Personality & Clinical Psychology

What are the three parts of personality according to Freud?

• Id - Pleasure principle, unconscious, "I want NOW"

• Ego - Reality principle, conscious, mediator

• Superego - Morality principle, conscience, "You shouldn't"

Which part of personality operates on the pleasure principle?

Id - demands immediate gratification, unconscious, impulsive

What is the Ego's job

Mediator between Id and Superego; deals with reality; finds realistic ways to satisfy Id's demands while considering Superego's morals

List Freud's 5 psychosexual stages in order

1. Oral (0-18 months)

2. Anal (18 months-3 years)

3. Phallic (3-6 years)

4. Latency (6-puberty)

5. Genital (puberty onward)

What happens if someone is fixated in the oral stage?

May smoke, overeat, bite nails, be gullible or overly dependent (focused on mouth-related activities)

What's the difference between anal-retentive and anal-expulsive?

• Anal-retentive: Overly neat, organized, controlling, perfectionistic

• Anal-expulsive: Messy, destructive, disorganized

What is repression?

Defense mechanism where threatening thoughts/memories are pushed into the unconscious (e.g., forgetting childhood trauma)

What is projection?

Defense mechanism where you attribute YOUR unacceptable feelings to someone else (e.g., you're angry but accuse others of being angry at you)

What is displacement?

Defense mechanism where you redirect emotions from threatening target to safer target (e.g., mad at boss → kick dog at home)

What is sublimation?

Defense mechanism where you channel unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable activities (e.g., aggressive person becomes surgeon)

What is reaction formation?

Defense mechanism where you express the OPPOSITE of your true feelings (e.g., attracted to someone → act like you hate them)

What is denial?

Defense mechanism where you refuse to accept reality (e.g., alcoholic says "I don't have a problem")

What is Jung's collective unconscious?

Shared inherited memories and symbols from ancestors; universal themes across all cultures (e.g., mother figure, hero, trickster)

What are Jung's archetypes? Name 3.

• Persona: Social mask we wear publicly

• Shadow: Dark side of personality

• Anima/Animus: Feminine side in men / Masculine side in women

• Self: Integrated whole personality

Who created the terms "introvert" and "extravert"?

Carl Jung

What is Adler's inferiority complex?

Feeling of inadequacy and insecurity; Adler believed everyone starts life feeling inferior (helpless babies), which motivates us to compensate and achieve

What is "striving for superiority" (Adler)?

Main human motivation to overcome feelings of inferiority; becomes healthy ambition when balanced with social interest

According to Adler, what are typical first-born characteristics?

Responsible, achievement-oriented, conservative, may feel "dethroned" when siblings arrive

What are Karen Horney's three neurotic trends?

• Moving TOWARD people - need for affection (compliant)

• Moving AGAINST people - need for power (aggressive)

• Moving AWAY FROM people - need for independence (detached)

What did Horney reject about Freud's theory?

Rejected "penis envy" - argued women envy men's POWER in society, not their anatomy

What are Allport's three types of traits?

• Cardinal traits: Dominant trait defining whole life (rare)

• Central traits: 5-10 main characteristics

• Secondary traits: Situational, less consistent

What does the Big Five acronym "OCEAN" stand for?

• Openness

• Conscientiousness

• Extraversion

• Agreeableness

• Neuroticism

High Openness vs. Low Openness?

• High: Creative, imaginative, curious, open to new experiences

• Low: Practical, conventional, prefers routine

High Conscientiousness vs. Low Conscientiousness?

• High: Organized, disciplined, reliable, plans ahead

• Low: Impulsive, careless, disorganized, spontaneous

High Extraversion vs. Low Extraversion (Introversion)?

• High: Sociable, energetic, talkative, seeks stimulation

• Low: Reserved, quiet, withdrawn, prefers solitude

High Agreeableness vs. Low Agreeableness?

• High: Cooperative, trusting, helpful, compassionate

• Low: Competitive, suspicious, antagonistic, critical

High Neuroticism vs. Low Neuroticism?

• High: Anxious, moody, emotionally unstable, worries

• Low: Calm, stable, emotionally resilient, relaxed

Which Big Five trait best predicts job performance?

conscientiousness (organized, disciplined, reliable)

Which Big Five trait is most associated with depression/anxiety?

