Chapter 9 - Psychoanalytic Approaches to Personality

What are some responses that require self control?

- Controlling thoughts - Managing emotions - Overcoming unwanted impulses - Controlling attention - Guiding behaviour - Making many choices

What are behaviours which are sensitive to ego depletion?

- Eating among dieters - Overspending - Aggression after being provoked - Sexual impulses - Logical and intelligent decision making

What are social behaviours which demand self control?

- Self presentation for impression management - Kindness in response to bad behaviour - Dealing with demanding or difficult people - Interracial demands

What are ways to counteract the harmful effects of ego depletion?

-Laughter and humour -Positive emotions -Cash incentives -Implementing intentions to cope with temptations such as specific plans -Pursuing social values like wanting to hep people, being in a good relationship, etc.

How does one know when a defence mechanism is becoming a problem?

1) If the behaviour is inhibiting the ability to be productive. 2) If the behaviour begins limiting the ability to maintain relationships.

What were Freud's major contributions to psychology?

1) Structure of Personality - the idea that the mind had components was novel and important; the human mind as compartmentalized and can be broken down into parts; biology and emergent mind. 2) Defence Mechanisms - coping mechanisms or strategies and is still relevant today; regardless of the part of the mind in control few would argue that these are not important determinants of behaviour. 3) Childhood Development - No evidence of fixations or complexes with the latency stage being unlikely as development continues past puberty BUT childhood and parent relationships are important influencers on personality. This was a big deal. 4) Unconscious Processes - The content of the unconscious was/is important but may not function as he suggested. The idea of modes or levels of consciousness was also influential.

Anal Stage

18 months to 3 years. Key conflict revolves around toilet training, whether or not its successful. The goal is to achieve self-control and to develop a mature and functioning EGO. This is the time when the ego is developing which is all about self-control. Fixation: -Strict Parents lead to Anal Retentive Personalty. They are stubborn, obsessive and overly tidy. -Liberal Parents lead to an Anal Expulsive Personality. They are emotional, rebellious and messy. They literally "dump" all over people. Anal area is key course of sexual pleasure and from expelling feces, then toilet training and retaining feces. Moving from ids desire to immediately expel, to learning self-control. Conflicts arise around self-control, some achieve too little and some develop too much. The child exerts the first opportunity for willpower. Which may be the beginning of being stingy, holding back, or overly wilful and stubborn.

Phallic Stage

3 to 5 years. The key conflict revolves around unconscious attraction toward opposite sex parent. Oedipal and Electra Conflict: Unconscious wish to have opposite sex parent all to themselves; resentment builds toward same sex parent with castration anxiety and penis envy resulting. The goal is to identify with the same sex parent and develop a mature SUPEREGO. To repress and then identify with the parent. Fixation: -Phallic Personality who are self assured, vain, impulsive, narcissistic, with Oedipal or Electra complex. The time of life when the superego 1st comes into play. The societal norms revolving around incest, affects child.

Latency Stage

6 years to puberty. Little psychological development occurring, and a focus on learning skills and abilities needed to succeed in life. Freud said little was going on but Erikson extended the period.

Megalomania

A delusion marked by a feeling of power, wealth, talent, etc., far in excess of reality. Delusions of greatness. Not the same as narcissism.

Identification

A developmental process in children, consisting of wanting to become like the same-sex parent. In classic psychoanalysis, it is the beginning of the resolution of the oedipal or electra conflict, and successful resolution of phallic stage of psychosexual development. Freud believed that the resolution of the phallic stage was both the beginning of the superego and morality and the start of the adult gender role.

Iceburg Theory

A topography of the mind. Above the water is the conscious mind, the part just below the water surface is the preconscious, with the unconscious totally hidden from view (vast majority of it). The Id is completely submerged, residing entirely in the unconscious. The superego is slightly accessible by the conscious mind, while the ego is the part of the personality we are most aware of and identify with. The ego represents "the tip of the iceberg". The unconscious having a high degree of influence and force over the individual.

Narcissism

According to Freud, narcissism can occur when an individual's libido energy is invested in the EGO itself, rather than another person. Some degree of self-love is normal, but for some, there can be a failure to direct libido energy outward. All children early on have a degree of self-love.

Deliberation Without Attention

An example of the unconscious at work. Also called "Let Me Sleep On it Effect". If a person is confronted with a difficult decision can put it out of their conscious for a period of time, then the unconscious mind will continue to deliberate on it outside of their awareness, helping them arrive at a sudden and often correct decision later. Sometimes called unconscious decision making. Researchers suggest that for simple decisions conscious deliberation works best, but when complex with many factors, unconscious deliberation is best. Studies on consumer purchases, career paths, voting, marriage, etc are good for unconscious deliberation. Benefiting the individual to think consciously about simple matters and unconscious delegation for more complex matters. Critics say that unconscious deliberation hasn't actually been proven, arguing that decisions are memory based and not an example of any unconscious activity.

