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Key Terms

  • Page ID
    153060
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    anal stage
    psychosexual stage in which children experience pleasure in their bowel and bladder movements
    analytical psychology
    Jung’s theory focusing on the balance of opposing forces within one’s personality and the significance of the collective unconscious
    archetype
    pattern that exists in our collective unconscious across cultures and societies
    collective unconscious
    common psychological tendencies that have been passed down from one generation to the next
    congruence
    state of being in which our thoughts about our real and ideal selves are very similar
    conscious
    mental activity (thoughts, feelings, and memories) that we can access at any time
    Contemporized-Themes Concerning Blacks Test (C-TCB)
    projective test designed to be culturally relevant to African Americans, using images that relate to African-American culture
    culture
    all of the beliefs, customs, art, and traditions of a particular society
    defense mechanism
    unconscious protective behaviors designed to reduce ego anxiety
    displacement
    ego defense mechanism in which a person transfers inappropriate urges or behaviors toward a more acceptable or less threatening target
    ego
    aspect of personality that represents the self, or the part of one’s personality that is visible to others
    Five Factor Model
    theory that personality is composed of five factors, including openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism
    genital stage
    psychosexual stage in which the focus is on mature sexual interests
    heritability
    proportion of difference among people that is attributed to genetics
    id
    aspect of personality that consists of our most primitive drives or urges, including impulses for hunger, thirst, and sex
    ideal self
    person we would like to be
    incongruence
    state of being in which there is a great discrepancy between our real and ideal selves
    individual psychology
    school of psychology proposed by Adler that focuses on our drive to compensate for feelings of inferiority
    inferiority complex
    refers to a person’s feelings that they lack worth and don’t measure up to others’ or to society’s standards
    latency period
    psychosexual stage in which sexual feelings are dormant
    locus of control
    beliefs about the power we have over our lives; an external locus of control is the belief that our outcomes are outside of our control; an internal locus of control is the belief that we control our own outcomes
    Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
    personality test composed of a series of true/false questions in order to establish a clinical profile of an individual
    neurosis
    tendency to experience negative emotions
    oral stage
    psychosexual stage in which an infant’s pleasure is focused on the mouth
    personality
    long-standing traits and patterns that propel individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways
    phallic stage
    psychosexual stage in which the focus is on the genitals
    projection
    ego defense mechanism in which a person confronted with anxiety disguises their unacceptable urges or behaviors by attributing them to other people
    Projective test
    personality assessment in which a person responds to ambiguous stimuli, revealing hidden feelings, impulses, and desires
    psychosexual stages of development
    stages of child development in which a child’s pleasure-seeking urges are focused on specific areas of the body called erogenous zones
    rationalization
    ego defense mechanism in which a person confronted with anxiety makes excuses to justify behavior
    reaction formation
    ego defense mechanism in which a person confronted with anxiety swaps unacceptable urges or behaviors for their opposites
    real self
    person who we actually are
    reciprocal determinism
    belief that one’s environment can determine behavior, but at the same time, people can influence the environment with both their thoughts and behaviors
    regression
    ego defense mechanism in which a person confronted with anxiety returns to a more immature behavioral state
    repression
    ego defense mechanism in which anxiety-related thoughts and memories are kept in the unconscious
    Rorschach Inkblot Test
    projective test that employs a series of symmetrical inkblot cards that are presented to a client by a psychologist in an effort to reveal the person’s unconscious desires, fears, and struggles
    Rotter Incomplete Sentence Blank (RISB)
    projective test that is similar to a word association test in which a person completes sentences in order to reveal their unconscious desires, fears, and struggles
    selective migration
    concept that people choose to move to places that are compatible with their personalities and needs
    self-concept
    our thoughts and feelings about ourselves
    self-efficacy
    someone’s level of confidence in their own abilities
    social-cognitive theory
    Bandura’s theory of personality that emphasizes both cognition and learning as sources of individual differences in personality
    sublimation
    ego defense mechanism in which unacceptable urges are channeled into more appropriate activities
    superego
    aspect of the personality that serves as one’s moral compass, or conscience
    TEMAS Multicultural Thematic Apperception Test
    projective test designed to be culturally relevant to minority groups, especially Hispanic youths, using images and storytelling that relate to minority culture
    temperament
    how a person reacts to the world, including their activity level, starting when they are very young
    Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
    projective test in which people are presented with ambiguous images, and they then make up stories to go with the images in an effort to uncover their unconscious desires, fears, and struggles
    traits
    characteristic ways of behaving
    unconscious
    mental activity of which we are unaware and unable to access

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