His findings into attachment radically challenged the prevalent behaviourist theory of Watson of learned infant attachment in response to constant stimuli and the psychoanalytical theory of Freud that attachment was based on biological needs or ‘cupboard love’ theories as unreliable. (Custance, 2010). Within this essay I will attempt to describe both Harlow’s and Ainsworth research methods and compare and contrast their findings and criticisms. Harry Harlow’s work on attachment focused on the bond between infant and mother. Harlow wanted to investigate whether attachment was based on the ‘cupboard love’ theory of Freud and Watson or on Bowlby’s suggestion that attachment was an innate tendency in response to warmth and tactility.
Another concept is studying cultural and historical relativism in defining and classifying abnormality in relation to environment. Pointing out the advantages and limitations of diagnosis is an additional concept. The fifth concept shows the principle of causality. The final concept is the connection between mind and body (Hansell & Damour, (2008). Origins of Abnormal Psychology Personality disorders and mental illness always have existed in societies.
The psychodynamic perspective is based on the work of Sigmund Freud. He created both a theory to explain personality and mental disorders and the form of therapy known as psychoanalysis. The psychodynamic approach assumes that all behaviour and mental processes reflect constant and unconscious struggles within person. These usually involve conflicts between our need to satisfy basic biological instincts, for example, for food, sex or aggression, and the restrictions imposed by society. Not all those who take a Psychodynamic approach accept all of Freud's original ideas, but most would view normal or problematic behavior as the result of a failure to resolve conflicts adequately.
Nature versus Nurture of Child development “Genes and family may determine the foundation of the home, but time and place determine its form.”(Kagan, 2010). Every person in this world has their own distinctive personality and behavior. People may wonder why an individual acts the way they do or what makes someone different from each other? These kinds of questions naturally intrigue us. Personality psychologists claimed that one of the most profound challenges is to account for personality development, that’s why they put this into a study whether an individual’s behavior are caused by heredity or the environment, this study is known as the “nature” and “nurture”.
Similarly, Erving Goffman (1968) claimed that doctors, social workers and psychiatrists will engage in spurious interaction with those labelled thus suggesting society labels deviant behaviour. The Rosenhan study (1973) supports the idea that the labelling theory exists because abnormal behaviour that doesn’t conform to the norms and values of society is labelled. The Rosenhan experiment was a famous experiment done in order to determine the validity of psychiatric diagnosis, conducted by psychologist David Rosenhan. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that psychiatrists cannot reliably tell the difference between people who are sane and those who are insane. The first part of the study involved eight sane people (pseudo-patients).
Anthony S Brzenski 64021 BCJ 501 Criminological Theory Unit # 2 Question # 1 Freud had been criticized for the central role played in his theory by psychosexual development. Examine the role of psychosexual development as described by Freud. Next, indicate whether you believe that the critics are correct and evaluate the basis of your decision. Sigmund Freud was a Viennese Physician who opined that parents had a crucial role in managing their children’s sexual development that we develop through five stages of psychosexual development with pleasure focused on one specific region of the body during each stage. Freud believed the personality consisted of three interworking parts the id, ego, and superego.
Many of those factors are either biological or environmental. Biological factors are the traits and characteristics people are born with. The environment an individual grows up in helps to shape his or her personality. Freud believes that the unconscious affects an individual’s personality. The unconscious is storage for an individual’s instincts and drives that he or she is not aware of (Feist & Feist, 2009, p. 24).
Personality can mean many things but collectively the definition according to Feist & Feist in 2006, “…a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to a person’s behavior” (Feist & Feist, 2006). It is hard to understand personality when no one can even agree about the true definition of personality so that is why we have to study it and assess the information that will help us understand what influences our own traits and characteristics. Quantifiable Human Nature The field of psychology is based on the basic ways in which humans will react through perceptions, position, and the point of views from of a lot of theorists. In the area of psychology according to Feist and Feist in 2009, “there are six dualistic dimensions on human nature and they are determinism versus free choice, pessimism versus optimism, causality versus teleology, conscious versus unconscious determinants of behavior, biological versus social influences, and finally uniqueness versus similarities” (Feist & Feist). First a thing where a human does anything willingly is called free choice.
Personality Assessment and Theories Cynthia Harding BEH/225 September 29, 2012 Serena Watts-Kumar, Instructor Personality Assessment and Theories “Personality refers to an individual’s unique pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that persists over time and across situations” (Morris & Maisto, 2010, p.359). There are four theories that explain different approaches to personality assessment. The four approaches are psychodynamic, humanistic, trait, and social learning. Personality is measured by psychologist with an assessment using four basic tools: personal interview, the objective tests, projective test, and direct observation of behavior. The different theories use different methods for assessing the personality.
Erikson’s Theory of Development When psychologists discuss identity, they are alluding to the beliefs, ideals and values that help shape and aide an individual’s behavior (Cherry, 2014a). Development of identity is something that starts in childhood and becomes imperative during adolescence and, as per Eric Erikson, this proceeds throughout life (Cherry, 2014a). Continuing development as we age, our individual character gives everyone a facilitated feeling of self. Eric Erikson was an ego psychologist who developed one of the most popular and influential theories of development (McLeod, 2008). Centered on psychosocial development rather than psychosexual development, Erikson’s theory is influenced by Freud (Cherry, 2014a).