Sayedra Psychology Blog & Rabia Sinem Çiftçi

Transactional Analysis

Rabia Sinem Çiftçi — Wed, 01 Nov 2023 09:28:58 +0300

Eric Berne developed the theory of transactional analysis based on 3 basic assumptions. These are listed as follows:

1) Every human being is OKEY

2) Everyone has the capacity to think.

3) Everyone can decide and choose for themselves what will happen in their lives.

In order to make the inter-experiential context more understandable, Berne analyzed the human self under three main headings as child, parent and adult and called them "Ego States". All our observable behaviors in our daily lives are a reflection of our childhood and can be explained by these three ego states. In our childhood, we produce some strategies to survive, to be accepted and to adapt. These strategies also manifest themselves in our adult lives, influencing the decisions we make and our personality. Although at first glance these ego states are similar to Freud's id, ego and super ego, there are many points where they differ.

Child Ego State

Early childhood is shaped by our experiences. The child establishes a connection between a certain event and the behavior he/she should exhibit in response to it, and records these two phenomena. In similar situations, they may exhibit similar behaviors or reactions. These records are often influential in a person's life in adulthood. The child ego differs from the id in that it is conscious, learning-based and observable. Although a person may exhibit irrational and inconsistent behaviors under the influence of child ego, in fact, every human being is a child, so childishness, acting like a child does not always indicate a negative or problematic personality structure. The child ego is divided into two in terms of functional analysis:

1) Natural (free) child has unpredictable transitions of emotion and behavior, attends to physical needs, and behaves as he or she feels, without concern for what the outside world has to say. He is independent, charming and charming.

2) Adaptive (Adapted) Child represents the harmonious, well-behaved child model that a person develops in childhood in order not to lose the approval of his/her parents. On the other hand, he/she may sometimes exhibit rebellious attitudes in the face of restrictive parents. For this reason, the distinctive feature of the adapted child is that he/she develops attitudes that are compatible with manipulations rather than what comes from within.

Adult Ego State

It has more autonomous characteristics than other ego states. The person evaluates and interprets the information received from the outside world in his/her own way. The adult ego state cannot be completely associated with chronological age; reason, logic, common sense and awareness are its primary characteristics.

Parent Ego State

This ego state, like the child's ego state, completes its development in early childhood. The child internalizes the reactions of his/her parents in the face of their attitudes and turns them into behaviors. In adulthood, these behaviors are recalled and applied in the face of similar events. The parental ego state gives messages about what and how to do things. It is personal as everyone perceives the ego state of the parent in their own way. It is divided into two in terms of functional analysis:

1) Critical Parents act as teachers. They show a directive, judgmental attitude towards others. People who frequently use this ego state are quick-tempered, dissatisfied and have a punitive attitude. They act within social rules and subjective interests.

2) Protective Parents are expected to give compassionate messages to others, to be kind, polite and helpful

Transactional analysis claims that we determine our own level of worthiness in the light of all these childhood experiences and selected ego states. In this context, Thomas A. Harris states that there are 4 basic life states and that a person can have all of these states but one of them will be more dominant.

1) I am not OKEY, you are OKEY

2) I'm not OKEY, you're not OKEY

3) I'm OKEY, you're not OKEY

4) I'm OKEY, you're OKEY

The current life situation has a direct impact on the individual's communication with himself/herself and with other people. It determines whether the person perceives his/her experiences as positive or negative. At the same time, the chosen life situation will also form the basis for the person's decision on the "life scenario".

Life scripts are shaped by the basic life stages as well as the positive and negative messages received and internalized from parents in childhood. As a result of early childhood experiences, a person produces life scenarios that will be used as a guide throughout his/her life. If we think of this as a scenario of a theater play, even if the other actors or the theater stage changes, the person's life scenario will be shaped.



REFERENCES

Zümbül, S. (2021). Comprehensive Overview of Transactional Analysis Therapy: A Review Study. Anadolu University Journal of Education Faculty, 5 (1), 51-80. DOI: 10.34056/aujef.769576
Zengin, E. (2019). Transactional Analysis Analysis of the Movie "Inside Out" in the Context of the Effect of Ego States on Communication. Adnan Menderes University Social Sciences Institute Journal, 6 (1), 30-51. Retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/adusobed/issue/47467/430196

Theory of Constructed Emotion

Rabia Sinem Çiftçi — Fri, 27 Oct 2023 15:43:02 +0300

Before the Constructed Emotion Theory, the question "What is emotion?",which has been the subject of many debates throughout history, should be answered. This question, which still has different definitions in different disciplines today, can be generally explained as follows: a set of personal experiences that come with physiological, neurological, cognitive and behavioral reactions. As with many by-the-book definitions, this one is also up in the air. So let's take a look at the theories of emotion that have been put forward from the past to the present to ground the issue.

Darwin Evolutionary Theory
While explaining the process of evolution in terms of mental activities, Darwin also put forward a theory of emotion. According to Darwin, emotional expressions are not learned, they are innate. It manifests as part of the survival instinct. For this reason, many emotions are expressed in the same way, do not differ from person to person and do not carry a communicative function.

