The Characters in the Movie Hanging Up with Reference to Disparate Psychological Categories - Assignment Example

The film Hanging Up (2000) may be defined in terms of a psychological study of three sisters and their parents, and may be used as a case study to delineate the various levels of psychological development that may be found in various individuals, particularly in women. Each of the sisters may be placed into a separate developmental category. This paper examines the characters in the movie with reference to disparate psychological categories from various theorists, and explains why they are in that category. #1. Kohlberg's 3 levels of moral reasoning. According to Kohlberg's original model, there are three levels of moral development, each containing two stages of development. As Wong (2000) has observed, But according to stage theory, people cannot understand moral reasoning more than one stage ahead of their own. For example, a person in Stage 1 can understand Stage 2 reasoning but nothing beyond that. Therefore, we should present moral arguments that are only one stage ahead of a person's present level of reasoning to stimulate movement to higher stages. (Wong 2000) According to this model, Lou may be placed within the second stage of Pre-conventional Morality, which is the Instrumental Relativist Orientation. Lou is a failure as a husband and father, and as a result of his suppressed guilt about his inability to achieve his personal goals, he see reality in terms that are relative to his personal disorientation. Eve is clearly in stage three, Good Boy-Nice Girl Orientation, of level two, Conventional Morality. Although she is the character that the audience might empathize with the most, she is also almost a stereotypical representation of the conventionally good daughter, wife, and mother, who is struggling to do the right thing while not being assisted by her siblings. Georgia may be identified as belonging to stage five, Social Contract Orientation, of level three, Post-conventional morality. She finds her identity in her magazine, a fact that is clearly identified by her naming the magazine after herself. As the term indicates, this seems to be the stage where a person initiates social contract formation by conducting social transactions with others in a given society. Georgia's very name reeks of social status and impersonality. Maddy may be seen to belong to stage one, Punishment-Obedience Orientation, of the first level, Pre-conventional Morality. She is the baby of the family, and her psychological growth seems somewhat stilted. She believes that no one takes her seriously as an actor, and this insecurity seems to prey on her life and her relationships. She seems to allow others to define her sense of self, instead of being able to define it on her own terms. The sisters' mother, Patricia, is not given much screen time, but she is somehow defined by two aspects of her character: (a) that she walked out on her marriage and (b) that she wishes, unusually, that she had never become a mother. She may be identified as belonging to the fourth stage found in level two, Law and Order Orientation. She seems to live her life according to a sense of inherent justice, both with reference to herself and her daughters. #2. Gilligan's levels of moral development in women. Carol Gilligan suggested that Kohlberg's theories were prejudiced against women, since he only used case studies of men to expound his theories with. Gilligan's model perhaps offers a more sensitive look at women's experiences than Kohlberg's does. According to Gilligan, there are three moralities that are to be found in women. Kohlberg had used the famous example of a man stealing an expensive drug to save his wife as an illustration of his model, but Gilligan theorizes that for women, conflict is created not by the interactions between women and men, but is rather the result of a conflict between self and other, suggesting a dichotomy that Kohlberg had not: Gilligan offered that a morality of care can serve in the place of the morality of justice and rights espoused by Kohlberg. In her view, the morality of caring and responsibility is premised in nonviolence, while the morality of justice and rights is based on equality. [] She presents these moralities as distinct, although potentially connected. (Murray 2002) Georgia and Maddy are both at level one of Gilligan's model, which is the level at which the individual only cares about her own survival. Eve is clearly at level two, the level where the woman relates goodness to self-sacrifice. Eve constantly feels as if she is sacrificing a lot of herself because her two selfish sisters are not performing their duties in caring for their father. Consequently, she seems to have defined herself as a model of goodness, having set herself up as the self-sacrificial one. #3. For EACH sister choose the most characteristic trait group of Costa and McRae's 5 factor model. For Eve, the most characteristic trait is neuroticism. As it has been observed, "The bases of neuroticism are levels of anxiety and volatility" (Popkins 1998). Eve's levels of anxiety are extraordinarily high, and her actions are subsequently volatile. An example of this is when she crashes into the doctor's car, and her subsequent conversation with the doctor's mother. In the scene with the accident, she comes across as having made a mistake