Thinking About Psychology: The Science of Mind and Behavior 2e Charles T. Blair-Broeker Randal M. Ernst

Developmental Domain

Personality Chapter

Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives on Personality Module 17

Personality Individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting

The Psychodynamic Perspective Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) Founder of psychoanalysis Proposed the first complete theory of personality A person’s thoughts and behaviors emerge from tension generated by unconscious motives and unresolved childhood conflicts.

Neurologist, not a Psychologist Freud was not a psychologist. At the time he received his education, there were only one or two “psychology” programs in the world. Freud was trained as a neurologist and treated mostly women for what were called “neuroses”. The so-called neuroses typically had a sexual component because the Victorian social norm of sexual inhibition was popular when Freud began practicing medicine.

Psychoanalysis Freud’s theory of personality Also a therapeutic technique that attempts to provide insight into one’s thoughts and actions Does so by exposing and interpreting the underlying unconscious motives and conflicts

Psychodynamic Perspective View of personality that retains some aspects of Freudian theory but rejects other aspects Retains the importance of the unconscious thought processes Less likely to see unresolved childhood conflicts as a source of personality development

Do you Know These Terms? Fixated Repressed Regressed Anal-retentive Oedipus complex Rationalize Activity: Fifteen Freudian Principal Statements, Handout 17-4

The Psychodynamic Perspective: Freud’s View of the Mind Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Free Association Method of exploring the unconscious in which the person person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing

Try it: free associate with each of the following words, write down the first word that comes to mind. Cat Mitten Glass Tangerine Red Brick Button So, do any of these words seem to reveal any hidden feelings you might have about something or someone in your life? Would you want people to read meaning into this list of freely-associated words? Why or why not?

Conscious Mind The thoughts and feelings one is currently aware of

Preconscious Mind Region of the mind holding information that is not conscious but is retrievable into conscious awareness Holds thoughts and memories not in one’s current awareness but can easily be retrieved

Unconscious Mind Region of the mind that is a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories

The Mind According to Freud

The Psychodynamic Perspective: The Id, Ego, and Superego Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

90% of the Iceberg Rests Beneath the Surface of the Water. Freud believed that people were like icebergs – only allowing a bit of their personalities to be seen and hiding the rest from others. Do you, yourself, show your true self to others? Do you feel others around you know “the real you”? Why or why not? What types of things do people keep hidden from casual friends & acquaintances? Why? What types of things DO you share? Why?

Freud’s Concept of the “Id” The part of personality that consists of unconscious, psychic energy Strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives Operates on the “pleasure principle” - demanding immediate gratification Is present from birth

Freud’s Concept of the “Superego” The part of personality that consists of internalized ideals and standards One’s conscience; focuses on what the person “should” do

Freud’s Concept of the “Ego” Largely conscious, “executive” part of personality that mediates among the demands of the id, superego, and reality Operates on the reality principle - satisfying the id’s desires in ways that will realistically bring pleasure rather than pain

Brother Cartoons Devil = the id Angel = superego Character = ego Each would give the character advice, and that character would have to choose to whom it would listen. The devil, the id, encourages more licentious behavior; the angel, representing the superego, advises obedience to moral and ethical principles. The character, the ego, must take in both types of advice and make the most realistic decision.

Examples A Simpsons episode features Bart suffering from a moral dilemma, complete with good and bad angels; the good angel knocks out the bad angel by throwing its halo like Captain America's shield, at which point Bart remarks, "It figures that my conscience would suffer from mood swings". In Disney's version of Pinocchio, Jiminy Cricket is hired by the "Blue Fairy" to act as Pinocchio's conscience. Note that "Jiminy Cricket" has the same initials as "Jesus Christ." This is intentional, as at the time this was the acceptable replacement term. Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End gives Jack Sparrow two smaller Jacks that appear to come out of his hair. Instead of the traditional good and evil, the dilemma is between rum and immortality without rum, at least until they point out to him that having rum once every ten years for eternity is still more rum than having it every day of a normal lifetime. The 30 Rock episode "Black Tie" played with this in a rather surreal way. Pete is about to cheat on his wife when Kenneth pops in through a vent and tells him not to. Then Tracy pops through another vent, so that he's framed above Pete's other shoulder, and argues with Kenneth. Finally, Pete turns to dramatically declare "I'm sorry, I can't do this - I love my wife!" http://watch.thecomedynetwork.ca/#clip120030 The Cat in the Hat Group Activity and then individual assignment, psychoanalyzing someone.

The Psychodynamic Perspective: Defense Mechanisms Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Defense Mechanisms In psychoanalytic theory, the ego’s protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality

Repression Puts anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories into the unconscious mind The basis for all other defense mechanisms

Regression Allows an anxious person to retreat to a more comfortable, infantile stage of life

Denial Lets an anxious person refuse to admit that something unpleasant is happening

Reaction Formation Reverses an unacceptable impulse, causing the person to express the opposite of the anxiety-provoking, unconscious feeling Ex: if you are interested in someone who is unavailable, you find yourself feeling a curious dislike (instead of fondness).

