Karen Horney's Personality Theory

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Questions and Answers

According to Horney, what is the primary factor in shaping personality, leading to either neurotic or healthy development?

The alignment of personal goals with societal expectations
Cultural influences, especially early childhood experiences (correct)
Genetic predispositions and innate instincts
Individual choices and personal will

How did Horney differentiate her views from Freud regarding the impact of early childhood experiences on personality development?

Horney focused exclusively on genetic factors, disregarding the influence of early childhood experiences.
Horney agreed with Freud on the importance of early traumas but emphasized social and cultural forces over biological instincts. (correct)
Horney believed that early childhood experiences were solely responsible for adult neuroses.
Horney dismissed early experiences as inconsequential, focusing instead on adult relationships.

What is the central idea behind Horney's psychoanalytic social theory regarding unmet needs in childhood?

Unmet needs lead directly to a well-adjusted and resilient personality.
Unmet needs are irrelevant as individuals possess innate mechanisms for self-correction.
Unmet needs foster independence and self-reliance from an early age.
Unmet needs for love and affection result in hostility towards parents and subsequent basic anxiety. (correct)

According to Horney, how do individuals primarily attempt to cope with basic anxiety?

By adopting one of three fundamental styles of relating to others: moving toward, against, or away from people. (A) Signup and view all the answers

What distinguishes normal individuals from neurotics in their use of the three modes of relating to others, according to Horney?

Normal individuals can use any of the modes flexibly, whereas neurotics are compelled to rigidly rely on only one. (D) Signup and view all the answers

According to Horney, what form does the compulsive behavior of neurotics typically take?

A basic intrapsychic conflict, manifesting as either an idealized self-image or self-hatred. (C) Signup and view all the answers

How is the 'idealized self-image' expressed, according to Horney's theory?

Through neurotic search for glory, neurotic claims, and neurotic pride. (D) Signup and view all the answers

According to Horney, what forms does self-hatred take?

Self-contempt or alienation from self. (D) Signup and view all the answers

According to Karen Horney, what role does competitiveness play in modern culture regarding individual well-being?

It generates basic hostility, leading to feelings of isolation and intensified needs for affection. (B) Signup and view all the answers

According to Horney, how does Western society contribute to a 'vicious circle' concerning the need for love and affection?

By advocating for humility and kinship while simultaneously promoting aggressiveness and superiority. (C) Signup and view all the answers

According to Horney, what is the primary origin of neurotic conflict?

Childhood experiences, specifically a lack of genuine warmth and affection. (B) Signup and view all the answers

What did Horney emphasize as the key factor in difficult childhood experiences that leads to neurotic needs?

The lack of genuine warmth and affection from parents. (D) Signup and view all the answers

According to Horney's theory, what results from parents not satisfying a child's needs for safety and satisfaction?

The child develops feelings of basic hostility toward the parents. (B) Signup and view all the answers

What is 'basic anxiety' as defined by Horney?

A feeling of being isolated and helpless in a world conceived as potentially hostile. (A) Signup and view all the answers

What are the general ways that Horney originally identified as methods people use to protect themselves against basic anxiety?

Affection, submissiveness, power, and withdrawal. (C) Signup and view all the answers

What is the key difference between normal and neurotic drives according to Horney?

Compulsion is the salient characteristic of all neurotic drives. (D) Signup and view all the answers

How did Horney describe the neurotic need for affection and approval?

As an indiscriminate attempt to please others, dreading self-assertion and the hostility of others. (C) Signup and view all the answers

What is the core characteristic of neurotics who display the need for a powerful partner?

An overvaluation of love and a dread of being alone or deserted. (C) Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary characteristic of neurotics who display the need to restrict one's life within narrow borders?

An inclination to remain inconspicuous, take second place, and be content with very little. (C) Signup and view all the answers

How do neurotics with a strong need for self-sufficiency and independence typically behave?

They avoid intimate relationships and strive to prove they can get along without others. (D) Signup and view all the answers

According to Horney, what is the underlying goal of people who display the neurotic need for perfection and unassailability?

Receiving 'proof' of their self-esteem and personal superiority. (D) Signup and view all the answers

What are the three neurotic trends that Horney identified, which relate to a person's basic attitude toward self and others?

Moving toward people, moving against people, and moving away from people. (C) Signup and view all the answers

According to Horney, what is the 'neurotic search for glory'?

A comprehensive drive toward actualizing the ideal self. (A) Signup and view all the answers

What is the underlying motivation behind the 'drive toward a vindictive triumph,' as described by Horney?

A need to put others to shame or defeat them through one's success. (B) Signup and view all the answers

According to Horney, what causes neurotics to begin to hate and despise themselves?

They realize that their real self does not match the insatiable demands of their idealized self. (D) Signup and view all the answers

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Flashcards

Horney's Psychoanalytic Social Theory

Social and cultural conditions, especially childhood experiences, shape personality.

Basic Anxiety

The feeling of being isolated and helpless in a potentially hostile world.