AP Psychology Unit 8 - Motivation, Emotion, Personality

Personality, Motivation, and Emotion Vocabulary

Psychoanalytic and Psychodynamic Perspectives

personality

The enduring configuration of characteristics and behavior that comprises an individual’s unique adjustment to life.

Psychoanalysis

Freud’s theory and therapy that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts.

unconscious

The region of the psyche containing memories and impulses not directly accessible to awareness but affecting behavior.

psychodynamic theory

A modern interpretation of Freudian psychology focusing on the unconscious and childhood experiences.

defense mechanisms

The ego’s protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality.

Repression

The basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety arousing thoughts and memories from consciousness.

Regression

The defense mechanism of retreating to a more infantile psychosexual stage.

Reaction formation

Defense mechanism by which the ego unconsciously switches unacceptable impulses into their opposites.

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 real, unconscious reasons for actions.

Displacement

Shifting sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person.

Sublimation

Re channeling unacceptable impulses into socially approved activities.

Denial

Refusing to believe or even perceive painful realities

humanistic psychology

A perspective that views personality with a focus on the potential for healthy personal growth.

unconditional positive regard

An attitude of total acceptance toward another person regardless of their behavior.

self actualization

The ultimate psychological need; the motivation to fulfill one’s full potential.

self concept

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

trait theory

A theory that defines personality as a stable and enduring pattern of behavior.

Factor analysis

A mathematical procedure used to identify clusters of test items that tap basic components of a trait.

Big Five theory

A model of the primary dimensions of personality: Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Neuroticism, Openness, and Extraversion.

Conscientiousness

The tendency to be organized, dependable, and disciplined.

Agreeableness

The tendency to be compassionate, cooperative, and unselfish.

Neuroticism

Emotional instability characterized by a tendency to experience unpleasant emotions easily.

Openness to experience

The tendency to appreciate new aesthetic, cultural, or intellectual experiences.

Extraversion

The tendency to be outgoing, talkative, and energized by social interaction.

Emotional stability

The degree to which one is predictable and consistent in emotional reactions.

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.

self efficacy

One’s belief in their capacity to execute behaviors necessary to produce specific performance attainments.

self esteem

One’s feelings of high or low self worth.

internal locus of control

The perception that you control your own fate through your own actions.

external locus of control

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

projective test

A personality test that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of inner dynamics.

TAT

Thematic Apperception Test; a projective test where people express inner feelings through stories about ambiguous scenes.

Rorschach test

The most widely used projective test; uses a set of 10 inkblots to identify inner feelings.

personality inventory

A questionnaire used to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors to assess selected personality traits.

MMPI

The most widely researched and clinically used personality test, originally developed to identify emotional disorders.

\Motivation

A need or desire that energizes and directs behavior toward a goal.

Instinct

A complex behavior that is rigidly patterned throughout a species and is unlearned.

drive reduction theory

The idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state that motivates an organism to satisfy the need.

Homeostasis

A tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state (e.g., blood glucose level).

incentive

A positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior.

Incentive theory

The theory that motivation depends on the interaction between environmental rewards and an organism's state.

Arousal theory

The theory that people are motivated to maintain an optimal level of alertness or physical/mental activation.

Optimal level of arousal

The preferred level of stimulation an individual seeks to maintain.

Yerkes Dodson law

The principle that performance increases with arousal only up to a point, after which performance decreases.

self determination theory

A theory of motivation emphasizing the importance of intrinsic motivation and autonomy for healthy adjustment.

intrinsic motivation

An incentive to engage in an activity that derives from the pleasure of the activity itself.

Extrinsic motivation

A desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment.

Sensation seeking

A trait defined by the search for novel, complex, and intense experiences and the readiness to take risks.

Thrill and adventure seeking

A sensation seeking trait associated with people who enjoy intense physical experiences.

Boredom susceptibility

An aversion to repetitive experience or lack of engagement with environmental stimuli.

hypothalamus

Brain structure that maintains homeostasis by influencing the autonomic nervous system and managing hormones.

Lateral hypothalamus (LH)

The region of the hypothalamus that brings on hunger; stimulation increases food intake.

Ghrelin

A hormone secreted by an empty stomach that sends "I'm hungry" signals to the brain.

Leptin

A protein hormone secreted by fat cells that causes the brain to increase metabolism and decrease hunger.

approach approach conflict

A choice between two equally desirable but incompatible alternatives.

Avoidance avoidance conflict

A choice between two equally objectionable or undesirable alternatives.

Approach avoidance conflict

A situation involving a single goal that has both desirable and undesirable consequences.

emotion

A complex reaction pattern involving experiential, behavioral, and physiological elements.

Display rule

A socially learned standard that regulates the appropriate expression of emotion within a culture.

facial feedback hypothesis

The tendency of facial muscle states to trigger corresponding feelings such as fear, anger, or happiness.

Broaden and build theory

The theory that positive emotions broaden one's awareness and encourage novel, varied, and exploratory thoughts.

cognitive appraisal theory

The theory that our emotional experience depends on our interpretation (appraisal) of a situation.