because she is too worried about her father to think about anything else. In her conversation with the elderly lady, however, she seems to be in an environment where she is momentarily relieved from stress, and feels a sense of peace. This indicates that she is probably suffering from anxiety neurosis, and that her actions are determined by her dwelling on her worries. Both Georgia and Maddy can be identified as belonging to the group of extraversion. Carl Jung first used the word 'extravert' to describe a gregarious person, although the more common spelling, 'extrovert,' is preferred now. Extraversion is a characteristic trait of both the oldest as well as the youngest sister. Georgia identifies herself as a public person, and is intent on developing her empire. Her identity rests in the public sphere rather than in the domestic one. Similarly, Maddy defines herself by her television personas. In some ways, she lives her life vicariously by living through her imagined characters on-screen. She is insecure as herself, and prefers to see herself as a public person rather than a private one. #4. Place EACH sister AND their mother AND their father (this is a five part question) in Schaie's stages of cognitive development. Warner Schaie's stages of development combine a sense of cognitive knowledge with social interaction, suggesting that social identity is founded on the basis of one's knowledge of the world and of reality. Schaie's theory has four stages, each of which corresponds with a particular level of cognitive development. As Mazak (2003) observes, "For Schaie, the question changes from the child's "What [should] I know" to the adult's "How should I use what I know" (Mazak 2003). The characters all contain various kinds of knowledge, which consequently determine their senses of self as well as their interactions with other characters. Maddy is in the achieving stage, in which "planning and periodic assessment of programs are designed to achieve goals in career, family and life in general" (Mazak 2003). Her awareness of her career is primary to her definition of her sense of self as well as achievement. If she fails as a soap opera actress, she will also fail as a human being, because her identification with her career is complete and all-consuming. She lives through her fictional characters. Eve is clearly in the responsible stage, where "abilities are applied to short and long-term concerns for family units, coworkers and community groups" (Mazak 2003). As her planning for her son's birthday party shows, she is trying to be responsible in all the roles that she has taken up. Out of all the characters, she is the one with the most roles to perform, and is therefore also the most stressed, because, being in the responsible category, she needs to prove to herself that she can perform every one of her roles as efficiently as each of the others. However, it seems, inevitably, that she has bitten off more than she can chew. As a daughter, she is the most effective, being the one who goes to visit her dying father in the hospital most often. But her determination to be responsible in other roles seems to fall short of her expectations. It is suggested by the fact that her husband is always traveling that her marriage may not be very efficient. Georgia is in the executive stage, which usually occurs from the individual's late 30's to his or her early 60's, where "planning & assessment abilities are applied to the organizations for which one is at least partly responsible" (Mazak 2003). Georgia feels responsible for her magazine, and that is the channel through which she executes her idea of who she is. The magazine being her namesake, it is also suggested that she needs the executive routine to manage her own identity. Patricia is in the reorganizational stage, in which "making new choices is mandated by the transition to retirement and planning the economic bases for it" (Mazak 2003). She is the only character who opts to move out of the roles in which she would otherwise have been confined. Her life is determined by her ability to make choices to determine the directions in which she will travel. Lou is at the stage where the question changes to "Why should I know" (Mazak 2003) He may be identified as belonging to the Reintegrative stage, where "maintenance of high levels of cognitive competence is increasingly exercised within principles of selection, optimization and compensation. Meaning is primary" (Mazak 2003). He is not at the final legacy-leaving stage, because he does not make any overt attempt to create assets for his children. #5 Place EACH sister AND their mother AND their father in one of Sternberg's patterns of love--tell why--explain in detail. As Fellman (1994) has observed, "When Sternberg started examining love relationships, in the 1970s, he discovered that ideally each had three major components: intimacy, passion, and commitment" (Fellman 1994). Sternberg used the metaphor of a triangle to suggest that "When a couple is in geometric harmony, the result is what Sternberg calls consummate love" (Fellman 1994). The three aspects of love "formed the sides of a triangle, which, when love was mature and balanced, would be of the equilateral variety" (Fellman 1994). Since the love relationships in the film are not well-balanced, the three patterns of Sternberg's model are distorted rather than equilateral. Eve