Category: Psychology 2075

Introduction

The following essay aims to present the fundamental features of the psychodynamic mechanisms of defense and the Gestalt theory and its elements of boundary disturbances. This work will present the two theories and assess their similarities and differences before concluding on the implications these discoveries have for therapeutic processes. The theories have a number of shared components including the reliance on a constructed perception of social and internal functions, defenses as a form of reaction to internal and external encounters, and the necessary role of awareness. They differ on a number of essential elements, including the more abstract framework provided by Gestalt as opposed to the concrete hypothesis of psychological energy present in psychodynamics. The defenses within psychodynamics are also related to the inherent inner conflict prevalent in the theory while boundary disturbances are neither detrimental nor beneficial on their own. Similarly, Gestalt proposes that present experiences are more dominant in forming indeed while psychodynamics proposes that such effects emerge primarily from the past. Overall, both theories have roots in the 21st century and have been influenced by changing trends not only within psychology but in general socio-political contexts.

Psychodynamic Mechanisms of Defense

In order to better understand psychodynamic mechanisms of defense, it is essential to define the characteristics of psychodynamic psychology. In broad terms, psychodynamic psychology works in a systematic manner to observe psychological effects that are related to feelings, emotions, and behaviors (Cramer, 2020). Its early roots also place substantial emphasis on the relationship between the conscious and unconscious mind and motivation. The terminology was first associated with Sigmund Freud, whose work in psychodynamics reflected thermodynamics, with psychological energy being a form of flow as opposed to heat (Fulmer, 2018). Psychodynamic treatments and therapies are inherently dependent on theories of inner conflict, and thereby also closely related to elements of defense mechanisms. Psychodynamic approaches propose the repressed behaviors or emotions of individuals that surface as a result of the inner conflict.

Through the lens of classical psychodynamic psychology, defense as a mechanism conforms to the other principles of the approach. According to Anna Freud, the daughter of Sigmund Freud and a contributor to psychoanalysis, mechanisms can be interpreted as unconscious resources that the ego could use to primarily decrease internal stress (as cited in Bailey & Pico, 2021). Patients aim to combat or limit the inner conflict that is proposed by psychodynamic psychology through the use of varied mechanisms. It is therefore the aim of the psychodynamic approach to move the unconscious conflict of a patient to their conscious mind. Defense mechanisms may then be seen as symptoms or the aftermath of inner conflict surfacing and causing an individual internal stress. The approach promotes self-awareness of the patterns defense mechanisms are likely to produce in order to gain better insights into mental disorders or even general mental health.

Psychodynamic defense mechanisms include a substantial list of forms that are usually split into primitive or high-level defenses. Primitive defenses are characterized by less severe and life-changing behaviors (Perrotta, 2020). A well-known example includes projection, which is described as a process during which an individual externalizes their own unacceptable impulses by attributing them to someone else. Disavowal refers to the unconscious behavior in which a person dismisses or refuses to acknowledge thoughts of emotions that are discomforting. A schizoid fantasy details an occurrence during which an individual reverts into an inner world in order to cope with anxieties presented in the external.

High-level defenses are usually characterized by more severe behaviors, but not necessarily in a negative way. For instance, sublimation refers to a practice in which unacceptable impulses are placed into socially and morally acceptable routes (Bailey & Pico, 2021). Similarly, anticipation allows an individual to focus on the needs of others to avoid thoughts or feelings they associate with stress or conflict. However, high-level defenses also have the potential to be problematic. They can include rationalization, a process in which a person justifies unacceptable behaviors, feelings, or motivations by presenting them as reasonable, whether to themselves or to others. Displacement works to shift unacceptable feelings from one object or feeling to another that may closely resemble it.

Both primitive and high-level defenses have the potential to affect an individuals personal life, work experiences, and presence within communities or social situations. As such, the theory of psychodynamic mechanisms of defense categorizes these behaviors and creates or observes systems that relate the underlying psychological sources with the presented feelings, behaviors, or emotions (Cramer, 2020). Essentially, the theory is founded on the principles of psychodynamic concepts that assume that if the connection between the psychological composition and observed symptoms of defense is made visible to a patient, they are likely to utilize the awareness in a constructive change.

Gestalt Boundary Disturbance

Gestalt therapy and theory are constructed on a number of essential components, with the primary ones being contact and boundary disturbances. Contact is the process in which an individual encounters and becomes aware of differences. Inherently, it is the separation of the being and the environment it is in. It allows for the recognition of the self, but equally introduces clashes in the forms of differing information, opinions, or other factors. Therefore, contact is the overarching term that refers to the occurrence during which the mind is able to categorize elements into that which it is and that which it isnt. It is neither beneficial nor detrimental to the individual, as it allows for the initial interaction, interplay, and sharing of differences in which neither works to overpower the other (Bandin, 2017). The contact may end in assimilation or rejection, with novelties being deemed as acceptable or not.

However, there is a possibility for this process to be adversely affected by what is referred to as boundary disturbances within the theory. They are divided into seven categories that are introjection, confluence, projection, retroflection, egotism, deflection, and defense mechanisms. Introjection refers to complete assimilation and is often seen in the absorbance of cultural values at a young age (Brownell, 2019). Confluence allows for the individual to bridge the gap between the self and the environment, and can be observed in spiritual experiences but also in mob mentality. Projection provides a person with the ability to misplace features of the self unto their environment, which can be seen in examples of people experiencing inadequacies and blaming external factors. Retroflection is the withholding of information or responses within the self and not allowing it to be visible to the environment. Egotism refers to an exchange in which interplay is not present, and while hostility or rejection may also be exhibited, no value is traded. Deflection moves the contact boundary, which would often manifest as a change in conversation in regular interactions. Defense mechanisms, similar and different from prior disturbances, are actually complete manipulations of boundaries as a response to unfamiliar or unacceptable environments.

Overall, the theory presents a structure in which the distinct self of a patient is in constant interaction with an environment or the other. These contacts are different and can be identified through their exchanges and effects. Classical Gestalt theory and therapy are connected with awareness, field research, and experimentation, though its entire basis has been challenged to evolve and change numerous times. This is a notion supported by John Frew, a doctor in organizational behavior, who urges its diversification as it already exists as a non-universal therapeutic approach. While relational Gestalt therapy has already been formed in order to be distinct from its traditional counterpart, Frew (2016) promotes even further adaptation. In his own work, he has noticed the overlapping themes within the theory and his practice among multicultural groups and settings. Technological advances are also likely to play a role in the ways in which contact and boundaries are perceived in the modern day. Essentially, the Gestalt theory provides a system of exchanges between the self and the other but is only truly sufficient when susceptible to change and adaptation.

Similarities

The theories share a number of similarities. Both the boundaries and the psychological flow presented within the theories have a number of influences on their overall practices. The boundary and contact notion builds the fundamental understanding of Gestalts theory and works to describe a number of interactions and the effects they have on the individual (Bandin, 2017). Psychological flow refers to processes that occur in the unconscious but have the potential to and likely influence human behaviors, responses, and emotions (Frew, 2016). These concepts overlap as they are both hypothesized explanations for processes that are currently unknown to researchers. There are no observable boundaries or flows, but the theories present them as metaphors for ongoing occurrences within the human mind that cannot be currently measured.

Similarly, both theories deal in defenses and responses to both internal and external stress. Psychodynamic psychology of defense is almost entirely focused on the mechanisms of defense and their impact on an individual. The Gestalt theory provides that one of the many versions of boundary disturbances includes defense mechanisms, a modification of the boundaries between the self and the other (Rafagino, 2019). While the processes are defined uniquely within both theories, they essentially result in the same behavior. This reaction usually manifests as a distinctive coping strategy towards unknown or unacceptable forces by protecting or assuring the self. Boundary disturbances can be seen as the adjustments made in the interactions of a person and the exterior world while psychodynamic mechanisms provide distinct coping behaviors.

When the theories become involved within therapeutic utilization, they have similar goals and achievements. Both theories provide an overview of constructive and non-constructive reactions to both internal and external stressors. Within psychodynamic psychology defense mechanisms are split into primitive and high-level, but can also be categorized as detrimental or healthy. Certain behaviors such as humor provide a more positive and constructive method for limiting stressors while rationalization allows an individual to make unacceptable things reasonable (Prout et al., 2019). Similarly, Gestalt theory provides that certain boundary disturbances have the potential to provide both a positive and negative effect, such as within confluence where the self and the other become merged (Yontef et al., 2019). Essentially, both theories assume that individuals have the potential to express responses that may be constructive and non-constructive and it is the goal of the therapy to guide the patient to a more beneficial outcome.

Differences

Despite the similarities in the perception of boundaries within Gestalt theory and the underlying psychological energy of psychodynamics, they are also vastly different. Gestalt theory does not present contact and boundaries as if they were concrete or biological factors, but simply as representations of otherwise unseen effects. Essentially, they are imagery tools in order to achieve a better grasp of the interactions that are categorized as boundary disturbances. Psychological flow or energy within psychodynamics is presented as a more tangible process, but it is primarily unfounded. Most early practitioners of psychodynamics approached the concept as a physical manifestation of a biological process (Prunas et al., 2019). As such, the theories become distinct in the fundamentals of their practices with Gestalt theory being constructed on a much more theoretical and abstract idea while psychodynamics is exploratory and pragmatic.

Boundary disturbances and defense mechanisms are also incredibly distinct from each other. While the psychodynamic mechanisms of defense illustrate both reactions to external and internal influences, they are primarily used as responses to inner conflict. As such, they are inherently more concerned with the hypothesized concept of psychological energy and the presumed internal struggle that is described within the theory. Contact boundaries on the other hand, which can sometimes be perceived as defenses, are more concerned with defining the self and its interaction with the unfamiliar (Ginger et al., 2019). It is not innately a defense and can be better described as an exchange. While positive forms of defense mechanisms exist within psychodynamic psychology, they are non-existent without the presence of inner conflict. In contrast, boundary disturbances are not inherently founded on conflict as certain contacts can be overwhelmingly positive or cooperative. A constructive exchange, or even a non-hostile rejection, can be observed as largely conflict-free within Gestalt theory.

