Psyc 2123 Personality Psychology PDF

Psych 2123 Personality Psychology Phenomenological Approach, Part 4 Joseph Hayes, Ph.D. Department of Psychology 1  Ernest Becker Cultural Anthropologist – Took Freud very seriously Existential Psychodynamics – Humans are animals – But...

Psych 2123 Personality Psychology Phenomenological Approach, Part 4 Joseph Hayes, Ph.D. Department of Psychology 1  Ernest Becker Cultural Anthropologist – Took Freud very seriously Existential Psychodynamics – Humans are animals – But how are we different? Complex cognitive abilities: Self-awareness; capacity for symbolic thought, etc. Offers freedom from 2  The Cost of our Mental Abilities Knowledge of death Incompatible with self-preservation instinct – Ever looming potential for anxiety Renders all possible ways of being meaningless and futile – All possible ways of being are equally irrelevant – Existence is absurd Death must be repressed 3  A Symbolic Solution We create and live within a symbolic world of meaning The Cultural Drama – Pulls us in; occupies our thoughts and actions – Akin to a large scale play “All the world’s a stage, And the men and women merely players” --Shakespeare (As You Like It) 4  The Cultural Drama Entirely created by the human imagination – We live in the matrix – We play characters in a fictional universe A shared way of living and experiencing – The Cultural Worldview Structures (objectifies) our experiences Shared set of beliefs about the nature of reality 5  Death Transcendence Cultural drama will continue after death of individual characters Primary (significant) characters will be remembered Self-esteem (according to Becker) – Feeling that one is a significant actor in a meaningful cultural drama A character worth remembering even after we exit the stage – The subjective sense that one is living up to standards of value internalized from the cultural worldview 6  Empirical Evidence Terror Management Theory – Theory that operationalized Tom Pyszczynski Becker’s ideas, and sought to test them The Mortality Salience Hypothesis – If a psychological structure Jeff Greenberg (worldview, self-esteem) functions to reduce concerns about death, reminding people of death should increase their need for this structure Sheldon Solomon 7  Mortality Salience Induction Briefly describe the emotions that the thought of your own death arouses in you. Jot down, as specifically as you can, what you think will happen to you as you physically die and once you are physically dead. 8  Punishment for Worldview Violators Rosenblatt et al. (1989) Participants = Arizona Municipal Court Judges Procedure = Review a hypothetical case file of an accused prostitute (worldview violator) Dependent Variable = Bail bond set by Judges Results: $50 vs. $455 9  The Use of Cultural Icons Greenberg et al. (1995) Participants = University of Arizona Undergraduates Procedure = Conduct two tasks: Task 1: Sift sand from black dye Task 2: Hang up a crucifix Independent Variable = Cultural objects (American flag, crucifix) Neutral objects (cotton cloth, block of wood) 10 11  Striving for Self-Esteem Peters et al. (2005) Participants = Undergraduate Students Procedure = Squeeze a hand dynamometer Independent Variables = 1) Investment in Strength as a source of self-esteem, and Self-Esteem Self-Esteem Not Invested 2) before vs. after thought Invested manipulation Before After Before After Death 41.08 45.33 37.37 37.89 Dental 42.74 41.43 36.44 39.11 12 Pain  Choosing a Valued Identity Adler’s Ideas about Birth Order – Older siblings already have an established role within the family drama – Newcomers must outplay or carve out new role Contingencies of self-worth – Horney and Rogers – We hold ourselves to evaluative standards to feel significant/valued Task of life is to identify and play a remarkable role – If unable, life will feel meaningless 13  Freud Reconsidered New meaning of the Oedipus Complex – Children at this age are learning about death – Realization that protection cannot be assured – Castration anxiety = death anxiety Impotence/powerlessness in the face of death – Repression of a bodily mode of existence and identification with a symbolic mode of existence 14  Repression of the Sexual Instincts Why are we motivated to repress sex? – Sex is of the body… and the body is of death Humans escape bodily existence (creatureliness) by living in a world of symbols – We hide our bodies under clothing – We hide our bodily functions – We elevate ourselves above other animals Sex is problematic because our bodies, and our creaturely animal nature, are exposed – We relinquish control and succumb to animal instinct 15 Escape from Creatureliness Human behaviour that exposes creaturely nature is shrouded in symbolism – e.g., Table etiquette – Violation of rules elicits disgust Animal nature of sex disguised by romance – Symbolic act of love – Union of souls 16  Implications for Understanding a World in Conflict Need to believe our worldview is valid – Devoting oneself to a particular way of life rests upon the assumption that this way of life is a viable means of death- transcendence Those who imply our worldview is invalid threaten our ability to allay existential anxiety – Derogation, Assimilation, Annihilation of people and ideas that threaten the ultimate validity of our beliefs 17  Big Picture of Existential Perspective on Personality Influenced by the way in which we manage existential anxiety about death and meaninglessness Personality = “Character Defense” – We create a symbolic character – We defend the validity (reality) of our play/stage – We strive for a significance and death- transcendence 18  Sources of Individual Difference Cultural differences in standards of value – Different cultures value different things – Subcultures and countercultures Differences in causa sui projects – Different people fit into drama in different ways Differences in level of self-esteem – Differences in feelings of personal significance Differences in level of faith in the cultural worldview – More/less hard to embrace “reality” of the drama 19