Neuroticism (high neuroticism = more prone to mental health issues)

Are Big Five traits stable across the lifespan?

Yes, relatively stable - though can change somewhat (people tend to become slightly more agreeable and conscientious with age)

What percentage of Big Five traits is heritable?

About 40-50% heritable (genetics play significant role)

What is Rogers' concept of "congruence"?

When your real self matches your ideal self → psychological health and authenticity

What is "incongruence" in Rogers' theory?

Gap between real self and ideal self → anxiety, maladjustment, feeling fake

what is unconditional positive regard?

Accepting and valuing someone without conditions; loving them for who they are, not what they do (Rogers said essential for therapy and healthy development)

What are "conditions of worth" (Rogers)?

When parents give conditional love ("I love you IF you get good grades") → child learns to hide true self to gain approval → leads to incongruence

What is Rogers' "fully functioning person"?

Ideal personality:

• Congruent (real = ideal self)

• Open to experience

• Lives in present

• Trusts own judgment

• Creative and fulfilled

List Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs from bottom to top.

1. Physiological (food, water, sleep)

2. Safety (security, stability)

3. Love/Belonging (relationships, connection)

4. Esteem (achievement, recognition)

5. Self-Actualization (reaching full potential)

Mnemonic: "Please Send Love And Self-care"

What is self-actualization (Maslow)?

Realizing your full potential; becoming everything you're capable of being; highest level of Maslow's hierarchy (only ~1-2% achieve)

Name 3 characteristics of self-actualizers (Maslow).

• Accept themselves and others

• Problem-focused (not self-focused)

• Spontaneous and creative

• Have peak experiences

• Comfortable with solitude

• Autonomous/independent

Do you need to satisfy lower needs before higher ones in Maslow's hierarchy?

Generally yes - hard to focus on self-actualization if you're starving or unsafe (though some exceptions - starving artist still creates)

What is Bandura's reciprocal determinism?

Three factors continuously influence each other:

• Person (thoughts, biology)

• Behavior (actions)

• Environment (situations)

They form a triangle of mutual influence

What is observational learning (Bandura)?

Learning by watching others (modeling); proven by Bobo doll experiment where kids imitated adult's aggressive behavior toward doll

What is self-efficacy (Bandura)?

Belief in your ability to succeed at specific tasks

• High self-efficacy → try harder, persist, succeed more

• Low self-efficacy → give up easily, avoid challenges

What are the 4 sources of self-efficacy?

1. Mastery experiences - past successes

2. Vicarious experiences - seeing others succeed

3. Social persuasion - encouragement from others

4. Physiological states - not being anxious/stressed

What is internal locus of control (Rotter)

Belief that YOU control your life outcomes through your own effort and decisions

Example: "I failed because I didn't study enough"

What is external locus of control (Rotter)?

Belief that outside forces (luck, others, fate) control your life outcomes

Example: "I failed because the teacher hates me"

Which is better for mental health: internal or external locus of control?

Internal locus of control

• More achievement-oriented

• Better mental health

• More likely to persist

• Less depression/anxiety

What is Mischel's person-situation controversy?

challenged trait theories; argued situations predict behavior better than traits; most behavior is situation-specific, not consistent across contexts

What percentage of personality is heritable according to twin studies?

40-60% heritable - identical twins raised apart still show similar personalities

What is temperament?

Biologically-based emotional/behavioral style present from infancy; relatively stable across life (e.g., easy vs. difficult baby, shy vs. bold)

Which neurotransmitter is associated with extraversion?

Dopamine - extraverts have more dopamine sensitivity; seek stimulation and novelty

Which neurotransmitter is associated with emotional stability?

Serotonin - low serotonin linked to neuroticism/emotional instability

Which approach emphasizes FREE WILL the most?

Humanistic (Rogers, Maslow) - you choose who you become; optimistic about human nature

Which approach is most DETERMINISTIC (you have little free will)?

Psychoanalytic (Freud) - unconscious drives control you

OR

Biological - genes/brain determine personality

Which approach focuses most on UNCONSCIOUS processes?

Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic (Freud, Jung) - unconscious drives, repressed memories, defense mechanisms

Which approach is most OPTIMISTIC about human nature?

Humanistic (Rogers, Maslow) - people are inherently good and growth-oriented

Which approach emphasizes CHILDHOOD experiences the most?

Psychoanalytic (Freud) - psychosexual stages, early experiences shape personality

Which approach focuses on MEASURABLE traits?

Trait theories (Big Five, Cattell, Allport) - identify and measure stable characteristics

Which approach emphasizes LEARNING and ENVIRONMENT?

Social-Cognitive (Bandura, Rotter) - observational learning, reciprocal determinism

Which theorist would say: "Your belief in your ability to succeed matters most"?

Bandura (self-efficacy)

Which theorist would say: "You need unconditional love to become your authentic self"?

Rogers (unconditional positive regard, congruence)

Which theorist would say: "You're driven to overcome feelings of inferiority"?

Adler (inferiority complex, striving for superiority

Which theorist would say: "Your unconscious mind and childhood experiences control you"?

Freud (psychoanalytic theory)

Which theorist would say: "Personality traits are 50% genetic"?

Biological approach / Twin study researchers

Which theorist would say: "Where you believe control comes from affects your life"?

Rotter (locus of control)

Maria fails a test. She says, "The teacher made it too hard and didn't like me anyway."

Which concept does this illustrate?

External locus of control (Rotter) - blaming outside forces rather than own effort

John is furious at his boss but can't express it. Instead, he goes home and yells at his spouse.

Which defense mechanism?

Displacement - redirecting emotion from threatening target (boss) to safer target (spouse)

Sarah is secretly attracted to her coworker but acts cold and rude toward him.

Reaction formation - expressing opposite of true feelings

Alex sees a classmate ace a difficult project and thinks, "If they can do it, so can I!"

Vicarious experience (one of Bandura's sources of self-efficacy) - seeing others succeed boosts your own belief

A child watches their parent scream at customer service workers, then the child does the same as an adult.

Observational learning / Modeling (Bandura) - learning behavior by watching others

Lisa's parents only praise her when she gets straight A's. She begins hiding her struggles and pretending to be perfect.

Conditions of worth (Rogers) - conditional love leads to hiding true self; creates incongruence

Someone is described as: creative, disorganized, sociable, competitive, and anxious.

• Creative = High Openness

• Disorganized = Low Conscientiousness

• Sociable = High Extraversion

• Competitive = Low Agreeableness

• Anxious = High Neuroticism

Marcus constantly checks if doors are locked and washes his hands 50 times a day. As a child, his parents were extremely strict about cleanliness during toilet training.

Which Freudian concept?

Anal-retentive fixation - overly controlled, perfectionistic, obsessive about order/cleanliness

Emma can't remember being abused as a child, though her siblings confirm it happened.

Which defense mechanism?

Repression - pushing traumatic memories into unconscious

A therapist accepts their client completely, never judging them even when they admit to terrible things.

Unconditional positive regard (Rogers) - accepting someone without conditions

Who said: Id, Ego, Superego?

Freud

Who said: Collective unconscious?

Jung

Who said: Inferiority complex?

Adler

Who said: Unconditional positive regard?

Rogers

Who said: Hierarchy of needs?

Maslow

Who said: Self-efficacy?

Bandura

Who said: Locus of control

Rotter

Who said: Big Five (OCEAN)?

Multiple researchers (Costa & McCrae most famous)

Who said: Cardinal, central, secondary traits?

Allport

Most optimistic approach?

Humanistic (Rogers, Maslow)

Most pessimistic approach?

Psychoanalytic (Freud) - we're driven by dark unconscious forces

Most scientific/research-based approach?

Trait (Big Five) or Biological (twin studies)

Which approach is best for therapy?

Debatable!

• Humanistic (Rogers) → person-centered therapy

• Psychoanalytic → psychodynamic therapy

• Social-Cognitive → CBT

Defense mechanism: Creating logical excuses for behavior

Rationalization

Example: "I didn't want that job anyway" after rejection

Defense mechanism: Reverting to childlike behavior

Regression

Example: Adult throws tantrum when stressed