Myer's AP Psychology Unit 10

personality

an individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting

psychoanalytic theory

Sigmund Freud's theory proposed that childhood sexuality and unconscious motivations influence personality

humanistic approach

focused on our inner capacities for growth and self-fulfillment

free association

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

psychoanalysis

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

unconscious

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

preconscious

an area in which we can retrieve them into conscious awareness

repress

forcibly block from our consciousness

manisfest content

remember the content of dreams

latent content

censored expression of the dreamer's unconscious wishes

id

a reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives

ego

the largely conscious, "executive" part of personality that, according to Freud, mediates among the demands of the id, superego, and reality

superego

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

psychosexual stages

the childhood stages of development (oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital) during which, according to Freud, the id's pleasure-seeking energies focus on distinct erogenous zones

Oedipus Complex

according to Freud, a boy's sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father

identification

the process by which, according to Freud, children incorporate their parents' values into their developing superegos

fixation

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

defense mechanisms

in psychoanalytic theory, the ego's protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality

repression

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

regression

defense mechanism in which an individual faced with anxiety retreats to a more infantile psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated

reaction formation

defense mechanism by which the ego unconsciously switches unacceptable impulses into their opposites. Thus people, may express feelings that are the opposite of their anxiety-arousing unconscious feelings

projection

defense mechanism by which people disguise their own threatening impulses by attributing them to others

rationalization

defense mechanism that offers self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening, unconscious reasons for one's actions

displacement

defense mechanism that shifts sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person, as when redirecting anger toward a safer outlet

sublimation

defense mechanism by which people re-channel their inacceptable impulses into socially approved activities

denial

defense mechanism by which people refuse to believe or even perceive painful realities

collective unconscious

Carl Jung's concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species' history

projective test

a personality test that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of one's inner dynamics

Thematic Apperception Test

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

Rorschach Inkblot test

the most widely used projective test, a set of 10 inkblots, seeks to identify people's inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of the blots

false consensus effect

the tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviors

terror management theory

a theory of death-related anxiety; explores people's responses to reminders of their impending deat

third force perspective

Maslow & Rogers perspective that emphasized human potential

self-actualization

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

peak experience

ones that surpass ordinary consciousness

self-transcendence

meaning, purpose, and communion beyond the self

unconditional positive regard

an attitude of total acceptance toward another person

self-concept

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

trait

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

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

a test according to Carl Jung's personality types in an attempt to figure out one's personality

factor analysis

a statistical procedure that identifies clusters of correlated test items that tap basic components of intelligence

personality inventory

a questionnaire on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors; used to assess selected personality traits

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory

developed to identify emotional disorders

empirically derived test

developed by testing a pool of items and then selecting those that discriminate between groups

person-situation controversy

while personality traits may be enduring, the resulting behavior in different situations is different

social cognitive perspective

views behavior as influenced by the interaction between people's traits and their social context

reciprocal determinism

the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment

personal control

the extent to which people perceive control over their environment rather than feeling helpless

external locus control

the perception that chance or outside forces beyond your personal control determine your fate

internal locus control

the perception that you control your own fate

learned helplessness

the hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events

tyranny of choice

brings information overload and a greater likelihood that we will feel regret over some of the unchosen options

postive psychology

the scientific study of optimal human functioning; aims to discover and promote strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive

self

in contemporary psychology, assumed to be the center of personality, the organizer of our thoughts, feelings and actions

spotlight effect

overestimating others' noticing and evaluating our appearance, performance, and blunders

self- esteem

one's feelings of high or low self-worth

self-serving bias

a readiness to perceive oneself favorably

individualism

giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than a group identifications

collectivism

giving priority to the goals of one's group and defining one's identity accordingly