The primary focuses of therapy are also slightly varied within Gestalt theory and psychodynamic psychology processes. The traditional approach of psychodynamics dictates that awareness is fundamental in constructive growth and observes past events as being deeply ingrained in present behaviors (Fulmer, 2018). Gestalt therapy also focuses on awareness but incorporates freedom and self-direction. Essentially, it prioritizes the effects and impact of the present over the potential encounters of the past. Overall, Gestalt theory believes that the present environment is the fundamental influence in a persons life while psychodynamics believes that present identity is entirely constructed of past experiences.

Conclusion

Both the theory of psychodynamic mechanisms of defense and the Gestalt boundary disturbances have an extensive past and a propensity to change. They share a number of similarities including the abstract but descriptive underlying theory that drives human motivation, the inclusion of behaviors in response to conflict or the unfamiliar, and the ambition for patients to achieve constructive growth and reactions. On the other hand, Gestalt provides a framework that is theoretical and clearly presented as illustrative and non-concrete while the psychological energy within psychodynamics is perceived as a tangible process. They also differ in their approach to defenses, which are seen as inherently conflict-centered in psychodynamics while they are founded on exchange within Gestalt theory. While both theories aim to achieve awareness in the patient, psychodynamics believes that the past has the primary influence on an individuals identity while Gestalt theory proposes that the present experience is more impactful. As such, the theories have fundamental differences but also share a number of imperative features.

References

Bailey, R. & Pico, J. (2021). Defense mechanisms. StatPearls Publishing.

Bandin, C. V. (2017). Towards a notion of resistance in gestalt therapy. Gestalt Review, 21(3), 242258. Web.

Brownell, P. (2019). Handbook for theory, research, and practice in Gestalt therapy (2^nd ed.). Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Cramer, P.(2020). Psychodynamic perspective of defense mechanisms. In Carducci, B. J., Nave, C. S., & Riggio, R. E (Eds.), The Wiley encyclopedia of personality and individual differences: Models and theories (pp. 147-151). John Wiley & Sons.

Frew, J. (2016). Gestalt therapy: Creatively adjusting in an increasingly diverse world. Gestalt Review, 20(2), 106-128. Web.

Fulmer, R. (2018). The evolution of the psychodynamic approach and system. International Journal of Psychological Studies, 10(3), 1-6. Web.

Ginger, S., Spargo, S., & Cojean, S. R. (2019). Gestalt therapy: The art of contact. Routledge.

Perrotta, G. (2020). Human mechanisms of psychologicaldDefense: Definitions, historical and psychodynamic contexts, classifications and clinical profiles. International Journal of Neurorehabilitation, 7(1), 1-7. Web.

Prout, T. A., Malone, A., Rice, T., & Hoffman, L. (2019). Resilience, defense mechanisms, and implicit emotion regulation in psychodynamic child psychotherapy. Journal of Contemporary Psychology, 49(1), 235-244. Web.

Prunas, A., Di Pierro, R., Huemer, J., & Tagini, A. (2019). Defense mechanisms, remembered parental caregiving, and adult attachment style. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 36(1), 6472. Web.

Rafagino, R. (2019). Gestalt therapy effectiveness: A systematic review of empirical evidence. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 7(6), 66-83. Web.

Yontef, G., Jacobs, L., & Bowman, C. (2019). Gestalt therapy. In D. Wedding & R. J. Corsini (Eds.), Current psychotherapies (11^th ed.) (pp. 309-348). Cengage.

Introduction and Type of Group

Mental care groups have shown effectiveness in working with personal psychological problems and with collective traumas. Group work allows the therapist to reach out to more people, provides participants with different points of view, and teaches them to take care of themselves (Jacobs et al., 2015). Young women could benefit from the self-help group elements of a support group.

Rationale

Women are more prone to high levels of anxiety and depression. Providing support for them is crucial as dissatisfaction with life and suicide have increased among women during the last decades (Stone et al., 2018). The pandemic has exacerbated these trends; currently, 4 out of 10 young women suffer from anxiety and depression (Bau et al., 2022). Group therapy can reduce feelings of loneliness and anxiety and help find effective ways to cope with difficulties.

Objectives and Outcomes

The goals of the womens self-help group are enhancing womens empowerment and adopting introspection and self-help skills. Group members can share their experiences, develop leadership skills, experience mindful conversation, act out problematic and disturbing situations, etc. (Cloud &Townsend, 2010). The results can be measured by opinion surveys and periodical testing of anxiety and depression levels (Kumar et al., 2021). The desired outcome of the group work is the reduction of anxiety and depression levels, the strengthening of leadership skills, acquiring psychological self-help skills.

Marketing and Recruitment

The group can be advertised on social media such as Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok because these platforms are the most popular among young women. The marketing strategy may include a pre-launch that will inform potential participants. Moreover, the pre-launch can include a survey form on the most interesting topics, which will help coordinate the work and prepare the first sessions in advance.

Screening and Selection of Group Members

The target group for the project is young women aged 18 to 35 who are under severe stress, anxious, or depressed. Participation in a group does not require any special skills. At the beginning, the first screening will be carried out to identify the current mood and expectations to fix actual problems.

Time and Duration

Group sessions will be held once a week and take 2 hours. Every three months, the participants condition will be monitored to understand their progress and readiness to try new roles or find problems that hinder their development.

Ground Rules

Participants will be instructed regarding the rules of group therapy, which include commitment and willingness to work, mutual respect, the confidentiality of information, and obligation fulfillment (Yalom, 2020). Rules prohibit the sharing of personal information and communication outside the group.

Process of Termination and Follow-up

The group work process will include a short lecture on a specific issue, a discussion, and sharing experiences. Once the problem is identified, the group members will apply self-help techniques to resolve it. On the follow-up, participants will share their feelings after using the methods in the session and in life.

Group Sessions

A relevant topic for a lesson could be anxiety and the fight against it. After a short presentation on the causes and manifestations of stress, participants can write down how their anxiety manifests. Then, the group leader will read out the options and find the most frequently repeated. After picking one, the leader will connect the two participants; one person will be herself and the second will be her disturbing part. The group should observe the persons struggle with negative thoughts and build a defense. Homework could be making a list of calming things that reduce anxiety.

Ethical Considerations

Group therapy raises the risk of ethical issues such as confidentiality, dual and multiple relationships, equity, and inclusion. The American Psychological Associations ethical code can be a solid authoritative basis for resolving ethical problems. The norms of the group work must be discussed with the participants in the first session. Participants must be informed of the prohibition against entering into relationships outside the group and sharing personal contacts. Member names may be changed to provide additional privacy. Participants must give informed consent to comply with the rules and be aware of the responsibilities for their violation.

References

Bau, N., Khanna, G., Low, C., Shah, M., Sharmin, S., & Voena, A. (2022). Womens well-being during a pandemic and its containment. Journal of Development Economics, 156, 102839. Web.

Cloud, H., & Townsend, L. (2010). Making small groups work: what every small group leader needs to know. Zondervan.

Jacobs, E. E., Schimmel C. J., Masson R. L., & Harvill R. L. (2015). Group counseling: strategies and skills. 8th edition. Cengage Learning.

Kumar, N., Raghunathan, K., Arrieta, A., Jilani, A., & Pandey, S. (2021). The power of the collective empowers women: Evidence from self-help groups in India. World Development, 146, 105579. Web.

Stone, D. M., Simon, T. R., Fowler, K. A., Kegler, S. R., Yuan, K., Holland, K. M., Ivey-Stephenson, A. Z., & Crosby, A. E. (2018). Vital signs: Trends in state suicide rates  the United States, 1999-2016 and circumstances contributing to suicide  27 states, 2015. MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report, 67(22), 617-624. Web.

Yalom, I. D. (2020). The theory and practice of group psychotherapy. 6th edition. Basic Books.

Introduction

People develop habits over time when they consistently think, experience, and act in a certain way. These habits affect not only their behavior but also their memory systems. Episodic memory (recalling experiences), Semantic memory (knowledge), and procedural memory (understanding how to do things), are regarded as implicit types of memory. Therefore, it operates primarily below conscious awareness, which is some of the numerous forms of memory classification (Basri et al., 2020).

The most crucial memory type for the development of habits is procedural memory. Through many years of research, three major learning categories have arisen in behavioral psychology. Using Joes case scenario, this paper will investigate why it is difficult to forego bad habits. Consequently, the paper shall discuss how Joe can achieve a healthier lifestyle through operant conditioning as compared to other development theories.

Repetition can create habits, that are a common occurrence and frequently beneficial. For instance, people often clean teeth, comb their hair, and take a shower every morning without realizing. Driving along known routes mentally on auto-pilot without genuinely paying attention to the directions is possible (Bouton, 2019). People have an advantage when activities become automatic since the mind does not have to employ conscious thought to act.

This allows peoples minds to focus on other things. Habits may also develop when positive or rewarding experiences activate the brains reward regions. This can establish bad habits like binge eating, smoking, abusing drugs or alcohol, gambling, or even using computers and social networks compulsively. Joe might be unable to let go of his destructive behaviors like junk eating because it has gradually become a habit through repetition.

Dopamine explains why Joe might struggle to let go of his bad habits. Dopamine makes it quite difficult to abandon pleasure-based routines. A brain chemical known as dopamine may be released in response to enjoyable acts. Dopamine reinforces a behavior if practiced repeatedly, and dopamine is present at the time (Carden & Wood, 2018). For Joe, dopamine gets released every time he eats junk food while not exercising. He may find it very difficult to change this routine. Dopamine makes a person crave doing such activities again when they are not doing them. This illustrates why some individuals crave drugs even though the effects of the drug wear off after a while. So, as individuals strive to break unhealthy behaviors, some brain elements work against a person.

