Psychology 3051 Psychology 305A: Theories of Personality Lecture 12 1

Psychology What therapeutic methods have emerged from psychoanalytic theory? (continued) 2.What is the psychosocial perspective? 3. According to attachment theory, what are the 4 infant attachment styles? The Psychoanalytic and Psychosocial Perspectives 2 4. How are attachment styles assessed in adults?

3 2. discuss the process of “dream work.” 1.describe the techniques of psychoanalysis. 3 By the end of today’s class, you should be able to: 3. identify contemporary applications of Freud’s ideas and techniques. 4. discuss contemporary research findings regarding the effectiveness of psychoanalytic therapy.

8. distinguish between attachment classification systems and attachment styles review the strange situation. 5. contrast the psychoanalytic perspective and the psychosocial perspective describe Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development.

Psychology 3055  Freud maintained that the latent content of a dream is transformed into the manifest content of the dream through “dream work.”  Freud described several specific mechanisms that are involved in dream work: 5 What therapeutic methods have emerged from psychoanalytic theory? (continued) (b) Dream analysis (continued)

Psychology 3056 Condensation: The unconscious compresses several latent elements into a single manifest image. Displacement: The unconscious shifts emphasis away from an important but threatening image to an image that is less threatening E.g., Power and hostility are represented by an ax. E.g., A patient’s abusive father is represented as an old and frail man. 6

Psychology 3057 Symbolism: The unconscious uses a common and acceptable image to symbolize an unacceptable latent element. Secondary revision: The unconscious synthesizes the disjointed images that have been created through condensation, displacement, and symbolism into a coherent story (e.g., by adding a setting or plot) E.g., A vagina is represented as a hollow box. 7

Psychology 3058  An analyst must interpret the manifest content of the dream, as described by the patient, in order to identify any unconscious conflicts.  Once identified, the analyst reveals the unconscious conflicts to the patient, allowing him/her to resolve it. 8

Contemporary psychoanalysts (e.g., Shedler, 2009) continue to employ Freud’s ideas and techniques: Focus on emotional experience and expression. Discussion of childhood and interpersonal relations. Exploration of defense mechanisms. Free association (implicit associations; schemas). Resistance and transference. Exploration of wishes, fantasies, and dreams. 9

Research (e.g., Abbass et al., 2006; de Maat et al., 2009; Leichsenring et al., 2004) indicates that psychoanalytic therapy is as effective as other forms of therapy (e.g., CBT, drug therapy). 10

What is the psychosocial perspective? The psychosocial perspective is comprised of theories derived from psychoanalytic theory. In contrast to psychoanalytic theory, these theories do not emphasize sexuality; they emphasize social factors. 11 Examples of psychosocial theories include: 1. Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development. 2. Bowlby’s attachment theory.

AgeStage LabelCrisisEgo (Basic) Strength 0-1InfancyBasic trust vs. mistrustHope 2-3Early childhood Autonomy vs. shame and doubt Will 3-5PreschoolInitiative vs. guiltPurpose 6-11School ageIndustry vs. inferiorityCompetence 12-20AdolescenceIdentity vs. role confusionFidelity 21-35Young adulthood Intimacy vs. isolationLove 36-60AdulthoodGenerativity vs. stagnation Care 61-DeathOld ageEgo integrity vs. despairWisdom Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development 12

Stage 5: Adolescence  12 – 19 years of age.  Crisis: Identity vs. identity confusion.  Successful resolution: Occurs when adolescents develop an integrated and consistent self-view (i.e., one that is seen similarly by oneself and others).  Ego (basic) strength: Fidelity (the ability to be true to oneself and to significant others despite contradictions in value systems across roles and relationships).

Stage 6: Young Adulthood  20 – 35 years of age.  Crisis: Intimacy vs. isolation.  Successful resolution: Occurs when young adults feel that they can merge with another individual without losing their personal identity.  Ego (basic) strength: Love (a mutual devotion with another individual that is greater than any antagonism between the identities of each individual in the partnership).