Anxiety

An unpleasant state indicating that one's EGO is being threatened. Freud proposed 3 types of anxiety: Objective, Neurotic and Moral. The ego is in conflict, conflict which occurs between the id, ego and superego. According to Jung, anxiety propels people to make meaning of their world. What is the purpose of their life, why are they here, how they can live more balanced lives, etc. Emphasized growth and purpose. Meaning and purpose meant to help manage anxiety with religion, spirituality and symbolism as important sources of meaning.

Conversion Reaction

Anxiety is transformed into physical symptoms such as heart palpitations, paralysis, or blindness. A conflict is converted into a symptom. Symptoms help the person avoid anxiety, and symptoms don't make them anxious.

Projection

Attributing negative qualities to others (Project Onto Others). It takes the pressure off of them. Ex: A person who is scared of amusement park rides starts calling others "chicken" and says others look scared instead of admitting that he's frightened. Ex: A girl who is worried about her drinking desires to "notice" problem drinking behaviours in other people in a judgmental way. Based on the notion that what we see in others are the traits we find most upsetting in ourselves. We project our unacceptable qualities unto other. Disparage the tendencies or characteristics in question without admitting one possesses them. Similar to projection is the false consensus effect.

Sigmund Freud

Austrian, originally a medical doctor. Began studying hypnosis and opened private practice when treating people with "nervous disorders". Developed the idea that portions of the human mind were outside conscious awareness. The unconscious being the part of the mind where the conscious mind has no awareness. Sought to study empirically the implications of the unconscious in understanding people's lives and their problems with living. He surmised that the unconscious operated under its own power, subject to its own motivations and logic. Published "The Interpretation of Dreams" and described how the unconscious mind was expressed in dreams and how dreams contained clues to innermost secrets, desires and motives. Dream analysis being cornerstone of his Tx. His Tx approach is the "talking cure" with his theory being the adult personality is a result of how the person as a child coped with their sexual and aggressive urges. A theory considered politically incorrect by Victorian morality.

Oral Stage

Birth to 18 months. Key conflict is weaning from breast or bottle. The goal is to gain independence while still trusting the parent. Trust is related to attachment theory. Fixation: -Neglectful Parents lead to an Oral Aggressive Personality. They are hostile, aggressive and sadistic. -Over Protective Parents lead to an Oral Receptive Personality. They are needy, co-dependant, masochistic. Main sources of pleasure and tension reduction are the mouth, lips and tongue. The main conflict is weaning. The conflict is both biological and psychological. Biological: The id wants immediate gratification associated with nourishment and gaining pleasure from the mouth. Psychological: The conflict is one of excessive pleasure vs. dependency, with the fear of being left to fend for oneself. If the weaning is painful or traumatic, there is a degree of fixation. Adults who overeat, smoke, nail biting, thumb sucking, pencil chewing may be fixated. They may be overly dependant, want to be babied, nurtured and have others make decisions for them.. Another conflict is biting, when the child grows teeth and gains pleasure from chewing and biting. When parents discourage the child from biting, there is a conflict between the urge and parental restrictions. People who fixate here are hostile, quarrelsome, mocking and continue to draw gratification from being psychologically biting and verbally attack.

Collective Unconscious

Carl Jung's concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species' history. A major departure from Freudian theory. In addition to the immediate consciousness which is a personal nature and an empirical psyche, there is a second psychic system of a collective, universal and impersonal nature which is identical in all people. It does not develop individually but is inherited. Pre existent forms, such as archetypes which are similar to schemas. Minimal Interpretation: Certain structures and predispositions of the unconscious are common to everyone; inherited and species-specific with genetic basis. Analogous to the basic pattern of bones and muscles that everyone has. This is verified by empirical evidence. Ex: everyone has schemas and everyone is subject to confirmation bias. Maximal Interpretation: Th individual is connected to some kind divine or "world" mind and is something that extends beyond the individual psyche and is shared with everyone. This is hard to prove by empirical evidence.

_______________ drives a little boy into giving up his sexual desire for his mother.

Castration Anxiety

Psychosexual Development

Children pass through a series of stages in development. At each of the first 3 stages, the person must face and resolve specific conflicts. Each stage focuses on a different method libido gratification/a maturing of libido energy at an unconscious level. Failure (frustration or overindulgence) result in fixation at a particular stage; method of gratification defines personality in an adult. Experiences in childhood shape adult personality. Children seek sexual gratification at each stage by investing libidinal energy in a specific body part. Each stage represents a more mature mode of gaining sexual gratification. Aggressive & Sadistic = Oral Aggressive Needy & Codependent = Oral Receptive Stubborn & Obsessive = Anal Retentive Messy & Rebellious = Anal Expulsive Self Assured, Vein, Impulsive and Narcissistic - Phallic Personality

Sublimation

Converting unacceptable desires and anxiety into acceptable behaviours, which is an ADAPTIVE defence. Channeling though a healthy outlet. Ex: A women ends a 3 year relationship and then spends time ruminating on the outcome so she takes up fitness classes as a way to release negative energy and take mind off the negative. The most adaptive mechanism according to Freud. The channelling of unacceptable sexual or aggressive urges/instincts into socially desired activities. Allows for some limited expression of id tendencies, so the ego doesn't have to invest energy in holding the id in check. Freud thought that the greatest achievements of civilization were due to effective sublimation of sexual and aggressive urges.