Moreover, the reward areas in the brain make people crave the substances they are desperately trying to avoid. According to studies, willpower might briefly be depleted after resisting a temptation, making it more challenging to observe resolution the next time such a scenario occurs (Carden & Wood, 2018). However, it has been discovered recently that exercising various forms of self-control, like sitting upright or maintaining a food journal, can fortify ones commitment (Carden & Wood, 2018).

Focusing on increasing Joes awareness of his bad habits is one strategy. For instance, one may associate specific locations and activities with certain behaviors in Joes mind. Joe might devise a strategy, like staying away from the junk food cafeterias down the street and deciding not to visit any locations where Joe has previously bought junk food. He should also avoid people and environments where alcohol or drug use is problematic.

Most damaging and addictive behaviors have an internal reward system that takes little to no effort on the persons part. Because they flood the brain with dopamine and various other pleasurable chemicals, smoking cigarettes, snorting cocaine, and drinking excessively are all simple habits to pick up. Although these substances harm ones general health and well-being, they naturally reward the brain, which encourages continuous use (Skora et al., 2021). However, many healthy behaviors, including exercise, meditation, dedicated work, and eating right, do not offer immediate benefits. With enough repetition, working hard, exercising, and engaging in meditation will all turn into activities that naturally excite Joes brain in healthy ways and reward him for taking action.

Theories/Concepts Related to Joes Case

Eriksons Theory of Psychosocial Development Intimacy vs Isolation

At some point in life, developing close, loving relationships with others is the main source of strife. Achieving this goal results in satisfying partnerships. On the other hand, struggling at this point can make someone feel isolated and alone. Successful people who can resolve the conflict between the intimacy and seclusion stage have intimate romantic connections

strong, meaningful ties, lasting relationships with others, and favorable interactions with friends and family. Struggling might lead to isolation and loneliness. Adults that have difficulty with this stage are characterized by few or no friends, missing closeness relationships are lacking, bad romantic connections, and inadequate social support (Ryan et al., 2019). As such, this theory reveals that Joe in his early 20s must have avoided intimacy and feared commitments in a relationship leading to isolation. Thus, finding pleasure in eating junk foods most of the time.

Theories of Emotion: James-Lange, Cannon-Bard Theory, and Schacter -Singer

According to the James-Lange Theory, people feel emotion because they are aware of their bodys physiological reactions to outside events. According to the Cannon-Bard Theory, physiological arousal and emotional experience take place simultaneously. According to Schachter and Singers two-factor theory, a persons perception of emotion is influenced by both their physiological arousal and how they interpret it cognitively. Emotional experiences are influenced by how people perceive their surroundings (Ryan et al., 2019). The theory of emotions explains why Joe has difficulty stopping his unhealthy eating habit. He has repeated eating Junks foods for some time and failure to do so leads to psychological arousal pushing him to eat the junk foods quenching his desire.

Theory of Stress: General Adaptation Syndrome Model

The process the body goes through when a person is subjected to any form of stress, whether it is good or negative, is known as general adaption syndrome (GAS). The alarm is the first step, followed by resistance and tiredness. GAS can cause issues with ones physical and emotional health if the stress that caused it is not resolved (Ryan et al., 2019). The body experiences physical changes in reaction to stress that are not dangerous in and of themselves. However, stress for Joe can lead to long-term issues if it occurs frequently and his body reaches the point of exhaustion. Joes stresses emanate from the isolation which sends him to eating junks foods because he has nobody close to him. As such, he resides to eating junk foods to get life pleasures.

Theory of Motivation: Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

Many times, a pyramid is used to represent Maslows hierarchy of requirements. The most fundamental requirements are found at the base of the pyramid of wants, while the most complicated demands are found at the top. People can advance to the next stage of wants once their lower-level demands have been satisfied (Goodman, 2018). Therefore, Joe must strive to change his bad habit of eating junk to achieve higher demands in his life. The psychological and social demands of humans increase as they go up the pyramid. The need for self-worth and a sense of success come first at the summit of the pyramid.

McClellands Theory of Motivation, Vrooms Expectancy Theory, and Adams Equity Theory

Irrespective of gender, culture, or age, McClelland asserts that all individuals possess three motivational factors, one of which will ultimately become main motivators. This main motivator is heavily influenced by the society and experiences in life (OBrian & Connor, 2022). Joe has had a bad experience with his eating habits; hence this theory can help deal with the bad lifestyle. The experience of eating junk food provides Joe with the motivation to achieve a better lifestyle. Vrooms expectancy theory indicates that a person can achieve what they strive for if they value the outcome (Ryan et al., 2019).

Through this theory, Joe must value the end goal of not consuming junk food and exercising daily. As per Adams equity theory, one has to perceive the reward for their efforts as fair. Since Joe is working towards attaining a healthier lifestyle, it is paramount that he comprehends the benefits and rewards that await him once he is successful in his quest.

Social Cognitive Learning Theory by Bandura

This theory explains that human learn from their environment and experiences and chooses a behavior that they enjoy most. According to this theory, Joe could have been surrounded by people who live unhealthier lives. Not knowing of the health hazards of eating junk foods, Joe blindly opts for the lifestyle, and has become a habit. Through Social learning theory, it could be difficult for Joe to quit eating junk food, because he has become used to it and cannot do without eating them.

Applying Operant Conditioning for a Healthier Lifestyle

Operant conditioning, also known as instrumental conditioning, is a type of learning that uses incentives and sanctions to shape behavior. Through operant conditioning, a connection between behavior and a result (favorable or unfavorable) is established. For instance, lab rats are rewarded with food pellets when they press a lever while the green light is on (Cherry, 2019). They get a slight electric jolt when they pull the lever with the red light on. As a result, individuals pick up the habit of pulling the lever during the green light and avoiding the red light. However, operant conditioning is not limited to training laboratory animals in experimental situations. It also has a significant impact on regular learning. Both positive and negative reinforcement and punishment frequently occur in unstructured environments like schools and therapy sessions.

Operant conditioning is based on the relatively straightforward notion that reinforced actions will become stronger and more likely to happen again. If people share a humorous story in school and everyone laughs, people will probably tell that story more frequently in the future (Skora et al., 2021). Similarly, Joe should constantly reinforce the good habit of avoiding junk food. Doing so will ensure that Joe is more encouraged to leave behind his bad habits. On the other hand, activities that result in repercussions or unpleasant outcomes will be diminished and less prone to be repeated. Positive reinforcement is rewarding experiences or results that follow a behavior. A behavior or response is enhanced in conditions involving positive reinforcement by adding compliments or outright payment. The bonus one receives from their manager for performing well at work serves as favorable reinforcement.

Joe has to realize that negative reinforces and positive reinforcement are in his life. This realization will help rectify the bad habit of eating junk and not exercising. Joe has to positively reinforce his behavior whenever he manages to avoid junk food or undertakes exercise. One effective way for Joe to build and maintain self-control is through exercises. Regularly training his mind on self-control increases muscle strength. Therefore, the next time Joe feels like indulging in junk food, he will have stronger self-control to reject the urge. Joe can positively reinforce his good habits. If he avoids consuming junk food, Joe can reward himself by engaging in another type of diet he enjoys rather than junk food. Notably, bad habits are highly associated with particular activities and places.

Operant Conditioning Compared to Classical Conditioning

Operant Conditioning

Rewarding activities people want to replicate and punishing behaviors one wants to avoid is a straightforward strategy for using this process to help individuals change. There are, however, a few requirements that must be followed for it to be effective. First, there must be enough ability to do a behavior (Black et al., 2021). This indicates that Joe must accept his situation and be ready to change for the good. Joe is much less likely to participate regularly in something if it is challenging. To inspire him to complete anything, the incentive must be more significant the more challenging the task is. Similarly, the smaller the reward to perform anything, the easier it is to do. This has significant ramifications when considering how to create or break unhealthy habits.

Classical Conditioning

The value of classical conditioning as a tool for behavior modification is considerable. For instance, a persons goal is to change specific behaviors. In that case, Joe can acquire true insight into the scenarios to avoid by better comprehending the connection between his inputs (both natural and conditioned) and reactions (both conditioned and natural). Consider the scenario where a person desires to overcome sugar hunger. They should examine the independent variable and unconditioned response (Bouton, 2019). This stimulus-response combination occurs naturally, as recalled from the prior definitions.

According to the theory of operant conditioning, living things pick up certain behaviors from the results of their previous behavior. In classical conditioning, the researcher learns to link two stimuli based on unintentional reactions that take place beforehand (Akpan, 2020). Opponent to traditional conditioning, operant conditioning modifies an organisms behavior in response to the following results. In summary, emotional and physiological responses of the organism, such as thoughts, emotions, and feelings, are what classical conditioning hinges on as opposed to voluntary or reflexive behavior (Patey et al., 2018). On the other hand, opportunistic conditioning is based on volitional behavior, that is, enthusiastic reactions from the organism.

Conclusion

Changing old habits can be quite challenging for an individual. Such an initiative becomes an uphill task for a person, considering that they are used to exercising bad habits regularly. Trying to change such habits means sacrificing a lot of things that the victim held necessary and dear to their lifestyle. The same scenario is quite real for Joe. He aims at changing his lifestyle and abandoning bad habits. However, it is going to take him dedication and discipline to achieve such a situation. The best approach for Joe would be the application of the operant conditioning behavioral theory. Through this theory, Joe can reward himself whenever he abstains from bad habits. This move will reinforce his good habits, which will eventually become his new lifestyle.

References

Akpan, B. (2020). Classical and Operant ConditioningIvan Pavlov; Burrhus Skinner. In Science Education in Theory and Practice (pp. 7184). Springer, Cham.

