Psychology themes and variations chapter 12

Model

A person whose behavior is observed by another.

Psychodynamic Theories

All the divers theories descended from the work of Sigmund Freud, that focus on unconscious mental forces.

Projective Hypothesis

Ambiguous materials can serve as a blank screen onto which people project their characteristic concerns, conflicts and desires.

Response tendencies

An individual's personality is tied to various stimulus situations.

Neuroticism (negative emotionality)

Anxious, hostile, self-conscious, insecure and vulnerable. More impulsiveness and emotional instability than others.

Projective Tests

Asks participants to respond to vague, ambiguous stimuli I. Ways tHt may reveal the subjects' needs, feelings and personality traits.

Openness to Experience

Associated with curiosity, flexibility vivid fantasy, imaginative-ness, artistic sensitivity and unconventional attitudes. Tolerant of ambiguity and have less need for closure on issues.

Projection

Attributing one's own thoughts , feelings or motives to another.

Reaction Formation

Behaving in a way that's exactly the opposite of one's true feelings.

Determinism

Behavior is fully determined by environmental stimuli.

Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura)

Believes that personality is largely shaped through learning.

Identification

Bolstering self-esteem by forming an imaginary or real alliance with some person or group.

Self-Concept

Collection of beliefs about one's' own nature, unique qualities and typical behavior.

Conscious

Consists of whatever one is aware of at a particular point in time.

Preconscious

Contains material just beneath the surface of awareness that can be easily be retrieved.

Unconscious

Contains thoughts, memories and desires that are well below the surface of conscious awareness but that nonetheless exert great influence on behavior. Forgotten trauma, feelings of hostility toward parents, and repressed sexual desires.

Factor Analysis

Correlations among many variables are analyzed to identify closely related clusters of variables.

Rationalization

Creating false but plausible excuses to justify unacceptable behavior.

Ego

Decision-making component of personality that operates according to the reality principle. Considers social norms, etiquette, rules and customs.

Incongruence

Degree of disparity between one's self-concept and one's actual experience.

Mortality Salience

Degree to which subjects' mortality is prominent in their minds.

Pleasure Principle

Demands immediate gratification of its urges.

Conscientiousness

Disciplined, well-organized, punctual and dependable. Strong self-discipline and the ability to regulate oneself effectively.

Displacement

Diverting emotional feelings(anger) for their original source to a substitute target.

Personality Trait

Durable disposition to behave in a particular way in a variety of situations.

Compensation

Efforts to overcome imagined or real inferiorities by developing one's abilities.

Archetypes

Emotionally charged images and thought forms that have universal meaning.

Humanism

Emphasizes the unique qualities of humans, especially their freedom and their potential for personal growth.

Reciprocal determinism

Environment does determine behavior however, behavior also determines the environment. Idea that internal mental events, external environmental events, and overt behavior all influence one another.

Inferiority Complex

Exaggerated feelings of weakness and inadequacy.

Personal Unconscious

Houses material that is not within one's conscious awareness because it has been repressed or forgotten.

Personality

Individual's unique set of consistant behavioral traits.

Self-Enhancement

Involves focusing on positive feedback from others, exaggerating one's strengths and seeing oneself as above average.

Collectivism

Involves putting group goals ahead of personal goals and defining one's identity in terms of the groups one belongs to.

Individualism

Involves putting personal goals ahead of group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group memberships.

Repression

Keeping distressing thoughts and feelings buried in the unconscious.

Defense mechanisms

Largely unconscious reactions that protect a person from unpleasant emotions such as anxiety and guilt.

Superego

Moral component of personality that incorporates social standards about what represents right and wrong. Strive for moral perfection and plagued by excessive feelings of guilt.

Five-factor Model of Personality("Big Five") - McCrae and Costa

Most personality traits are derived from just five higher-order traits

Observational learning

Occurs when an organism's responding is influenced by the observation of others.

Sublimation

Occurs when unconscious, unacceptable impulses are channeled into socially acceptable, perhaps eve admirable behaviors.

Self-efficacy

One's belief about one's ability to perform behaviors that should lead to expected outcomes.

Extraversion (positive emotionality)

Outgoing, sociable, upbeat, friendly, assertive, and gregarious. Tend to be happier than others.

Self-actualizing persons

People with exceptionally healthy personalities marked by continues personal growth.

Narcissism

Personality trait marked by an inflated sense of importance, need for attention and admiration, a sense of entitlement, and a tendency to exploit others.

Id

Primitive, instinctive component of personality that operates according to the pleasure principle.

Reality Principle

Seeks to delay gratification of the it's urges until appropriate outlets and situations can be found.

Rorschach test

Series of ink lots where respondents are asked to describe what they see.

Collective Unconscious

Storehouse of latent memory traces inherited from people's ancestral past.

Agreeableness

Sympathetic, trusting, cooperative, modest and straightforward. Constructive approaches to conflict resolution, making agreeable people less quarrelsome than others. Correlated with empathy and helping behavior.

Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow)

Systematic arrangement of needs, according to priority, in which basic needs must be met before less basic needs are aroused.

Behaviorism (Skinner)

Theoretical orientation based on the premise that scientific psychology should study only observable behavior.

Striving for Superiority (Adler)

Universal drive to adapt, improve oneself and master life's challenges.