Personality of Psychology Exam 2 Questions and Answers with Verified
Solutions 2025
Discuss Horney's concepts of basic hostility and basic anxiety. - ✔✔Hostility is created when parents
don't satisfy children's needs for safety and satisfaction, anxiety is created when they have hostility but
repress it so they don't feel bad.
All children need feelings of safety and security, but these can be gained only by love from parents.
Unfortunately, parents often neglect, dominate, reject, or overindulge their children, conditions that
lead to the child's feelings of basic hostility toward parents. If children repress feelings of basic hostility,
they will develop feelings of insecurity and a pervasive sense of apprehension called basic anxiety.
Karen Horney's Biography - ✔✔Karen Horney, who was born in Eilbek (Hamburg, Germany) in
September 15th, 1885. She was the only daughter of Berndt Danielson and Clothida van Ronzelem
Danielsen (18 years younger than dad). She had one older brother (4 years older) and four half brothers
from dad's previous marriage. She was hostile towards dad for being religious hypocrite, but loved
mom. She was one of the first women in that country admitted to medical school. There, she became
acquainted with Freudian theory and eventually became a psychoanalyst and a psychiatrist. In her mid-
40s, Horney left Germany to settle in the United States, first in Chicago and then in New York. She soon
abandoned orthodox psychoanalysis in favor of a more socially oriented theory-one that had a more
positive view of feminine development. She died in 1952 at age 67.
Basic Anxiety - ✔✔It is created when children have hostility but repress it so they don't feel badly - a
feeling of being small, insignificant, helpless, deserted. If children repress feelings of basic hostility, they
will develop feelings of insecurity and a pervasive sense of apprehension called basic anxiety.
Basic Hostility - ✔✔It is created when parents do not satisfy children's needs for safety and satisfaction
People can protect themselves from basic anxiety through a number of protective devices. What
defense strategies does basic anxiety deal with? - ✔✔(1) affection, (2) submissiveness, (3) power,
prestige, or possession, and (4) withdrawal. Normal people have the flexibility to use any or all of these
approaches, but neurotics are compelled to rely rigidly on only one.
What was Horney's theory overview? - ✔✔Horney's work was very relational - how we relate to others
influences our personality development (and further relations). Society is relatively evil in her theory - it
demands success and achievement that are impossible to achieve, making us feel unworthy. Difficulties
,in childhood are responsible for neurotic (anxious) behaviors. Her theory assumes that social and
cultural conditions, especially during childhood, have a powerful effect on later personality.
List and discuss Horney's categories of neurotic needs. - ✔✔Horney identified 10 categories of neurotic
needs that mark neurotics in their attempt to reduce basic anxiety. These include needs (1) for affection
and approval, (2) for a powerful partner (3) to restrict one's life within narrow borders, (4) for power, (5)
to exploit others, (6) for social recognition or prestige, (7) for personal admiration, (8) for ambition and
personal achievement, (9) for self-sufficiency and independence, and (10) for perfection and
unassailability.
Neurotic needs stem from childhood experiences and may become part of the personality. Investigate
the neurotic needs and see which, if any, dominate your personality
Describe Horney's three neurotic trends. - ✔✔The three neurotic tends are (1) moving toward people, in
which compliant people protect themselves against feelings of helplessness by attaching themselves to
other people (helplessness); (2) moving against people, in which aggressive people protect themselves
against perceived hostility of others by exploiting others (hostile); and (3) moving away from people, in
which detached people protect themselves against feelings of isolation by appearing arrogant and aloof
(isolation).
Idealized self-image - ✔✔solve conflicts by creating an idealized image of self
Neurotic search for glory - ✔✔the need for perfection, neurotic ambition, drive toward vindictive
triumph
Tyranny of the should - ✔✔trying to achieve perfection by erecting a complex set of "shoulds" and
"should nots"
Neurotic claims - ✔✔build a fantasty world and claim they are special/entitled to be treated well
Neurotic pride - ✔✔false pride, not based on reality (based on idealized self-image); loudly proclaimed
in order to protect personal image
Discuss the modes of expression of self hatred. - ✔✔Neurotics dislike themselves because reality always
falls short of their idealized view of self. Therefore, they learn self-hatred, which can be expressed as: (1)
, relentless demands on the self, (2) merciless self-accusation, (3) self-contempt, (4) self-frustration, (5)
self-torment or self-torture, and (6) self-destructive actions
and impulses.
