Psychology Test| 291 QUESTIONS| WITH
COMPLETE SOLUTION
What is personality? Correct Answer: Characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling and acting
What are the FOUR main approaches to the study of personality? Correct Answer: 1.
Psychodynamic/Psychoanalytic
2. Humanistic
3. Trait
4. Social-cognitive
What are the two aspects of the self? Correct Answer: Self-esteem and self serving-bias
Who developed the first major theory of personality? Correct Answer: Sigmund Freud
Who was Sigmund Freud? Correct Answer: He was the first to propose a theory on personality
(psychoanalytic)
Sigmund Freud, a medical doctor, specialized in what type of disorders? Correct Answer: Nervous
Freud developed his theory in response to his observation on what? Correct Answer: That many
patients had disorders that did not make neurological sense
At first, what did Freud think would unlock the door to the unconscious? Correct Answer: Hypnosis
What was Freud's theory called? Correct Answer: Psychoanalytic theory
What were the main focuses of Freud's theory? Correct Answer: The theory focuses on UNCONSCIOUS
MIND, SEXUAL AGGRESSION, and CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCE. It encourages patients to speak their minds
in order to get better; believed dreams were a road to a persons unconscious mind; painful unconscious
memories are exposed
According to this theory, many of a person's thoughts, wishes, and feelings are hidden in a large____
region. Some of the thoughts in this region can be retrieved at will into consciousness; these thoughts
are said to be ____. Many of the memories of this region, however, are blocked, or ____ from
consciousness. Correct Answer: Unconscious
Preconscious
Repressed
What is the unconscious? Correct Answer: Thoughts, feelings, wishes, memories and desires below
conscious awareness. Holds thoughts that influence patients behavior in a disguised form
How does the unconscious relate to psychological disorder in Freud's theory? How did Freud try to help
his patients? Correct Answer: Freud believed that physiological problems were caused by unconscious
psychological conflicts. He believed that once these conflicts were uncovered, the problem would go
away
,How did Freud attempt to access the unconscious mind? Correct Answer: Free association and Dream
analysis
Free association: Correct Answer: The technique later used by Freud in which the patient relaxes and
says whatever comes to mind
Dream analysis: Correct Answer: Interpreting/examining dreams because they are believed to be highly
symbolic expressions of the unconscious mind
Freud believed that all facets of personality arise from conflict between what? Correct Answer: Our
biological impulses and the social restraints against them
According to Freud, personality consists of three interacting structures: Correct Answer: 1. Id
2. Ego
3. Superego
Id: Correct Answer: -Personality present from birth
-Basic instincts that are entirely unconscious and guide one to what feels good (PLEASURE PRINCIPLE)
-Immediate gratification
Ego: Correct Answer: -Develops in first few years of life to satisfy the id (comes after Id)
-Takes reality into account in order to satisfy id in socially acceptable and realistic ways (REALITY
PRINCIPLE); the reality principle takes constraints into consideration
-Delayed gratification
-Mediator between the id and the superego
Superego: Correct Answer: -Reflects moral values
-Emerges at about age 4 or 5
-Conscience
-Contains morals and insists you do the right thing (MORALITY PRINCIPLE)
-Demands perfection
-Responsible for feelings of guilt, shame, and pride
How do these relate to the iceberg analogy used by Freud? Correct Answer: You only see small part of
whole (iceberg) which is similar to the human mind because only part of the mind is above the surface
of conscious awareness; the vast majority of personality is beneath the conscious surface of the mind
A person with a ____ superego may be self-indulgent; one with an unusually ____ superego may be
virtuous but guilt ridden. Correct Answer: Weak
Strong
What are defense mechanisms (in general)? Correct Answer: Unconscious psychological and behavioral
tactics that protect a person from unpleasant emotions by hiding or distorting reality
What are 6 defense mechanisms? Correct Answer: 1. REGRESSION: retreating to a more infantile
psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated (Example: a little boy reverts to the
comfort of thumb sucking in the car on the way to his first day of school)
,2. REACTION FORMATION: switching unacceptable impulses into their opposites (Example: repressing
