PSYCHOLOGY 312 2015
EXAM SCOPE AND POSSIBLE ESSAY QUESTIONS
EXAM SCOPE
Karen Horney
Erich Fromm
Abraham Maslow
Carl Rogers
Victor Frankl
Eco-systemic approach
EXAM FORMAT
60 x MCQ’s
2 x 20-mark essay questions
TOTAL 100 Marks
ESSAY QUESTIONS
1. Discuss the following Rogerian concepts:
a. The actualizing tendency
b. The role of self concept in experience
c. Unconditional & conditional positive regard
d. Congruence and incongruence
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a. The actualizing tendency
 Purpose of all life is to become that self which one truly is.
 All organisms have a natural tendency to strive for utmost development of their
potential, regardless of which setbacks they encounter
 Actualizing tendency is an inherent tendency of organisms to maintain themselves
and to expand or grow in order to become what they can be
 Example in humans of a baby that is learning to walk. Eve3n though the baby
stumbles, he/she does persist and does ultimately learn to walk.
b. The role of self-concept in experience
 Experiences dealt with in three ways
 First, experiences can be ignored if at that moment they are irrelevant the the person’s
needs
 Experiences may be symbolized when they correspond with the person’s needs
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Experiences are allowed into consciousness when they correspond with a person’s
self-concept
Experiences that are contrary to the self-concept are denied access to consciousness
c. Unconditional and Conditional Positive Regard
 Unconditional positive regard is being accepted by significant others for what you
are, just as you are.
 People who receive UPR do not need to fulfil specific requirements to gain the
esteem of significant others
 Leads to complete actualization of potential and allows individuals to realize all their
innate abilities
 Likely that every person will sometimes experience non-acceptance by significant
others and will feel worthy only when fulfilling certain conditions laid down by them
– this is conditional positive regards
 Results in conditions of worth – feels worthy and accepted only when others’
conditions have been met
d. Congruence and Incongruence
 In the ideal situation, there is no difference between people’s experiential world
world and their view of themselves – called this congruence
 When the individual is open to and conscious of all his/her experiences and can
incorporate them into the self concept.
 When a person has an experience which is at odds with the self concept, he/she
cannot incorporate that experience into the self concept – called incongruence
 Some experiences then not permitted into consciousness
 Person may deny or distort incongruent experiences
2. Name and describe the three personality styles according to Karen Horney.
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1. Movement towards others
 Person acknowledge their own helplessness and seek affection and support from
others
 Usually found in people were brought up in another person’s shadow
 Horney classifies as submissive or compliant type
 “If I give in I won’t get hurt”
 Criticism, rejection or desertion by other is terrifying
 Will do anything to win back positive regard of the other
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Movement against others
Person believes that hostile world has to be met with their own hostility
Mistrust feelings and intentions of others
Obsessed with power, prestige, personal achievement, exploitation of others
Hostile/aggressive type
“If I have power, no-one can hurt me”
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Narcissistic type: people with great self-confidence who expect other people to return
their favours with interest
Perfectionist type: Believe their abilities to be superior and blame their mistakes on
others’ incompetence
Arrogant/vengeful type: Highly competitive and enjoy the way they out-manoeuvre other
people
Movement away from others
Want to avoid being dependent on others, but have no wish to be hostile towards others
When demands of the environment become too great
“If I withdraw, no-one will be able to hurt me”
Detached or aloof type
Secretive about personal lives and prefer to work, eat and sleep alone
3. Discuss Frankl’s conceptualization of the noogenic neurosis, as well as how this
neurosis develops.
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Frankl believes that most people do not reach optimal development because they lack the
courage to respond to the challenge of life to exercise their freedom responsibly
Responsibility is evaded, avoided, or minimized
Seek pleasure, power, and position
Symptomatic busyness indicates denial of spiritual side of being human
Results in the frustration of their basic will to meaning
Life becomes empty and meaningless
Following characteristics can be noted in people suffering from collective neurosis
Unplanned, day-to-day existence. Live aimlessly, have no future goals, no real purpose
in life
Fatalistic attitude towards live. See self as a helpless victim of circumstance, believe
they can do little to change their lives
Conformism. Attempt to evade the stress of authenticity and the resulting personal
responsibility, people conform and do what most others do.