The phenomenon of _______________ is sometimes called unconscious decision making.

Deliberation without awareness

What is a common defence mechanism in later life?

Denial

In _______________, a threatening or an unacceptable impulse is channeled or redirected from its original source to a nonthreatening target.

Displacement

Reaction Formation

Displaying opposite behaviours, which are often exaggerated. The person acts in the opposite way. Ex: A man in a monogamous relationship becomes infatuated with another women, but instead of cheating he becomes obsessed with showing his wife sings of love and affection. Ex: A girl who has been drinking more often but in front of family and friends starts praising the benefits of abstinence. To strife the expression of an unacceptable urge, the person displays behaviours which are its opposite. People may try to coverup their wishes and intentions but they still unwittingly express them. Alerts us to be sensitive to a person's instances whey they are acting in an excessive manner such as being overly nice.

What is a cornerstone of Freud's treatment?

Dream Analysis

According to Freud, the _______________ is the part of the mind that constrains the Id to reality.

Ego

Efforts toward self-control result in _______________, leaving less energy available for subsequent self-control situations.

Ego Depletion

Ego

Executive of personality. Constrains the Id to reality. Understands that the id's urges are often in conflict with social and physical reality. Works to redirect the pressure produced by Id instincts into acceptable or lesser problematic outlets. Develops in the first 2-3 years of life, after the terrible twos, and operates according to the REALITY PRINCIPLE. 1st area to develop. Part that humans are most consciously connected to. Understands Id urges usually conflict with social and physical reality. An Id urge may immediately relieve tension, but they conflict with society's rules. It understand such actions can lead to problems and that direct expression of id impulses must be avoided, redirected and postponed. Postpones until an appropriate situation arises - secondary process thinking which are strategies for solving problems and obtaining satisfaction. Regardless of the situation, the ego understands that there are some urges that are simple unacceptable according to social or conventional morality.

The _______________ refers to the tendency many people have to assume that others are similar to them.

False consensus effect

Blindsight

Following an injury/stroke that damages primary vision centre in the brain. People will lose some all of the ability to see. A kind of blindness where the eyes still work to bring information into the brain but the brain centre responsible for object recognition fails. A kind of cortical blindness with a capacity to make judgements about objects but that someone can't truly see. Taken as evidence of the unconscious. Nerve pathways go from the eyes to the brain, with the optic nerve carrying information from the eye and the majority of information transferred to the primary visual centre in the striate cortex. Pathways split off of the optic nerve before getting to the visual centre and carry some of the info to other parts of the brain. These other areas may be responsible for movement or color recognition and emotional evaluation. An interesting example is perception of emotional significance of something that a person can't see. Ex: Conditioning procedures: showing a person a visual cue accompanied by a shock, whereas other cues are not paired. After conditioning, cues shown again to subject. Subject exhibited fear responses to cues initially paired with shocks. Suggests that emotional conditioning doesn't require conscious representation. Other studies show that subjects can guess emotions expressed in Eckman faces even when they can't "see" the faces presented. There is emotional processing occurring at some brain level.

Happens By Chance

Freud said nothing happens by accident or chance. There is a reason behind every action, thought, feeling, what we do, are all expressions of the mind - the conscious, preconscious and unconscious. Freud said the little accidents of daily life are often expressions of the motivated unconscious. Ex: calling someone by the wrong name, missing an appointment, breaking something, etc. They all represent motivated activity of the unconscious with a reason for every slip of the tongue, forgetting, etc. Ex: Freudian slip

Psychic Determinism

Freud said nothing happens by random chance. That there is a reason behind every thought, feeling and action. Everything a person does, thinks, and feels is an expression of the mind, either conscious or unconscious. Largely intuitive. No random outcomes and behind everything are psychic processes with the unconscious mind being very powerful. The best way to understand why people do the things they do is to examine the contents of the UNCONSCIOUS mind.

Life and Death Instincts

Freud's Libido and Thanatos. Work to oppose each other, but can also combine in various ways. Ex: eating involves the life instinct of consuming food for survival, but also involves tearing, biting, and chewing which are aggressive manifestations. Ex: rape being an expression of extreme death instinct, directed toward another in a manner fuelled with sexual energy. The combination of erotic and aggressive instincts into a single motive that is a particularity volitive mixture.

Thanatos

Freud's death instinct. The fundamental human instinct which is directed toward destruction and would manifest in aggression toward others. Any urge to harm, destroy or aggress against another or oneself.