Discuss Horney's concepts of feminine psychology. - ✔✔Horney believed that psychological differences
between men and women are not due to anatomy but to culture and social expectations. Her view of
the Oedipus complex differed markedly from Freud's in that she insisted that any sexual attraction or
hostility of child to parent would be the result of learning and not biology.
Difference between Freud and Horney? - ✔✔She believed that strict adherence to psychoanalysis would
lead to stagnation in theory and practice. Objected to Freud's beliefs about women's psyche.
Psychoanalysis should move beyond instinct theory and emphasize the importance of cultural influences
in shaping personality. Cannot overemphasize the importance of culture. Horney criticized Freudian
theory on at least three accounts: (1) its rigidity toward new ideas, (2) its skewed view of feminine
psychology, and (3) its overemphasis on biology and the pleasure principle.
What are some critiques of her theory? - ✔✔There is generally a lack of research on how this applies to
normal personalities. Not really sure what the term self-realization actually means.
Her theory fall short on its ability to generate research and to submit its terms to falsifiability (few
testable hypotheses). Her theory, however, in terms of neurotics is well organized, but not so with
normal people. Her guide to action of practitioners is better but there are few details on exactly what to
do with patients. Her theory has low internal consistency and uses terms and concepts in different ways.
While her writing is very clear her use of simple terms in her work gives her a high mark. Her theory of
humanity is deterministic while the individual, to some extent, has free choice. Her theory is both
optimistic and pessimistic with a tendency toward the curative powers of human. Her theory is both
causal and teleological. She believed in the strength and influence of the conscious, social motivation
over the unconscious. Her emphasis on the social nature of humans as well as cultural influences places
her theory as more social than biological. Finally, she places emphasis on the similarities between
people rather than on their uniqueness.
Compare and contrast the theories of Fromm with those of Horney and Freud. - ✔✔Erich Fromm's
humanistic psychoanalysis looks at people from the perspective of psychology, history, and
anthropology. Influenced by Freud and Horney, Fromm developed a more culturally oriented theory
than Freud's and a much broader theory than Horney's.
Erich Fromm's biography - ✔✔Erich Fromm was born in Germany in 1900, the only child of orthodox
Jewish parents. A thoughtful young man, Fromm was influenced by the bible, Freud, and Marx, as well
Solutions 2025
Discuss Horney's concepts of basic hostility and basic anxiety. - ✔✔Hostility is created when parents
don't satisfy children's needs for safety and satisfaction, anxiety is created when they have hostility but
repress it so they don't feel bad.
All children need feelings of safety and security, but these can be gained only by love from parents.
Unfortunately, parents often neglect, dominate, reject, or overindulge their children, conditions that
lead to the child's feelings of basic hostility toward parents. If children repress feelings of basic hostility,
they will develop feelings of insecurity and a pervasive sense of apprehension called basic anxiety.
Karen Horney's Biography - ✔✔Karen Horney, who was born in Eilbek (Hamburg, Germany) in
September 15th, 1885. She was the only daughter of Berndt Danielson and Clothida van Ronzelem
Danielsen (18 years younger than dad). She had one older brother (4 years older) and four half brothers
from dad's previous marriage. She was hostile towards dad for being religious hypocrite, but loved
mom. She was one of the first women in that country admitted to medical school. There, she became
acquainted with Freudian theory and eventually became a psychoanalyst and a psychiatrist. In her mid-
40s, Horney left Germany to settle in the United States, first in Chicago and then in New York. She soon
abandoned orthodox psychoanalysis in favor of a more socially oriented theory-one that had a more
positive view of feminine development. She died in 1952 at age 67.
Basic Anxiety - ✔✔It is created when children have hostility but repress it so they don't feel badly - a
feeling of being small, insignificant, helpless, deserted. If children repress feelings of basic hostility, they
will develop feelings of insecurity and a pervasive sense of apprehension called basic anxiety.
Basic Hostility - ✔✔It is created when parents do not satisfy children's needs for safety and satisfaction
People can protect themselves from basic anxiety through a number of protective devices. What
defense strategies does basic anxiety deal with? - ✔✔(1) affection, (2) submissiveness, (3) power,
prestige, or possession, and (4) withdrawal. Normal people have the flexibility to use any or all of these
approaches, but neurotics are compelled to rely rigidly on only one.