James-Lange Theory
According to this theory, emotions arise when physiological changes are interpreted by the brain. For example, in times of danger, we feel fear because our heartbeat speeds up, but our heartbeat does not speed up because we feel fear.

Cannon-Bard Theory
James-Lange emerged as a critic of the emotion theory. This theory argues that physiological reactions alone are not sufficient for the perception of emotions and draws attention to the presence of cognitive activities. It reveals that the reactionary speed of physiological reactions is much slower than the emergence of emotion and that physiological reactions may be the common expression of many emotions or situations.

Stanley Schachter Theory of Emotion
Schachter argues that it is not possible to separate physiological and cognitive processes when explaining emotion, and that personal experiences also play a role in expressing emotions or physiological reactions.

In the light of these theories, Lisa Feldman Barrett put forward a theory that aims to scientifically explain the experience and perception of emotion. According to the Constructed Emotion Theory, it is not possible to explain the perception and expression of emotions only by genetic factors, physiological reactions and survival instinct. Each person has unique cultural, social and psychological experiences. Therefore, it is inevitable that there will be differences in how emotions are perceived and expressed.

Emotions are perceived in the brain through a series of neural networks that work in cooperation, one after the other. Our brains do not have separate neural structures for each emotion. For this reason, Barrett argues that a stimulus can elicit more than one emotion in our brain. In order to eliminate this confusion, he uses the term "Categories of Emotion". According to the structured emotion theory, while perceiving emotions, our brain creates a model for any functional action by taking into account the current situation and past experiences of the person, which makes emotions predictable. In other words, an object or event does not need to have been experienced before for it to be placed in any emotion category. The brain predicts and categorizes the present moment thanks to internal perceptual predictions and the models it has previously created in order to create an example of emotion at a given moment. Through this process, it concretizes the experience of perceiving a seemingly abstract emotion. For example, if one predicts the unpleasant effect of the presence of a year, this is categorized by the brain and the experience of fear emerges.

In conclusion, instances of emotion are constructed across the entire brain by multiple brain networks in collaboration. The components that go into this construction include internal perception, concepts and social reality. Internal predictions provide information about the state of the body and ultimately produce emotions such as basic, anger, fear, disgust, surprise, happiness and unhappiness. All these emotions combine with one's experiences and universal truths to form a code in the brain. As a result of the codes recalled through real or anticipated stimuli, the perception of the emotion is realized. Instead of following the path of proving or disproving previous theories, Barrett asked new and more comprehensive questions. He aimed to present a scientific fact by concretizing the concepts. Although he dismissed some of the old assumptions of the classical view, his proposed hypotheses provided a coherent theory.

References

Barrett, L. F. (2006). "Solving the emotion paradox: Categorization and the experience of emotion". Personality and Social Psychology Review. 10 (1): 20-46.

CASTRATION ANXIETY&CASTRATION CONFUSION

Rabia Sinem Çiftçi — Fri, 01 Sep 2023 19:12:47 +0300

First, let us dwell on the words that make up the concept. Castration is a word of English and French origin and is used in our language as "castration, sterilization". Castration anxiety is the anxiety of being castrated and castration confusion is the anxiety of being castrated.
The period between the ages of 3-6, which is the third of children's psychosexual development processes and called the "Phallic Period", is a very important process in which the child's sexual perception is formed. According to Freud, castration anxiety-confusion emerges precisely in this period. The child searches for meaning between the presence and absence of the penis by comparing sexual organs. Freud treats castration in two different ways for boys and girls. While he used the term castration anxiety for boys, he found the term castration confusion appropriate for girls. Because it is not possible for a girl to be anxious about losing something she does not already have.
Castration anxiety, which Freud suggests occurs in boys, first begins when the child discovers the existence of a penis. This situation is parallel to the Oedipus complex that emerges in boys. According to the Oedipus complex, the male child shows excessive attachment to the mother, has sexual and romantic feelings for her and therefore sees the father as a rival. In the next stage, the boy realizes that women do not have penises and attributes this to castration by an authority. For the child who is left alone with the fear that the father, the closest authority to him, will castrate him, the father figure is no longer a rival but a threat. The best thing that can be done for the child who cannot cope with the fear of castration is to submit. John David Nasio summarizes this last process as follows: "The child, whose narcissistic love for his penis is more intense than his sexual desire for his mother, gives up incestuous feelings and obeys his father's law". The Oedipus complex and castration anxiety, which initially arise almost in parallel and feed each other, end with the anxiety overcoming the complex. Freud sees this as a healthy part of the process of psychosexual development.
In girls, the process is similar, although with some differences. Daughters also start out with the idea that everyone should have a penis, but over time they realize that they and their mother do not have a penis. Of course, for many children in this age group, the mother is considered the primary caregiver and has a very important place. However, over time, the child confronts the misconception that the lack of penis is a trait he inherited from his mother or that he was castrated by his mother. At this point, the castration complex becomes the triggering force of the Oedipus complex. The girl child moves away from the mother and establishes a more violent bond with the father figure.
While explaining the castration complex, Sigmund Freud also introduced many concepts such as "penis deprivation, penis envy, phallic monism". All these clearly show that Freud tried to explain human sexuality and libido on a purely masculine basis, based on the presence or absence of the penis. His attempt to explain a developmental process, which is thought to be highly influential in the future character traits of the child, through the male sexual organ can be interpreted as a rejection of femininity and a disadvantageous position for women. For this reason and because it is a theory that is based only on heterosexual individuals and ignores a large part of the society, it has been criticized by many groups, especially the feminist school. Castration anxiety-conflict is still the subject of many debates today.

