notes - PSYCHOLOGY 370 - Felicia McCaw

Psychology Notes for
Exam 1

Ms. Felicia McCaw
Psychology 370
Short Answer

1. The definition of theory is defined as a set of related assumptions that allows scientists to use logical deductive reasoning to formulate testable hypothesis.
Five parts
A. A theory is a set of assumptions.
B. A theory is a set of related assumptions.
C. The components of a theory are proven facts in the sense that their validity have been absolutely established.
D. Logical deductive reasoning is used by the researcher to formulate hypothesis.
E. Testable is the final definition and a hypothesis must be able to be tested in some way or otherwise it is worthless.
2. According to the textbook the two things that make a theory of personality useful are – a theory generates a number of hypotheses that can be investigated through a research thus yielding research data and secondly a use theory organizes research data into meaningful structure and provides an explanation for the result of scientific research.
3. The difference between taxonomy and a theory is – taxonomy is a classification of things according to their natural relationships and is essential to the development of a science because without classification of data science could not grow whereas a theory is comprised of a set of related assumptions that scientist use logical deductions to formulate testable hypothesis.
4. A lay theory of personality is a self-perception of themselves without input from others without thought on how to proceed. Lay theory differ from scientific theories in several important ways because it a way of self-determination, analysis of self of which only that person can do and it is not based on pure scientific data but on factual detail on that person themselves by self-monitoring and observation of their own behavioral patterns.
5. The term operational definition means that this is a part of the circular process of science where a theory is put in the process in an orderly pattern to test the hypothesis and define the procedure to further test the hypothesis to supports it accuracy. It is the third step in the Circular Process of Science following the proposed deductive reasoning utilized to generate a hypothesis to support the theory.
6. It is important for a scientific theory to be falsifiable because it must be able to be tested and evaluated on its ability to be confirmed or disconfirmed and must be precise enough to suggest research that may support or fail to support its major tenets and if it proves to be falisible then it will have negative refututations and will have to be rejected and force theorist to either discard or modify it.
7. Sex, aggression and anxiety are related to drive by its very nature of innateness, and internal stimulus that is within all people and are a constant motivational force and originate in the id but come under the control of the ego. Each drive has its own form of psychic energy and is characterized by an impetus, a source, an aim and an object.

Ms. Felicia McCaw
Psychology 370
Short Answer
Page 2

8. The term unconscious has two different levels: Unconscious Proper and the Preconscious. The unconscious contains all those drives, urges, or instincts that are beyond our awareness but that nevertheless motivate most of our words, feelings and actions. (Although we may be conscious of our overt behaviors – we are often are not aware of the mental processes that lie behind them.) Preconscious is all the elements that are not conscious but can be either quite readily available by the conscious or with some difficulty accessing this information or thoughts. (Preconscious is similar to a temporary hold ground when the attention becomes focus on another thought.) A thought or image will become unconscious instead of preconscious due to the lack of communication of each level of conscious thought and which allows the regression pattern to enact and prevent the levels of anxiety levels to escalate or due to an enaction of a defense mechanism that is internally operated.
9. The role of the Ego according to Erikson is an inherent part of self and represents a person as self and is the only region of the mind in contact with reality and grows out of infancy and becomes a person’s sole source of communication with the external world.
This is different from Freud’s idea because he asserts that the ego becomes differentiated from the id when infants learn to distinguish themselves from the outer world whereas the id remains unchanged the ego continues to develop strategies for handling the id’s unrealistic and unrelenting demands for pleasure.
10. Ideas between Erikson’s and Freud’s relating to psychosocial development consist of similarities and differences:
Categories (Erikson) (Freud)
Infancy Infancy is time of incorporation-oral activation as well as activation of various sense organs Oral Phase Development
Early Childhood Primary erogenous zone during this period-sadistic-anal phase-mastering of sphincter muscle and bodily functions, sense of control over interpersonal environment and self control Anal stage 3 – 4 years
Play Age Placed the Oedipus complex is the core of phallic stage.
Oedipal situation as a prototype “of the lifelong power of human playfulness”. Ages 3 -5 years – Oedipus complex is but one of several developments during play age.
School Age Covers development from about 6 to age 12&13. Covers development from about 6 to age 12&13.
Adolescence A period of social latency and during this period a person must gain a firm sense of ego identity. A period of social latency and during this period a person must gain a firm sense of ego identity. ?
Young Adulthood A time from 19 to 30 – acquisition of intimacy at the beginning of the stage and development of generativity at the end. (develop mature genitality, experience the conflict between intimacy and isolation and acquire basis strength of love. A time from 19 to 30 – acquisition of intimacy at the beginning of the stage and development of generativity at the end. (develop mature genitality, experience the conflict between intimacy and isolation and acquire basis strength of love.?
Adulthood The time when people begin to take their place in society and assume responsibility for whatever society produces.
Years 31 to 60 of age. Procreativity – genital contact with an intimate partner. The time when people begin to take their place in society and assume responsibility for whatever society produces.
Years 31 to 60 of age. Procreativity – genital contact with an intimate partner.?
Old Age The final stage of development. From the age of 60 to the end of life. Old age is a time of joy, playfulness and wonder-but is also a time for senility. Generalized sensuality. The final stage of development. From the age of 60 to the end of life. Old age is a time of joy, playfulness and wonder-but is also a time for senility. Generalized sensuality.?