What was Horney's theory overview? - ✔✔Horney's work was very relational - how we relate to others
influences our personality development (and further relations). Society is relatively evil in her theory - it
demands success and achievement that are impossible to achieve, making us feel unworthy. Difficulties
,in childhood are responsible for neurotic (anxious) behaviors. Her theory assumes that social and
cultural conditions, especially during childhood, have a powerful effect on later personality.
List and discuss Horney's categories of neurotic needs. - ✔✔Horney identified 10 categories of neurotic
needs that mark neurotics in their attempt to reduce basic anxiety. These include needs (1) for affection
and approval, (2) for a powerful partner (3) to restrict one's life within narrow borders, (4) for power, (5)
to exploit others, (6) for social recognition or prestige, (7) for personal admiration, (8) for ambition and
personal achievement, (9) for self-sufficiency and independence, and (10) for perfection and
unassailability.
Neurotic needs stem from childhood experiences and may become part of the personality. Investigate
the neurotic needs and see which, if any, dominate your personality
Describe Horney's three neurotic trends. - ✔✔The three neurotic tends are (1) moving toward people, in
which compliant people protect themselves against feelings of helplessness by attaching themselves to
other people (helplessness); (2) moving against people, in which aggressive people protect themselves
against perceived hostility of others by exploiting others (hostile); and (3) moving away from people, in
which detached people protect themselves against feelings of isolation by appearing arrogant and aloof
(isolation).
Idealized self-image - ✔✔solve conflicts by creating an idealized image of self
Neurotic search for glory - ✔✔the need for perfection, neurotic ambition, drive toward vindictive
triumph
Tyranny of the should - ✔✔trying to achieve perfection by erecting a complex set of "shoulds" and
"should nots"
Neurotic claims - ✔✔build a fantasty world and claim they are special/entitled to be treated well
Neurotic pride - ✔✔false pride, not based on reality (based on idealized self-image); loudly proclaimed
in order to protect personal image
Discuss the modes of expression of self hatred. - ✔✔Neurotics dislike themselves because reality always
falls short of their idealized view of self. Therefore, they learn self-hatred, which can be expressed as: (1)
, relentless demands on the self, (2) merciless self-accusation, (3) self-contempt, (4) self-frustration, (5)
self-torment or self-torture, and (6) self-destructive actions
and impulses.
Discuss Horney's concepts of feminine psychology. - ✔✔Horney believed that psychological differences
between men and women are not due to anatomy but to culture and social expectations. Her view of
the Oedipus complex differed markedly from Freud's in that she insisted that any sexual attraction or
hostility of child to parent would be the result of learning and not biology.
Difference between Freud and Horney? - ✔✔She believed that strict adherence to psychoanalysis would
lead to stagnation in theory and practice. Objected to Freud's beliefs about women's psyche.
Psychoanalysis should move beyond instinct theory and emphasize the importance of cultural influences
in shaping personality. Cannot overemphasize the importance of culture. Horney criticized Freudian
theory on at least three accounts: (1) its rigidity toward new ideas, (2) its skewed view of feminine
psychology, and (3) its overemphasis on biology and the pleasure principle.
What are some critiques of her theory? - ✔✔There is generally a lack of research on how this applies to
normal personalities. Not really sure what the term self-realization actually means.
Her theory fall short on its ability to generate research and to submit its terms to falsifiability (few
testable hypotheses). Her theory, however, in terms of neurotics is well organized, but not so with
normal people. Her guide to action of practitioners is better but there are few details on exactly what to
do with patients. Her theory has low internal consistency and uses terms and concepts in different ways.
While her writing is very clear her use of simple terms in her work gives her a high mark. Her theory of
humanity is deterministic while the individual, to some extent, has free choice. Her theory is both
optimistic and pessimistic with a tendency toward the curative powers of human. Her theory is both
causal and teleological. She believed in the strength and influence of the conscious, social motivation
over the unconscious. Her emphasis on the social nature of humans as well as cultural influences places
her theory as more social than biological. Finally, she places emphasis on the similarities between
people rather than on their uniqueness.
Compare and contrast the theories of Fromm with those of Horney and Freud. - ✔✔Erich Fromm's
humanistic psychoanalysis looks at people from the perspective of psychology, history, and
anthropology. Influenced by Freud and Horney, Fromm developed a more culturally oriented theory
than Freud's and a much broader theory than Horney's.
Erich Fromm's biography - ✔✔Erich Fromm was born in Germany in 1900, the only child of orthodox
Jewish parents. A thoughtful young man, Fromm was influenced by the bible, Freud, and Marx, as well
