You be the Psychologist
“Angela” is a 36-year-old Arab-American female. She has come to the clinic due
to what she describes as a life-long anxiety in social settings. She does not feel
comfortable interacting with men, yet she yearns to have an intimate
relationship with one. She suffers from a very low self-esteem and has no
confidence around men so she sits quietly so that she won’t “say the wrong
thing”. She says she is lonely and desires to be more outgoing.
A. Behavioral
E. Neuroscience
B. Cognitive
F. Sociocultural
C. Evolutionary
G. Psychodynamic
D. Humanism
C 1. “To me what is most telling about Angela’s story is that despite her anxiety around men,
she still feels an attraction to them and a yearning to be intimate. Clearly she is driven by the
same biological drive that is innate within all females despite her shyness. What one must
wonder is how shyness still occurs amongst humans; one would assume it would be selected out
of the genetic code since it is a deterrent to meeting a mate as it is for Angela.”
G 2. “I have little doubt that Angela’s anxiety around men stems from a bad experience with
her father, an uncle, or another male authority figure during her childhood. If I can help her tap
into these hidden memories, I can help her heal and become less anxious around men.”
D 3. “I must wonder why Angela continues to choose to isolate herself and engage in behaviors
that make her less approachable by men? She claims she wishes to have a relationship with a
man, yet she refuses to engage in conversation with them. Which of her needs are not being met
and what is preventing her from meeting those needs? Has she always felt like she doesn’t
belong? Has this been fostered by others judging her?”
A 4. “I would want to know where this fear of men and social situations comes from. Was she
punished when younger for talking to men? Were her earlier attempts at socializing with others,
in particular with boys, made fun of or rejected? Can we recondition her to be less fearful
around people?”
B 5. “I think we must help Angela see herself as others see her rather than how she perceives
others see her. Instead of approaching a new social setting fearing that others are judging her or
that she will say something wrong, we must help Angela think positive thoughts and assume that
others are interested in what she has to say. By changing her thought patterns that create her low
self-esteem, we can help her change her behavior.”
E. 6. “I believe we should do a PET scan to see what chemicals are coursing through her brain
as she thinks about social situations. Maybe she has a chemical imbalance that is creating her
anxiety? Maybe she has a gene that predisposes her to shyness? I would like to take a case
history and see if shyness runs in her family.”
F 7. “I believe the one factor my esteemed colleagues are neglecting to see is perhaps the most
important; as a daughter of Arab immigrants, is it not possible that her cultural roots have taught
her to be timid and reserved around men? Is her low self-esteem possibly due to the confusion
that she faces in trying to merge her parents’ cultural roots with those of America?”
Case study #2: “Bruce” Read Bruce’s story. As a group, create an analysis of Bruce’s
problem from each of the 7 perspectives.
“Bruce” is a 45-year-old Asian-American male. He has been unemployed for
two years. He is married and has 3 children, ages 6 months to 4 years old. Due
to his unemployment, his wife has had to find a job, leaving the child care and
household responsibilities to Bruce. When she gets home from work in the
evening, she often finds Bruce asleep on the couch in front of the t.v., the kids
unattended, the house a mess, and empty bottles of beer on the table. Bruce
and his wife have many fights about what she perceives to be his laziness, bad
attitude, and lack of interest, affection, and attention towards the kids. Bruce
finds it difficult to have the desire to do anything any more; just waking up in
the morning to feed the kids seems a difficult burden. He feels frustrated that
he does not know how to take care of the kids the way his wife used to do; it
always seemed natural with her and for him, it feels forced and confusing. He
does not understand why his wife makes such a fuss about the messiness of
the house; it always seems clean enough to him. Bruce’s wife has threatened
him more than once that if he does not stop drinking and start taking care of
his household responsibilities, she will take the kids and leave, but his
behaviors persist.
Perspective
Behavioral
Explanation
Bruce has learned that his wife’s threats are empty; by
staying with him, she reinforces his behaviors.
Cognitive
Bruce is thinking he is worthless and frustrated. His
frustration and low self-esteem cause him to choose to
drink to “bury” his frustrations. He also has a different
perception of “clean” than his wife.
Evolutionary
Evolution has favored the strong, hunter, protective man
rather than a caretaker man; it just isn’t wired into
Bruce’s genetic code to be the sole caretaker of young
kids.
Humanist
Bruce’s needs are not being met; he does not feel he has
any value any more. His unhappiness over being laid off
have made him choose to be self-destructive.
Neuroscience
Maybe he has a chemical imbalance that is making him
depressed? Maybe the chemical reward of the alcohol has
caused an addiction?
Psychodynamic
Bruce is taking out his pent up aggression about his
mother on his wife. His wife represents the mother that
mistreated him or for whom he never stopped yearning .
Sociocultural
In traditional Asian and American culture, men are the
bread winners. Bruce may feel he is violating a cultural
expectation. Also, wasn’t taught how to be the caretaker
since taking care of house and kids is traditional role for
women.