Basri, H., Amin, S., Mirsa, U., Mukhlis, H., & Irviani, R. (2020). Learning theory of conditioning. Journal of Critical Reviews, 7(8).

Black, A. H., Osborne, B., & Ristow, W. C. (2021). A note on the operant conditioning of autonomic responses. In Operant-Pavlovian interactions (pp. 2745). Routledge.

Bouton, M. E. (2019). Extinction of instrumental (operant) learning: interference, context varieties, and contextual control mechanisms. Psychopharmacology, 236(1), 7-19.

Carden, L., & Wood, W. (2018). Habit formation and change. Current opinion in behavioral sciences, pp. 20, 117122.

Cherry, K. (2019). What is operant conditioning, and how does it work? How reinforcement and punishment modify behavior. Verywell Mind.

Goodman, S. G. (2018). Gale Researcher Guide for Value-and Incentive-Theories of Motivation. Gale, Cengage Learning.

OBrien, K., & Cooper, C. (2022). Theories of motivation and self-regulation. In Elgar Introduction to Organizational Stress Theories (pp. 167-181). Edward Elgar Publishing.

Patey, A. M., Hurt, C. S., Grimshaw, J. M., & Francis, J. J. (2018). Changing behavior more or lessdo behavior theories inform strategies for implementation and de-implementation? A critical interpretive synthesis. Implementation Science, 13(1), 113.

Ryan, R., Bradshaw, E., Deci, E., Sternberg, R., & Pickren, W. (2019). A history of human motivation theories. The Cambridge handbook of the intellectual history of psychology. Cambridge University Press Cambridge, UK.

Skora, L. I., Yeomans, M. R., Crombag, H. S., & Scott, R. B. (2021). Evidence that instrumental conditioning requires conscious awareness in humans. Cognition, 208, 104546.

Introduction

Personality development is essential in a child and relates to organized behavior and attitudes which distinguish a person from others. Personality is defined by Beckmann and Wood (2017) as the dynamic system of a person that involves the persons psychophysical systems that influences his thoughts and pattern of behaviors. It is the important and more stable aspect of a persons behavior and according to some psychological theorists; this can be studied by looking at the persons social and external behaviors. For example, according to Swartz et al. (2016) personality includes a variety of human actions, practically all aspects of a person  the mental, emotional, social, and physical aspects. This paper summarizes, the Freudian Psychoanalytic Theory of Personality, which is one of the most controversial theories of personality development in children.

Freudian Psychoanalytic Theory of Personality

The psychoanalysis founder and the proponent of this theory were Sigmund Freud (1856-1939). His psychoanalytic theory is a dynamic theory based on the notion that the formation of personality is governed by primarily unconscious conflicts and events which can only be understood by his thorough research QA (Pascariu, 2019). The psychoanalytical approach to the development of a childs personality assumes that the structures of personality are mostly uninformed of why they behave in particular and are hence unconscious. In addition to this, the behavior is often heavily influenced by the ongoing struggle and conflict between the persons instincts, unconscious motives, experiences, and societal standards (Swartz et al., 2016). Freud maintained that the personality is driven by two essential instincts: an instinct for life and a death instinct. Libido is the mental energy from the instinct of life which feeds our need for survival and development and further ensures reproduction while the death instinct represents peoples unconscious wish to die hence the destructive force of human nature.

The Structures of the Freudian Psychoanalytic Theory of Personality

The psychoanalytic theory of personality development has three layers, the conscious, the pre-conscious, and the unconscious. According to Freud, the personality structure is based on three structures/characteristics: the id, ego, and superego concepts. Each of these personality traits is linked to the two others (Pascariu, 2019). The Id, Ego, and the Super-Ego are three levels of personality (Swartz et al., 2016). The Id is completely unconscious; Ego is partially conscious and Super Ego is entirely conscious. According to Freud, the interactions between these three structures have led to our personality development. Conflicts between these three structures and our efforts to find a balance between the desires of each of the three structures is what influences human behavior and how we approach it according to Pascariu, (2019). In a particular context, what balance we strike stipulates how we handle the tension between two underlying behavioral trends: our aggressive biological drives and our socialized internal control over those drives.

According to Freud, the most important aspect of the ego is that it balances the id, the superego, and the reality so that the conscious state of the person remains healthy (Swartz et al., 2016). It protects one from the stressors and anxiety by reacting in a way that messes with reality and further protects the individuals consciousness from the unconscious thoughts and material and often threaten to enter it (Swartz et al., 2016). The id is completely unconscious which involves the instincts and the libido. It works on the principle of pleasure and uses primary thinking processes. The ego is reasonable and based on realitys needs (the reality principles). It uses the notion of a secondary process. The superego contains the consciousness (the inner code of morality) and the id ego. The ego is under strain from id, super-ego, and reality and functions as a crossroads for all these forces. If the ego is unable to meet these demands, anxiety comes about (Swartz et al., 2016). In essence, it is the role of the ego is to act as a balancing mechanism.

The various forms of protection are reaction, repression, denial, projecting, removal, sublimation, regression, and rationalization (Pascariu, 2019). Repression, according to Freuds theory, is one of the most powerful systems of defense against irrational impulses from the unconscious mind (Pascariu, 2019). Defense mechanisms play a significant role in driving thoughts from the conscious part. Stressful thoughts that threaten the survival of an individual should be put into an unconscious mind to relieve anxiety by repression.

Freuds Stages to Personality Development

Freuds psychoanalytic Theory of Personality involves four stages which a child must undergo and complete to have a fulfilled personality. Freud believed that the conflict that happens between the four stages keeps on changing as the child keeps developing into an adult. He termed these stages of personality development as the psychosexual stages because he considered sexual instinct to be the principal component underlying human development (Singh, 2020). These stages include the oral, anal, phallic, and genital. Freud states that every phase of psychosexual development is related to an erogenous zone and each stage must be resolved and the conflicts and tasks in each stage are resolved before the possibility of progression to another stage (Swartz et al., 2016). Failure to solve the conflicts and tasks of each stage leaves the individual stuck and fixated on that stage. In essence, libidinal energy is engaged in this specific step, leaving less energy for the following stages (Swartz et al., 2016). Freud thought the foundations of many and various adult personalities are linked to unsuccessfully solved psychosexual stages of development.

For instance, an individual stuck on the oral stage may be excessively concerned or fixated on activities involving the use of the mouth in particular eating and drinking (Singh, 2020). These children develop oral-passive and oral-aggressive types of personalities in that they are either dependent or sadistic. They are easily gullible and often rely on other people for gratification and those on the oral-aggressive become excessively pessimistic, hostile, aggressive, and could be manipulative or aggressive (Singh, 2020). Those stuck on the second stage, the anal, often turn out to lack self-control and those with the anal-retentive personality tend to be stingy and typically stubborn. Under the phallic stage, men fixated on this stage are often boastful, vain, and ambitious while the females are flirtatious, seductive, and naive. Furthermore, Freud believes that the fourth stage, the genital stage, requires the formulation of intimate relationships, learning to work, and postponing of gratification, and children that resolve this stage will have mature and responsible social-sexual relations.

Zhang, (2020) comments that even if most psychodynamic theories did not use experimental research, they contributed to the development of experimental psychology through theories and methods of Psychoanalyst thinking (Zhang, 2020). Many of the personality theories advanced by the psychodynamic philosophers, such as Eriksons idea of the psychosocial stage and Freuds notion of the psychosexual stage, still affect todays area (Zhang, 2020). Psychoanalysis opened up a new perspective on a mental disease that could assist relieve a persons psychological pain by discussing psychoanalytic difficulties.

Sigmund Freuds theory of psychoanalysis has heavily impacted personality theory development especially by other well-known psychoanalytic psychologists like Anna Freud, Carl Jung, and Otto Rank (Zhang, 2020). In psychoanalysis and dreaming, Anna Freud inherited the theory of Sigmund Freud but moved focus to child psychology which is constantly used in the field of child psychology.

Conclusion

Freud is still felt today as a psychological trace. Speech therapy is usually linked to psychoanalysis, but therapists are also using the technique for other therapeutic techniques, such as client therapy and group therapy. It may not have been the strength of psychoanalysis in 1910, but Freuds theories have lastingly influenced popular and psychology culture as well. While Freud is widely criticized, the significance and impact of his theory on personality psychology cannot be denied.

References

Beckmann, N., & Wood, R. E. (2017). Dynamic personality science. Integrating between-person stability and within-person change. Frontiers Research Topics. Web.

Pascariu, C. C. (2019). Child Personality Development  A Psychoanalytic Approach. International Journal of Education and Psychology in the Community, IJEPC, 9(1-2), 87-91.

Singh, S. (2020). Psychoanalytic theory of personality.RajRAS. Web.

Swartz, L., Rey, C. D., Duncan, N., Townsend, L., & ONeill, V. (2016). Psychology: An introduction (4th ed.). South Africa ; New York : Oxford University Press Southern Africa.

Zhang, S. (2020). Psychoanalysis: The influence of Freuds theory in personality psychology. Proceedings of the International Conference on Mental Health and Humanities Education (ICMHHE 2020). Web.

The book I never knew I had a choice is a book that aims to teach individuals that they can take charge of their lives. It starts by explaining that we have a choice regarding our lives. Our options can break or destroy us, and everyone is responsible for their happiness. With making choices, comes change, and only a person can decide the amount of change that is good for them. The choices made can either bring positive or negative impacts. The book uses the humanistic approach to self-actualization. Self-actualization is working towards our potential without caring what others think.

The early development stages are crucial since they influence the choice made at a later stage in someones life. The adult personality is due to those choices made during these early stages. Although the early development traumas determine many things in the later stage, it does not mean that these experiences determine the person. Individuals can choose to grow out of them and use the occasion to their advantage (Corey & Corey, 2013). Learning from the experiences of early development can help in self-growth. Adulthood is an endeavor that comes on with different tasks. It involves looking back at the choices and decisions made during the early stages. Every phase of a persons life is filled with events that affect our future.