is in the commitment stage, believing that to love her father and her family is to commit herself entirely to them even to the extent that she is willing to lose herself. Georgia is also at the commitment stage, where she finds herself overwhelmed by her sense of responsibility towards her magazine, and vicariously, to herself. She is committed, but to herself rather than to others. Patricia is at the passion stage, where she lets her life be dictated by her strong emotions about the choices that she believes she has to make. Maddy is also at the passion stage, expressing her feelings at the drop of a hat, largely because she is the youngest sibling and probably feels that her older sisters will not judge her. Lou is at the intimacy stage, where he is wrapped as if in a cocoon in his own imminent death. He behaves irresponsibly and harshly because he does not believe that there is anything for him other than what is immediately apparent. #6. From the video and Blocks' characteristics of ego-resilient adults, how would you describe EACH sister and EACH parent Tell why. Be specific in your reasoning. The Blocks created the antithetical models of ego-control and of ego-resiliency, both of which prioritize the role of the ego in an individual's ability to react to the circumstances in which s/he finds her/himself. The former model suggests that individuals' identities may be determined on the basis of their degree of need to control the situations within which they found themselves. The model of ego-resiliency, on the other hand, "refers to the ability to moderate one's typical level of control to accommodate new circumstances" (McNulty 1997). In Eve's life, memory plays a prominent role. There are constant flashbacks in which she reflects on her happy memories of her father, who is very different in her memory from what he is at present" Many long-term personal memories are told again and again, especially stories about trouble. The who, what, when, and how of these memories don't tend to change much across time, but the meanings of these events do tend to change over the life span, as does their prominence in the grand life story. (McNulty 1997) As Eve goes back to her past, we see glimpses of what determines her present. Georgia is a person who needs to feel that she has control over her life. Contrastingly, Maddy feels she does not have enough control over her life and her career. Pat tries to take control of her own life by walking out of her marriage. Lou feels that the only way in which he can control his own last days is to assert his control over others. #7. From the Loyola self-report test for Generativity where would EACH parent score and why Since this is a self-report test, apart from the actual scoring, it also seems significant to bear in mind that the characters may not be honest or perceptive enough about themselves to answer accurately. Lou would score 6 on the Loyola Generativity Scale. He would answer 'yes' to questions 2 ("I do not think that other people need me"), 5 ("I do not volunteer to work for a charity"), 9 ("I believe that society cannot be responsible for providing food and shelter to homeless people"), 13 ("I feel that I have done nothing that will survive after I die"), 14 ("In general, my actions do not have a positive effect on other people"), and 15 "I feel as though I have done nothing of worth to contribute to others"). Although he comes across as an abusive and obnoxious person, Lou is also probably the kind of person who would be honest with himself about his lack of self-worth and his low self-esteem issues. Patricia would probably answer 'yes' to questions 1,2, 17 and 18, since she seems to need to feel that she has a commitment towards things greater than herself. Although we are not told much about what she does or intends to do in her social life, it is an educated guess that she probably volunteers for community or social service to boost her morale, and to also provide a rationale for having left her family. If she is honest with herself while taking the tests, she might also give the affirmative, like Lou, to statements 1, 14 and 15. While she has made peace with herself for the course of her life, she, too, will probably feel that she can leave nothing for posterity. #8 Choose one sister and compare her to Ryff's scale of well-being. Eve's motivations may be understood in terms of Ryff's concept of purpose in life. According to Ryff, there are six stages of wellness that may indicate the psychological well-being of an individual: The definition of maturity emphasizes a clear comprehension of life's purpose, a sense of directedness, and intentionality. The lifespan developmental theories refer to a variety of changing purposes or goals in life [...] Thus, one functions positively, has goals, intentions, and a sense of direction, all of which contribute to the feeling that life is meaningful. (Ryff 1989, 1071) For Eve, her life is meaningful because she has created a sense of purpose for herself; in fact, she has created several sense of purpose with reference to the various roles that she has to play. Even though she seems to have a very difficult and stressful existence, Eve may still be identified as possessing maturity and adult cognitive development, because she is able to look beyond her liabilities. Her biggest liabilities are an unsupportive husband and sisters who are apparently