Summary of all problems from course Personality Psychology at EUR. Providing in-depth and also easy to read based on the books that were given as material. Rewritten for punctuality and quality. Passed the exam with a 7.3. You can too with my summaries. All in one!
Problem 1:
Basic Assumptions About the Theory
Why theories were developed, behaviour is not accidental but has underlying desire to behave
certain way
o Psychological tem from biological models
Psychic energy
Limited amount of energy
o Energy is used for action, that energy can not be used for another action.
Personality is set of dynamic processes
Energy system
Topographical Model
Conscious
o Thoughts available to us
Preconscious
o Stuff we can remember. Preconscious and conscious interact accessible thoughts
Unconscious
o Thoughts we are unaware of, processes must be made to be aware of these
o Where urges reside, are hidden (e.g. having romantic feelings for family)
Unconscious motivation Drive
o Lack of food biological need for food psychological I
o Biological and psychological components
Hydraulic model Repress urges and drive but they stay in system, these will have to be released
through catharsis
- After catharsis, denying cathartic outburst happened -> leads to future outburst
Structural Model
1. Id Part of our unconscious, contains every inherited elements e.g. instincts. Is root of ego
and superego
- Innermost core of personality
o All humans have this
- Seeks immediate gratification,
- Pleasure principle
- Making mage of desire
- Produces irrational behaviour
- Unaware of morals and social norms
2. Ego Does not want Id to suppress desires, aims to delay them and expresses them in a safe
way which does not harm individual
- Concerned with safety and health of individual
- Reality principle
- Desire will be filled with reality testing, associating pleasure with mental image
- Works in conscious and preconscious
- Mediates between Id and Ego controls the Id
3. Superego
- Considers moral values
o Taken from parents
o Superego strength can vary with people
, - Does not want Id urges to be released
- Works in conscious, preconscious and unconscious
Interaction between the three
Human behaviour is a conflict between all models
Situational factors are taken into account whether id, ego or superego dominates behaviour
Instincts
Eros = sexual instincts and life drive
o Concerned with keeping person alive through
Thanatos = death instinct
o Results from life instincts (Fight or flight response)
o Repressed from life instincts as they are stronger
Must be let out catharsis
o Reflects unconscious drive to go back to non conscious state (Dead)
Psychosexual stages of development (FREUD)
1 Oral from 0 to 18 months
Desire for food and drinks
Reliant on parent for pleasure
o No oral sexual gratification results in future adult behaviour fixated from this
stage
o e.g. no more breastfeeding, will trust less and be more pessimistic
2 stages: (1) Sucking & (2) Biting
o Inflicting pain
o If fixated on this, will become more verbally aggressive and have ticks related
to mouth: nail biting, smoking, drinking etc...
2 Anal from 18 months (1.5yrs) to 3 years
Pleasure comes from defecation
o Potty training: external constraints placed on child on defecation
Potty training approach will influence later behaviour
o Punishment: Messy, cruel, hostile
Will determine future relationship with authority
o Reward: Organised
Child can willingly withhold urine or feces
o Results to stinginess, cleanliness
Ego will develop as you are learning to restrict yourself
3 Phallic from 3 to 6 years
Observing difference between females and males
Oedipus complex arises - Male
o Love and sexual desire for mother and hate father
o Fear castration from father
Internalised fear and desire to be like father to receive gratification from
like mother person
Electra complex (disproved) - Female
o Penis envy
Resents parents for not receiving a penis
Superego develops
o eg. Male takes values of father and therefore develops morals from him - origin
of superego
, Criticism: Libido shifts to opposite sex parent, not generalisable to many family situations
4 Latent from 6 to puberty
Sexual and aggressive drives are less active
o During puberty will become more active
More attention to intellectual and social pursuit
o Further development of Ego and Superego
o Ego develops to use reality principle
5 Genital during puberty (after all the stages are completed, no fixations)
Focus on own and sharing of sexual desires
o Capability of love and caring for another
Early fixations can be caused by overindulgence (enjoyment of stage) and trauma
Anxiety
Object anxiety - Reality anxiety
o Rooted in real life dangers which affect physical health
Neurotic anxiety: unconscious anxiety that Id will take over Ego and that impulses become
uncontrollable
Moral Anxiety: scared of violating moral codes – Superego
o Punished by guilt and shame
No anxiety: if Ego is perfect, which according to Freud is impossible
o Crucial for survival
Defence mechanisms Efforts to protect from anxiety
1. Repression
Result of constant repressing will lead to cathartic episode
Push negative thoughts out of consciousness, leads to using too much psychic energy
Passive repression
○ stimulus is in precocious
Lead to anesthesia result to physical repercussions e.g. not being able to move hands
If repression is conscious is called suppression
Works with denial
2. Denial
Not admitting that something happened
○ Works with repression
○ E.g. Mother denying obtrusive nature of child
More used by children
3. Displacement
Shifting impulse from one target to another
○ If someone in power annoys you, will let out their anger with someone else e.g.
family
4. Sublimation
Unacceptable Id urges change to be released in socially acceptable ways
○ If you fall in love with someone else’s behaviour, will write love poems
5. Rationalization
Think rationally about problems rather than impulsively acting on them
○ Breaking down problems, gain insights, find solutions
○ Finding excuses to maintain self esteem
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