Karen Horney - Psychoanalytic Social Theory

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Questions and Answers

What did Karen Horney hypothesize about difficult childhoods?

Horney hypothesized that a difficult childhood is primarily responsible for neurotic needs.

What is the difference between Basic Hostility and Basic Anxiety, according to Horney?

Basic hostility is the inner feeling of anger and resentment towards parents who fail to meet the child's needs for safety and satisfaction, while basic anxiety is the repressed and unconscious fear that results from this hostility.

Which of these are NOT defense mechanisms against Basic Anxiety according to Horney?

Prestige

Withdrawal

Affection

Submissiveness

Possession

Self-deprecating behavior (correct)

Power

What are the three basic neurotic diversions according to Horney?

The three basic neurotic diversions are moving towards people, moving against people, and moving away from people. Signup and view all the answers

What is the core conflict that Horney suggests drives the development of neurotic needs?

Horney highlights the basic conflict experienced by young children, which she describes as a constant struggle in three directions: moving towards, against, or away from others. This conflict stems from the child's fundamental need for safety and security, which often remains unmet due to the lack of love and acceptance from significant figures in their lives. Signup and view all the answers

What are the main components of Erich Fromm's Human Dilemma?

Fromm emphasizes the human dilemma as a result of our separation from nature. He argues that humans are left without the powerful innate instincts that guided our prehistoric ancestors, making it a struggle to adjust to our ever-changing world. Signup and view all the answers

Which of these is NOT a major component of Fromm's Existential Dichotomies?

The Meaning of Life Signup and view all the answers

What are Fromm's three main Human Needs?

Fromm defined three main human needs as relatedness, transcendence, and rootedness. These needs reflect the fundamental human desire for connection, growth, and belonging in the world. Signup and view all the answers

What is the significant difference between 'D-Love' and 'B-Love' according to Maslow?

D-Love is based on a need for love from others due to a sense of deficiency, while B-Love is characterized by the need to love others and is only possible when we have fulfilled our D-Love needs. Signup and view all the answers

According to Carl Rogers, the Actualizing Tendency refers to an innate human tendency to work towards becoming the best version of themselves. This potential is unique to each individual.

True Signup and view all the answers

What is the definition of 'Fully Functioning Person' according to Rogers?

A fully functioning person is an individual who is open to experiences, living authentically, trusting their feelings, being creative, and ultimately living a fulfilling life. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Biography: Youngest child of a 50-year-old father and second wife. Each older sibling was favored, leading to feelings of being unwanted and unloved. She became a physician, fulfilling a sibling's dream.
Basic Hostility & Basic Anxiety: Parents' failure to meet a child's needs for safety and satisfaction creates basic hostility. Repressed hostility leads to basic anxiety – feelings of insecurity, and apprehension.
Defenses Against Basic Anxiety: Neurotics use various defenses to cope with basic anxiety. These include affection (trying to win love through self-effacing compliance or material possessions), submissiveness, power (dominating others), prestige (protecting against humiliation), and withdrawal (emotional detachment).
Modern Culture: Competition among individuals results in feelings of isolation and intensified needs for affection.
Childhood Experiences: Childhood experiences, including traumas, significantly impact future development. Neurotic conflicts can stem from any phase of development.
Objected Feminine Psychology: Horney disagreed with the Freudian view of feminine psychology and found that neuroses are not a result of instincts, but attempts to find paths.

Neurotic Needs

Affection and Approval: Desire to please others.
Powerful Partner: Overvaluation of love and relationship.
Restricting One's Life: Keeping experiences confined, inconspicuous.
Power: Control over others and avoiding feelings.
Exploiting Others: Using others as tools to achieve personal goals.
Social Recognition: Attracting attention and seeking prestige.
Personal Admiration: Seeking personal praise and validation.
Personal Achievement: Driven to excel and be the best.
Self-Sufficiency: Independence from others.
Perfection: Achieving ideal standards, avoiding mistakes and blemishes.

Neurotic Trends

Moving Toward People: Seeking affection, approval, and acceptance from others.
Moving Against People: Seeking power, recognition, and dominance through exploiting others.
Moving Away from People: Seeking independence, self-sufficiency and emotional distance.

Normal vs. Neurotic Defenses

Normal: Spontaneous movement, driven by friendly and loving feelings towards others.
Neurotic: Compulsive movement, driven by a need for compliance, aggression, or emotional detachment.

Erik Erikson - Post-Freudian Theory

Biography: Born in 1902 in Germany, he grew up as a wandering artist and poet before finding a life in the US
Post-Freudian Theory: Focused on the ego and its role in shaping personality across the entire lifespan. Erikson believed that personality develops through a series of psychosocial crises that confront individuals throughout their lives.
- Stages of Development: Erikson outlines eight stages of psychosocial development, each with a specific developmental crisis that individuals must resolve to move to the next stage. Each stage is focused on particular relationships and outcomes.

Harry Stack Sullivan - Interpersonal Theory

Biography: Born in 1902 in Southern Germany, he moved to the US
Interpersonal Theory: Focused on the importance of interpersonal relationships in shaping personality. Sullivan argued that personality develops as a result of the interactions between individuals.
- Stages of development: Sullivan outlined stages of interpersonal development in childhood and adulthood, highlighting the impact of significant relationships.

Erich Fromm - Humanistic Psychoanalysis

Biography: Born in 1900 in Germany
Human Dilemma: Humans are alienated from nature and each other due to their lack of instinctual guidance to deal with the world.
Human Needs: Need for relatedness, transcendence, rootedness, and wholeness.

Rollo May - Existential Psychology

Biography: Born in 1905 in Ohio, grew up in Michigan, Roamed Europe
Existentialism: Focused on the individual's experience of freedom, responsibility, and meaning.
Dasein: Being-in-the-world; emphasizes our interaction with the world.
Environmental Dimensions: Umwelt, Mitwelt, Eigenwelt; the environments that influence our individuality.
- Umwelt: Physical environment
- Mitwelt: Social environment
- Eigenwelt: Inner world/identity

Abraham Maslow - Holistic Dynamic Theory

Biography: Oldest of seven children in a tumultuous family
Holistic Dynamic Theory: Personality is a unified whole rather than a collection of independent traits.
Hierarchy of Needs: Maslow proposed a hierarchy of needs, ranging from basic physiological needs to higher-level needs such as self-actualization.
Self-Actualization: The highest level of human motivation; reaching potential and fulfillment.
Growth Needs: Needs that arise after basic/physiological needs are met; self-esteem, belonging, self-actualization.

Carl Rogers - Person-Centered Theory

Biography: Born in 1902 in Illinois
Person-Centered Theory: Focuses on the individual's inherent capacity for growth and self-actualization.
Self-Concept: Person's understanding of who they are.
Ideal Self: The ideal self is what one would like to be; if self-concept and ideal self are different, this can lead to issues and incongruence.
Unconditional Positive Regard: Acceptance and acceptance of the individual, regardless of their actions, behaviors, or feelings.
Congruence: Consistency between the real and ideal self; more congruent the more fulfilled the individual

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Description

Explore the life and theories of Karen Horney, a pioneering figure in psychoanalytic social theory. Learn about her concepts of basic hostility and anxiety, defenses against anxiety, and the impact of modern culture on interpersonal relationships. Delve into the significance of childhood experiences in shaping an individual's psychological development.