Chapter 7 Psychoanalytic Approaches: Contemporary Issues

1. Personality Psychology Chapter 7 Psychoanalytic Approaches: Contemporary Issues

2. Neoanalysts: Disagreements with Freud • Freud emphasized sex too much • Sexuality is not important in infancy • Different view of the Unconscious • Different view of the Ego

3. Views of the Unconscious Psychoanalytic Neoanalytic_________ Motivated unconscious Cognitive unconscious Conflicts bring info into Priming/Cog. Mechanisms bring awareness info into awareness Autonomous Not autonomous Greatly influences beh. Does not greatly influence beh. Repressed Not repressed Stores unacceptable thoughts Stores harmless thoughts Primitive, irrational, dramatic Peaceful, rational, benign We aren’t at all aware of info. We aren’t aware of some of the info some of the time

4. Neoanalysts: Extensions of Freud • Underlying processes among the Id, Ego, and Superego do occur • Childhood experiences are important • Defenses are the result of dealing with anxiety that reflects various, underlying psychological conflicts

5. Neoanalytic Paradigm • All points of disagreement with Freud are included in their paradigm • Ego processes and development are central to an understanding of personality (Ego Psychology) • The Ego’s primary tasks revolve around the nature and quality of the person’s relations with other people (Psychosocial Theory)

6. Ego Psychology • A psychodynamic framework that stresses Ego functioning; Ego functioning is given greater status than it was accorded by Freud • The Ego’s purpose of adaptation and the conscious processes by which it takes place are more important than its battles for control over the Id • Ego exists at birth, apart from the Id • Different theorists had varying views on how the Ego allow us to achieve greater adaptation • White, Jeanne and Jack Block, Adler, Erikson

7. Ego Psychology • White • Effectance motivation • Competence motivation • Jeanne and Jack Block • Ego control • Ego resiliency

8. Ego Psychology: Adler • Early childhood experiences • Personality as a process of inferiority • Compensatory process • Strive for superiority • Birth order • Future experiences • Response through lifestyle • “Healthy”: Adaptive ways of responding • “Mistaken”: Maladaptive ways of responding

9. Adler’s Four Points • 1. Goals • Movement of all living things is governed by goals; goals are what unifies one’s personality • Future-oriented

10. Adler’s Four Points • 2. Fictional Finalism • Each person has guiding self-ideal • Subjective • Motivating yet never achieved • Partly known; partly unknown • Changes according to situation • Striving towards superiority • Not competitive

11. Adler’s Four Points • 3. Inferiority • Inferior feelings drive personality • Origins in infancy • Not considered abnormal • Motivating force • 4. Birth Order • Based upon interactions with siblings • Different types of parental attention • Influence goals

12. Birth Order • First-born • All of parental attention • Exaggerated sense of importance • “Dethroned” with 2nd child • Sensitivity to power issues • Second-born • Competes with older from birth • Less sensitive to power issues • Often the higher achiever

13. Birth Order • Youngest Child • Pampered and spoiled • Undermines desire to strive • Unrealistic sense of entitlement • Only Child • Never dethroned • May develop exaggerated sense of importance

14. Neoanalytic Paradigm • All points of disagreement with Freud are included in their paradigm • Ego processes and development are central to an understanding of personality (Ego Psychology) • The Ego’s primary tasks revolve around the nature and quality of the person’s relations with other people (Psychosocial Theory)

15. Psychosocial Theories • Erikson’s Lifespan Development Theory • Object Relations • Attachment Theory

16. Psychosocial Psychology • Personality is inherently social/interactive: Outward, not inward-focused • One’s relationships with other people (i.e. parents) influence the development of personality • Continues to emphasize the Ego rather than Id or Superego

17. Erikson • Differed from Freud • Psychosocial, not psychosexual • Lifespan development • Similar to Freud • Stage-like • Predominant themes • Conflicts or psychosocial crises • Themes • Development of “Ego Identity” • Competence and personal adequacy

18. Ego Psychology Erikson’s Eight Stages of Development • Trust vs. Mistrust • Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt • Initiative vs. Guilt • Industry vs. Inferiority

19. Ego Psychology Erikson’s Eight Stages of Development • Identity vs. Role Confusion • Intimacy vs. Isolation • Generativity vs. Stagnation • Integrity vs. Despair