During development, a person starts to think of their physical, emotional, and psychological wellness. A person begins to get concerned with their bodily look; that is how their attitude towards self-love starts (Corey & Corey, 2013). Positive attitudes toward ones life help shape many things like self-esteem or how one handles stress. The book pointed out that we cannot eliminate stress but can manage it by changing our attitude. The further writer shares all aspects one faces from the early stages of life up to death. He aims to help individuals find the meaning and purpose of life, which leads to personal growth.

The book can help one learn the values and goals one hopes to achieve in the military. One can set goals to be accomplished during the missions. Those missions have to make hard choices, and they may impact ones life. Therefore, past mistakes should not bring us down in the future. Being in the military can bring a lot of traumas that can lead to stress, anxiety, and isolation from people. These traumatic events can lead to people being diagnosed with posttraumatic disorders (PTSD) (Corey & Corey, 2013). We learn a lot of ways of handling stress and moving on with life after the traumas. Although not everyone gets concussions, those not affected should reach out to their colleagues.

Death is another thing that happens during missions; no one controls it. Therefore, one has to live without the fear of dying but rather live to the fullest. There are various stages of grief and how to cope with them. Although our military colleagues might die in the line of duty, that means it is the end of their relationship with them. We have to make their memories alive with their family members. Much is learned from the book regarding making choices in our daily lives. Some of those choices may be hard but are essential to our growth. We must enjoy every bit of our lives and strive to live in harmony with everyone. We must embrace our diversity and set aside our differences to make this world better.

Reference

Corey, G., & Corey, M. S. (2013). I never knew I had a choice: Explorations in personal growth. Cengage Learning.

Abstract

The environment plays a significant role in the physical development of children in middle childhood. Exposure to diverse environmental settings results in children acquiring various skills. Additionally, it is during middle childhood that kids start to assume duties in their families. Scholars regard middle childhood (Ages between 6 and 12 years) as critical since it is the time that children start schooling.

The period is also vital because it forms the base for kids adult life. The majority of the existing studies do not focus on the developmental changes that occur in middle childhood. Instead, most scholars pay attention to other stages of life such as puberty, early childhood, and infancy. In middle childhood, kids are exposed to diverse settings and social interactions, which present them with a myriad of developmental challenges.

Interaction with peers at school results in kids exhibiting different behaviors. Kids who are exposed to harsh conditions like harassment may become aggressive. Family composition also plays a critical role in physical development. Kids brought up in unstable families become hostile. They also develop negative perceptions about marriages. Theories by Sigmund Freud and Jean Piaget view middle childhood as a unique developmental phase for kids.

Sigmund maintains that children consolidate psychosexual accomplishments of past years and develop diverse skills during middle childhood. He also argues that the environment helps children to interpret and improve interpersonal relationships. Jean Piaget explains that kids acquire cognitive abilities in middle childhood. Exposure to unusual circumstances enables kids to develop problem-solving skills and reasoning abilities. The minds of kids aged between 6 and 12 are rational and work systematically. Indeed, the realization of intellectual competence is a significant psychological accomplishment amid kids in middle childhood.

Introduction

The environment plays a significant role in child development. Children do not only learn from their parents but also the environment around them. Imbalances at school, home, neighborhood, and at daycare may have significant effects on the physical development of a child. One of the stages where the environment plays a great role in physical development in middle childhood. The primary goal of this study is to determine the role of school and family environment as factors that influence growth in an individual in middle childhood.

Research Objectives

The objectives of the study include;

1. To determine the role of the environment in the development of a child in middle childhood.
2. To determine if the environment influences the degree of aggressiveness of a child in middle childhood.
3. To determine if the environment affects cognitive function and neural development of an individual in childhood.

Hypothesis

The hypothesis for this study is that school and family environments impact a persons development in middle childhood.

The middle childhood refers to the age between 6 and 12 years. According to Bjorklund and Ellis (2014), this age bracket is critical because it is the stage when children experience significant development. Kids are said to acquire new capabilities at this age and start to assume duties not only in their families but also in communities. Historically, in most societies, the age of 6 marked the period when kids transitioned into the world of adulthood and assumed responsibilities in their families.

The introduction of education, coupled with changes in perceptions about family, has led to children aged between 6 and 12 not partaking in duties designated for adults. Bjorklund and Ellis (2014) aver that the ages of 6-12 are unique compared to other stages because they comprise the initial school years. It is imperative to understand the forces that influence physical development amid kids in this age bracket as it forms the foundation of their adult life.

One should appreciate that developmental transformation is constant, therefore difficult to split into specific age periods. Nonetheless, the prevalent cultural delineation of a phase almost matching ages 6-12 triggers essential questions regarding the traits of kids in this age group (Ruthus, 2014). The majority of the existing studies pay limited attention to the developmental changes that arise in middle childhood. It is imperative to appreciate that different age-related transformation and abilities characterize this period.

In middle childhood, kids are exposed to new environments and subjected to pressures, which present them with diverse developmental challenges. Children get an opportunity to join a school where they meet with kids from different cultural and family backgrounds. School entry depicts a novel set of social connections with other children and adults. In return, school influences and experiences play a significant role in the physical growth of a child. Peer influence results in children acquiring new characters (Elsaesser, Gorman-Smith, & Henry, 2013). For instance, some kids become aggressive if exposed to harsh conditions by their colleagues at school.

Family composition also influences physical development in middle childhood (Dubois-Comtois, Moss, Cyr, & Pascuzzo, 2013). Kids brought up in unstable families (where parents fight or divorce) develop negative perspectives regarding marriage and become violent.

The existing studies that focus on children aged between 6 and 12 cover numerous disciplines that include medicine, sociology, and psychology. However, there is limited research on this age group compared to other groups like teenage, early childhood, and formative years (Newman & Newman, 2015). Sigmund Freud and Jean Piaget advance two views that regard middle childhood as a unique developmental period (Newman & Newman, 2015). According to theory by Sigmund Freud, kids consolidate psychosexual attainments of past years and develop diverse skills at the age of 5 or 6 (Newman & Newman, 2015).

The majority of the scholars misconstrue Sigmunds depiction of this period as latent to imply that it is insignificant. They argue that the psychosexual happenings of past and later years reflect more vividly in psychoanalytic contemplation (Newman & Newman, 2015). Erik Erikson builds on Sigmunds theory. He alleges that kids develop a sense of hard work in middle childhood (Newman & Newman, 2015). The environment helps children to interpret and develop interpersonal relationships in middle childhood. Unfortunately, the theories by Sigmund and Erikson have not been widely used in studies regarding child development in middle childhood. Nevertheless, ideas from the theories are used to study social relations amid kids in their early school years.

Jean Piagets theory of cognitive development holds that kids develop cognitive abilities in middle childhood (Lecce, Bianco, Devine, Hughes, & Banerjee, 2014). Exposure to diverse environmental settings helps them to develop reasoning abilities and acquire problem-solving skills. Lecce et al. (2014) state that while preschool kids are attached to tangible and readily discernible features of tasks, the judgments of children in middle childhood are rational and more methodical.

According to the theory, the principal psychological achievements in middle childhood are in the sphere of intellectual ability. The majority of the studies that rely on this theory seek to comprehend the rational model of mental functioning. Scholars who leverage the theory view a child at particular junctures of growth as a powerful, integrating creature that is in constant interaction with the surroundings.

This report used peer-reviewed journals to bridge the existing gap in the research on the impacts of school and family on physical development in middle childhood. The study found that school experience influenced the level of aggression among children in middle childhood. Conversely, the family played a significant role in the cognitive and neural development of children. Kids who assumed responsibilities developed problem-solving skills. The principal conclusion of the study was that school and family played a critical role in physical development in middle childhood.

References

Bjorklund, D., & Ellis, B. (2014). Children, childhood, and development in evolutionary perspective. Developmental Review, 34(3), 225-264.

Dubois-Comtois, K., Moss, E., Cyr, C., & Pascuzzo, K. (2013). Behavior problems in middle childhood: The predictive role of maternal distress, child attachment, and mother-child interactions. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 41(8), 1311-1324.

Elsaesser, C., Gorman-Smith, D., & Henry, D. (2013). The role of the school environment in relational aggression and victimization. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 42(2), 235-249.

Lecce, S., Bianco, F., Devine, R., Hughes, C., & Banerjee, R. (2014). Promoting theory of mind during middle childhood: A training program. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 126(1), 52-67.

Newman, B., & Newman, P. (2015). Development through life: A psychosocial approach (13th ed.). London, UK: Cengage Learning.

Ruthus, S. (2014). Childhood and Adolescence: Voyages in Development (5th ed.). London, UK: Cengage Learning.

A few practical skills and microskills that a professional counsellor needs to establish and maintain a professional relationship with a client include empathy, active listening, reflection of meaning, affirmations, validation, summarising; the true skill is to master all of these with an open mind and having a non-judgmental opinion. Empathy is a crucial skill and one of the most important; it can also come under two parts: Mirroring what another person is feeling or just feeling stressed when we detect anothers fear or anxiety is called affective empathy, which refers to the sensation and feelings we get in response to others emotions (Loughran, 2018). The ability to identify and understand another persons emotions can sometimes be called perspective talking or cognitive empathy.

Active listening involves being immersed in a conversation and fully committed to hearing the speaking person. Active listeners focus attention not only on what the communication partner is saying but also on their paralinguistic aspects such as gestures and facial expressions (Worthington & Fitch-Hauser, 2018). Reflection of meaning involves exploring the true beliefs and perspectives underlying various life experiences and bringing them to the surface to study them in detail. Affirmations refer to messages which can be consciously and subconsciously transmitted to a persons mind reinforcing certain positive behaviors (Dykes et al., 2017). Validation is the recognition of another persons internal experiences as being valid. Emotional validation is distinguished from emotional invalidation in which your own or another persons emotional experiences are readjusted, ignored, or judged (Langs, 2019). Self-validation is the recognition and acknowledgment of your own internal experience. Finally, summarising refers to a paraphrasing of feelings, thoughts, and emotions of a person and putting them in a succinct form, thus identifying the main points voiced by the individual.

