AP Psychology Unit 10 and 11

self-esteem

one's feelings of high or low self-worth

spotlight effect

overestimating others' noticing and evaluation our appearance, performance, and blunders (as if we presume a spotlight shines on us)

Questionnaires covering a wide range of feelings and behavior designed to assess several traits at once are called...

personality inventories

Sigmund Freud called his theory of personality and the associated treatment techniques...

psychoanalysis

projection

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

sublimation

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

denial

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

Children's TV-viewing habits (past behavior) influence their viewing preferences (internal personal factor), which influence how television (environmental factor) affects their current behavior. This is an example of...

reciprocal determinism

According to Sigmund Freud, which of the following defense mechanisms buries threatening or upsetting events outside of consciousness?

repression

What did Abraham Maslow call the process of fulfilling our potential?

self actualization

Our ______ consists of all the thoughts and feelings we have in response to the question, "Who am I?"

self concept

What do we call the ability to control impulses and delay gratification?

self control

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.

personal control

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

reciprocal determinism

the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment

rationalization

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

displacement

psychoanalytic 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

reaction formation

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

regression

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

What was Freud's view of personality and its development?

Sigmund Freud's treatment of emotional disorders led him to believe that they spring from unconscious dynamics, which he sought to analyze through free association and dreams. He referred to his theory and techniques as psychoanalysis. He saw personality as composted of pleasure-seeking psychic impulses (the id), a reality-oriented executive (the ego), and an internalized set of ideas (the superego). He believed that children develop through psychosexual stages, and that failure to resolve conflicts associated with a particular stage may result in fixation

What underlying principle guides social-cognitive psychologist in their assessment of people's behavior and beliefs?

Social-cognitive researches study how people interact with their situations. They tend to believe that the best way to predict someone's behavior in a given situation is to observe that person's behavior in similar situations.

How did Freud think people defended themselves against anxiety?

Tensions between the demands of id and superego cause anxiety. The ego copes by using defense mechanisms, especially repression.

Which traits seem to provide the most useful information about personality variation?

The Big Five personality dimensions- conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism (emotional stability versus instability), openness, and extroversion- offer a reasonably comprehensive picture of personality.

In the view of social-cognitive psychologists, what mutual influences shape an individual's personality?

The social-cognitive perspective applies principles of learning, cognition, and social behavior to personality, with particular emphasis on the ways in which our personality influences and is influenced by our interaction with the environment. It assumes reciprocal determinism- that personal- cognitive factors interact with the environment to influence people's behavior.

What has the social-cognitive perspective contributed to the study of personality and what criticisms has it faced?

Though faulted for under emphasizing the importance of unconscious dynamics, emotions, and inner traits, the social cognitive perspective builds on psychology's well-established concepts of learning and cognition and reminds us of the power of social situations.

How do contemporary psychologists view Freud and the unconscious?

Today's research psychologists note that Freud's theory offers only after-the-fact explanations, and that repression rarely occurs. Current information-processing research confirms that or access to all that goes on in our mind is very limited, but it does not support Freud's view of the unconscious. Rather, the unconscious consists of schemas that control out perceptions; priming; parallel processing that occurs without our conscious knowledge; implicit memories of learned skills; instantly activated emotions; and self-concepts and stereotypes that filter information about ourselves and others. There is also little support for the idea of defense mechanisms. Psychology's false consensus effect (the tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviors) does, however, bear a resemblance to Freud's projection, and reaction formation also seems to happen. Nevertheless, Freud drew psychology's attention to the unconscious, to the struggle to cope with anxiety and sexuality, and to the conflict between biological impulses and social restraints. His culture impact has been enormous.

trait

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

projective test

a personality test, such as the Rorschach or TAT, the provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of one's inner dynamics

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

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

personality inventory

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.

self-serving bias

a readiness to perceive oneself favorably

id

a reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives. The id operated on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification.

empirically derived test

a test (such as MMPI) developed by testing a pool of items and then selecting those that discriminate between groups

terror-management theory

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

Oedipus complex

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

fixation

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

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

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.

unconditional positive regard

according to Rogers, 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?"

personality

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

People given little control over their world in prisons, factories, schools, and nursing homes experience...

learned helplessness

Albert Bandura proposed the social-cognitive perspective, which....

emphasizes the interaction of our traits with our situations.

Critics of humanistic psychology have suggested that this theory fails to appreciate the reality of our human capacity for...

evil

Collectivist cultures are characterized by members...

giving priority to group goals

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.

self

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

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 embarassing

defense mechanism

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

According to Carl Rogers, when we are in a good marriage, a close family, or an intimate friendship, we are free to be spontaneous without fearing the loss of others' esteem. He called the accepting attitude that enables this freedom...

unconditional positive regard

social-cognitive perspective

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

Brad Bushman and Roy Baumeister found that when criticized, people with unrealistically high self-esteem...

worked harder to do better the next time

Does research support the consistency of personality traits over time and across situations?