indifferent to the care of their ailing father. However, she turns this apparent state of weakness into a meaningful existence for herself, by assuming the negative points to be purposes that she has to address out of her own ego, rather than depend on others. She does not succeed at defining herself completely in terms of this sense of purpose, but she does equip herself to deal with her liabilities by giving a positive bent to her emotional crises. #9. At which stage of Erikson might EACH sister have had a conflict and why The personalities of the three sisters may be analyzed according to Erikson's theories of life stages. The most important points to bear in mind when diagnosing or analyzing a case according to the system of life stages are the following: The importance of seeing all behavior in a SOCIAL CONTEXT. This is summed up by the bio-psycho-social model. Erikson's introduction of ETHICAL PERSPECTIVES into psychology. The life stages exemplify this push/pull nature of life with its inherent dichotomies. When one accepts the existence of these conflicts, one can start trying to resolve issues in non-violent ways. (Brenman-Gibson and Mickles, 2006) Maddy is at what Erikson described as the sixth stage in a human being's life, early adulthood. The primary development that an individual undergoes during this stage is Learning Intimacy Versus Isolation, and the "successful young adult, for the first time, can experience true intimacy - the sort of intimacy that makes possible good marriage or a genuine and enduring friendship." ("Erikson's Eight Stages," 1998) In Georgia's case, the trauma of her father's impending death has meant that she is in denial about her grief, and therefore she may be characterized as being in stage seven, Learning Generativity Versus Self-Absorption. Eve is in stage eight, Integrity versus despair; even though she "works hard, has found a well - defined role in life, and has developed a self-concept with which [s]he is happy" ("Erikson's Eight Stages," 1998), she is still oscillating between integrity and despair because of her difficult circumstances. #10 Choose a personality type from the Myers-Briggs/Keirsey Temperament Sorter for EACH of the five main characters in the video and explain why. Keirsey's Temperament Sorter has four temperament types, and the model may be used in conjunction with that of Myers and Briggs, which consists of sixteen personality types. Briggs and her daughter Myers "added a fourth dimension to the three Jung dimensions (Introvert-Extravert, Thinking-Feeling, Sensation-Intuition), namely Judging-Perceiving, which is related to a personality's approach to decision-making" (Chapman 2005). Eve may be classified under Feeling (F), since she "decides according to what matters to self and others, and personal values" (Chapman 2005). She is an INFP - introverted, intuitive, feeling-oriented and perceptive. Georgia is the Judging (J) type, who "in dealing with the world organises, plans, controls, and decides clear firm actions and responses - relatively quick to decide" (Chapman 2005). She may be labeled an ENTJ. She needs to be in control of the processes that determine her life. Pat may be classified as an ESTJ, since she is much like Georgia in other respects, save for the fact that she is more sensitive than intuitive. Maddy is an ESFJ - she is extraverted, as well as sensitive and feeling oriented, but she is also judgmental rather than perceptive. She allows empirical phenomena (such as the success or failure of her soap operas) to determine her moods. Lou is an ENTJ. His sexual overtures towards the nurses in the hospital and his cynicism towards his fatherhood reveal that he is oriented toward thinking rather than feeling. References Brenman-Gibson, Margaret and Mickles, Ruthie. (1996). "Erik Erikson: A Life's Work." Retrieved June 21, 2006, from http://www.davidsonfilms.com/erikerik.htm Chapman, Alan. (2005). "Personality Theories, Types and Tests." Retrieved June 22, 2006, from http://www.businessballs.com/personalitystylesmodels.htm#myers%20briggs%20types%20indicator%20MBTI. "Erikson's Eight Stages of Development." Child Development Institute, 1998. Retrieved June 21, 2006, from http://www.childdevelopmentinfo.com/development/erickson.shtml. Fellman, Bruce. (1994). "This Thing Called Love." Yale Alumni Magazine, February 1994. New Haven, CT: Yale Alumni Publications. Mazak, Arlene. (2003). "Schaie's Stages of Adult Cognitive Development." Retrieved June 21, 2006, from http://dl.ccc.cccd.edu/classes/internet/psych170/Ch12notes.htm. McNulty, Jennifer. (1997). "29 years and counting..." Retrieved June 22, 2006, from http://review.ucsc.edu/summer.97/29_years.html. Murray, Mary Elizabeth. (2002). "Moral Development and Moral Education: An Overview." Retrieved June 21, 2006, from http://tigger.uic.edu/lnucci/MoralEd/overview.html. Popkins, Nathan C. (1998). "The Five-Factor Model: Emergence of a Taxonomic Model for Personality Psychology." Retrieved June 20, 2006, from http://www.personalityresearch.org/papers/popkins.html. Ryff, C. D. (I989). "Happiness is Everything, or is it Explorations on the Meaning of Psychological Well-being." Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57. Pp. 1069-1081. Wong, Alan S. L. (2000). "Kohlberg's Stages - Explained and Illustrated." Retrieved June 20, 2006, from http://www.vtaide.com/blessing/Kohlberg.htm. Read More