Key Terms for Personality

anal stage

psychosexual stage in which children experience pleasure in their bowel and bladder movements

analytical psychology

Jung’s theory focusing on the balance of opposing forces within one’s personality and the significance of the collective unconscious

archetype

pattern that exists in our collective unconscious across cultures and societies

Big Five

theory that personality is composed of five factors, including openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism

collective unconscious
common psychological tendencies that have been passed down from one generation to the next

congruence

state of being in which our thoughts about our real and ideal selves are very similar

conscious

mental activity (thoughts, feelings, and memories) that we can access at any time

Contemporized-Themes Concerning Blacks Test (C-TCB)

projective test designed to be culturally relevant to African Americans, using images that relate to African-American culture

culture

all of the beliefs, customs, art, and traditions of a particular society

defense mechanism

unconscious protective behaviours designed to reduce ego anxiety

displacement

ego defense mechanism in which a person transfers inappropriate urges or behaviours toward a more acceptable or less threatening target

ego

aspect of personality that represents the self, or the part of one’s personality that is visible to others

genital stage

psychosexual stage in which the focus is on mature sexual interests

heritability

proportion of difference among people that is attributed to genetics

id

aspect of personality that consists of our most primitive drives or urges, including impulses for hunger, thirst, and sex

ideal self

person we would like to be

incongruence

state of being in which there is a great discrepancy between our real and ideal selves

individual psychology

school of psychology proposed by Adler that focuses on our drive to compensate for feelings of inferiority

inferiority complex

refers to a person’s feelings that they lack worth and don’t measure up to others’ or to society’s standards

latency period

psychosexual stage in which sexual feelings are dormant

locus of control

beliefs about the power we have over our lives; an external locus of control is the belief that our outcomes are outside of our control; an internal locus of control is the belief that we control our own outcomes

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

personality test composed of a series of true/false questions in order to establish a clinical profile of an individual

neurosis

tendency to experience negative emotions

oral stage

psychosexual stage in which an infant’s pleasure is focused on the mouth

personality

long-standing traits and patterns that propel individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways

phallic stage

psychosexual stage in which the focus is on the genitals

projection

ego defense mechanism in which a person confronted with anxiety disguises their unacceptable urges or behaviours by attributing them to other people

Projective test

personality assessment in which a person responds to ambiguous stimuli, revealing hidden feelings, impulses, and desires

psychosexual stages of development

stages of child development in which a child’s pleasure-seeking urges are focused on specific areas of the body called erogenous zones

rationalization

ego defense mechanism in which a person confronted with anxiety makes excuses to justify behaviour

reaction formation

ego defense mechanism in which a person confronted with anxiety swaps unacceptable urges or behaviours for their opposites

real self

person who we actually are

reciprocal determinism

belief that one’s environment can determine behaviour, but at the same time, people can influence the environment with both their thoughts and behaviours

regression

ego defense mechanism in which a person confronted with anxiety returns to a more immature behavioural state

repression

ego defense mechanism in which anxiety-related thoughts and memories are kept in the unconscious

Rorschach Inkblot Test

projective test that employs a series of symmetrical inkblot cards that are presented to a client by a psychologist in an effort to reveal the person’s unconscious desires, fears, and struggles

Rotter Incomplete Sentence Blank (RISB)

projective test that is similar to a word association test in which a person completes sentences in order to reveal their unconscious desires, fears, and struggles

selective migration

concept that people choose to move to places that are compatible with their personalities and needs

self-concept

our thoughts and feelings about ourselves

self-efficacy

someone’s level of confidence in their own abilities

social-cognitive theory

Bandura’s theory of personality that emphasizes both cognition and learning as sources of individual differences in personality

sublimation

ego defense mechanism in which unacceptable urges are channeled into more appropriate activities

superego

aspect of the personality that serves as one’s moral compass, or conscience

TEMAS Multicultural Thematic Apperception Test

projective test designed to be culturally relevant to minority groups, especially Hispanic youths, using images and storytelling that relate to minority culture

temperament

how a person reacts to the world, including their activity level, starting when they are very young

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

projective test in which people are presented with ambiguous images, and they then make up stories to go with the images in an effort to uncover their unconscious desires, fears, and struggles

traits

characteristic ways of behaving

unconscious

mental activity of which we are unaware and unable to access