11. In the young adult of the Erikson’s developmental crisis a “ego strength” develops in the adolescence stage where the crisis between identity and identity confusion reaches its ascendance during this stage and from this crisis emerges fidelity – the basic strength of adolescence. Ego strength is the building block for the determination of self and who they are by going through a period of trial and error. If ego strength does not develop then a person would not have established self and self-identity would not be in existence and the person would forever searching for who they are and would subsequently be continuing going through a trial and error period.
(As part of the developmental crisis the ego strength gathers its momentum to help us adapt to the various conflicts and crisis in life and allows us to retain our individuality in the leveling forces of society. (during childhood the ego is weak, pliable, fragile but unifies personality and guards against indivisibity – throughout growing and reaching adolescence it gathers strength. If the ego does not strengthen and develop – a person would not be able to develop the acceptance of themselves as separate – a disjointed collection of pieces that would be the self and unable to function properly as a person without the lack of needed self-esteem.)

12. Adler definition of “fictional final goal” Is that it does not exist but people strive toward superiority or the goal of success for all people but this is a relative impossibility because everyone cannot be superior to everyone not can all attain the goal of success.
(Adler definition of “fictional final goal is that it has no objective existence it unifies personality and renders all behavior comprehensible) (Constructed out of raw materials provided by heredity and environment)

13. The striving force according to Adler is broken up into two secions: One contributes to single dynamic force for superiority and the other is the striving for success to describe actions of people who are motivated by highly developed social interest. *(According to Adler “the striving force” comes from inner self of person – its nature and direction are due both to feelings of inferiority and to the goal of superiority also without the innate movement toward perfection, children would never feel inferior but without these feelings of inferiority they would never set a goal of superiority or success. This goal is set as compensation for the deficit feeling but the deficit feeling would not exist unless a child first possessed a basic tendency toward compensation.

14. The two striving forces are: Striving for Personal Superiority and Striving for Success.
The difference between the two are the one striving force is for personal superiority and have little or no concern for others and is affected partially by feelings of personal feelings of inferiority – while the other who are motivated by social interest and the success of humankind and these adjusted individual are concerned with goals beyond themselves and are capable of helping others without demanding or expect a personal
Payoff and not see others as opponents but as people with whom they can cooperate for social benefit.

15. Social Feeling ( social interest) in the life of healthy human being according to Adler – the value of all human activity must be seen from the viewpoint of social interest. (It means a feeling of oneness with all humanity; it implies membership in the social community of all people) Social interest can be defined as an attitude of relatedness with humanity in general as well as an empathy for each member of the human community – it is also the natural condition of the human species and the adhesive that binds society together.
1. List and discuss the six aspects of theories that make them useful
A. Generates Research
B. It is falsifiable
C. Organizes data
D. Guides action
E. It is internally consistent
F. Parsimonious
A. Generates Research – Most important criterion of a useful theory is its ability to stimulate and guide further research.
B. Is Falsifiable – A theory must be evaluated on its ability to be confirmed or disconfirmed and be precise enough to suggest research that may either support or fail to support its major tenets.
C. Organizes Data – A useful theory should be able to organize those research data that are not incompatible with each other.
D. Guides Action – A fourth criterion of a useful theory is its ability to guide the practitioner over the rough course of day-to-day problems.
E. Is Internally Consistent – A useful theory need not be consistent with other theories, but it must be consistent with itself. (Logically Compatible)
F. Is Parsimonious – When two theories are equal in their ability to generate research, be falsified, give meaning to data, guide the practitioner, and be self-consistent, the simpler one is preferred. (Two theories are never exactly equal in these other abilities but, in general simple, straightforward theories are more useful than ones that bog under the weight of complicated concept and esoteric language.