The aforementioned skills are essential for the successful development of professional relationships and for establishing proper communication between the specialist and the client. Empathy is fundamental for counsellors since it lets them understand the feelings which their experience on a deeper level. Only by realizing what the client is experiencing can the counsellor provide appropriate help and assistance and correctly assess the degree of their problem (McLeod, 2019). Active listening is important since it assists the counsellor in detecting the keywords and reflecting and or repeating them back to the client. It also helps track whether the clients body language and facial expressions change depending on their answers. This allows more information to be gathered and ultimately contributes to the establishment of professional relationships.

Reflection of meaning encourages the client to take their time to better understand their emotions, thus letting them feel more relaxed and heard within a safe space. Essentially, using reflection of meaning, the counsellor explains to the client what certain experiences in their life meant to them and builds rapport between the two individuals (Reiter, 2017). Affirmations are another type of behaviour which assists the counselor in building a stronger bond with their client by encouraging them and reinforcing their positive beliefs. Validation is also essential for the development of professional relationships because it is a microskill which ultimately lets the counselor believe their client and not dismiss their emotions as invalid. When the client sees that the counselor is genuinely interested in their story, they will be more likely to mention all of the important details about their life. Finally, summarising is important because it can assist the counselor in identifying what was discussed and what will be looked at next time. Thus, the client will be certain that the counselor listens to them and has a path which can eventually lead to positive results.

Representatives of culturally diverse populations are starting to use the services of counsellors more frequently, and professionals need to adjust their practices to help these people in a proper manner. Empathy is one of the main microskills which counselors must employ when assisting individuals of diverse backgrounds. For instance, white counselors must realize that they will not be able to fully experience the racial discrimination which their black clients might be subject to. As a result, such counsellors should use their empathy to better understand the experiences of their clients. Active listening is another microskill which is fundamental for all counselors but especially those who are dealing with culturally diverse clients. For example, counsellors can use active listening when working with people whose English is not their native language and, therefore, they find it hard to speak in it.

Counselors can help such people by asking them additional questions, formulating their ideas in a better way, and restating what they previously said. Reflection of meaning is a universal skill which can be utilized in the same way with people of any cultural background. In other words, counsellors can use a reflection of meaning to provide their culturally diverse clients with a better understanding of their own experiences. Affirmations are a tool which should be employed extensively by counselors when working with clients of different backgrounds. Minorities often experience systemic discrimination, which causes them to develop an inferiority complex. Counselors can use affirmations to encourage such people to believe in themselves and realize that they must not be limited by societys prejudices. Validation is key when the counsellor belongs to a privileged group since, in such cases, diverse clients may not trust them. Through validation, the counselor can show that they are concerned about their clients. Finally, summarizing when working with diverse people should be focused on the points which are culturally relevant to the client and not the counselor.

References

Dykes, F., Postings, T., Kopp, B., & Crouch, A. (2017). Counselling skills and studies. SAGE.

Langs, R. (2019). Ground rules in psychotherapy and counselling. Routledge.

Loughran, H. (2018). Counselling skills for social workers. Routledge.

McLeod, J. (2019). An introduction to counselling and psychotherapy: Theory, research, and practice. McGraw-Hill Education.

Reiter, M. (2017). Family therapy: An introduction to process, practice and theory. Routledge.

Worthington, D., & Fitch-Hauser, M. (2018). Listening: Processes, functions, and competency. Routledge.

Introduction

The development of a person right from birth to adulthood goes through various stages. Some of the characters that a person adapts to are natural, while others come from those who affect the individuals life. Both natural and nurture behaviors shape a persons future attitudes.

Psychosexual Development

Freuds Theory

Freuds theory of psychosexual development states that the age of five establishes the personality. The experiences in ones early life help to develop a person and influence behavior in his or her later stages in life (Diem-Wille, 2011). If a person skips certain steps during this development, he or she becomes fixated at that stage.

The oral stage ranges from birth to one year. The infants primary interaction method is through the mouth. It includes sucking and chewing. The child satisfies needs by tasting, sucking, and eating. One of the conflicts at this stage is weaning to make the child less dependent on caretakers. If fixation occurs at this stage, the child will have dependency issues in later life (Webb, 2009).

The anal stage concentrates on the control of the bladder and bowel movements. When the child develops this control, there is some sense of accomplishment and independence. Parents need to train the child on toilet activities, praise, and reward the child for positive results. However, ridicule and wrong parental responses usually lead to adverse outcomes.

The phallic stage ranges between three and six years. The primary concern is on the genitals. Children start differentiating between males and females (Wilkoff, 2011). Boys learn more towards the mother and see the father as a rival. The boy would also fear punishment from the father for harboring this feeling. The girls go through the penis envy. She begins to have strong attraction feelings towards the father and sees the mother as a rival.

The latent stage starts from the age of six years to puberty. There is the suppression of the libido interests. It leads to the development of the ego and the superego. The child adapts to peer relationships and hobbies because of schooling. The sexual energy changes to intellectual pursuits and social interests. It helps to build self-confidence (Diem-Wille, 2011).

The genital stage begins at puberty through to death. The person develops strong sexual attractions in the opposite sex. The person generates interest in others. If the earlier stages developed successfully, then the person enjoys greater freedom, becomes more caring and well-balanced at this juncture.

Development of the Psychoanalytic Theory

Freuds theory is still relevant in the various study of a persons development. There have been actual observations and also criticism from different quarters. Freuds children went further and developed more study on their fathers theory.

Kohut is another figure who has thrived on the self-psychology principles. It relies on the formation of the sense of self, which is different from Freuds formative stages (Shenk, 2010). Jung and Karen Horney separately studied collective unconsciousness, which is present in all people. Many other theories have developed concerning Freuds studies, which have influenced personality development. Alfred Adler came up with the theory of the psychodynamic person that did not relate to sexual development but social development. Erik Erikson developed the psychosocial theory of development where characters development goes through a series of social relationships. They have all developed their theories around Freuds discoveries.

According to the study, ones life as a child is under the influence of the caretakers. If the parents or guardians fail to provide a positive environment for growth, then the child may have to carry along those values into the adult stage. When the child gets proper training, then it helps to prepare him for the future.

References

Diem-Wille, G. (2011). The early years of life. London: Karnac.

Shenk, D. (2010). The genius in all of us. New York: Anchor Books.

Webb, E. (2009). Worldview and mind. Columbia: University of Missouri Press.

Wilkoff, W. (2011). Nature vs. nurture. Pediatric News, 45(10), 23.

Introduction

Cognitive biases often prevent people and the entire team from efficiently resolving their problems, and when team members have physical issues they intend to solve, the situation is even worse. There are various sources: other members perception of each team member and specific group biases, such as group polarization. Each person with psychical issues should be assessed individually, and then collective impacts between them should be evaluated. Based on that information, one can figure out suggestions about how that issue may be solved.

Team Members Affective Cognitive Functioning

At first, one needs to evaluate the cognitive functioning of the team members: their behavioral peculiarities, cognitive loads, visions of the world, and how other team members perceive them. It will enable to reveal of the problem present in each case: then, various psychological theories and experimental results may be applied to analyze the problem. Analysis should be applied to all five team members, and all other evaluations and decisions will be based on it.

John

He is a 75-year-old Caucasian white man who describes himself as hip, street, and tech-savvy, despite everybody around his claims that this is false. He is the oldest group member and, according to the team members, is forgetful. This means that he has a lot of false memories, probably due to imagination inflation and post-event information effects (Puddifoot & Bortolotti, 2018). Both mechanisms describe cases when real memories mix with false ones: either due to the imagination or twisting the details of the events. Therefore, John has mixed false and true memory in his perception, making it harder for him to live and express himself.

Jill

Jill is a 22-year-old African American who has a shy and closed personality, and such personality traits lead to large problems with self-esteem and motivation. Self-esteem may be defined as ones ability to perceive oneself right, to know oneself, and feel their worth (Szanto & Landweer, 2020). Motivation, on the other hand, is a positive emotion caused by self-knowledge, when one knows what to do and, thus, the number of their working memory increases (Plass & Kalyuga, 2019). Applied to Jill, it means that she probably does not have enough knowledge about herself, does not know what she wants from her life, and cannot apply her knowledge to improve her life quality. She is not motivated to change the situation and chooses to be silent and do nothing.

Joe

Joe is a 35-year-old immigrant who knows English poorly, which creates misunderstandings with others, including his team members. They even tease him, which is a highly inefficient approach and may demotivate him from future language study. According to the cognitive load theory, to learn a language, one uses their working memory with limited capacity (Sweller, 2019). When undergoing stress, the capacity becomes lower; it is why Joe cannot learn a language successfully, as the stress often demotivates him.

Mary

Mary is a 30-year-old, often preoccupied woman who claims that she had been abused in her childhood by her parents. They, on the contrary, say that no such cases were present and, thus, are accusing Mary of lying. It means that the conflict between her and her parents is long-lasting, deep, and probably not easy to solve. Meanwhile, according to the studies, somatic preoccupation and childhood trauma are highly correlating, and this may point out that Marys parents are lying (Sansone et al., 2009). Thus, Mary indeed has childhood trauma, and careful psychotherapy may help her to overcome it.

Ahsan

A 50-year-old woman who is very committed to her native Indian culture, and this connection creates barriers to communication with other cultures. While such a commitment is a good thing by itself, as the United States is a multicultural country, it creates difficulties for socialization. Team members report that Ahsan feels alien to the American culture and has difficulty communicating with others. Cultural heredity consists of a set of beliefs taken from the family, traditions, and religion: all experience connected with those beliefs becomes a part of the cultural background (Jun, 2019). If two sets of beliefs of two people are drastically different, they cannot communicate clearly, and this is the problem of Ahsan in her communication with people in the U.S.

