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Ch. 13 Personality Perspectives of Personalities o Psychodynamic: biological causes o Behaviorist and Social Cognitive: environmental causes o Humanistic: focuses on the individual; be all that you can be o Trait perspectives: what are the actual traits people have? Psychodynamic Perspective o Psychoanalytic theory o Layers of Consciousness Preconscious mind Things are available to us but not directly in consciousness Conscious mind What is actually in your immediate mind at this time Unconscious mind* Your thoughts, feeling and memories are kept and you cannot easily retrieve them; always below the surface. Freud believed this drove many of our behaviors. He studied people sleeping, “Freudian slips” and “free association” Structures of Personality o Id: Latin for it Unconscious, amoral Works for the pleasure principal Contains all of our basic biological drives (eating, sleeping, survival, sex)
o Ego: Latin for I Develops as the infant develops As children develop, restrictions are placed, which helps w/ the development of the ego Is in both the conscious and preconscious Logical, rational Reality principal “If it feels good, do it but only if you can get away with it” o Superego: Latin for “over the self” Operates above the ego Evaluates morality of behavior Id = devil Superego = angel Ego = mediates between the two Ego Defense Mechanisms Ways of reducing anxiety unconsciously by distorting reality Used a way to keep on living Proposed by Sigmund and his daughter Examples: o Denial: refuse to acknowledge reality o Repression: excluding negativity from reality You may push down negative feelings Seen in abuse cases o Displacement: redirection of repressed motives or emotions to less threatening person/object.
o Conflict centers on awakening sexual curiosity In boys, this leads to Oedipus complex In girls, this leads to Electra complex Each must identify with same-sex parent to overcome Leads to superego development Latency Stage (6 to the onset of puberty); no sexual feelings are occurring o Erogenous zone = none o Dormant sexual feelings Focus is on social and intellectual skill development Same-Sex playmates o Conflict arises if little social development May lead to inability to get along w/ others Genital Stage (puberty to death) o Erogenous zone = genitals o Sexual feelings come to conscious awareness o Focus is on sexual relationship in socially acceptable ways Neo-Freudian Psychodynamic Perspective Carl Jung o We all have this potential to realize our full self and potential. o He believed in the “collective unconscious” o Something we inherit from our ancestors. o Shared by the entire human race o Also believed in the personal o When he studied different cultures, he realized people had similar symbols and things or “archetypes”
Disagreed on the sexual motives as well as other things; Erikson was a follower of Freud. Collective unconscious o Impersonal, deepest layer of unconscious mind o Share by all human beings because of ancestral past Archetypes o Emotionally laden ideas and images that have rich and symbolic meaning for all people. o A powerful father, a nurturing mother, etc. Alfred Adler o Disagreed w/ sexuality being pertinent for your development o People strive for superiority due to feelings of inferiority early in life. o Major motivation was trying to be superior to someone else. o Feelings of inferiority -- compensation o Proposed birth order could influence success of striving for superiority. Karen Horney o Emphasized sociocultural influences on personality o Parent-child interactions Basic anxiety leads one to move toward, against or away from others. We are naturally anxious because of the world we are born in. Toward: you need people to like you Against: a need to have power over others Away: a need to be independent If you use all three of these in appropriate situations, you will have a healthy personality.
