Unit 4.4-4.5 Psychology

Defense mechanisms

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

EX: Repression, displacement, and denial

Denial

Refusing to acknowledge reality to protect oneself from anxiety

EX: Ignoring signs of a serious illness

Displacement

Redirecting emotions to a safer target

EX: Yelling at your siblings after being scolded by a teacher

Ego

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

EX: Eating one slice of cake to satisfy a craving while staying healthy

Humanistic psychology

A theory of personality that emphasizes free will, personal growth, and achieving ones full potential

EX: Believing everyone can grow and improve with support

Personality

an individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting.

Preconscious

a mental state that lies between the conscious and unconscious minds. the level of the psyche that contains thoughts, feelings, and impulses not presently in awareness but that can be more or less readily called into consciousness

Projection

Attributing ones own thoughts or feelings to someone else

EX: Accusing a friend of being angry when you are upset

Projective tests

a personality test, designed to revel unconscious thoughts and feelings by that providing ambiguous images designed to trigger projection of one’s inner dynamics and explore the preconscious and unconscious mind.

EX: Interpreting inkblots in the Rorschach test

psychoanalysis

(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. (2) Sigmund Freud’s therapeutic technique. Freud believed the patient’s free associations, resistances, dreams, and transferences — and the analyst’s interpretations of them — released previously repressed feelings, allowing the patient to gain self-insight.

Psychodynamic theory

theories that view personality with a focus on the unconscious mind and the importance of childhood experiences.

EX: Freuds belief that unresolved childhood conflicts shape adult behavior

Rationalization

Justifying behaviors with logical but false reasons

EX: Saying you failed a test because the questions were unfair, not because you didn’t study

Reaction formation

Acting in a way opposite to ones true feelings

EX: Being overly kind to someone that you dislike

Regression

Reverting to childlike behaviors when under stress

EX: throwing a tantrum when things dont go your way

Repression

the basic defense mechanism that banishes/ pushes painful memory ot thoughts from our consciousness (anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories.)

EX: Forgetting traumatic childhood event

Self-actualization

The drive to achieve ones highest potential and personal growth

EX: Pursuing a dream career despite obstacles

Sublimation

Redirecting unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable activities

EX: Channeling anger into playing sports

Unconditional regard

Accepting someone completely without judgement

EX: A therapist supporting a client regardless of their past mistakes

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.

Unconscious processes

Thoughts, feelings, and memories that are not consciously accessible but influence behavior

EX: A persons fear of intimacy rooted in forgotten childhood experiences

Agreeableness

a personality trait that can be described as cooperative, polite, kind, and friendly. People with high ___ are more trusting, affectionate, altruistic, and generally displaying more prosocial behaviors than others.

Big Five theory

five traits — openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism — that describe personality.

Conscientiousness

a personality trait that describes a person's tendency to be responsible, organized, and hard-working, be goal directed, to plan, and to be able to delay gratification

Emotional Stability

a person's ability to remain calm, composed, and emotionally consistent, maintaining a balanced emotional state despite stressful or challenging situations

Extraversion

a personality trait typically characterized by outgoingness, high energy, and/or talkativeness, aka someone who is outgoing, sociable, and energized by being around others

Factor analysis

a statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person’s total score

MMPI (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory)

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.

Openness to experience

a personality trait that describes a person's willingness to try new things, explore different ideas, and embrace novelty

Neuroticism

a personality trait characterized by a tendency to experience negative emotions like anxiety, worry, anger, and depression

Personality inventories

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.

Reciprocal determinism

the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environmental influences all influence each other in a continuous cycle

Self-concept

how individuals perceive themselves, including their real self and ideal self

EX: Feeling fulfilled when your actions align with your personal values

Self-efficacy

our sense of competence and effectiveness

Self-esteem

our feelings of high or low self-worth

Social-cognitive theory

a view of behavior as influenced by the interaction between people’s traits (including their thinking) and their social context.

Trait theory

suggest that learning occurs from a single pairing of stimulus and response, not through repeated reinforcement over time