Summarizing the Team

All team members have various psychological problems, despite their severity level. John has severe problems with memory and self-perception that are getting more complicated due to his old age. Jill has problems with self-esteem and motivation that make her very closed, passive, and weak. Joes issues are connected with low language proficiency and a lack of motivation to change it due to often teases and misunderstandings with the world. Marys childhood trauma makes her closed, preoccupied, and distrustful, decreasing life quality. While having no explicit issues, Ahsan feels strong cultural barriers that prevent her from communicating fully with other people.

Affective Functioning and Team Interactions

John: False Memories

One may see that the main problem of John is false memories: his perception of himself is sharply different from the others. They are the results of his perception mix of true memories and imagination (Puddifoot & Bortolotti, 2018). Such false perception creates barriers to Johns communication with others, and teammates often do not take him seriously. By carefully analyzing those mixes, he may separate true memories from the false ones and change his self-perception; in other cases, the problem is probably worse, and John would better visit the doctor.

Jill: A Lack of Social Skills

While Jill does not seem to have large mental issues, a lack of self-esteem highly decreases her quality of life. She is shy, closed, has clear hardships in communicating with others, and has low knowledge about herself (Szanto & Landweer, 2020). In that way, her communication with the team is limited, and she feels that she cannot help her teammates with anything. She needs to know and understand herself better to raise her self-esteem and realize her worthiness for herself and the world.

Joe: Problems with Language

Joe, similarly to Jill, has no specific mental issues, but his lack of English proficiency and problems in communication created by it decreases his motivation, self-esteem, and life quality. Other people, including teammates, often tease him, decreasing his self-esteem even further and demotivating him from learning the language. To help him recover and learn the language successfully, one should motivate and be open to listening to his speeches instead of teasing or ignoring him.

Mary: Preoccupation due to a Trauma

Mary has problems with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and ADA provided her the accommodation due to this. While she can normally communicate with other team members and the consultant, she is often lost in her thought and cannot quickly understand what others say to her. Those are clear signs that the actual trauma is present and should be addressed (Sansone et al., 2009). The main obstacles are her lack of trust in others, while a possible way to help her recover is the talk about traumatic memories, accept them, and move forward without the burden created by her parents.

Ahsan: Cultural Barriers

Ahsan is very committed to her Indian culture, and while it is good, she feels that American culture alienates her. Due to that, she experiences hardships when communicating with all people, including teammates, which is hard for her to fully realize in the world. To understand others better, she would better analyze her beliefs, background, cultural values, and how they may be expressed in the best way (Jun, 2019). In that way, Ahsan will be able to save her cultural commitment while being able to communicate with other people from different backgrounds.

Influences on the Teammates

Each team members cognitive functioning and mental issues may be influenced by teammates, which creates additional effects on them. Each team member is to be quickly analyzed for which positive and negative influences they may undergo while in the team.

• John, as his self-perception does not always match reality, may become criticized. On the other hand, argumentative discussions about his memories may help him to return to his true memory.
• Jill, being a shy and sensitive personality, is vulnerable to anything that she would consider rude for her. However, by helping other team members solve their problems and discussing her mental state, she may raise her self-esteem and eliminate the feeling of worthlessness.
• Joe, with his language issues and misunderstanding, may be influenced negatively as team members sometimes tease him, which is painful and demotivating. On the other hand, the communication experience with the team would provide a necessary practice for him, increasing his language proficiency, in case it will be healthy and efficient communication.
• Mary, having hard traumatic memories, is probably unwilling to speak about them and has problems with trust to other people. Nevertheless, the team may help her to analyze traumatic memories and reduce their negative influence.
• Ahsan, feeling alien in the United States, may be inconvenient to the team; in addition, she may be hard to understand, similarly to Joe, or have difficulty understanding others. Still, the team is a good place for socialization, self-exploring, and learning cross-cultural communication, which will help her in the future.

How Team Members Perceive Teammates

Before one can guide how team members may better communicate, each members perception should be discussed: how other members perceive them. This will enable them to understand which decisions may be made to improve their condition and make the communication between them more productive (Kirschner et al., 2018). John is an old man with twisted self-perception who is often not taken seriously. Jill is a closed girl, and teammates usually do not seek contact with her. Joe is seen as a funny man with low language skills, which often becomes a reason to tease him. Mary is perceived with compassion, but her closeness and lack of trust create large communication barriers. Ahsan feels alien, and team members usually find it hard to communicate with her as they cannot find appropriate themes due to cultural barriers.

In addition, there are cognitive biases that influence teammate perception. An example is group polarization when most of the team members choose some opinions only because other members use them. This is a particularly dangerous bias in this case, as it may lead to wrong and even offensive perceptions of teammates (Jones & Roelofsma, 2000). For example, if one teammate would start to tease Joe for his language or John for his forgetfulness, most of the team would join them in this wrong behavior. In that way, there is a risk of offending team members even if there is no intentional desire to do this, only due to the specific group biases.

Suggestions about Guidance and Communication between Team Members

Language Usage

All team members have various problems, and while they may solve them better together, healthy and efficient communication should be established between them. The first point about communication is language, which should be used during it and should be considered from various perspectives. First, the language should not be offensive to anyone: for example, Joe is teased sometimes due to his heavy accent, while this is his main source of inconvenience. This increases his cognitive load due to negative emotions, preventing him from improving his language and proper communication with the team (Plass & Kalyuga, 2019; Sweller, 2019). Other team members may be offended unintentionally, too: for example, Mary probably has psychological triggers connected with her traumatic memories, Jill with her feeling of worthlessness, and Ahsan with her cultural barriers.

Thus, it would be better to organize the next exercise: each team member should write down, at first, the list of words that they heard from teammates and considered offensive. Then, they write a list of words and phrases they think may be offensive to them. After that, each team member, reads aloud those lists, making sure that teammates become familiar with them. If some of them want to tell something offensive, for example, in response to the behavior they do not like, they write down those words and why they want to tell them. Then, team members communicate about each of those situations, figuring out why they become irritated and how to prevent it in the future. Such communication will create a good collaborative context for the team (Kirschner et al., 2018). It means that teammates will understand each other better and, thus, quickly learn how to cope with their mental issues.

Communication about the Culture and Background

As people in the team came from various cultural and ethnic backgrounds, communication about their culture will help them to adjust their communication. Reflections about their cultural background help people understand themselves better and connect with each other more easily due to the increased trust (Garcia et al., 2003; Jun, 2019). Ahsan is an Indian, which is particularly important for her: she probably will be happy to share their cultural values with teammates, making her less alien to them. Joe, who is from another country, may share his experience, too: this will be a necessary language practice for him and probably will reduce his anxiety due to his low language proficiency. Being African American, Jill may communicate about her family and background, which will help her to open up and feel worthier. For other team members, John and Mary, such communication will help to solve their problems, connected with wrong self-perception and traumatic memories, respectively, by analyzing and exploring them.

In addition, background sharing will help to close the generation gap caused by various ages of the team members: from 22 to 75. It will help to understand the language usage by various people, depending on their home country and culture, historical context, and other conditions (Suad, 2019). In that way, sharing the background will improve mutual understanding, similar to the exercises with language usage.

Memory Checking

Problems with false or traumatic memories are the actual problem for at least two members of the group: John and Mary. The former has twisted self-perception, which is different than his actual appearance and behavior, as noted by teammates (Puddifoot & Bortolotti, 2018). Mary, on the contrary, has hard childhood memories, on which she is probably fixed, thinking about them repeatedly (Sansone et al., 2009). Writing down all memories would help both of them: John can see which memories seem to be true and which not, while Mary will see more clearly how she may get rid of intrusive memories about trauma. Jill, for example, will be able to increase her self-knowledge, and Ahsan to become more conscious about how to express her cultural beliefs. In that way, this method will be helpful for all team members in various ways: from checking their memory to increasing their self-knowledge.

Discussion of the Emotions

Emotions are an important element of the human personality, and discussions about them would help all team members better understand themselves and other teammates. They affect cognitive load in various ways, either positively or negatively, enhancing or suppressing cognitive abilities (Plass & Kalyuga, 2019). Team members may explore emotions in various ways, one of which is writing down emotions when they experience them and then writing the most often experienced emotions. Then, each member may present those emotions to teammates, and the discussion would help them to understand their own emotions, as well as the emotions of others, increasing mutual trust and self-knowledge.

Ethical Decisions

To ensure that everybody will be happy when those suggestions are applied, one should apply them ethically, without harming each other. In general, it means careful analysis of all team members answers, considering their triggers and words which they find offensive and their cultural backgrounds (Garcia et al., 2003). For example, no teasing toward Joes low language proficiency or Johns loss of his memory should be present. When one feels irritated about such behavior, they will better write about it in their notebook, and after the session, all notes should be analyzed thoroughly. No discrimination based on skin color, nationality, age, or gender should be present, and all its manifestations should be prevented (Jun, 2019). In that way, basic ethical principles used for the suggestion are the thorough analysis of all information provided by team members and the ban on any discrimination.

Conclusion

To help teammates communicate efficiently about their problems and solve them, first, they should be analyzed and explored. Then, the effective functioning of each person should be elucidated based on the problem analysis. They will show how each of them tends to behave and react to teammates and the potential ways to solve the issues. Then, the interactions between teammates are analyzed: how team members influence their teammates and how their teammates perceive them. Based on all of that information, suggestions about guidance are present. There are four of them: conscious language usage, communications about the cultural backgrounds, memory checking to analyze teammates past, and discussion of their emotions. Then, ethical principles used during the formulation of recommendations are shortly described: their basis is the careful analysis of all information provided by team members and forbidding any discrimination.

