Psy. HC3 Relaties OntwPsych

• Family


  • Until about 100 years ago, violence against children and other family members was a private matter and was not or hardly considered criminal
  • Children were the property and responsibility of the father
• Born into intimacy


  Children born into a family unit where romantic attraction and intimacy play a primary role in forming the family
• Importance of adult intimacy for children

  • Their parent's relationship is the first model of adult intimacy
  • Children are acutely sensitive to the quality of the interaction of the adults around them
  • Not only overt hostility predicts distress in children, but also signs that parents are disengaged or withdrawn from each other
• Appraisal of conflict


  1. Primary appraisal: What is going on - good, bad or neutral?

  2. Secondary appraisal: IF BAD - why is there a conflict, have I done something wrong?
• If the child's behavior does end the conflict

  It will likely be repeated and reinforced, shaping models about attachment and intimacy
• High satisfaction between intimate partners


  Related to secure parent-child relationship and positive interaction in families
• Desensitization


  Becoming accustomed to conflicts/arguments
• Sensitization


  Becoming increasingly reactive to exposure
• Child does not become accustomed to conflicts between adults, negativity between parents remains a stress factor
• Sensitization hypothesis: A history of conflict reduces the threshold for the child to react negatively and increases reactivity to the conflict
• Siblings


  Learn negotiation or competition for toys, playing together, sharing attention from parents
• Siblings

  • More sensitivity to differential (parental) treatment and fairness, development of theory of mind at an earlier age, development of social competence through experiences of conflict and support
• A strong bond with a friend can make up for a weak sibling relationships. Not the other way around!
• Effects of peer relationships

  • Motivation for empathy, shared imaginative play, broader social network, expectations about social status: acceptance or rejection from others
• Sociometric testing

  Four categories of social standing based on the question to name who they like and dislike within the group: popular, rejected, neglected or socially isolated, controversial
• Erikson's stages

  Adults: generativity versus stagnation, Adolescents/young adults: intimacy versus isolation
• Intimate relationships in adolescence


  • Clear distinction between intimate relationships and friendships, understanding of intimacy becomes more sophisticated, often patterns repeat with siblings and friends
• Transitions during adulthood


  • Cohabitation: precursor to marriage, coresidential daters, trial marriage, substitute marriage
• Relationship satisfaction and attachment

  Security = balance between autonomy and intimacy, insecure attachment is a defensive compromise in which either intimacy or autonomy appears to be sacrificed
• Factors that influence the quality of intimate relationships

  • Four negative patterns that predict divorce: criticism, contempt, defensiveness, stonewalling
• Intimacy in later life


  Activity, wisdom, role in society
• Specific life issues in later life

  • Mixed blessing of retirement, widowhood, loss of health/skills/social relationships/social roles, relational problems/conflicts, increasingly aware of mortality/discuss meaning of life
• Autonomy in later life

  Having a say in matters and being able to keep this up, active participation and contribution, freedom of choice and the possibility to shape your own individuality
• In later life, about 50% have psychological problems
• Potential tips for good (mental) health in later life

  • Check your blood pressure regularly, lead a physically and socially active life, invest in positive relationships (break up unsatisfying relationships, manage conflicts with more affection and less hostility, more time with close family members and friends)