directly measurable (a construct, if you will)
Concurrent Validity
Whether tests given at the same time, that claim to measure the same characteristic, have matching results
Predictive Validity
Assessments that accurately forecast performance on a future measure (eg a future aptitude test)
Reliability
An assessments consistency and stability of results
Test-Retest Reliability
The degree to which an assessment yields similar individual results each time it is taken
Alternate-Forms Reliability
The degree to which different versions of the test yield similar results
Split-Half Reliability
The degree to which 2 halves of an exam have equal difficulties
Interrater Reliability
The degree to which different raters of an exam agree on the score
Savant Syndrome
Condition characterized by generally low scores on traditional intelligence tests, but one or more extraordinary abilities
Intellectual Disability
Scoring two or more standard deviations below the norm on a traditional IQ test
Down Syndrome
Disorder characterized by an extra chromosome 21. Can cause things like below average brain size and weight, and clumsy/slow muscle movements
Giftedness
Scoring two or more standard deviations above the mean
Stereotype Threat
Stereotypes can influence results by causing anxiety and resulting in the expectation being fulfilled
EX a group of women told that women are worse at math will score worse on a math test than women told nothing
Culture-Fair
Independent of knowledge from any specific culture
Multiple Intelligence
Gardener expanded idea that intelligence is made up of more than one factor. Had theory of 8 different, independent types of intelligence that combine in different settings
- Logical-Mathematical
- Linguistic
- Spatial
- Body-Kinesthetic
- Musical
- Interpersonal
- Intrapersonal
- Naturalistic
Triarchic Theory of Intelligence
Sternberg agreed with Gardener, but proposed that intelligence types were in 3 broad categories: practical, analytical, and creative
Emotional Intelligence
Social skills, like the ability to read emotions in others or managing/expressing your own emotions