Attachment theory is among the most important contemporary outgrowths of Freud’s theory, having generated decades of research. 15

Psychology According to attachment theory, what are the 4 infant attachment styles? Ainsworth developed the “strange situation” procedure to assess infant attachment. 16

Psychology The strange situation procedure (20 minutes in duration):  The parent and child enter the lab, which is set up as a comfortable living room.  The parent sits down and the child is allowed to explore the room.  After a few minutes, an unfamiliar but friendly adult enters the room. 17

Psychology  The parent exits the room, leaving the child alone with the stranger.  After a few minutes, the parent returns to the room and the stranger leaves.  The parent remains in the room with the child for several more minutes, as the child’s reaction is videotaped. 18

Psychology Using this procedure, Ainsworth (1972, 1979) identified 3 infant attachment styles: 1. Secure: “Normal” distress when the parent leaves the room, interacts willingly with the stranger, exhibits joy when the parent returns (66% of the infants). 2. Avoidant: Little distress when the parent leaves the room, indifference when the parent returns, sometimes exhibiting rejection behaviours (20% of the infants). 19

Psychology More recent research suggests a fourth attachment style: 4. Disorganized: Disoriented or confused by surroundings, displays no coherent pattern of coping. 3. Ambivalent: Extreme distress when the parent leaves the room, ambivalent when the parent returns, exhibiting approach and rejection behaviours (14% of the infants). 20

Psychology Infants with a secure attachment style tend to have responsive and affectionate parents. Infants with an insecure attachment style (e.g., avoidant, ambivalent) tend to have unresponsive and/or unaffectionate parents. Infants with a disorganized attachment style typically have been exposed to a chaotic/abusive environment. 21

Psychology How are attachment styles assessed in adults? Bowlby theorized that infant relationships produce “internal working models” for adult relationships. Internal working models: Unconscious expectations about relationships (schemas, representations of the self in relation to close others). 22

Psychology Consistent with Bowlby’s theory, research has found: (b) for most people, attachment classifications in infancy correspond to attachment classifications in adulthood. 23 (a) a positive correlation between parent-infant attachment style and adult attachment style.

Psychology Adult Attachment Questionnaire (AAQ; Hazan & Shaver, 1987)  Assesses secure, ambivalent, and avoidant attachment styles. 24 Several methods have been developed to assess the attachment styles of adults:

Psychology  Contains multi-sentence descriptions that are extrapolations of Ainsworth’s three infant patterns.  Respondents think about their experiences in romantic love relationships and select the description that best describes how they feel (a categorical response). 25

Psychology Relationship Questionnaire (RQ; Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991; see also Griffin & Bartholomew, 1994)  Assesses secure, preoccupied, fearful, and dismissing attachment styles.  Bartholomew argued that the AAQ conflates two theoretically distinct forms of avoidance—fearful- avoidance and dismissing-avoidance. 26

MODEL OF SELF MODEL OF OTHER Positive Negative SECURE FEARFULPREOCCUPIED DISMISSING 27

 Similar to the AAQ, the RQ contains multi-sentence descriptions of each of 4 the attachment styles identified by Bartholomew.

 Respondents are asked to think about “the way they generally are in close relationships” and: (a) select the description that best corresponds to their general relationship style (a categorical response). (b) use a 7-point scale to rate each description for the extent to which it corresponds to their general relationship style (4 continuous responses).

 Descriptions included in the RQ: “It is easy for me to become emotionally close to others. I am comfortable depending on them and having them depend on me. I don’t worry about being alone or having others not accept me.” (Secure; 47% of university students)

“I want to be completely emotionally intimate with others, but I often find that others are reluctant to get as close as I would like. I am uncomfortable being without close relationships, but I sometimes worry that others don’t value me as much as I value them.” (Preoccupied; 14% of university students)

“I am uncomfortable getting close to others. I want emotionally close relationships, but I find it difficult to trust others completely, or to depend on them. I worry that I will be hurt if I allow myself to become too close to others.” (Fearful; 21% of university students) “I am comfortable without close emotional relationships. It is very important to me to feel independent and self-sufficient, and I prefer not to depend on others or have others depend on me.” (Dismissing; 18% of university students)

Psychology What therapeutic methods have emerged from psychoanalytic theory? (continued) 2.What is the psychosocial perspective? 3. According to attachment theory, what are the 4 infant attachment styles? The Psychoanalytic and Psychosocial Perspectives How are attachment styles assessed in adults?