Projection Disguises threatening feelings of guilty anxiety by attributing the problems to others Ex: I don’t trust him becomes “I don’t trust myself”, or the thief thinks everyone else is a theif.

Rationalization Displaces real, anxiety-provoking explanations with more comforting justifications for one’s actions Ex: the smoker rationalizes that she just smokes “to look older”, or “only when I’m with my friends.”

Displacement Shifts an unacceptable impulse toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person Ex: the company owner becomes upset and yells at the manager, who yells at the clerk, who goes home and yells at the kids and the kids kick the dog. All have been displacing (except the dog).

Defense Mechanisms

Create a Narrative In your group, create a narrative (or story) using the defense mechanisms as characters. Each mechanism should behave according to the description given in your text. Ex: Ruby Repression might be trying to banish feelings she’s having, that are causing her anxiety and guilt, so she enlists the help of her friends.

Skits Enact the skit that your group is assigned. You will have 10 minutes to review before you act it out. The others will guess which defense mechanism you are illustrating and why they give the answer they do. Handouts 17-6a and 17-6b Also, handout 17-5 “Defense Mechanisms”

The Psychodynamic Perspective: Freud’s Psychosexual Stages Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Psychosexual Stages In Freudian theory, the childhood stages of development during which the id’s pleasure seeking energies focus on different parts of the body The stages include: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital A person can become “fixated” or stuck at a stage, leading to problems as an adult

Oral Stage Pleasure comes from chewing, biting, and sucking. Weaning can be a conflict at this stage. 1-18 months The person weaned too early would show signs of oral fixation later in life – always putting objects in the mouth, chain smoking, or overeating.

Freud’s Stages of Development

Anal Stage Gratification comes from bowel and bladders functions. Potty training can be a conflict at this stage. 18-36 months Fixation occurs in one of two ways: 1) if potty training occurs too early, a person can become anal retentive (overly neat and fussy about organization and details) and 2) if potty training is not encouraged or allowed to happen haphazardly, the person can become anal-expulsive (overly messy)

Freud’s Stages of Development

Phallic Stage The pleasure zone shifts to the genitals. Boys cope with incestuous feelings toward their mother and rival feelings toward their dad (Oedipus conflict). Freud based his theory on the case study of a little boy named Hans. Five-year-old Hans had developed a fear of horses, which Freud believed was actually a displaced fear of his father. In addition, he had developed castration anxiety, a fear of having his penis cut off because his parents had told him if he continued to play with it, it would be cut off. He had noticed that his sister lacked a penis, so he concluded that his parents had cut her penis off.

Freud’s Stages of Development

Latency Stage Sexual feelings are dormant. Child identifies with and tries to mimic the same sex parent to learn gender identity. Instead of fearing the same-sex parent, girls and boys start to “buddy up” to Mom and Dad, respectively. Freud called it the “identification process”. This theory offers one explanation of gender identity, which is our sense of what it means to be either male or female.

Freud’s Stages of Development

Genital Stage Begins at puberty with the maturation of sexual interests Freud believed that unresolved conflicts in any of the psychosexual stages could cause problems later in life.

Freud’s Stages of Development

The Psychodynamic Perspective: Neo-Freudians Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Neo-Freudians Followers of Freud’s theories but developed theories of their own in areas where they disagreed with Freud Include Adler, Jung, and Horney

Alfred Adler (1870-1937) Neo-Freudian who thought social tensions were more important than sexual tensions in the development of personality Believed psychological problems were the result of feelings of inferiority

Inferiority Complex According to Adler, a condition that comes from being unable to compensate for normal inferiority feelings This is the origin of a label you’ve probably already heard.

Carl Jung (Yoong)(1875-1961) Neo-Freudian who believed that humans share a collective unconscious

Collective Unconscious Jung’s concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our ancestors Information everyone knows from birth Archetypes (AR-kuh-types) – universal symbols found in stories, myths, and art. Ex: the shadow archetype is the darker, evil side of human nature. Supposedly, we hide this from the world and ourselves.

Inherited Memory Contemporary psychologists reject the notion of inherited memory. However, many believe that our shared evolutionary history has contributed to some universal behavior tendencies (like hiding our worst secrets from others), or dispositions (evil).

Karen Horney (HORN-eye)(1885-1952) Neo-Freudian who found psychoanalysis negatively biased toward women Believed cultural/social variables are the foundation of personality development

Neurosis Horney fully developed the idea of neurosis, or a driving need for something or someone. She believed neuroses helped to make life bearable, giving us a sense of something to strive for. Only when people didn’t fulfill a need or became obsessed with a particular neurotic need did these become problematic and interfere with life.

Ten Neurotic Needs, Three Categories 1) Compliance includes needs for affection, a partner, and simplifying one’s life. Aggression includes needs for power, exploitation of others, prestige, personal admiration, and personal achievement. Withdrawal includes needs for independence and perfection.

