Raeven's Den
A space for slowing down.

Jane Loevinger’s stages of ego development is a broad theory focusing on the structure of individuals and how experiences are comprehended in the human lifespan. The eight stages of developing the ego include the life stages in the infant, child, adolescent, and adult. Each life phase has stages that people experience throughout infancy to adulthood. The Infant experiences the sense of self. Loevinger calls this stage “the proverbial stage, Loevinger maintains, but her theory

Sexual behavior starts in infancy and continues to increase as children mature. Infants are can express attraction and can masturbate. Early childhood is filled with curiosity as the body continues to change. However, sexual desire does not begin in adolescence, but rather during preadolescence. Sexual desire and activity increases during adolescence. Most adolescents experiment with others to see what is comfortable sexually. Sexual identity is beginning to form during adole

Personality Assessment Methods The psychodynamic theory uses interviews and projective tests to help determine if the person has any childhood problems that are repressed. These feelings, thoughts, or actions may be unconscious and can be causing conflicts in relationships. Humanistic theorists focus their attention on the personality. According to (the text, p. 432) Carl Rogers (1902-1987) is “one of the most prominent humanistic theorists” who believes each person has certa

Neurons Neurons communicate by receiving messages from electrical processes through the dendrites. The dendrites receive “incoming messages from other neurons and transmit them to the cell body” (Morris & Maisto, 2005, p. 48). The nerve impulse releases neurotransmitters to send the message to other parts of the body by the synapse. The synapse has a small area so the neurons can send messages but do not touch each other. The synaptic cleft is a small space located between th

A dispositional trait I have is neuroticism. In the neurotic category, I can be worrying, high-strung, and insecure, at times. At other times, I can be calm, relaxed, and secure. I worry because I cannot control everything I want when I want; high-strung because I try to take on too much at one time; and insecure because I worry that things are not going to go as I planned or the way I want and then I become high-strung. It is a vicious circle; when it gets started, it becom

I have learned how to love myself, my sexuality, and my life with the help of others throughout early adolescence and into adulthood. Experimenting in my life with my sexuality, testing the boundaries of my values and beliefs, has led me to a new way of living life and truly accepting others for who they are. Many times throughout my life, I did what others expected of me, believed what my family, religion, and culture said I should. I did not always agree with others and fou

The Social Network I find Mark Zuckerberg fascinating; he is intelligent yet socially inept, lacking the confidence in other people and himself. Zuckerberg frequently displays his neuroticism with angry hostility, impulsiveness, and strong self-consciousness behaviors. He is also calm, secure in himself, and at ease when working on his website. Mark is reserved, quiet, and aloof; showing signs he is not extroverted but rather, an introvert. He is creative, imaginative, and ha

The effects of rape and childhood sexual abuse have many similarities. Those who have been sexually abused suffer behavioral and psychological problems. Short-term effects usually occur immediately or within 2 years of the abuse. Many times the child or adolescent will not discuss the abuse for many years later or into adulthood for fear of repercussions. Problems associated with childhood sexual abuse are long- or short-term, and can range from mild to severe. Guilt, shame,

My purpose in life was never really clear to me, but I know to follow God’s path for me and that He would guide my way to where I was supposed to be and why. Within the past five years I have been through the weakest, most difficult times and the strongest, most memorable times in my life. When I look back at those years, I can see I was in the individualistic stage of my life. According to Axia College (2001), “The ego develops a greater tolerance for the individuality of ot

Adolescent Sexual Activity Teenagers who initiate sexual activity are more likely to develop sexually transmitted diseases and an unwanted pregnancy because of failure to use a reliable contraception. According to Rathus, Nevid, and Fichner-Rathus (2005, p.445), “Many adolescents use petting to express affection, satisfy their curiosities, heighten their sexual arousal, and reach orgasm while avoiding pregnancy and maintaining virginity.” However, when petting occ

Motivation and Emotion Drawing distinctions between motivation and emotion can be difficult because they are often closely intertwined (University of Phoenix, Motivation and Emotion, 2011). Ambition and emotion play critical roles in a person’s motivation, pushing the person to take some sort of action. The action a person takes depends on the motivation factors. Emotions can also produce action that is uncertain; when emotions become out of control, predicting behavior can b

I notice many defense mechanisms around me in others and in myself. My family and I are staying with a friend and her children. She was recently told by her long-time boyfriend that she needs to move on with her life. He left her for another woman and moved to another state. My friend is in denial by refusing to accept reality because it is too painful. She still says he loves her and that they may be able to get back together if he would just “come to his senses.” This is a

The Big Five traits measures human behavior and personality traits. The Big Five traits have the acronym OCEAN; Openness to experience, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism. The Big Five traits provide a description of the qualities in social behavior and the differences in people. Openness to experience I am original in many aspects; when a person knows me for a long time he or she is usually impressed because I can fit into most situations. I always

Many people use operant conditioning in their daily lives. What you may not know is what operant conditioning is, what it means, and how you use it nearly every day of your life. Operant conditioning is also called instrumental conditioning, termed by B. F. Skinner (1904-1990). Skinner defined operant conditioning as “learned behaviors that are designed to operate on the environment to gain a reward or avoid a punishment; they are not automatic reflexes caused by biologically

I have witnessed my daughter going into ‘fits of rage’ at the young age of five-years-old. She was banging down my bedroom door, kicking, screaming, and yelling obscenities, while I was crying on the other side. I had the door locked and watched as she kicked and pounded on the door; it moved with every hit. I was frightened; I was thinking “What happened to my little girl?” I remember this night whenever I hear about children experiencing ‘fits of rage’. What happens when sh

Genetic influence contributes to my learning style or process and temperament. Environmental influence contributes to what I learn such as actions, reactions, self-concept, and dispositions. Witnessing abuse in my family when I was growing up has changed my personality. Watching the physical abuse and listening to verbal abuse has contributed to neurotic episodes in my adult life. I can be negative, harsh, demanding, and accusing as well as physically abusive with my husband.

Personal Construct George Kelly (1995), who developed the personal construct theory, classifies personal construct as “characteristic ways of constructing how some things are alike and some things are different from one another” (p. 302). Every construct is essentially bipolar, stating the alikeness and differences; such as happy/unhappy are complete opposite but are similar. The desire to find out what life has in store for someone is what encourages people to act, predict,

Sexual Techniques Sexual techniques can include solitary activity or activity with a partner. Masturbation is a solitary sexual behavior that can be therapeutic. “Masturbation involves direct stimulation to the genitals” (Rathus & Nevid, p. 263). People use a variety of techniques to achieve pleasure from masturbation including fantasy or with a partner. People masturbate for a variety of reasons including, sexual tension release, stress release, gain pleasure, or to help sle

The Five Major Divisions of the Brain During early development, in the embryo stage of life, the brain begins as a fluid-filled tube, developing into the central nervous system. Three swellings occur at the anterior end of the tube and develop into the adult forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain (J. Pinel, 2009, p. 64). The three swellings in the tube become the five major divisions of the brain before birth, consisting of the telencephalon, the diencephalon, the mesencephalon,