Instincts

Freud's idea that these were the basic source of psychic energy. Strong innate forces provide all the energy in the psychic system. A theory influenced by Darwin's theory of evolution. Two fundamental categories which correspond exactly to the two major components of Darwin's theory of natural selection: survival and reproduction. -Self-preservation -Sexual Later, he combined self-preservation and sex into one: the life instinct. Later he developed the death instinct stating that humans had a fundamental instinct toward destruction which would manifest in aggression toward others. (Libido and Thanatos).

Libido

Freud's life instinct. A collapse of instincts of self-preservation and sexual instinct. Generally thought of as sexual, it also refers to any need to self-satisfy, life-sustain, or pleasure oriented urge.

Psychic Energy

Freud's model of human nature relied on this. The notion that this type of energy motivates all human activity. The forces that motivate people to do something or not. A source within a person, referring to a wellspring of motivation. It operates according to the law of conservation of energy: the amount a person possesses remains constant throughout their lifetime with personality change viewed as a redirection of that person's energy. Freud believed because each person possesses a fixed amount, the energy used to direct one type of behaviour isn't available to drive other types of behaviours. Ex: the person who directs their death instinct into a socially acceptable channel like sports, has less energy to expend toward destructive manifestations of the instinct. Energy is fixed, limited, but can be directed and redirected in various ways.

A common form of denial is to dismiss unflattering feedback as wrong or irrelevant. This is known as _______________.

Fundamental attribution error

Donald Trump's Personality

HIGH Extraversion: -Lacks warmth and cooperation -High need for social attention, assumed a leadership position -Bold with women -Committed to his work -Doesn't engage in physical activity like most extroverts LOW Agreeableness: -Doesn't care about getting along with others and doesn't favour negotiation like most with high A -Tries to assert his power in resolving social conflicts -Does not avoid unharmonious situations and is not prosocial -Judges others harshly in general, but NOT to those committing antisocial acts -Not forgiving, empathetic -Aggressive -Blows up when things don't go his way, yells, argumentative, rude, tantrums -Seeks conflict and is disagreeable, irritable, headstrong, negativistic MOD Conscientiousness: -Moderately hard worker, not punctual or reliable -Less positive social relationships -Performs poorly at work but does succeed in the domain -Sets high standards and likely high on achievement motivation -Industrious -Does not stick to exercise or eating regimes -Perseverance -Risky sexual behaviours, cheats on wives, less stable relationships -Breaks rules, unscrupulous, fussy LOW to MOD Neuroticism: -Variability in mood, more emotionally unstable -Poor physical health -Few attempts to engage in health promoting behaviours -Does not drink -Somewhat anxious, excitable, hypochondriacal, poised yet tense MOD to HIGH Openness: -Narrow minded, direct, boorish and crude -Novel, extramarital affairs -May have difficulty ignoring stimuli -Prejudice, negative stereotypes of others MOD to HIGH Narcissism: -Impulsive, self conscious, reactive -Tries to appear powerful -Inflated self-admiration and grandiose -Entitled, needs to be centre of attention -Seems confident but needs praise, reassurance, and is vulnerable to blows to self-esteem and criticism -When challenged behaves aggressively, belittles and attacks others -Leads to aggression and anger when provoked and is distressed when insulted -Preoccupied with the self -Internal representation is fragile and vulnerable

Critique of Freud

He didn't believe in the value of experimentation or hypothesis testing in establishing the validity of psychoanalysis. He primarily relied on case studies of wealthy white people. Some psychologists have issues with Freud's negative view of human nature with many of his theories being sexist and supporting a heteronormativity.

Does Trump have a well developed ego and superego?

His ego isn't well developed and his superego would have been largely influenced by his parents. His father valued competition which affected his own development and thus affected his behaviours. His parents degree of influence during development and maturity was important. His superego is likely underdeveloped. He doesn't value societal values.

What does psychoanalytic personality theory describe?

How people cope with their sexual and aggressive instincts within the contracts of a civilized society. These instincts leading to drives and urges that conflict with society and with reality. One part of the mind creates the urges, with another part having a sense of what society expects, with finally another part trying to satisfy urges within the bounds of reality and society.

Id, Ego and Superego

Id (Unconscious) tries to satisfy urges and seeks immediate gratification. Fully submerged in iceberg metaphor. Superego (Mostly unconscious) tries to conform to social and moral expectations. Mostly submerged in iceberg metaphor. Ego (Somewhat conscious) tries to satisfy urges within the constraints of reality and society. Somewhat submerged in iceberg metaphor.

What is a common defence mechanism in adolescence?

Identification

What has research found about "repressors"?

