Find out more about topics such as lucid dreaming and mood genes, and about new research in the field of personality. Topics with a star include critical thinking essay questions.

Chapter 1: Introduction: Evaluating Personality Theories Personality Theories and Psychopathology Theories of personality and approaches to psychotherapy are unavoidably linked. Each of the personality theories covered in the textbook has yielded a corresponding approach to counseling or therapy. Simply put, the particular way we understand people leads to a particular way of trying to help them when they are psychologically unhealthy.

Chapter 2: Psychoanalysis: Sigmund Freud Defense Mechanisms* According to Freud's theory of personality, the psyche consists of three components: the id, the ego, and the superego. Freud asserted that the role of the ego was to manage the ongoing and intense conflict between the impulses of the id and the restrictions of the superego. The tools of the ego, the means by which it handles this conflict, are the defense mechanisms. What is hypnotherapy? Although Freud abandoned hypnosis early on, many therapists still depend on the power of the subconscious to treat a variety of life's problems. What is the status of psychoanalysis today? In a climate of managed care, many argue that psychoanalysis is too expensive and takes too long. Although in crisis and decline, there are currently 20,000 analytic practitioners in the U.S. today.

Chapter 3: Analytical Psychology: Carl Jung Myers-Briggs Type Indicator* Carl Jung's theory of personality is described as a "typology." It defines distinct categories into which individuals can be placed depending on their personality characteristics. For example, Jung conceptualized individuals as either introverts or extraverts. Rather than viewing introversion/extraversion as a "shades of gray" variable, a continuum or dimension along which everyone may be specifically placed, he viewed it as a "black or white" variable whereby each individual is one "type" or the other. Active Imagination One Jungian technique for nurturing a relationship with different aspects of the unconscious is active imagination. This approach includes work with clay, poetry, automatic writing, visions, music, dance, and sandplay. Lucid Dreaming Do you have trouble recalling your dreams? Lucid dreaming means dreaming while knowing you are dreaming. This type of dreaming was identified by Frederik van Eeden (1913) and is receiving considerable attention and research today.

Chapter 4: Interpsychic Theories: Alfred Adler, Harry Stack Sullivan Family Constellation/Birth Order* Alfred Adler theorized that an individual's personality will depend to some extent upon his or her position within the family in terms of sibling birth order. Specifically, he argued that oldest children tend to be more achievement oriented and traditional; second children tend to be competitive and ambitious but relatively unconcerned about power; last-born children tend to be more sociable and dependent; and only children tend to mature relatively early but can remain dependent for a relatively long time.

Chapter 5: Psychoanalytic Social Psychology: Karen Horney, Erich Fromm Hypercompetitiveness and Sports* In 1937, Karen Horney identified hypercompetitiveness as a very strong desire to compete and win in order to enhance one's sense of self-worth. Since that time, American society has certainly seen the trend intensify. Sports may represent the quintessential arena for hypercompetitivness in American society.

Chapter 6: Ego Analytic Psychology: Anna Freud, Erick Erickson Erickson's Psychosocial Stages* Scholars of personality often credit Erick Erickson for changing the emphasis in Freud's theories from biological to social factors. For example, Erickson's first developmental stage, trust vs. mistrust, mirrors Freud's oral stage but rather than emphasizing the biological act of feeding, stresses the interpersonal relationship between the infant and those responsible for his care. The Sandwich Generation Erikson later viewed the end of life as a return to earlier developmental stages and the re-negotiation of several former crises. Children of the aged, or "the sandwich generation," are caring for declining elders and dependent children. Under this pressure, family relationships can become strained.

Chapter 7: Human Relations: Melanie Klein, Margaret Mahler, Heinz Kohut, Otto Kernberg, Nancy Chodorow, The Stone Center Group Relationships in Psychotherapy* The Stone Center Group stresses the importance of healthy relationships and "connections" in the development and maintenance of psychological health. Their recommendations extend to the psychotherapy relationship as well. They argue that a strong therapist-client connection is an essential ingredient for successful psychotherapy. Wellesley Centers for Research on Women Research scholars at Wellesley are involved in ongoing research that illustrates a shift from a male centered paradigm. Research projects focus on the relational health of college women, dynamics of partner violence, and other investigations that focus on women.

Chapter 8: Experimental Analysis of Behavior: John Dollard, Neal Miller, B. F. Skinner Operant Conditioning and Advertising* Many of the advertisements we see illustrate an application of B. F. Skinner's principles of operant conditioning. When we see a commercial on television, hear an ad on the radio, or read an ad in the newspaper, we often encounter a person who has received a reinforcement (or avoided a punishment) by using a particular product. Via observational (or vicarious) learning, we are led to believe that if we use the product, we too might experience the same benefit as the person in the advertisement.