2. Levels of Mind
A. Unconscious – Contains all those drives, urges, or instincts that are beyond our awareness and motivate most of our words, feelings, and actions.
B. Preconscious – Contains all those elements that are not conscious but can become conscious either quite readily or with some difficulty.
C. Conscious – Can be defined as those mental elements in awareness at any given point in time.
Provinces of Minds
Id – Has no contact with reality yet it strives constantly to reduce tension by satisfying basic desires.

Ego – also known as “I” – is the only region of the mind in contact with reality. It grows out of the Id during infancy and becomes a person’s sole source of communication with the external world.

Super Ego – Represents the moral and ideal aspects of personality and is guided by the moralistic and idealistic principles as opposed to the pleasure principle of the Id and the realistic principle of the ego.
3.

4. List and describe Freud’s “psychosexual stages”.

5. The superego arises or grows out of the ego and like the ego it has no energy of its own.
Developmental stages of childhood and interactions with parents, fear of loss of love or approval, active control of sexual and aggressive impulses, guilt is the result when conflict occurs with moral standards of the superego, feelings of inferiority arise when the ego is unable to meet superego’s standard of perfection. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. The three kinds of anxiety according to Freud are:
A. Neurotic Anxiety – is defined as apprehension about an unknown danger. The feeling itself exists in the ego but it originates from id impulses.
B. Moral Anxiety – Stems from the conflict between the ego and the superego. (Moral Anxiety would result from sexual temptations if a child believes that yielding to the temptation would be morally wrong.)
C. Realistic Anxiety – is closely related to fear. It is defined as an unpleasant, nonspecific feeling involving a possible danger.

They are related to ego’s mechanism of defense because it signals that some danger is at hand and allows the constantly vigilant ego to be alert for signs of threat and danger. Also, defense mechanism are normal and universally used, when carried to an extreme they lead to compulsive, repetitive and neurotic behavior. Anxiety if related to the provinces of the mind because its constantly trying to relieve anxiety and tension by satisfying urges or basic desires.

7. The Defense mechanisms are normal and universally used, when carried to an extreme they lead to compulsive, repetitive, and neurotic behavior. (Be we must expend psychic energy to establish and maintain defense mechanisms, the more defensive we are, the less psychic energy we have left to satisfy id impulses. (The ego’s purpose in establishing defense mechanisms to avoid dealing directly with sexual and aggressive implosives and to defend itself against the anxiety that accompanies them.)
(Principal Defense Mechanisms identified by Freud include repression, reaction formation, displacement, fixation, regression, projection, introjections, and sublimation.)

A. Repression – the ego protects from undesirable id impulses by consciously by repressing those impulses that and forces them into the unconscious.
B. Reaction Formation – is a form of a defensive mechanism because it is consciously repressing the true feeling that a person feeling by trying to shallowly cover it up to prevent knowledge by others.
C. Displacement – This form of a defense mechanism is the procedure in which unwanted urges are redicted onto other objects or people in order to disguise the original impulse. (People can redirect their unacceptable urges onto a variety of people or objects so that original impulse is disguised or concealed.)
D. Fixation – This form of defense mechanism is the permanent attachment of the libido onto an earlier, more primitive stage of development. Fixations are universals. (A defense mechanism that arises when psychic energy is blocked at one stage of development, thus making change or psychological growth difficult.
E. Regression – A defense mechanism whereby a person returns to an earlier stage in order to protect the ego against anxiety. (Once the libido has passed a developmental stage, it may, during times of stress and anxiety, revert back to that earlier stage.)
F. Projection – A defense mechanism described as seeing in others unacceptable feelings or tendencies that actually reside in one’s own unconscious. (These conscious feelings of detrimental values that are owned by self are projected on others as the blame for these values or feelings.)
G. Introjection – A defense mechanism whereby people incorporate positive qualities of another person into their own ego. An introjections gives the adolescent an inflated sense of self-worth and keeps feelings of inferiority to a minimum.
H. Sublimation – A defense mechanism that involves the repression of the genital aim of Eros and its substitution by a cultural or social aim. (Most of us are capable of sublimating a part of our libido in the service of higher cultural values, while at the same time retaining sufficient amounts of the sexual drive to pursue individual erotic pleasure.)