o If you were to engage in a behavior, you would either succeed or fail. o Criticisms: too reliant on social situations; ignores the role of biology Julian Rotter’s Expectancy Theory o Personality defined as relatively stable pattern of potential responses to various situations o Looking over how stable you are across the board, not in one situation. o Locus on control: tendency to believe do/do not have control over events and consequences in life. Internal: outcomes are determined by own actions (I got an A because I studied) External: outcomes determined by actions of others’, luck or fate (I just guessed the right answers) Internal people tend to be perfectionists and external tend to be depressed. Human Perspective o Focuses on humans’ self-actualizing tendency o Carl Rogers emphasized self-concept as tool for self- actualization o What others tell you about yourself and how you see yourself. o A good self-concept will help you achieve self-actualization. Real self- who you really are Ideal self- something you should or want to be Not a lot of distance between the two results in a healthy personality. Mismatched = distorted view of yourself o Important people in our lives influences self-concept
Positive regard: includes warmth, love, respect, affection. Conditional: if you do not do what I want you to, I will not love you. Unconditional: they love you no matter what you do. Trait theories o Focus on describing characteristics and predicting behaviors based on descriptions o Trait = consistent, enduring way of thinking, feeling and behaving o Allport 200 traits that were part of nervous system Went through the dictionary and found different description which sounded like people’s personalities o Cattell Surface and source traits 16 Personality Factor Used to measure personality traits Surface traits-things other can identify about Source traits- what is it within us that can produce these traits Big Five o Openness- a willingness to try new things; ppl high w/ this are intellectually curious, sensitive to beauty; unconventional o Conscientiousness—caring about other people’s feelings; ppl high in this tend to show a lot of self-discipline, act dutifully and are high achieving.
o Projective tests- mostly used in psychodynamic therapists because they tap into the unconsciousness (desires, conflicts) Pt. is asked to put their own feelings onto something Inkblot tests: what does this look like to you? Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) Tell a story about ambiguous pictures o Behavioral Assessment-Observational; behaviorists use this I can directly observe someone (natural settings or lab) Have rating scales for specific behaviors Problems: observer’s bias; people who know they are being observed tend not to act naturally; less control in “real world” studies o Personality Inventories Questionnaires Much more objective; yes or no questions You score based on closed-ended questions Much more reliable and valid Everyone gets the same questions Ch. 14: Psychological Disorders What are Psych disorders? o Any pattern of behavior that causes people significant distress causes them to harm others or themselves and impairs their ability to function in daily life. Deviant- atypical and culturally unacceptable Psychopathology: the study of abnormal behavior Deviant: statistical abnormalities (bell curve)
Distressful: person performing behavior in question is obviously distressed. o If it causes them pain or discomfort, this points to it being abnormal behavior. Dysfunctional: not able to function in their daily life; OCD Dangerous: to yourself or others Theoretical Models of Abnormality Biological/medical model o Changes in the chemical, structural, or genetic systems of the body Psychological models o Experience, and emotional, behavioral or thought-related malfunctioning Cognitive o Illogical thinking o Maladaptive thinking pattern Bio-psychosocial model o Combination and interaction of biological, psychological and sociocultural influences Behaviors/Social Learning o Is our culture producing certain psychological disorders (eating disorders) or do all cultures see this (depression)? Classifying Psych Disorders DSM-IV-TR (Text Revision)
o Social Phobia An intense fear of being humiliated or embarrassed in social situations; 15 million ppl have this; usually develop during childhood Panic Disorder o Panic attacks: recurrent, sudden onsets of intense apprehension or terror o When it becomes frequent enough to interrupt life panic disorder o Often occur w/o warning & no specific cause o Often accompanied by agoraphobia (dude on House) o Smokers have a 2-4x higher risk for this in their life OCD o Obsessions Recurrent, uncontrollable, anxiety-provoking thoughts o Compulsions Repetitive, ritualistic behaviors meant to reduce anxiety caused by obsessions PTSD o Develops after a traumatic event (war, car accidents, etc.) and overwhelms abilities to cope Flashbacks Reduced ability to feel emotions Excessive arousal (constantly stressed) Difficulties w/ memory & concentration (pre- occupation w/ what has happened to them) Feelings of apprehension Impulsive outbursts of behavior (Hunt on Grey’s) Generalized Anxiety Disorder o Persistent anxiety for at least 6 months