In a phrase association task that measured physiological reactions in participants, they found that repressors reported the lowest levels of subjective distress yet found to exhibit the highest levels of physiological arousal. They "said" they were not distressed yet physiological appeared very distressed. These results are consistent with Freud's vein that repression keeps unpleasant experiences out of conscious awareness, and that such repressed unpleasant experiences still affect the individual in spite of being outside of awareness (aka: the repressed experiences affected the person's level of arousal, yet they weren't consciously aware of being anxious). Other research showed that repressors, defined as high-defensive-low-anxious persons recall fewer negative emotional experiences and were substantially older at the time of their first negative memory in addition to limited access to positive memories. Meaning, that a cost to repressing memories may mean you lose/limited access to both good and bad memories. These effects are most strongest for memories connected to the self, but easier to remember bad things happening to others. And repression is strongest for memories associated with feelings of fear and self-consciousness. Repressors memories are less elaborate regarding emotion; being less developed, refined, and rich. Meaning repressors may have limited recall for memories with some memories being potentially blocked out or had a lack of proper encoding initially. Its also been said that repressors experience negative emotions less intensely on day to day basis. Repression seeming to occur during the experience of the event. Repressors somehow keep unpleasant events from entering into their memories.

Moral Relativism

In order to determine if something is morally right or wrong (or good or bad), we must consider the time and place in which it occurs. In other words, what is moral depends on a variety of factors.

Reality Principle

In psychoanalysis, the counterpart of the pleasure principle and refers to guiding behaviour according to the demands of reality and relies on the strengths of the EGO to provide such guidance.

Cognitive View of the Unconscious

Information perceived may get into the unconscious and influence people, but its not buried there, with the unconscious not being very powerful. Ex: Subliminal priming to get people to buy something is not that effective.

_______________ refers to an intense emotional experience that accompanies the release of repressed material.

Insight

Denial

Insisting that things are not the way they seem, and not seeing the facts. Ignoring, pretending, etc. Ex: A person diagnosed with lung cancer avoids thinking about it and continues on with their daily routine and smoking. OR a divorced husband still setting the dinner table with a place setting for his wife. But, the denial doesn't have to be this extreme, and the man may convince himself that she "had" to leave or it wasn't her fault and she'd return if she could. He's denying that she freely chose to leave. Its in contrast to repression which is keeping an experience OUT of memory, denial insists that things are NOT the way they seem. A common form is to dismiss unflattering feedback as wrong or irrelevant. Rejecting evaluations or blaming, anything but accepting personal responsibility. Called the Fundamental Attribution Error. Also shows up in daydreams and fantasies about what "might" have been, and tend to deny the present situation.

How can people with some effort or external motivation increase their intentions to exert self-control and overcome multiple tensions?

It can be trained through practice. People who practice mild self-control in one area of life exhibit better self control in other areas.

What did Freud say about the ego?

Its the part that must deal with reality by resolving conflicts between inner and outer pressures. The ego shifts a person from one direction or to another.

Free Will

Jung argued that goal directness and free will largely determine human behaviour, NOT unconscious processes - the unconscious doesn't have that much control. He deemphasized the role of the unconscious mind and negative drives. Said people were driven more than Freud gave them credit for.

Personal Unconscious

Jung; includes anything that isn't currently conscious, but is capable of becoming conscious under certain conditions. Similar to Freud's concept fo the unconscious. Includes repressed memories, forgotten experiences, etc.

How do you tell if someone has a well developed superego?

Look for evidence of their acting morally. Antisocial individuals have underdeveloped superegos.

Moral Relativism Vs. Moral Absolutism and the Superego

Moral Relativists believe that to determine if something is morally right/wrong then you have to look at the time/place when it occurred along with various other factors. Moral Absolutists believe that universal principles underlying morality which are comparable across time/space regarding events. Ex: Slavery. Moral relativists say slavery was more widely accepted in the past, and cannot be judged today while absolutists say that slavery is and always will be morally reprehensible so you can't judge the past through a present lens. Is ones superego dependant on one's time and place (relativist) or its it universal (absolutist)? Freud didn't believe in universal morals and thought that everyone should have different superegos. A study in 2010 found that gender, education, politics, and religion were likely insignificant in moral judgements of unfamiliar scenarios. There was consistency in moral judgements across a range of demographics which suggests that human minds rely on default sets of moral principles and scenarios. Another study on psychopaths found that they displayed no difference in patterns of judgment and were consistent in making moral judgments despite lacking empathy. Research shows there is a common core of shared values across cultures like trustworthiness, friendship and courage, incl. prohibitions on murder and incest. Variations in the golden rule are found, but there is the existence of universal values which is in line with evolutionary psychology which promotes survival. Research in moral psychology does suggest that a superego valuing cheating, lying, and bullying is improbable. In the absence of any apparent morality or concern for others, we would be more accurate to discern an underdeveloped superego.

What trait is dangerous in high levels?

Narcissism

Is deliberately redirecting one's anger displacement?

No. True displacement occurs outside of awareness and is an unconscious means of avoiding the recognition that one has certain inappropriate or unacceptable feelings toward another specific person or object. Those feelings are then displaced onto another person or object that's more appropriate or acceptable.