The Psychodynamic Perspective: Assessing Personality Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Projective Tests Personality tests that provide ambiguous stimuli to trigger projection of one’s inner thoughts and feelings Include: Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) Rorschach Inkblot Test

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) Projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes The person makes up a story of a picture they are shown

Rorschach Inkblot Test Personality test that seeks to identify people’s inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of 10 inkblots Most widely used personality test Note: Hermann Rorschach was Swiss; couldn’t find a publisher for his book, which was poorly received. Died at 37 (appendicitis). Current controversy about the Rorschach being online!

Make a Connection… Remember the term Projective Tests by linking that term to Freud’s defense mechanism of projection With projection, clients attribute their negative feelings to someone or something else, making it safer for them to have those types of feelings Projective tests enable people to apply their feelings to a picture, which the analyst interprets to explain hidden feelings & experiences

The Psychodynamic Perspective: Evaluating the Perspective Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Updating Freud’s Theory Most psychodynamic psychologists agree: Sex is not the basis of personality. People do not “fixate” at various stages of development. Much of a person’s mental life is unconscious. People struggle with inner conflicts, and childhood experiences shape us.

The Humanistic Perspective Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Humanistic Psychology Perspective that focuses on the study of conscious experience, the individual’s freedom to choose, and capacity for personal growth Studies fulfilled and healthy individuals rather than troubled people

The Humanistic Perspective: Abraham Maslow and Self-Actualization Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) Humanistic psychologist who proposed the hierarchy of needs Believed self-actualization is the ultimate psychological need

Hierarchy of Needs Maslow’s pyramid of human needs, beginning at the base with physiological needs, proceeding through safety needs and then to psychological needs Higher-level needs won’t become active until lower-level needs have been satisfied.

Self-Actualization According to Maslow, the ultimate psychological need Arises after basic physical and psychological needs are met and self-esteem is achieved The motivation to fulfill potential

Self-Actualization Characteristics include: Self aware and self accepting Open, spontaneous, loving, and caring Not paralyzed by other’s opinions Focused on a particular task Involved in few deep relationships Have been moved to peak experiences

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Why Aren’t More Adults Self-Actualized, if the Tendency is Innate? It’s the weakest of need and the most easily impeded. Jonah Complex: we doubt our own abilities (and aren’t courageous enough) The cultural environment stifles self-actualization (ex: definitions of “manliness” prevent the male child from developing traits of sympathy, kindness, and tenderness, all of which characterize the self-actualized person. Childhood experiences may inhibit personal growth. Children from warm, secure, friendly homes are more likely to choose experiences that lead to personal growth. Excessive control and coddling is harmful but so is excessive permissiveness.

Debunk Maslow? Can you come up with experiences that contradict Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? Can students learn when they are hungry? Why do people go on hunger strikes to protest in favor of a cause they believe in? Why are there such things as “starving artists”?

Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives The Humanistic Perspective: Carl Rogers and the Person-Centered Approach Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Carl Rogers (1902-1987) Humanistic psychologist who stressed the importance of acceptance, genuineness, and empathy in fostering human growth

Unconditional Positive Regard According to Rogers, an attitude of total acceptance toward another person

Genuineness Freely expressing one’s feelings and not being afraid to disclose details about oneself

Empathy Sharing thoughts and understanding Listening and reflecting the other person’s feelings

The Humanistic Perspective: Assessing Personality and the Self Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Humanistic Measures Humanistic measures of personality center on evaluating a person’s self concept--all of our thought and feelings about ourselves Answer the question “Who Am I?”

The Humanistic Perspective: Evaluating the Perspective Module 17: Psychodynamic and Humanistic Perspectives

Evaluating Humanism Humanism has influenced therapy, child-rearing, and the workplace Laid the foundation for positive psychology

Evaluating the Humanistic Perspective Unintentional Effects: Mistakenly interpreted unconditional positive regard for children as meaning we should never offer constructive criticism to a child, or, worse, never tell a child no. Critics also point out that many humanistic terms are vague and hard to define precisely so that other researchers can test them: spontaneous, loving, productive. It did, however, lay the ground for the positive psychology movement of the past decade. Many researchers are studying the human strengths and virtues, like courage and hope, of healthy people, rather than just the disorders of those who are not psychologically healthy.

Self-Ratings & Self-Concepts Try some self-ratings quizzes. Handouts 17-7, 17-8, 17-9, 17-10, 17-11, 17-12

Comparing Forces in Psychological Thought Two different views about human behavior come together in this module and present opposed views on human nature, causes of mental illness, and goals of therapy. Yet, they share some similarities. Psychodynamic Perspective believes people are born with a strong, selfish id and develop a sense of morality and reality. Humanistic Psychologists believe people are naturally good & full of potential, which must be drawn out with love and empathy. Plus, Freudian thinkers sought to uncover the past while humanistic thinkers were concerned with helping clients discover how they could maximize their present circumstances.

Videos The Mind Hidden and Divided (Discovering Psychology) Personality Freud Under Analysis (Nova) Feel Good About Failure (20/20) The Truth About Lies (PBS, The Public Mind).

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