Burrhus Frederic Skinner

Rabia Sinem Çiftçi — Tue, 13 Jun 2023 12:57:50 +0300

Burrhus Frederic Skinner, 20 Mart 1904'te Pennsylvania'nın küçük bir kasabası olan Susquehanna'da doğdu. Babası cumhuriyetçi bir avukat ve annesi bir toprak sahibi olan Skinner, çok katı bir disiplinle büyüdüğünü belirtiyor: “Bana Tanrı'dan, polisten ve onların gelecek hakkında ne düşüneceklerinden korkmam öğretildi. Sonuç olarak, genellikle vermemiz gerekeni fazla çaba harcamadan yapmak zorunda kalıyoruz.”

Skinner, 1922'de New York'taki Hamilton Koleji'ne girdi ve burada lisans eğitimini İngiliz Edebiyatı alanında tamamladı. Genç yaşlarından itibaren şiir ve nesirle ilgilendi. Lisans eğitimi sırasında katıldığı seminerler ve aldığı derslerle yazar olma yolunda ilerlediğini kanıtladı. Mezun olduğu bir sonraki eve döndü ve kendisini çatıdan uzaklaştırarak ilk profesyonel edebi çabalarına başladı. Bu dönemde "Kara Yıl" olarak anılan Skinner, birkaç gazete haberinin ötesine geçemedi. Bu arada okumaya devam etti, okuduğu romanlardaki karakterleri analiz etti ve bazı çalışmalar buldu, böylece psikolojiye olan ilgisi arttı. Ancak Skinner'ın dönüm noktası bu değildi. Kısa bir süre çalışmak için girdiği kitapçıda Pavlov ve GB by HG Wells. Shaw hakkındaki makaleyle karşılaşmasını ve dolayısıyla davranışçılık ekolünü bir dönüm noktası olarak görüyor. Daha sonra 1928'de Harvard'da yüksek psikolojiye başladı. Ardından 1931'de Harvard'da doktorasını alan Skinner, 1936'da bu kurumda asistan oldu. 1948'de Harvard'a dönene kadar Minnesota ve Indiana Üniversitelerinde ders verdi. bu derslerde kullanılmış ve 1953 yılında Bilim ve İnsan Davranışı adı altında kitap olarak yayınlanmıştır.

Davranışçı ekolü benimseyen Skinner, yayımladığı iki yüzden fazla makale ve yirmiden fazla kitapla psikolojiye önemli katkılarda bulunmuştur. Bu bağlamda pek çok deneme yapılmış ve başta edimsel tümceler olmak üzere birçok kavramla özdeşleştirilmiştir. Hayatının son anına kadar devam eden Skinner, 18 Ağustos 1990'da lösemiden öldü.

Skinner, insan davranışının nedenlerinin tamamen dış incelemeye bağlı olduğuna ve bu kişiyi anlamanın ancak büyük ölçüde nedene ait olabileceğine işaret eder. Özgür iradenin ve hayali içsel beklentilerin bir yanılsama olduğunu bir kez daha savundu. Davranışçı ekolün temelinin davranışın davranışı olması gerektiğini vurgulayan Skinner, bu fikrin özgür iradeyi çürüttüğünü tespit eder.

Skinner, hayvanlarını inceleyerek insan elini anlamlandırmayı amaçladı. Bu amaca ulaşmak için köpek ve güvercin gibi hayvanları içeren birçok deney üzerinde çalıştı. Bu deneylerden en bilineni Skinner's Box (Yorum Deneyi)'dir. Davranışsal öğrenmenin hayatındaki en önemli çalışmalarından biri olarak kabul edilir. Edimsel koşullanma kavramını psikoloji literatürüne kazandırmış ve daha sonra yapılacak eylemleri gerçekleştirme aşamasına geçmiştir. Skinner aracılığıyla, "Radikal davranışçılık" olarak bilinen ayrı bir psikoloji okulu kurdu.

Hayatı boyunca birçok çalışmaya imza atan Skinner, onlarca ödüle layık görülmüş ve eğitmen olarak psikoloji alanında derin izler bırakmıştır. 20. yüzyılın en önemli psikologlarından biri olarak kabul edilir.