Afraid to be different
Feel safe by going along with the crowd
Totalitarianism. In totalitarian regime people are told what to do, what to believe and
how they ought to behave
Suits those who prefer to be blind followers, tather than having the task of working out
what they themselves think and believe
All four of these symptoms can be traced back to man’s fear of responsibility and his
escape from freedom
4. Name and discuss Maslow’s conceptualization of the characteristics of people who
have developed optimally or have self-actualized.
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Pg 347 Choose 10 of the 15 characteristics; name and briefly describe each
5. Compare the views of Rogers and Maslow on the development of
psychopathology.
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Rogers
 Defence mechanisms are used to protect the self-concept.
 Ideal would be for individual to be aware of all organismic experiences and to assimilate
them into the self concept
 Mostly, however, ideal is not attained and defence mechanisms are used to preserve the
self concept and protect against incongruent experiences
 2 defence mechanisms: distortion and denial
 Distortion: the incongruent experience is distorted to fit the self concept so that the self
concept remains intact and is not disorganized
 Denial: experiences which are not congruent with the self concept are ignored and
excluded from consciousness
Maslow
 Places high priority on the gratification of basic needs
 Failure of environment to provide for these needs is important for the level of
development the individual achieves
 Level of actualization virtually impossible to reach unless all the lower level needs are
fulfilled
 The meaning the individual gives to the fulfillment of his or her needs also has a bearing
on malfunctioning
 E.g. unfulfilled sexual needs will reach pathological level only in a person to whom these
needs represent rejection by the opposite sex, inferiority, etc.
 Over-gratification of needs can lead to pathology
 Result that gratification of lower level needs is not appreciated
 Negative effect of unfulfilled and over-gratified basic needs AND unfulfilled and overgratified higher values.
 Even on level self-actualization, there is danger that unfulfilled meta-needs can lead to
pathological conditions called meta-pathologies
 Can lead to a lack of meaning, an inability to experience enjoyment, existential vacuum
and feeling of worthlessness
 Over-gratification of meta-needs could lead to boredom
6. Name and describe the three types of relationship that parents may form with children,
according to Erich Fromm.
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Pg 176 – end of 1st paragraph of pg 177
Ecosystemic Perspective – study the following
1. What is an epistemological assumption?
a. Assumptions about how knowledge is generated
b. Assumptions about how systems function
c. Assumptions about the interactions between sub-systems
d. All of the above
2. Which of the following is NOT an assumption in Newtonian thinking?
a. reductionism
b. linear causality
c. inclusivity
d. neutral objectivity
3. Systems theory follows a ____________ view.
a. partial
b. reductionist
c. holistic
d. None of the above
4. According to constructivism, __________________.
a. there is no objective reality
b. reality is created through the meaning we attach to what we observe
c. reality exists only in the mind of the observer
d. All of the above
5. The eco-systemic perspective that the whole is more than the sum of the parts is called
__________________.
a. synergism
b. ecology
c. social constructivism
d. None of the above
6. According to the eco-systemic perspective, _______________ remains largely
unchanged while _____________ changes constantly.
a. organization; structure
b. structure; organization
c. systemic interaction; sub-systems
d. synergy; ecology
7. In terms of the eco-systemic perspective, which of the following is TRUE about systems?
a. systems strive to retain their autonomy
b. systems are relatively open
c. fluctuations occur within systems
d. All of the above
8. According to the eco-systemic perspective, systems operate according to the __________
principle.
a. autonomy
b. interactive
c. homeostatic
d. relativity
9. Which of the following would contribute to an optimally functioning system?
a. A congruent state
b. Equilibrium
c. Balance between stability and change
d. All of the above
10. According to ____________, social systems function like mechanical systems.
a. constructivism
b. cybernetics
c. Newtonian thinking
d. Holism
11. In relation to the eco-systemic view, perturbation refers to the ____________.
a. repetition loop in a system
b. fluctuations within a system
c. openness of systems
d. interactions between sub-systems