Personality Vocab Flashcards

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1
Q

personality

A

an individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling and acting

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2
Q

psychodynamic theories

A

a dynamic interaction between the conscious and unconscious mind, including associated motives and conflicts

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3
Q

psychoanalysis

A

Freud’s theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts; the techniques used in treating psychological disorders by seeking expose and interpret unconscious tensions

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4
Q

unconscious

A

according to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories. According to contemporary psychologists, information processing of which we are unaware

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5
Q

free association

A

in psychoanalysis, a method of exploring the unconscious in which the person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing

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6
Q

id

A

a reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives. operates on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification

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7
Q

ego

A

the 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

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8
Q

superego

A

the part of personality that represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgment (the conscience) and for future aspirations. This is the voice of your moral compass

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9
Q

psychosexual stages

A

the childhood stages of development during which the id’s pleasure seeking energies focus on distinct erogenous zones

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10
Q

oral stage

A

0-18 months; pleasure centers on the mouth - sucking, biting, chewing

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11
Q

anal stage

A

18-36 months - pleasure focuses on bowel and bladder elimination; coping with demands for control

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12
Q

phallic stage

A

3-6 years - pleasure zone is the genitals; coping with incestuous sexual feelings

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13
Q

latency stage

A

6 to puberty - dormant sexual feelings

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14
Q

genital stage

A

puberty on - maturation of sexual interests

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15
Q

oedipus and electra complex

A

a boy’s sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father. electra complex is vice versa for girls.

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16
Q

identification

A

the process by which children incorproate their parent’s values into their developing superegos

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17
Q

fixation

A

a lingering focus of pleasure-seeking energies at an earlier psychosexual state, in which conflicts were unresolved

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18
Q

collective unconscious

A

a common reservoir of images, or archetypes, derived from our species’ universal experiences

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19
Q

repression

A

banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings and memories

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20
Q

projective test

A

ask test-takers to describe ambiguous stimuli or tell a story about it

21
Q

regression

A

a defense mechanism in which people seem to return to an earlier developmental stage

22
Q

reaction formation

A

occurs when a person feels an urge to do or say something and then actually does the opposite (gay man openly criticizes gays

23
Q

projection

A

disguise threatening impulses by attributing them to others

24
Q

rationalization

A

offers self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening, unconscious reasons for one’s actions

25
Q

displacement

A

redirecting anger toward a safer outlet

26
Q

sublimation

A

re-channel their unacceptable impulses into socially approved activities

27
Q

denial

A

refuse to believe or even to perceive painful realities

28
Q

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

A

views ambiguous picture and makeup a story about them

29
Q

Rorschach Inkblot Test

A

people describe what they see in a series of inkblots

30
Q

terror-management theory

A

posits that people manage death-related anxiety through the meaning provided by their cultural world-views and the sense of personal value provided by self-esteem

31
Q

humanistic theories

A

emphasized the ways people strive for self-determination and self-realization

32
Q

hierarchy of needs

A

learned about it last unit (physiological, safety, belongingness, self-esteem, self-actualization, self-transcendence

33
Q

self-actualization

A

the process of fulfilling our potential

34
Q

self-concept

A

all our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in answer to the question, “who am I?”

35
Q

trait

A

a characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports

36
Q

personality inventory

A

an objective questionnaire (often with true-false or agree-disagree items) on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors

37
Q

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

A

the most widely researched and clinically used of all personality tests

38
Q

empirically derived test

A

a test developed by testing a pool of items and then selecting those that discriminate between groups

39
Q

social-cognitive perspective

A

views behavior as influenced by the interaction between people’s traits (including thinking) and their social context

40
Q

behavioral approach

A

focuses on the effects of learning on our personality development

41
Q

reciprocal determinism

A

the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition and environment. proposed by Albert Bandura

42
Q

self

A

assumed to be the center of personality. organizer of thoughts, feelings and action. the self answers the question, “Who am I?”

43
Q

spotlight effect

A

tendency to think that other people are watching us more closely than they actually are

44
Q

self-esteem

A

one’s feeling of high or low self-worth

45
Q

self-efficacy

A

one’s sense of competence and effectiveness. our belief about our ability to do something

46
Q

self-serving bias

A

people’s tendency to attribute positive outcomes to personal factors but attribute negative outcomes to external factors

47
Q

narcissism

A

excessive self-love and self-absorption

48
Q

individualism

A

tend to define their own identities according to their own personal behaviors and attributes

49
Q

collectivism

A

group and society focus. giving priority to the goals of one’s group (often one’s extended family or work group) and defining one’s identity accordingly