Primary Process Thinking

Operates within the Id. Thinking without logical rules of conscious thought or an anchor in the reality. Dreams and fantasies are examples. Does not follow normal rules of reality (flying in dreams). Freud believed that this type of thought had principles which could be discovered. Such as creating a mental image or fantasy to satisfy needs. Ex: If the id requires an external object or person, and its not available, the id may create a mental fantasy of it to satisfy needs. Such as wish fulfillment.

Pleasure Principle

Part of the Id. The desire for immediate gratification without listening to logic, having no values or morals, and little patience.

Repression

Preventing unacceptable thoughts, feelings or urges from reaching conscious awareness. These urges and desires are not easily accessed. One of the first defence mechanisms proposed by Freud and the forerunner of all forms of DMs. The person avoids anxiety the would arise if the unacceptable material were made conscious. Freud said people tended to remember pleasant over unpleasant memories, leading him to conclude that unpleasant memories were often repressed. He developed the idea as a global strategy that the EGO uses to maintain forbidden impulses in the unconscious. He also said that all specific forms of DMs involved a degree of repression in that some aspect of reality is denied/distorted to reduce anxiety and protect the control of the ego over the psychic system. Term still used today to refer to forgotten wishes, urges or events. Most modern psychologists believe that people defend themselves against threats to self-esteem. Unpleasant emotions are turned away and kept at a distance from the conscious.

When does the blunting effect of repression occur?

Primarily during the reaction to bad events.

Moral Anxiety

Proposed by Freud. Conflict between the ego and superego. Ego is mainly under pressure by the superego.. Ex: A person suffering from chronic shame or guilt by not living up to "proper" standards, even if such standards are not attainable. Or a women with an eating disorder may run miles or workout excessively because of eating forbidden foods. People who punish themselves, low self-esteem, who often feel worthless or ashamed are suffering from moral anxiety by an overly powerful superego which is constantly challenging them to live up to high expectations.

Neurotic Anxiety

Proposed by Freud. DIRECT conflict between the id and the ego. Too much pressure from id, so the ego tries to regain control. Worrying but feeling impulses. The danger is that the ego may lose control over an unacceptable id desire. Ex: A women becomes anxious whenever she feels sexually attracted to someone, and panics even at the thought of arousal. Or a man who worries excessively that he might blurt out a bad thought or desire in public.

Objective Anxiety

Proposed by Freud. Real, external threat to a person. Physical response evoked. Fear occurring in response to some real, external threat like being confronted by a large aggressive man with a knife while walking through a dark alley and would elicit this anxiety (fear) in most people.

Genital Stage

Puberty +. Libido directed outward to other adults in a healthy manner. People reach this stage ONLY if they resolved previous conflicts. Main focus is to engage in healthy relationships. At the time of Freud they were to be heteronormative. Success = Gential personality; well adjusted, mature and able to be loved and give love.

In _______________, the goal is to reduce anxiety by coming up with an explanation for an event that is easier to accept than the real reason.

Rationalization

A high school student is angry with his teacher for his low grades, but he goes out of his way to be overly nice to the teacher in their interactions. This person's ego is unconsciously resorting to _______________.

Reaction Formation

Rationalization

Reasoning or making excuses for outcomes. Ex: A student fails their math exam and when confronted about it they say it wasn't their fault and talks about the other two tests he had on the same day. Found especially among educated people, and involves generating acceptable reasons for outcomes that might appear socially unacceptable. To reduce anxiety by coming up with an explanation for an event thats easier to accept than the real reason. Reasons which are emotionally acceptable alternatives.

Displacement

Redirecting threatening impulses to a less threatening target. Ex: A man has had a really bad day at work, so instead of taking it out on his boss he takes it out on his family when he gets home and creates conflict. Impulse is channeled/redirected from its original source to nonthreatening target. Can have a domino effect. Yelling at one's partner can then result in the partner yelling at the children who then abuse the family pet. Often thought of as a DM involving the redirection of aggressive instincts, but it can also involve sexual urges that are redirected from less acceptable to more acceptable targets. Such as desiring to have an affair with a coworker, but redirecting that energy to one's spouse. Sometimes fears are redirected. Takes place outside of awareness.

False Consensus Effect

Refers to the tendency many people have to assume that others are similar to them. Ex: extraverts thinking many people are also extraverted, or conscientious persons thinking others are also. To think many people share your own preferences, motivations or traits. Suggested that this effect could also be ego defensive. Explaining behaviours that are protective of one's self-concept, a defensive false consensus.

What was the original defence mechanism Freud proposed?

Repression

Regression

Returning to an earlier, less demanding physical/mental state. Ex: A man just receives some very bad news, so they start crying and then buys a pack of cigarettes for the first time in 3 years.

_______________ often involves taking into account the constraints physical reality about when and how to express a desire or an urge.

Secondary process thinking.

The ego understands that the urges of the id are often in conflict with _______________.

Social and physical reality.

Wish Fulfillment

Something unavailable is conjured up and the image of it is temporarily satisfying. May produce an imagined fantasy and is only temporary to gratify the Id because the need is not satisfied in reality. The person must find other ways to gratify Id urges. Part of primary process thinking.

