PSYC 4520 1st EditionExam #2 Study Guide Lectures: 8 - 14Lecture 8 (September 19)Neo-FreudiansWho are the neo-Freudians?Neo-Freudians were initial followers of Freud who deviated from and expanded his ideas to form their own personality theories. They retained the importance of the unconscious in determining behavior and agreed with Freud about the impact of early childhood experiences on personality. But many felt that later experiences also influence adult personality. They also accepted the Freudian defense mechanisms and dream interpretation concept.Limits and Liabilities of Freudian TheoryWhat are the three limits of Freudian theory?1. Adult personality formation: Many neo-Freudians rejected the idea that the adult personality is completely formed at 5-6 years of age. They said that both early childhood experiences AND those in adolescence/early adulthood shape personality. 2. Freud’s emphasis on instinct: he did not see that many social/cultural forces shape personality. 3. Freud’s negativity: he described human nature in a pessimistic way (people who are controlled by instincts and unconscious forces). Neo-Freudians spoke positively about humans.Alfred AdlerWho was Alfred Adler?He was the first psychoanalyst to break from Freud. He founded “individual psychology” and presented the idea of striving for superiority, the role of parents in personality development, and the effects of birth order.What was Adler’s idea of striving for superiority?Adler identified a single force for human motivation: “striving for superiority.” Ironically, this idea begins with feelings of inferiority. Adler said that we begin life with a profound sense of inferiority, and that the moment kids become aware of their relative weakness begins a lifelong struggle to overcome this sense of inferiority. To him, everything we do is to establish a sense of superiority over life’s hardships: we work to get good grades because achieving this moves us further away from our feelings of inferiority. He also said that the more inferior we seeourselves, the stronger our striving for superiority. What are drawbacks to these feelings of inferiority? In some cases, people develop an inferiority complex, a belief that they are vastly inferior to everyone else. It results in feelings of helplessness rather than an upward drive to establish superiority. On the other hand, a superiority complex is an exaggerated striving for superiority in which the individual denies any feelings of inferiority. What was Adler’s idea of the role of parents in personality development?Adler identified the 2 parental behaviors that lead to problems for children later in life. The first mistake a parent can make is to give the child too much attention—pampering. This robs the child of independence and adds to feelings of inferiority. Kids who are overprotected may later be unable to deal with life’s setbacks. The second mistake a parent can make is to give the child too much independence—neglect. Kids who receive too little attention grow up cold and suspicious. They are incapable of personal relationships and uncomfortable with intimacy. What were Adler’s ideas of birth order?Adler described how firstborns are different in personality than middle-borns, who are different from last-borns. This is his “family constellation theory,” which identifies how an individual’s position in the family affects his or her personality.Adler said that firstborns are pampered by their parents. However, once the second child arrives, the firstborn is “dethroned,” and attention must be shared with (if not ceded to) the 2nd child. Thus, the firstborn’s perception of inferiority will be strong; Adler said that among firstborns we often find “problem children, neurotics, criminals, drunkards, and perverts.” Also, with firstborns, parents are more anxious and critical, putting higher pressure on the child. The child thus is more self-absorbed and achieves more. Firstborns are also overrepresented among world figures, and only children are said to be similar to firstborns.Regarding middle-borns, Adler was more positive. Since these children are never pampered, they develop a strong superiority striving. It is as if the second child is always a step behind the first, so they are always looking at the person a little ahead of them at school/work and putting in extra effort to close the gap. Adler said that middle-borns are the highest achievers, though they will spend a lifetime trying to catch up with their older siblings.Though Adler believed that most difficult children are firstborns, he felt that last-borns had the same issues. Last-borns are pampered by the whole family; older children may complain that the last-born “gets away with anything,” which would not have happened “when I was that age.” But this treatment has a price—a spoiled child is very dependent and lacks personal initiative. Last-borns are also vulnerable to strong inferiority feelings because everyone in their immediate environment is older and stronger.What is the limitation of Adler’s birth order theory?Research on birth order does not always support Adler’s theory or predict personality. Also, thestructure/dynamics of the typical family have changed over time, leading to many exceptions. Carl JungWho was Carl Jung?He was another neo-Freudian who founded “analytic psychology.” He frequently used ancient mythology and Eastern religious views in his writings.What is Jung’s idea of the collective unconscious?The collective unconscious is an unconscious that every human being shares. As newborns, we easily became attached to our mothers; when we were older, we probably expressed a fear of the dark; later, we probably accepted the idea of God (or some being that created/controlled nature). Jung says that everyone has these experiences, as we all have a part of our minds (collective unconscious) that differs from every individual’s personal unconscious. Like Freud’s idea of the unconscious, the collective unconscious consists of thoughts/images that are difficult to bring into awareness; however, they have not been repressed. Instead, each of us was born with the same unconscious material; Jung said that like we inherit physical traits,we also inherit unconscious psychic characteristics. The collective unconscious consists of primordial images, which Jung described in terms of a potential to respond to the world in a certain