angry feelings, a person displays exaggerated friendliness)
3. PROJECTION: disguising one's own threatening impulses by attributing them to others (Example: "The
thief thinks everyone else is a thief")
4. RATIONALIZATION: offering self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening
unconscious reasons for one's actions (Example: a habitual drinker says he/she drinks with their friends
"just to be sociable")
5. DISPLACEMENT: shifting sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening
object or person (Example: a little girl kicks the family dog after her mother sends her to her room)
6. DENIAL: refusing to believe or even perceive painful realities (Example: a partner denies evidence of
his loved one's affair)
What is repression? Correct Answer: Basis of all defense mechanisms; pushing unacceptable thoughts
out of conscious awareness
According to Freud, personality is formed as a child passes through a series of what? Correct Answer:
Psychosexual stages
Each of the psychosexual stages of personality development are focused on a distinct body area called
an ____. Correct Answer: Erogenous zone
What are Freud's psychosexual stages of development? Correct Answer: 1. Oral stage
2. Anal stage
3. Phallic stage
4. Latency period
5. Genital stage
1. Oral stage: Correct Answer: -The first stage
-Takes place during the first 18 months of life
-During this stage, the id's energies are focused on behaviors such as sucking (also biting, chewing);
pleasure focuses on mouth
-Weaning is major conflict
-Fixation
2. Anal stage: Correct Answer: -The second stage
-Last from about age 18 months to 36 months
-Anus
-Toilet training is major conflict
-Pleasure focuses on bowel and bladder elimination; coping with demands for control
-Fixation
What are the supposed characteristics of oral and anal fixation? Correct Answer: Oral:
, -If someone is weaned (accustomed to manage without something) too late or early, they can become
orally fixated
-Problems from being orally fixated: smoking, talking too much, constantly indulging the mouth
Anal:
-Being "anal" comes from Freud's theory that one was potty-trained too early
-Someone that was potty-trained too late is messy and sloppy
3. Phallic stage: Correct Answer: -The third stage is the
-Lasts roughly from ages 3 to 6 years
-During this stage, the id's energies are focused on the genitals
-Freud also believed that during this stage children develop sexual desires for the opposite sex parent
-Coping with incestuous sexual feelings
-Freud referred to these feelings as the OEDIPUS COMPLEX in boys
-Some psychoanalysts in Freud's era believed that girls experience a parallel ELECTRA COMPLEX
Oedipus complex: Correct Answer: Desire, jealousy, fear, repression, identification, unconscious sexual
desire for his mother but father is in the way; becomes fearful of father cutting off his penis if he tries to
take his mom; he decides to become like his dad because his mom likes his dad
Electra complex: Correct Answer: Penis envy; girl has unconscious sexual desire for dad, but mom is in
the way; notices that some people have penises and she does not, so she develops penis envy and
wonders what happened to hers; she comes up with the idea that her mother must have cut her penis
off, and she starts to fear her mom but eventually gives up on the idea of getting her dad all to herself
and starts to identify with her mom
Freud believed that ____ with the same-sex parent is the basis for what psychologists now call _____.
Correct Answer: Identification
Gender identity
4. Latency period: Correct Answer: -The fourth stage
-Sexual feelings are repressed; dormant sexual feelings
-Lasts from age 6 until puberty
5. Genital stage Correct Answer: -The final stage of development
-Lasts from puberty on
-Genitals are erogenous zone
-Maturation of sexual interests
-If all went well in previous stages, adolescent will transfer desire for parents to an age appropriate
person of the opposite gender (men will seek women who remind them of their mother, women will
seek men who remind them of their father)
What are erogenous zones? Correct Answer: Pleasure-sensitive areas of the body
What is fixation? Correct Answer: -Enduring focus on particular erogenous zone
-Conflicts between satisfying urges and rules of society (if conflict is not resolved properly, there will be
enduring focus on a particular erogenous zone)
-Maladaptive adult behavior; occurs as a result of over or under indulgence
COMPLETE SOLUTION
What is personality? Correct Answer: Characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling and acting
What are the FOUR main approaches to the study of personality? Correct Answer: 1.