References

Garcia, J. G., Cartwright, B., Winston, S. M., & Borzuchowska, B. (2003). A transcultural integrative model for ethical decision making in counseling. Journal of Counseling & Development, 81(3), 268277. Web.

Jones, P. E., & Roelofsma, P. H. M. P. (2000). The potential for social contextual and group biases in team decision-making: Biases, conditions and psychological mechanisms. Ergonomics, 43(8), 11291152. Web.

Jun, H. (2019). Social justice, multicultural counseling, and practice: Beyond a conventional approach. Springer.

Kirschner, P. A., Sweller, J., Kirschner, F., & Zambrano R., J. (2018). From cognitive load theory to collaborative cognitive load theory. International Journal of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, 13(2), 213233. Web.

Plass, J. L., & Kalyuga, S. (2019). Four ways of considering emotion in cognitive load theory. Educational Psychology Review, 31(2), 339359. Web.

Puddifoot, K., & Bortolotti, L. (2018). Epistemic innocence and the production of false memory beliefs. Philosophical Studies, 176(3), 755780. Web.

Sansone, R. A., Wiederman, M. W., Tahir, N. A., & Buckner, V. R. (2009). A re-examination of childhood trauma and somatic preoccupation. International Journal of Psychiatry in Clinical Practice, 13(3), 233237. Web.

Suad, M. A. S. A.-L. (2019). Understanding the psychology of youths: Generation gap. International Journal of Psychology and Counselling, 11(6), 4658. Web.

Sweller, J. (2019). Cognitive load theory and educational technology. Educational Technology Research and Development, 68(1). Web.

Szanto, T., & Landweer, H. (2020). The Routledge handbook of phenomenology of emotion. Routledge.

Introduction

Several philosophers as well as psychologists have conducted researches in the quest to understand human beings and be able to explain their behaviors. The 19^th and 20^th centuries were characterized by increased findings particularly in the field of human personality. Among the many schools of thought that emerged, especially in Europe and American, existentialism and humanistic approaches were the most strongly advocated (Solomon, 2005). Humanistic approaches consider all human beings as being inherently good and have the potential of achieving the best they can be. Existentialism as a philosophy, on the other hand, emphasize on the existence, freedom as well as choice that an individual can be able to make (Cooper, 1999). Despite the significantly varying opinions that different proponents of existentialism have put forward, they share some common bases which have been classified under the existential philosophy. They all share the proposition that human beings exist and that due to the existence, they seek to determine their individual essence in the world using subjective methods. In the process, individuals wander between choice, freedom, and existential anguish (Solomon, 2005). The paper seeks to critically elaborate Rollo Mays existential theory of personality. It will briefly introduce the existential philosophy before narrowing to Mays ideas on death anxiety, freedom and responsibility, and meaninglessness. The similarities and differences in relation to Yaloms theory will also be discussed.

Body

The existential philosophy was first coined by a Danish philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard who lived between 1813 and 1855. His development of existentialism was triggered by the rational philosophys emphasize on abstract rationalism which he did not agree with (Luper, 2000). He was posthumously recognized as the father of existentialism because many of his theological and philosophical writings were to provide a foundation for the existentialists of the 20^th century like Rollo May, Gabriel Marcel, Jean-Paul Sartre, among others. The movement grew rapidly at the dawn of the 20^th century in Europe. During the infamous WW II, existentialism spread even more following the emergence of two prominent French philosophers, Sartre and Albert Camus (Luper, 2000).

Existentialism recognizes that the greatest challenge for human beings is the knowledge of the fact of their temporary existence in the world. Another challenge is that of perceiving life as having no inherent meaning where meaning was to be constructed and impacted by individuals. According to existentialists, human beings are regarded as being authentic if they have the courage to encounter the futility of existence and still move on to give meaning to their individual lives (Solomon, 2005). Most advocates of existentialism focused on the philosophical doctrine which was interested in understanding human experiences using subjective considerations as opposed to objective reality (Cooper, 1999). It is from these basic ideas of existentialism that Rollo May developed his theory of personality. Some of the areas that he studied include; death anxiety, freedom and responsibility, and meaninglessness.

Rollo May is a renowned American existential psychologist since he was the first person to introduce the concept of existentialism in the United States of America. He lived between April 1909 and October 1994. Many associated him with the humanistic movement but most of his work was greatly influenced by existentialists like Paul Tillich, a theology philosopher, and Kierkegaards work. He authored influential books which include; The Meaning of Anxiety, Love and Will (1969), and The Courage to Create. He held a bachelors degree in English (major) and in 1949 he obtained a PhD in clinical psychology from Columbia University (Cooper, 1999). May, in his quest to explore existentialism used the existing terms in the field in a different way and he also formulated other new terms. Instead of the traditional fallenness, May used the term destiny to imply that part of human beings lives that is predetermined and upon which men ought to shape their future individual beings (Luper, 2000). In general, Mays psychotherapy advocates that human beings have the potential of shaping their own future/destiny.

The central issue in existential psychology, according to May is the fact that all existence in the world ultimately ends in death. This results in anxiety since human beings have to choose either to retreat into nothingness or face the challenge and resolve to BE. From Mays perspective, the main objective of existential psychotherapy, therefore, is to enable human beings to be what they can become and to help them still to embrace the responsibility for their individual lives such that they are aware of the fact that their actions have consequences (Solomon, 2005). With the reality of death raising anxiety, May used the term courage to imply the determination to face and resist anxiety.

May focused on the development of psychopathology in three particular areas; death anxiety, freedom and will, and meaninglessness. From Mays perspective of personality, anxiety can be defined as the fear prompted by a given form of threat to some value/belief system which an individual considers as being essential for his or her existence as an individual (Luper, 2000). Kierkegaard defined anxiety as the dizziness of human freedom. From Mays personality consideration, man is always faced by the challenge of death as the sure end of existence. Death, therefore, according to May, causes significant anxiety in an individual which results in different forms of reactions. Man experiences anguish on realizing that one cannot avoid death by any means. Human beings can decide to either view life as being full of nothingness or rise up to face the challenge with a resolution to BE regardless of the fact of death (Solomon, 2005). On the other hand, anxiety can lead to intense withdrawal from the world. May observed that neurotic manifestations indicate the struggle with reality that man experiences as a result of inauthentic life. He also pointed out that suicide is the extreme consequence of man retreating into nothingness. Abnormality in behavior, according to May, is a form of defense of oneself from danger. He encouraged the use of any means to allow one to live an authentic life and relate well with other people. May believed that the role of the pathology ought to be to help human beings overcome anxiety, particularly that which is associated with a feeling of inadequacy and guilt.

The next concept is freedom and responsibility as far as personality is concerned. May noted that human beings need freedom to make choices in life in order to give meaning to their existence. He, however, established some stages of development in relation to freedom and responsibility (Cooper, 1999). The first stage is that of innocence where a child acts and behaves how it should, depending on the driving force to meet needs as outlined by humanists. The second is the rebellious stage which is characterized by a persons need for freedom although the associated responsibilities are not yet clear the individual. This is mostly dominant among adolescents. The third is the decision making stage where a person seeks independence from parents and move on to an ordinary stage. Here, the individual must meet the rebellious requirements and decide what to do with their individual lives. The ordinary stage is marked by maturity and the full understanding of ones actions. The person can take full responsibility of choices and decisions made in life albeit with some difficulty, hence resorting to conform and being conventional. The last is the creative stage which is characterized by authentic living with no egocentric personality manifestations. May concluded that man must seek freedom and accept the accompanying consequences if his or her existence is to be considered authentic (Solomon, 2005).

On meaninglessness, May sought to understand why people loose faith in the values in life and the related consequences. May noted that the consequences of loosing commitment to some sets of value systems include loneliness and emptiness which makes an individual to view life as worthless (Solomon, 2005). It is this crisis that May referred to as meaninglessness. He proposed that human beings must take responsibility of all actions and give meaning to existence (Solomon, 2005). This is quite similar to Yaloms view of isolation and its consequences. Yalom explored three types of isolation; interpersonal, intrapersonal and existential isolation. He concluded that man can be considered as being incapable of eliminating isolation in life (Bartz, 2009). While attending to their clients, May argues that the therapists must help them find meaning in their lives rather than imposing pre-determined solutions to peoples problems.

Just like Mays perspective of anxiety, Yalom noted that this fact of inevitable isolation raises anxiety among people. As a result, one may fail to accept this fact and become neurotic or dependent. If a man accepts the fact, he or she would be able to relate deeply with others (Bartz, 2009). Irvin D. Yalom was Mays mentee and hence most of their existential theories of personality do not have many, if any, differences.

May, just like other theorists received different criticisms concerning his pathological view of human beings especially due to his existentialist perspective. May claimed that his perspective has some concepts from psychoanalytic theorists but in an improved form which is less deterministic. He also defended himself from being seen as a positivist by arguing that existentialism is scientific in nature.

Conclusion

The paper has discussed existentialism in a broad sense, with emphasize on Mays perspective of human personality. It has elaborated Rollo Mays view of psychopathological development of human beings in three areas; death anxiety, freedom and responsibility, and meaninglessness. It has also highlighted the similarities with Yaloms existential theory of personality. We can therefore conclude that Mays contribution brought a great change in how people viewed existentialism due to his skillful reconciliation of humanistic, Freudian and existential approaches of explaining personality.

References

Bartz, J. D. (2009). Existential psychotherapy: Yaloms perspective. American Psychological Association. Vol. 2(3), 23-78

Cooper, D. E. (1999). Existential Thought: A Reconstruction (2^nd ed.). Oxford, UK: Blackwell.

Luper, S. (ed.) (2000). Existence: An Introduction to Existential Philosophy. Mountain View, California: Mayfield.

Solomon, R. C. (ed.) (2005). Understanding Existentialism (2^nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.