1. Socializing the Individual Chapter 5 Review

2. Socializing the Individual Case Study “Sybil”
Blackouts are a defense mechanism against ?
Painful memories
A strategy of survival – repress tragic events

3. Crying is cathartic – a healthy release of anxiety
Why doesn’t Sybil cry ?
Victims of abuse sometimes bottle up their emotions as a defense against the pain
Crying is cathartic – a healthy release of anxiety

4. What role does “Isolation” play in Sybil’s condition ?
Sybil had an isolated childhood – not many friendships as an adult either. Loneliness causes negative mental, emotional and biological effects. We are social beings that require social interactions to function properly

5. How did the “hands” ruin music for Sybil ?
Sybil’s conscious awareness could only see hands because there was a mental block as to who the hands belonged to. These hands tied Sybil to the piano and forced her to sit there and hold her bladder until the music stopped. This followed the abuse that took place in the green kitchen, therefore causing severe emotional trauma associated with classical music

6. Should Sybil’s father share in the responsibility for her developmental delays ?
In most case studies there is a measure of blame to be placed on the parent
that is negligent
Her father’s role is to provide and protect – he provided the basics but did not intercept the trauma delivered by her mother

7. What was the significance of the “window breaking” behavior ?
Breaking the windows symbolized Sybil’s emotional wishful attempts to escape the abuse that was happening in the kitchen

8. Describe Sybil’s relationship with her grandmother
The ability to love is a behavior that needs to be taught, just like any other behavior. Sybil learned compassion and empathy from her grandmother.

9. Three Theories of Socialization
Locke’s Tabular Rasa Theory
Cooley’s Looking Glass Theory
Mead’s Role - Taking Theory

10. Tabula Rasa “Blank Slate” Theory
A theory that all people are born with no knowledge, no personality, no preconceived notions about anything. Values & Moral character are developed over time through experiences

11. Looking Glass Theory
Other people’s perception of us modifies our own self – image. What other people think of us molds our personality.

12. Role – Taking Theory
Opportunities of social interactions that require us to play certain roles that help socialize us & form our personality traits

13. What is Dissociative Identity Disorder ?
Disorders of consciousness, loss of memory or change in personal identity caused by anxiety, stress, trauma
A person’s conscious awareness becomes fractured due to painful memories, emotions

14. Skeptical Perspectives of DID
Simply an extension of our normal personality shifts ?
A variation in our personality / character traits ?
Role – playing by creative / fantasy – prone people ?
An American fad ? Cases rose dramatically in 1980s
A cultural phenomenon motivated by therapists ?

15. Supportive Perspectives of DID
Right – hand / Left – hand dominant with different IDs
Pupils dilate, changes in control of eye muscles during ID switches
DID is a defense against overwhelming anxiety
Several personalities assists in alleviating anxiety

16. Vocabulary Personality Significant Others Total Institutions Isolation
Peer Group Aptitude Mass Media Nature Nurture Instinct Heredity Environment Socialization
Agents of Socialization : Family, Mass Media, Peer Group, Schools