Psychodynamic/Psychoanalytic
2. Humanistic
3. Trait
4. Social-cognitive
What are the two aspects of the self? Correct Answer: Self-esteem and self serving-bias
Who developed the first major theory of personality? Correct Answer: Sigmund Freud
Who was Sigmund Freud? Correct Answer: He was the first to propose a theory on personality
(psychoanalytic)
Sigmund Freud, a medical doctor, specialized in what type of disorders? Correct Answer: Nervous
Freud developed his theory in response to his observation on what? Correct Answer: That many
patients had disorders that did not make neurological sense
At first, what did Freud think would unlock the door to the unconscious? Correct Answer: Hypnosis
What was Freud's theory called? Correct Answer: Psychoanalytic theory
What were the main focuses of Freud's theory? Correct Answer: The theory focuses on UNCONSCIOUS
MIND, SEXUAL AGGRESSION, and CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCE. It encourages patients to speak their minds
in order to get better; believed dreams were a road to a persons unconscious mind; painful unconscious
memories are exposed
According to this theory, many of a person's thoughts, wishes, and feelings are hidden in a large____
region. Some of the thoughts in this region can be retrieved at will into consciousness; these thoughts
are said to be ____. Many of the memories of this region, however, are blocked, or ____ from
consciousness. Correct Answer: Unconscious
Preconscious
Repressed
What is the unconscious? Correct Answer: Thoughts, feelings, wishes, memories and desires below
conscious awareness. Holds thoughts that influence patients behavior in a disguised form
How does the unconscious relate to psychological disorder in Freud's theory? How did Freud try to help
his patients? Correct Answer: Freud believed that physiological problems were caused by unconscious
psychological conflicts. He believed that once these conflicts were uncovered, the problem would go
away
,How did Freud attempt to access the unconscious mind? Correct Answer: Free association and Dream
analysis
Free association: Correct Answer: The technique later used by Freud in which the patient relaxes and
says whatever comes to mind
Dream analysis: Correct Answer: Interpreting/examining dreams because they are believed to be highly
symbolic expressions of the unconscious mind
Freud believed that all facets of personality arise from conflict between what? Correct Answer: Our
biological impulses and the social restraints against them
According to Freud, personality consists of three interacting structures: Correct Answer: 1. Id
2. Ego
3. Superego
Id: Correct Answer: -Personality present from birth
-Basic instincts that are entirely unconscious and guide one to what feels good (PLEASURE PRINCIPLE)
-Immediate gratification
Ego: Correct Answer: -Develops in first few years of life to satisfy the id (comes after Id)
-Takes reality into account in order to satisfy id in socially acceptable and realistic ways (REALITY
PRINCIPLE); the reality principle takes constraints into consideration
-Delayed gratification
-Mediator between the id and the superego
Superego: Correct Answer: -Reflects moral values
-Emerges at about age 4 or 5
-Conscience
-Contains morals and insists you do the right thing (MORALITY PRINCIPLE)
-Demands perfection
-Responsible for feelings of guilt, shame, and pride
How do these relate to the iceberg analogy used by Freud? Correct Answer: You only see small part of
whole (iceberg) which is similar to the human mind because only part of the mind is above the surface
of conscious awareness; the vast majority of personality is beneath the conscious surface of the mind
A person with a ____ superego may be self-indulgent; one with an unusually ____ superego may be
virtuous but guilt ridden. Correct Answer: Weak
Strong
What are defense mechanisms (in general)? Correct Answer: Unconscious psychological and behavioral
tactics that protect a person from unpleasant emotions by hiding or distorting reality
What are 6 defense mechanisms? Correct Answer: 1. REGRESSION: retreating to a more infantile
psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated (Example: a little boy reverts to the
comfort of thumb sucking in the car on the way to his first day of school)
,2. REACTION FORMATION: switching unacceptable impulses into their opposites (Example: repressing
angry feelings, a person displays exaggerated friendliness)
