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Psychology for the AP Course- Third edition
Personality
an individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting
Psychodynamic theories
theories that view personality with a focus on the unconscious and the importance of childhood experiences
Psychoanalysis
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
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
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
Id
a reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives. The id operates on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification
Ego
the largely conscious, “executive” part of personality that, according to Freud, mediates among the demands of the id, superego, and reality. The ego operates on the reality principle, satisfying the id’s desires in ways that will realistically bring pleasure rather than pain
Superego
the part of personality that, according to Freud, represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgment (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
Oral (0–18 months)
Pleasure centers on the mouth—sucking, biting, chewing
Anal (18–36 months)
Pleasure focuses on bowel and bladder elimination; coping with demands for control
Phallic (3–6 years)
Pleasure zone is the genitals; coping with incestuous sexual feelings
Latency (6 to puberty)
A phase of dormant sexual feelings
Genital (puberty on)
Maturation of sexual interests
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
in psychoanalytic theory, 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
in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories
Regression
Retreating to an earlier psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated
Reaction formation
Switching unacceptable impulses into their opposites
Projection
Disguising one’s own threatening impulses by attributing them to others
Rationalization
Offering self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening unconscious reasons for one’s actions
Displacement
Shifting sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person
Sublimation
Transferring of unacceptable impulses into socially valued motives
Denial
Refusing 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, such as the Rorschach, that provides ambiguous images 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 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; seeks to identify people’s inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of the blots
Terror-management theory
a theory of death-related anxiety; explores people’s emotional and behavioral responses to reminders of their impending death.
Humanistic theories
theories that view personality with a focus on the potential for healthy personal growth
Hierarchy of needs
Maslow’s pyramid of human needs, beginning at the base with physiological needs that must first be satisfied before higher-level safety needs and then psychological needs become active
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
Self-trancendence
according to Maslow, the striving for identity, meaning, and purpose beyond the self
Unconditional positive regard
a caring, accepting, nonjudgmental attitude, which Carl Rogers believed would help people develop self-awareness and self-acceptance
Self-concept
all our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in answer to the question, “Who am I?”
Trait
a characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act in certain ways, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports
Personality inventory
a characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act in certain ways, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
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
Empirically derived test
a test (such as the MMPI) created by selecting from a pool of items those that discriminate between groups
Social- cognitive perspective
views behavior as influenced by the interaction between people’s traits (including their thinking) and their social context
Behavioral approach
focuses on the effects of learning on our personality development
Recriprocal determinism
the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment
Psychoanalytic
Personality consists of pleasure-seeking impulses (the id), a reality-oriented executive (the ego), and an internalized set of ideals (the superego).
Psychodynamic
The dynamic interplay of conscious and unconscious motives and conflicts shapes our personality
Humanistic
If our basic human needs are met, we will strive toward self-actualization. In a climate of unconditional positive regard, we can develop selfawareness and a more realistic and positive self-concept.
Trait
Scientific study of traits has isolated important dimensions of personality, such as the Big Five traits (conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, openness, and extraversion).
Social-cognitive
Conditioning and observational learning interact with cognition to create behavior patterns. Our behavior in one situation is best predicted by considering our past behavior in similar situations
Case study
In-depth study of one individual
Survey
Systematic questioning of a random sample of the population.
Projective tests
Ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of inner dynamics
Personality inventories
Objectively scored groups of questions designed to identify personality dispositions
Observation
Studying how individuals react in different situations
Experimentation
Manipulate variables, with random assignment to conditions
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-efficacy
one’s sense of competence and effectiveness
Self-serving bias
a readiness to perceive oneself favorably
Narcissism
excessive self-love and self-absorption
Individualism
giving priority to one’s own goals over group goals and defining one’s identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications
Collectivism
giving priority to the goals of one’s group (often one’s extended family or work group) and defining one’s identity accordingly
Note
Flashcard