Although people's traits persist over time, their behaviors vary widely from situation. Despite these variations, a person's average behavior across different situations tends to be fairly consistent.

What are the causes and consequences of personal control?

By studying how people vary in their perceived locus of control (external or internal), researchers have found that a sense of personal control helps people to cope with life. Research on personal control evolved into research on the effects of optimism and pessimism, which led to a broader positive psychology movement.

collective unconscious

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

How do individualists and collectivists cultural influences affect people?

Cultures based on self-reliant individualism, like those of most of the United States, Canada, Australia, and Western Europe, value personal independence and individual achievement. Identity is defined in terms of self-esteem, personal goals and attributes, and personal rights and liberties. Cultures based on socially connected collectivism, like those of many parts of Asia and Africa, value interdependence, tradition, and harmony, and they define identity in terms of group goals and commitments and belonging to one's group. Within any culture, the degree of individualism or collectivism varies from person to person.

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 interrupt unconscious tensions.

How did humanistic psychologists view personality, and what was their goal in studying personality?

Humanistic psychologist sought to turn psychology's attention toward the growth potential of healthy people. Abraham Maslow believed that if basic human needs are fulfilled, people will strive toward self-actualization. to nurture growth in others, Carl Rogers advised being genuine, accepting, and empathic. In this climate of unconditional positive regard, he believed, people can develop a deeper self-awareness and a more realistic and positive self-concept.

How did humanistic psychologists assess a person's sense of self?

Humanistic psychologists assessed personality through questionnaires on which people reported their self-concept, and in therapy by seeking to understand their clients' subjective personal experiences.

How has the humanistic perspective influenced psychology? what criticism has it faced?

Humanistic psychology helped to renew psychology's interest in the concept of self. Nevertheless, humanistic psychology's critics complained that its concepts were vague and subjective, its values Western and self-centered, and its assumptions naively optimistic.

Are we helped or hindered by high self esteem?

In contemporary psychology, the self is assumed o be the center of personality, the organizer of our thought, feeling, and actions. Research confirms the benefits of high self-esteem, but it also warns of the dangers of unrealistically high self-esteem. The self-serving bias leads us to perceive ourselves favorably, often causing us to overestimate our abilities and underestimate our faults.

repression

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

Which of Freud's ideas did his followers accept or reject?

Neo-Freudians Alfred Adler, Karen Horney, and Carl Jung accepted many of Freud's ideas. But Adler and Horney argued that we have motives other than sex and aggression and that the ego's conscious control is greater that Freud supposed, and Jung proposed a collective unconscious. Psychodynamic theorists share Freud's view that unconscious mental processes, inner conflicts, and childhood experiences are important influences on personality.

What are personality inventories, and what are their strengths and weaknesses as trait-assessment tools?

Personality inventories (like the MMPI) are questionnaires on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors. Items on the test are empirically derived, and the tests are objectively scored. But people can fake their answers to create a good impression, and the ease of computerized testing may lead to misuse of these tests.

What are projective tests, and how are they used?

Projective tests attempt to assess personality by presenting ambiguous stimuli designed to reveal the unconscious. Although projective tests, such as Rorschach inkblots, have questionably reliability and validity, many clinicians continue to use them.

How should we draw the line between normality and disorder?

Psychologists and psychiatrists consider behavior disordered when it is deviant, distressful, and dysfunctional. The definition of of deviant varies with context and culture. It also varies with time; for example, some children, who might have been judged rambunctious a few decades ago now are being diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

How do psychologists use traits to describe personality?

Rather than explain the hidden aspects of personality, trait theorists attempt to describe our stable and enduring characteristics. Through factor analysis, researchers have isolated important dimensions of personality. Genetic predispositions influence many traits.

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.

What perspectives can help us understand psychological disorders?

the medical model assumes that psychological disorders are mental illnesses that can be diagnosed on the basis of their symptoms and cured through therapy, sometimes in a hospital. The psychological perspective assumes that disordered behavior, like other behavior, arises from genetic predispositions and physiological states; inner psychological dynamics; and social-cultural circumstances

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

Rorschach inkblot test

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

superego

the part of personality that, according to Freud, represents internalized ideas and proved standards for judgement (the conscience) and for future aspirations

external locus of control

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

internal locus of control

the perception that you control your own fate

identification

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

positive psychology

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

Athletes who often privately credit their victories to their own prowess, and their losses to bad breaks, lousy officiating, or the other team's exceptional performance are exhibiting...

the self-serving bias

Our self-focused perspective may motivate us, but it can also lead us to presume too readily that others are noticing and evaluation us. This is called...

the spotlight effect