o Unable to specify reasons for anxiety or control the feelings of anxiety o Often occurs /w other anxiety disorders and depressions o Constant worriers; associated w/ stress related diseases o 2/3 of these patients are women Etiology of Anxiety Disorders o Biological Neurotransmitter imbalance/dysfunction (GABA, serotonin) Genetics Over/under activity of brain areas (impulse control) o Psychological causes Psychodynamic Freud’s theory was anxiety for repressing the id Behaviorist- we learn behaviors through reinforcement Cognitive- The illogical, irrational thinking Distortion: Magnification—where you make a mountain out of a molehill. Overgeneralize- one negative event makes you think that it will happen again Minimization: trouble-taking account for things you have done, low internal locus of control. Mood (Affective) Disorders o Primary disturbance of mood or prolonged emotion that colors emotional state o Can include cognitive, behavioral and somatic (physical) symptoms. o Can vary in intensity (mild, moderate, extreme) o Depression—tiredness, social withdrawal
Associated w/ creativity Rapid cycling—Jumping states (elation to depression) Manic states can last days, weeks or even months. With depression, it is 2x as likely to happen w/ females Bipolar disorder occurs equally in both sexes 5.7 million people have this Etiology of Affective Disorders o Biological Chemical imbalance Amount of light SAD (Seasonal affective disorder) o Brain has specialized areas that detect light o Light therapy can be used as a treatment Genes Tends to lend to bipolar Chromosomes—one for depression and one for bipolar Stronger for bipolar than depression Brain differences w/ their brain waves in a manic state versus a depressive state o Psychological Behaviorist & social cognitive Learned helplessness- you don’t try to overcome an obstacle, which leads to a negative type of thinking Social cognitive- discrimination, poverty can lend to a helpless feeling. Increases vulnerability
Cognitive distortions—focus on the negative and not the positive Rumination—saying the same depressed things repeatedly. Real internal focus—if something goes wrong, they blame themselves. o Sociocultural Socioeconomic status More depression with those who are in poverty or lower statuses Gender Women are 2x more likely to have depression Eating Disorders o Characterized by extreme disturbances in eating behaviors o Anorexia Weighing less than 85% of normal weight Intense fear of gaining weight Often obsess over food and exercise Distorted body image Physical changes, serious complications and high mortality rate Denial High-achieving perfectionism o Bulimia nervosa Binge-and-purge eating pattern Preoccupation w/ food Strong fear of becoming overweight Depression or anxiety Difficult to detect They have poorer self-control
Involve sudden loss of memory or change of identity, under extreme stress of shock o Dissociative Amnesia Extreme memory loss caused by extensive psychological stress Amnesia—inability to recall important events o Dissociative Fugue Amnesia, plus traveling away from home and assuming a new identity o Dissociative Identity Disorder Formerly called multiple personality disorder Two or more distinct personalities or selves Each has its own memories, behaviors, relationships One personality dominates at one time Wall of amnesia separates personalities Shift between personalities occurs under distress Herschel Walker Etiology of Dissociative Disorders o Biological Lower levels of brain activity in certain areas Evidence for different brain waves w/ alters o Psychological Psychodynamic- repressing any threats can cause this Cognitive behavioral- guilt, shame, negative feelings can cause this if they are avoided o Socioeconomic Not found in all cultures or reported in our history— created by therapists? Schizophrenia
o Long-lasting psychotic disorder characterized by disturbances in thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and perceptions. Positive Symptoms (adding something to what is normal; excessive amounts of something) o Marked by distortion or excess of normal function o Too much dopamine Negative Symptoms (We have a less amount of something that is normal; behavioral deficits, etc) o Reflect social withdrawal, behavioral deficits, and loss or decrease of normal functions o Very enlarged ventricles in the brain Symptoms o Delusions Reference—people on TV, movies, radio etc are talking to them Influence—being controlled by external forces Grandeur—convinced that you are a high powered person or that you have been sent on a special mission o Hallucinations Hearing voices Sensory perceptions o Disturbed Speech o Disturbed emotions Flat affect—show no emotion Inappropriate—they may laugh at a sad situation o Disturbed behavior Catatonia—do not move for extended periods of time Types of Schizophrenia