What are the conditions identified by Baumeister that can counteract the effects of ego depletion?

States of positive emotion, humour, forming plans for how to behave in tempting situations prior to entering them and by being guided by a strong set of social values.

Instincts

Strong innate forces or drives that provide all the energy in the psychic system; primary motives of human behaviour. Two primary: Libido and Thanatos. Both can dominate. Libido: Life instincts/drive (self preservation). Not just sex but reproduction for existence. Thanatos: Death instincts/drive Freud said we were born with them, and are what drive humans in their behaviours. Originally proposed as sex and self pressures stemming from Darwin, changed to life and death after WW2 and the destructive nature of human beings. In everyday manifestations they are motives of LOVE/SEX and AGGRESSION. Ex: Eating is the life instant for energy and survival, but its also destructive in the tearing and chewing of food.

The channeling of unacceptable sexual or aggressive instincts into socially desirable activities is known as _______________.

Sublimation

Around age 5, a child begins to develop the third part of the mind, which Freud called the _______________.

Superego

Carl Jung

Swiss psychiatrist and psychotherapist who worked with Freud in the early 1900s. Founded Analytical Psychology. Focused on symbolism, mysticism, occultism, the collective unconscious, archetypes, etc. He believed that archetypes play an important role within the collective unconscious.

What did Freud say about conflicts?

That conflicts among the id, ego and super ego are expressed in a disguised way through various thoughts, feelings and behaviours, and that they are often expressed in dreams, and can be elicited through hypnosis, free association and projective assessment instruments (inkblot test).

What did Freud say about the mind?

That its a closed energy system. The more energy used up by one self-control activity the less there is amiable for other self-control activities. This implies that the psychic energy used to resolve a conflict among reality, the id, and super ego, would leave less psychic energy available for resolving other conflicts. Psychic energy can be depleted by efforts toward self-control, leaving less energy available for subsequent self-control situations.

What does social psychology say about the unconscious mind?

That the unconscious mind is a pervasive, powerful influence over higher mental processes such as judgements and decisions or reasons for behaviour. However, LOTS of things influence everyday behaviour.

Moral Absolutism

That there are universal principles on which morality is founded, enabling comparable evaluations of events across time and space.

What did Freud think about most mental illnesses and how they could be treated?

That they are caused by unconscious motivations; caused by unconscious memories or desires. Ex: The case of Anna O. (Hysteria). He thought that hysterical symptoms didn't occur by chance, and were physical expressions of repressed traumatic experiences. To "cure" symptoms was to help the person recall the memo of the incident that originally led to the symptoms. By recalling the memory, an emotional catharsis or release would be achieved by having them express any feelings associated with the memory. This removes the cause of the symptoms and the disappearance of symptoms.

Secondary Process Thinking

The ego engages in this type of thinking which refers to the development and devising of strategies for problem solving and obtaining satisfaction. Often involves taking into account the constraints of physical reality, about when and how to express some desire or use.

What portion of the personality dominates during infancy according to Freud?

The id. Infants will cry and appear unreasonable if their demands aren't met. They can be fussy.

Preconscious

The information stored in this area of the mind is any piece of info that one is not presently thinking about, BUT can be easily retrieved and made conscious. Ex: memories, dreams, thoughts which can be brought to mind if desired. Info NOT in present awareness, but easily retrieved.

Unconscious

The largest part of the human mind. Thoughts, memories, dreams and desires all hidden from awareness. Contains instincts, urges, thoughts/memories that a person is not aware of. Thoughts which are distressing, or those held back from conscious awareness and banished. The part of the mind holding thoughts and memories about which one is unaware. Sexual and aggressive urges, feelings and thoughts may accumulate here. Especially during childhood.

Id

The most privative part of the human mind and everyone is born with it. The source of all drives, urges and basic instincts. Innate. Its like a spoiled child: selfish, impulsive, and pleasure loving. It does not listen, follow logic, has no values or morals, and has little patience. Operates according to the PLEASURE PRINCIPLE. The desire for immediate gratification. It can't tolerate delays when satisfying urges. During infancy it dominates, they reach and fuss until the infant gets what its wants. Operates with primary process thinking; thinking without logical rules of conscious thought or anchored in reality. Dreams and fantasies are primary process thinking. If an urge from the id requires an external object or person that is not available, it may create a mental image or fantasy of that object or person to satisfy needs. Mental energy is invested in the fantasy, with the urge temporarily satisfied (wish fulfillment) which is only temporary so the person must find another way to gratify urges or hold them in check.

Superego

The part of personality that internalizes the values, morals, and ideals of society. It makes us feel guilty, ashamed or embarrassed when we do something wrong, and makes us feel pride when we do something right. It sets moral goals and ideals of perfection and is the source of our judgements that something is good or bad. its what some people refer to as conscience. The main tool of the superego in enforcing right and wrong is the emotion of guilt. Begins around age 5. Similar to the id, ITS NOT bound by reality. Its free to set standards for future and self-worth even if they're unrealistic or harsh. Last area to develop. Its one's conscience and manifests feelings of guilt.

