Key Psychological Concepts: Understanding Human Behavior
Fundamental Psychological Definitions
What is Memory?
Memory is the ability to learn, retain, and recall information, experiences, or situations.
What is a Criterion?
A criterion is the capacity to verify reality and form one’s own opinions, which then guide our actions.
Emotional Characteristics of Individuals
These refer to individuals who feel and process their emotions internally.
Sanguine Personality Traits
A sanguine individual is characterized by:
- Not highly emotional
- Active
- Non-retentive (in terms of holding onto feelings)
- Outgoing
- Cheerful
- Spontaneous
- Communicative
- Sociable
- Enthusiastic
Passionate Personality Traits
A passionate individual is typically:
- Emotive and active
- Retentive (holds onto feelings/experiences)
- Constant
- Enterprising
- Industrious
- Faithful
- Energetic
Meaning of Persona
The term persona comes from Latin, referring to the mask worn by actors, and signifies how others perceive us.
What is Depression?
Depression can be characterized as a decline or deterioration of mental state or will.
Understanding Paranoia
Paranoia is a delusional state of mind, often characterized by delusions of grandeur, persecution, or jealousy.
What is Neurosis?
Neurosis refers to a nervous disorder often caused by exhaustion or prolonged periods of pressure.
Defining Attitude
An attitude is a tendency to respond positively or negatively to specific objects, people, or events.
Can Behavior Be Directly Observed?
No, behavior cannot always be directly observed, especially its internal aspects.
What is a Need?
Needs are shortages—material, social, or psychological—that motivate an individual to take actions leading to satisfaction. This process is cyclic, as new needs emerge once existing ones are met.
Mechanisms of Defense Against Frustration
When faced with frustration, individuals may employ various defense mechanisms:
- Aggression: Represents any kind of attack, direct or indirect.
- Avoidance: Involves distancing oneself from the frustrating object or behavior.
- Rationalization: Occurs when false reasons are used to justify a situation.
- Sublimation: A process where one attempts to redirect unacceptable impulses or desires into socially acceptable or productive activities.
- Attachment: The tendency to continue a behavior without any apparent purpose.
- Projection: A mechanism to protect oneself against anxiety by attributing one’s own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to another person.
Types of Aggression
- Direct Aggression: Involves physical aggression.
- Displaced Aggression: Occurs when the assault is redirected towards another person or object.
Defining Conflict
Conflict arises when an individual must choose between two or more competing alternatives or desires.
Approach-Approach Conflict
An approach-approach conflict occurs when an individual must choose between two or more equally desirable alternatives.
Avoidance-Avoidance Conflict
An avoidance-avoidance conflict arises when the alternatives presented are equally unpleasant or undesirable.
Approach-Avoidance Conflict
An approach-avoidance conflict occurs when an alternative presented has both attractive and repulsive qualities.
Can Attitudes Be Directly Observed?
Attitudes are not directly observable but can be inferred through an individual’s behavior and expressed opinions.
What Influences Individual Change?
Individual change depends heavily on personal experience, as we are constantly learning.
What is a Belief?
A belief is the acceptance of something as true or real.
Understanding Motivation
Motivation is the set of factors that initiate, sustain, and direct behavior towards a goal.
Defining Perception
Perception is the process by which individuals discriminate between stimuli and interpret their meanings.
What is Personality?
Personality is the unique organization of characteristic and distinctive features that an individual possesses.
Understanding Human Behavior
Human behavior encompasses the set of activities a person undertakes to adapt to their environment and ensure survival.
Defining Frustration
Frustration occurs when an obstacle prevents an individual from satisfying a need, thereby producing feelings of frustration.