20. Object Relations • Group of theories that focus on an individual’s relationships with other people (the “object” is the other person) • Child internalizes image of mother and uses it to compare to other people • The Ego’s function is to bond with other people • Two broad themes • Early childhood sets person’s style of social interaction • These patterns recur throughout life

21. Margaret Mahler • Development of personality is a process of separation from, and internalization of, the mother • Symbiosis (newborn) • Separation-Individuation (infancy) • Mental Representation (toddlerhood) • Aspects of development • Pace (separation anxiety) • Balance (emotional availability vs. independence)

22. Aspects of Object Relations • The object is a person • Learn from the external world  develop internal model of the object  use this model to interpret and act on external world • Internalized image used to view parent and others • We do not notice patterns of relating to others • Forms the core of personality

23. Attachment Theory • Attachment to caregiver serves as a foundation for behavior and relationships to other people • Mother = secure base from which child can explore world • Results from ability of parent to be responsive to child’s needs for protection, nurturance, and support • Provides internal model of relationships

24. Attachment Theorists • Harlow’s experiments with infant monkeys • Bowlby’s three catagories • Happy • Separation Anxiety • Detached • Ainsworth’s Strange Situation

25. Strange Situation • 8 minutes • Supposes the question: “Can I count on my caregiver to be responsive and supportive when needed?” • Found same three behavior patterns

26. Research-based Attachment Patterns • Securely Attached (66%) • Explored bravely, interacted with stranger, happy to be reunited with mother • Avoidantly Attached (20%) • No behavior change when mother left, appeared aloof, no emotion when mother returned • Ambivalently Attached (12%) • Anxious when mother left; hard to soothe by stranger, both relieved/happy and angry at mother’s return • Disorganized (2%) • Random responses when mother left; seem disoriented or dazed when mother returned

27. Attachment status has to do with Expectation of the child • Secure babies: affectionate, responsive mothers (babies expect response) • Avoidant babies: less attentive, less responsive, distant, rejecting mothers (babies expect distance so they do not respond) • Ambivalent babies: inconsistently attentive, inconsistently responsive mothers (babies do not know what to expect, so they must always try to get attention or also respond inconsistently) • Disorganized babies: mothers may be giving off confused, frightening cues as a result of trauma or psychopathology (babies respond in a confused way early on; respond with parenting behavior at later age)

28. Attachment vs. Object Relations? • Object Relations: the infant forms internal representation of person-object and then expects others to act similarly; so similarly interacts with others as with parent • Attachment Theory: the infant forms internal representation of other person’s responsiveness and their relationship, and then expects others to respond similarly • Both: Early experience and relationship with caregivers determine adult personality

29. Contemporary Attachment Research • Van de Boom, 1989: Does infant temperament predict insecure attachment? • Study 1: Classified infants as “irritable” then followed to 1 year to determine later attachment status • Study 2: Intervention study: Trained half of mothers with irritable infants in responsiveness/sensitivity; other half control group; tested both groups 1 year later

30. Contemporary Attachment Research • Keller, 2001: Does attachment status predict behavior problems? • Study 1: Looked at many variables in a group of 161 mothers and children including to infant attachment, mother negativity, family ecology, parenting measures; examined child behavior problems 3 years later

31. Contemporary Attachment Research • Aspects of father-attachment • Fox, Kimmerly, & Shafer, 1991: • Attachment status seems to be consistent for both parents • Lincoln, 1985: • Study 1: Father-infant attachment developed later than mother-infant attachment • Study 2: Father seems to play key role in separation-individuation process, predicting child autonomy moreso than mother

32. Contemporary Attachment Research • Brennan and Shaver (1993): How long-standing is attachment status? • Study 1: Retrospective report of adults about early relationships with parents; then measured adult attachment style based on questionnaires on current and past relationships • Results: Childhood attachment status seemed to predict some adult patterns • Ainsworth & Bowlby (1991) • Adult can revise mental representation and even internalize new representation of secure relationship through nurturing, secure relationship

33. Adult Attachment Styles (Hazan & Shaver) • Secure • Easy to get to know; feel liked by others; believe others are well-intentioned • Avoidant • Suspicious of other people; believe they do not need others to be happy • Ambivalent • Have more self-doubts; feel misunderstood and under-appreciated; believe others are less willing and able than they to commit to a relationship