Conscious

The part of the mind that contains all the thoughts, feelings, and perceptions a person is presently AWARE of. Whatever one is currently thinking about or perceiving is in the conscious mind. BUT, they represent only a small fraction of the information that is available to a person.

Individuation

The process of integrating the conscious and unconscious through improved self-awareness; personal and collective unconscious assimilated into whole personality. Necessary for complete physical and mental health, and good moral grounding. To become who we "really are". Comparable to Maslow's Self Actualization. Jung's goal of the theory is to gain awareness. Jung focused on personality development later in life, the 2nd half and wasn't as concerned with childhood development.

What is the psyche?

The totality of the human mind, conscious and unconscious. The emergent mind. Includes personality but isn't limited to just that. Psyche comes from Greek "psykhe" which means soul, mind or spirit.

What is Freud's greatest contribution to psychology?

The value of talking.

What is the child's primary source for the superego?

Their parents. Its constructed on the model of it's parent's superego; the contents which fill it are the same and it becomes the vehicle of tradition and of all the time-resisting judgements of value which have proposed themselves in this manner from generation to generation. The superego also takes on the influence of those who have stepped into the place of parents - educators, teachers, ideal models.

Psychoanalysis

Theory of personality and a method of psychotherapy. Can be thought of as a theory about the major components and mechanisms of personality, as well as a method for deliberately restructuring personality.

How are the id, ego and superego constantly interacting?

They all have different goals which provokes internal conflicts within the person. Ex: Person finds a wallet on the ground with $500 in it, along with that persons identification. -The Id says: keep it the money and throw the wallet away. -The Superego says: don't steal. -The Ego is confronted by the reality of the situation in addition to the demands of the other two. Looks around to see if anyone saw them pick up the wallet, or wonders if they return the wallet will they get a reward. They are bound to have some anxiety which is unpleasant. The anxiety acts as a signal that things aren't right and something must be done. Anxiety is a signal that the control of the ego is being threatened by reality, by impulses from the id, or harsh controls of the superego. It can be expresses physically like heart rate and sweating or psychologically like panic and dread. A person whose desires are in conflict with reality or interallied morals will appear more anxious in each situation..

What is neurosciences view on the unconscious mind?

They believe that there is a lot going on underneath and without our awareness, which is what Freud asserted.

What happens if a child develops very powerful internal standards due to a superego that demands perfection?

They my be burdened with almost impossibly high moral standards and may suffer from chronic levels of shame because of their continual failures to meet unrealistic standards.

In all three types of anxiety, what is the function of the ego?

To cope with threats and to defend against the dangers they pose in order to reduce anxiety. The ego accomplishes this task by using defence mechanisms which enable the ego to control anxiety, even objective.

How common are repressed memories?

Uncertain. 18-59% approximately.

Motivated View of the Unconscious

Urges and undesirable thoughts and feelings are buried in the unconscious, and in turn affect conscious thoughts and feelings. This is Freud's view.

Defence Mechanisms

Ways for the EGO to cope with anxiety. Typically operating unconsciously, and distort, transforms or falsifies reality in some ways. The primary goal: To reduce anxiety (tension reduction). Distortions of reality. Most mechanisms involve repression or denial. DMs offer a release of tension unconsciously because to stop and imagine every bit of tension is not really realistic. Freud asserted numerous types of DMs. Repression, denial, rationalization, displacement, projection, reaction formation, sublimation. Strategies for coping with anxiety and threats to self esteem. They serve two functions: 1) Protect the ego 2) Minimize anxiety and distress

Fundamental Attribution Error

When bad events happen to others, people have a tendency to attribute blame to some characteristic of the person, whereas when bad events happen to oneself, people have the tendency to blame the situation. A type of denial.

Ego Depletion

When exertion of self-control results in a decrease of psychic energy. Studies looking at self-control over cognitive efforts. Essentially everyone has to resist unacceptable impulses all the time. Such as falling asleep in class, eating bad foods, working over playing, etc. To resist, powers of self control need to be used, which Freud thought was main function of the ego which allows us to partially satisfy desires by bringing behaviours in line with long term goals, in addition to values, morals and social expectations. Because the mind is a closed energy system according to Freud, the energy used to cope with a specific conflict would not be available to cope with another conflict that presents itself very close in time to the first. Many studies confirm his ideas, that when psychic energy is depleted by conflict, it undermines people's ability to perform complex taxes and resist additional conflict/threats. Self-control is like a muscle of ego depletion, if overused, it becomes temporarily weak and unable to adequately respond to self-control challenges.

When the id creates a mental image or fantasy of an object or person to satisfy its needs, mental energy is invested in that fantasy, and the urge is temporarily satisfied. This process is called what?

Wish Fulfillment