8. Civilized behavior (civilization) according to Freud is possible because we are able to live together as group of diverse races but underneath the thin veneer of civilization is savageness and the propensity to exploit others for sexual and destructive satisfaction. We are not ordinarily aware of the reasons for our behavior nor are we conscious of the hatred we feel for our friends, family, and lovers but unfortunately the reasons for the combined attempts to psychologically destroy another is a bitter innate trait of jealousy and laziness to covet others property and dehumanize to justify the reason why the veneer of civilization as well as the law of the land is thrown aside to satisfy the compelling need to destroy and rent and beat their breast like the savage that can be and is underneath. Further, this behavior is a watchful trigger to acknowledge that crimes can and will be hidden by the multitude and duplicity is what they wish to embrace as long as it is hidden. The cost is incredible to today’s society because once an opening and okaying is given then this gives a further outlet of other crimes to be committed and is veering on the beginning of bloody crime in the street with no one to give witness or care that this behavior will escalate and escalate until no one is safe.

9. Erikson’s Eight Developmental Crisis (Stages of Psychosocial Development) – Ego Strength and definition of “crisis”.

A. Infancy – A period encompassing approximately the first year of life and paralleling Freud’s oral phase of development. Infancy is a time of incorporation with infants “taking in” not only through their mouth but through their various sense organs as well.
Ego Strength – Hope

B. Early Childhood – A period paralleling Freud’s anal stage and encompassing approximately the 2nd and 3rd years of life.
Ego Strength – Will

C. Play Age – A period covering the same time as Freud’s phallic phase – roughly ages 3 to 5 years. Oedipus complex is but one of several important developments during the play age.
Ego Strength – Purpose

D. School Age – A period covers development from about age 6 to approximately age 12 or 13 and matches the latency years of Freud’s theory.
Ego Strength – Competence

E. Adolescence – A period from puberty to young adulthood is one of the most crucial development stages – a person must gain a firm sense of ego identity.
Ego Strength – Fidelity

F. Young Adulthood – A period from about age 19 to 30 is circumscribed not so much by time as by the acquisition of intimacy at the beginning of the stage and development of generativity at the end.
Ego Strength – Love

G. Adulthood – A period that begin to take place in society and assume responsibility for whatever society produces.
Ego Strength – Care

H. Old Age – A period that begin as the period from about age 60 to the end of life.
Ego Strength – Wisdom

Crisis – Erikson coined the phrase “identity crisis” to indicate a turning point in one’s life that may either strengthen or weaken a person’s personality.

10. According to Horney individuals that are neurotic get locked into vicious cycles because they are unaware of their basic attitude toward people, forced to act with no control over their actions, experience severe and insoluble conflict, limited to a single trend and have nearly no defense against anxiety.

11. According to Horney’s ideas about coping styles encompassed the way of how each style reflects the interaction of how people react in basic conflict, basic anxiety and how they move toward people in a compliant method as a protective stance toward feelings of helpfulness, other people move against people with acts of aggression in order to circumvent hostility of others and others move away from people by assuming a detached manner thus alleviating feelings of isolation – by doing this people take the route of desired need for privacy, independence and self-sufficiency. Again, each of these needs can lead to positive behaviors with some people satisfying their needs in a healthy fashion.

12. Adler’s “style of life” is used to refer to the flavor of a person’s life. It includes a person’s goal, self-concept, feelings for others, and attitude toward the world. It is the product of the interaction of heredity, environment, and a person’s creative power.

It reflects and emphasizes that everyone has a role in life that includes free will to fulfill their goals, encourage and develop self-concept, develop feelings for others and hopefully develop a positive attitude toward the world that we live in or come to accept the world as it is. Fictional goals are goals that guide our style of life, gives unity to our personality and expectations of the future and are ideas that have no real existence yet they influence people as if they really existed. As far as biological determinism Adler I believe did not feel that this affects roles of free will, fictional goals and subjective perceptions and creativity due to inherent characteristics or racial biological superiority or anything that would passed through ones descendants.