psych/soc terms chapter 6: identity and personality

hierarchy of salience

allowing the situation to dictate which identity holds the most importance at any given moment

salience

determined by amount of work invested into an identity, rewards and gratification associated, and amount of self-esteem associated.

fixation

occurs when a child is overindulged or overly frustrated during a specific stage of freudian psychosexual development

if a personality pattern is formed based on a particular stage and persists into adulthood, it is known as neurosis

oral stage

0-1 years (freud)

oral stage

gratification is obtained primarily through putting objects into the mouth

oral fixation

an adult who exhibits excessive dependency

anal stage

1-3 years (freud)

anal stage

gratification is centered around the elimination and retention of waste materials

toilet training occurs at this stage

anal fixation

either results in excessive orderliness or excessive sloppiness in adulthood

anal-retentiveness

excessive orderliness as an adult

phallic stage

3-5 years

oedipal stage

phallic stage

sexual identity established

internalizing of moral values

de-eroticizing, sublimation of libidinal energy

oedipal and electra conflict is resolved

latency stage

5 years - puberty

libido is sublimated

genital stage

beginning of puberty, lasting through adulthood

genital stage

in theory, a person should be entering into a healthy heterosexual relationship at this point

unresolved sexual traumas could delay or prevent this

Erickson’s theory of psychosocial development

1. trust vs mistrust

2. autonomy vs shame and doubt

3. initiative vs. guild

4. industry vs inferiority

5. identity vs role confusion

6. intimacy vs isolation

7. generativity vs stagnation

8. integrity vs despair

trust vs mistrust

0-1 years

autonomy vs shame and doubt

1-3 years

initiative vs guilt

3-6 years

industry vs inferiority

6-12 years

identity vs role confusion

12-20 years

intimacy vs isolation

20-40 years

generativity vs stagnation

40-65 years

integrity vs despair

65 years-death

Kohlberg’s theory of moral reasoning

1. preconventional

2. conventional

3. postconventional

preconventional

places an emphasis on the consequences of a moral choice

split into two stages

1. obedience: avoiding punishment

2. self-interest: gaining rewards

conventional

when individuals begin to see themselves in terms of their relationships with others

two stages

1. conformity: seeks approval from others

2. law and order: maintains social order to highest regard

postconventional

social reasoning based on social mores, may conflict with the law sometimes

two stages:

1. social contract: moral rules are good, focused on individual rights

2. universal human ethics: decisions should be made in consideration of abstract principle

Lev Vygotsky

theorized that the engine driving cognitive development was a child’s internalization of various aspects of culture: rules, symbols, and language.

the id

all the basic, primal, inborn urges to survive and reproduce

operates according to pleasure principle: aim to achieve immediate gratification

the ego

operates according to the reality principle: taking objective reality into account as it guide or inhibits the action of the id

the organizer of the mind

receives power from and cannot be fully independent of the id

the superego

desires are refined and focused on the ideal self

personality’s perfectionist, judging our actions and responding with pride at our accomplishments and guilt at our failures

rationalization

the justification of behaviors in a manner that is acceptable to the self and society

displacement

the transference of an undesired urge from one person or object to another

sublimation

the transformation of unacceptable urges into socially acceptable behaviors

repression

unconsciously removing an idea or feeling from consciousness

suppression

consciously removing an idea or feeling from consciousness

regression

returning to an earlier stage of development

reaction formation

an unacceptable impulse is transformed into its opposite

projection

attribution of wishes, desires, thoughts, or emotions to someone else

the persona

a mask that we wear in public, the part of our personality that we present to the world

anima (feminine)

suppressed female quality in males that explains emotional behavior

a man’s inner woman

animus (masculine)

suppressed male quality of females that explains power-seeking behavior

a woman’s inner man

the shadow

responsible for the appearance of unpleasant and socially reprehensible thoughts, feelings, and actions experienced in the unconscious mind

fictional finalism

the notion that individuals are motivated more by their expectations of the future than by past experiences

humanistic perspective

focus on the value of individuals and take a more person-centered approach, describing ways in which healthy people strive toward self-realization

personality is the result of the conscious feelings we have for ourselves as we attempt to attain our needs and goals

Lewin, Maslow, Kelly, Rogers

trait theorists

use clusters of behaviors to describe individuals

psychoticism

measure of nonconformity or social deviance

extraversion

measure of tolerance for social interaction and stimulation

neuroticism

measure of emotional arousal in stressful situations

big 5 factor model

OCEAN

1. openness

2. conscientiousness

3. extraversion

4. agreeableness

5. neuroticism

openness

openness to experience, or willingness to engage with the world and desire to try new things

conscientiousness

analogous to self control

high: high impulse control

low: associated with spontaneity

agreeableness

the degree to which a person is concerned about maintaining peace and harmony in their interactions with others

cardinal traits

traits around which people organize their lives

central traits

represent major characteristics of personality that are easy to infer

Ex: honesty or charisma

secondary traits

other personal characteristics that are more limited in occurrence, aspects of one’s personality that only appear in close groups or specific social situations

functional autonomy

a behavior continues despite satisfaction of the drive that originally created the behavior