3. PROJECTION: disguising one's own threatening impulses by attributing them to others (Example: "The
thief thinks everyone else is a thief")
4. RATIONALIZATION: offering self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening
unconscious reasons for one's actions (Example: a habitual drinker says he/she drinks with their friends
"just to be sociable")
5. DISPLACEMENT: shifting sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening
object or person (Example: a little girl kicks the family dog after her mother sends her to her room)
6. DENIAL: refusing to believe or even perceive painful realities (Example: a partner denies evidence of
his loved one's affair)
What is repression? Correct Answer: Basis of all defense mechanisms; pushing unacceptable thoughts
out of conscious awareness
According to Freud, personality is formed as a child passes through a series of what? Correct Answer:
Psychosexual stages
Each of the psychosexual stages of personality development are focused on a distinct body area called
an ____. Correct Answer: Erogenous zone
What are Freud's psychosexual stages of development? Correct Answer: 1. Oral stage
2. Anal stage
3. Phallic stage
4. Latency period
5. Genital stage
1. Oral stage: Correct Answer: -The first stage
-Takes place during the first 18 months of life
-During this stage, the id's energies are focused on behaviors such as sucking (also biting, chewing);
pleasure focuses on mouth
-Weaning is major conflict
-Fixation
2. Anal stage: Correct Answer: -The second stage
-Last from about age 18 months to 36 months
-Anus
-Toilet training is major conflict
-Pleasure focuses on bowel and bladder elimination; coping with demands for control
-Fixation
What are the supposed characteristics of oral and anal fixation? Correct Answer: Oral:
, -If someone is weaned (accustomed to manage without something) too late or early, they can become
orally fixated
-Problems from being orally fixated: smoking, talking too much, constantly indulging the mouth
Anal:
-Being "anal" comes from Freud's theory that one was potty-trained too early
-Someone that was potty-trained too late is messy and sloppy
3. Phallic stage: Correct Answer: -The third stage is the
-Lasts roughly from ages 3 to 6 years
-During this stage, the id's energies are focused on the genitals
-Freud also believed that during this stage children develop sexual desires for the opposite sex parent
-Coping with incestuous sexual feelings
-Freud referred to these feelings as the OEDIPUS COMPLEX in boys
-Some psychoanalysts in Freud's era believed that girls experience a parallel ELECTRA COMPLEX
Oedipus complex: Correct Answer: Desire, jealousy, fear, repression, identification, unconscious sexual
desire for his mother but father is in the way; becomes fearful of father cutting off his penis if he tries to
take his mom; he decides to become like his dad because his mom likes his dad
Electra complex: Correct Answer: Penis envy; girl has unconscious sexual desire for dad, but mom is in
the way; notices that some people have penises and she does not, so she develops penis envy and
wonders what happened to hers; she comes up with the idea that her mother must have cut her penis
off, and she starts to fear her mom but eventually gives up on the idea of getting her dad all to herself
and starts to identify with her mom
Freud believed that ____ with the same-sex parent is the basis for what psychologists now call _____.
Correct Answer: Identification
Gender identity
4. Latency period: Correct Answer: -The fourth stage
-Sexual feelings are repressed; dormant sexual feelings
-Lasts from age 6 until puberty
5. Genital stage Correct Answer: -The final stage of development
-Lasts from puberty on
-Genitals are erogenous zone
-Maturation of sexual interests
-If all went well in previous stages, adolescent will transfer desire for parents to an age appropriate
person of the opposite gender (men will seek women who remind them of their mother, women will
seek men who remind them of their father)
What are erogenous zones? Correct Answer: Pleasure-sensitive areas of the body
What is fixation? Correct Answer: -Enduring focus on particular erogenous zone
-Conflicts between satisfying urges and rules of society (if conflict is not resolved properly, there will be
enduring focus on a particular erogenous zone)
-Maladaptive adult behavior; occurs as a result of over or under indulgence