Chapter 9: Social Learning Theories: Albert Bandura, Julian Rotter Observational Learning* According to Albert Bandura's theory of observational learning, much of what we do is based upon what we have watched others do. In other words, the behavior of an individual is determined not only by the reinforcements or punishments that the individual has personally experienced, but also by the behaviors performed by those around the individual and the feedback that has followed those observed behaviors. Video Games and Adolescent Violence After Columbine and other school shootings, many speculated about the dangers of playing violent video games. What does the research say about this and other potential causes of adolescent violence? Realistic and Unrealistic Control In contrast to Rotter's internal and external locus of control, new research looks at perceived control over controllable and uncontrollable events.

Chapter 10: Traits and Personology: Gordon Allport, Henry Murray TAT and Personality Assessment* Along with Christiana Morgan, Henry Murray developed the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) as a personality assessment tool. More specifically, the Murray and Morgan created the TAT to assess "need" and "press," which are strongly emphasized in Murray's theory of personality.

Chapter 11: Factor Analytic Theories: Raymond Cattell, The Big Five Personality Traits The Five Factor Model* According to the five factor model as developed by Paul Costa and Robert McCrae, human personality can be essentially reduced to five "supertraits" that can be understood as continua or dimensions on which any individual can be rated. These supertraits, or factors, were labeled Neuroticism, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Agreeableness. Heritability and Mood Disorders Cattell argued that personality dispositions are inherited. Scientists are currently looking for mood genes that lead to manic depression and other mood disorders.

Chapter 12: Biological Traits: Hans Eysenck Hierarchical Models of Personality* According to Hans Eysenck's model, personality is organized hierarchically. Eysenck theorized that at the broadest level of the hierarchy, an individual's personality can be described in terms of "types." Eysenck primarily focused on three type variables: extraversion/introversion, neuroticism/stability, and psychoticism. Creativity or madness? Eysenck's psychoticism superfactor included the trait of creativity. Others have argued that artistic personalities have higher rates of mental illness. Studies show a clear association between creativity and the risk for schizophrenia and other psychological disorders.

Chapter 13: Humanism: Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers Unconditional Positive Regard* Carl Rogers described unconditional positive regard (UPR) as love and acceptance that are not dependent upon any particular behaviors. He often used the term "prizing" as shorthand for this feature of a relationship. According to Rogers, prizing is particularly important in the parent-child relationship.

Chapter 14: Existential Psychoanalysis: Rollo May Powerlessness and Anxiety* Rollo May identified powerlessness and anxiety as two of the fundamental existential problems faced by individuals in the modern world. May described powerlessness as a debilitating feeling of impotence or helplessness in the face of overwhelming problems in our society. Terror Management Theory This controversial theory proposes that humanity's basic anxiety stems from a fear of death. This existential anxiety essentially drives all human behavior, including self-destructive and pain-seeking behavior. A Theory of Cognitive Adaptation Does life change after a cancer diagnosis? Rollo May's own experience with tuberculosis influenced much of his existential theory. Shelly Taylor's theory of cognitive adaptation explains how women with breast cancer achieve happiness after a life-threatening event.

Chapter 15: Personal Constructs: George Kelly Constructive Alternativism* With his theory of constructive alternativism, George Kelly posited that our experiences of the world around us, including events that take place or our understanding of people, including ourselves, are open to an immense variety of interpretations. Kelly argued that no one construct is a final or definitively accurate way of grasping the world. Instead, we can always create alternative constructs to better explain or represent that which we observe.

Chapter 16: Cognitive-Behavioral Theories: Albert Ellis, Aaron Beck, Arnold Lazarus Cognitive Distortions* Cognitive therapists such as Aaron Beck and Albert Ellis view cognitive distortions as causal to many forms of psychopathology. In other words, they believe that people become depressed, anxious, or otherwise psychologically impaired as their thinking becomes irrational. Cognitive-behavioral Therapies for 9-11 After the terrorism of 9/11, many are suffering from fear and anxiety disorders. Cognitive-behavioral therapies like REBT are often used to treat fear. Medication or counseling? The number of people diagnosed with depression is on the rise, and so are prescriptions for psychotropic medications like Prozac. Are patients who would benefit from talk therapy instead being medicated for "common everyday unhappiness"?

Chapter 17: Zen Buddhism Eastern and Western Psychotherapies* According to the Eastern approach to mental health, clinicians or therapists must themselves be mentally healthy before they can heal others. To the extent that therapists are troubled by their own psychological issues or instabilities, their ability to enhance the mental health of others is sacrificed. Those who train and educate Eastern mental health professionals emphasize the attainment of inner peace and the "immovable mind" of Zen as essential qualities in a psychological healer.

Chapter 18: Conclusion Philosophical Issues in Personality Theory* The concluding chapter of the textbook includes a comparison of personality theories in terms of their stance regarding some fundamental philosophical issues.