With two seemingly dichotomous understandings of the nature of friendship, how exactly can both conceptions be true?

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The study of the philosophy of friendship provides us with an opportunity to explore the concept of dissimulation and its vital role in friendship.

Novelist Marcel Proust believed that friendship was only bearable if we wear masks of good manners. This makes a deep and honest friendship very challenging. He believed that the greatest honesty meant acknowledging that real friendship could never really be fully given or received. Similarly, Immanuel Kant noted:

“For everyone has his weaknesses, and these must be kept hidden even from our friends… so that humanity should not be offended thereby. Even to our best friend, we must not discover ourselves as we naturally are and know ourselves to be, for that would be a nasty business” (p. 85).

Yet, some philosophers believe that when we do experience those powerful moments of truth and honesty between close friends, and completely let our guards down, it is a moment of great clarity and insight. In those honest moments, a friend becomes another self. One may feel as close to a friend as one does to oneself. Most philosophers recognize this phenomenon, including the French writer Michel de Montaigne, who described this friendship as becoming ”one soul in two bodies.”

Aristotle took it further to mean that only in friendship can we truly discover ourselves. Similarly, philosopher Giorgio Agamben shares, “The friend is not another I, but an otherness immanent in self-ness, a becoming other of the self.” Vernon adds: “It’s implying that a close friend is another part of you and that you can only fully become who you are in who they are too” (p. 87).

In a post of 250-350 words, please answer the following:

  • With two seemingly dichotomous understandings of the nature of friendship, how exactly can both conceptions be true?
  • Is a certain amount of feigning actually necessary in order to achieve a meaningful connection in a friendship?
  • What are the ethical implications of such behavior in friendship?

Where do patients go to learn the symptoms of their condition? How can this be problematic for detecting malingering?

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There are patients who will malinger or fake their illness for secondary gain. This can and does pose many problems for an already overworked and strained medical system. One must always be careful not to assume or overgeneralize during diagnostic interviewing; however, there will be cases in which your skills will be tested.

Please read the article “Detecting Deception” and answer the questions.

http://www.amednews.com/article/20120910/profession/309109942/4/

  1. Of the 10,000 neuropsychological assessments performed, how many cases involved probable malingering?
  2. Probable malingering was present in how many medical cases not related to litigation or compensation claims?
  3. What does Dr. Larrabee state about malingering cases?
  4. Why do patients pretend to be sick?
  5. What is motivating people to fake illness?
  6. Why is difficult to detect malingering?
  7. Where do patients go to learn the symptoms of their condition? How can this be problematic for detecting malingering?
  8. What is a key barrier to pinpointing malingering?
  9. What are some signs that the patient may be faking?
  10. Why is malingering a problem in the healthcare field?
  11. What are some questions doctors should ask themselves?
  12. Review how to identify a malinger. Is there anything else you can think of to detect malingering?

What subfields of psychology might be of greatest relevance to Alexis’s problem, and why?

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Alexis Dempsey had often wished that she could understand herself better. But the fight with her boyfriend the previous night really made her wonder what was driving her behavior. For no real reason at all, she had gotten annoyed with him at a party and had begun to criticize him. When he responded by asking her what her problem was, she had gotten really angry. She shouted at him that he was a total loser and hat she didn’t want to see him again. She stormed out of the party and had gone home. By the time she reached home, though, she was miserable. She really did like her boyfriend, and she didn’t want to end the relationship. She wondered why she’s gotten into the fight and why, in generally, she was acting more and more aggressively with others. She wished she could find a way to reduce her combativeness and strengthen her relationships with important people in her life. She has gotten some random insights from browsing the Web and looking at some of the self-help books at her local bookstore, but mostly she ended up being confused.

1)      What subfields of psychology might be of greatest relevance to Alexis’s problem, and why?

2)      If Alexis were to seek practical advice about making changes in her own life, which perspectives on psychology do you think would be most helpful, and why?

3)       What do you think about Alexis’s strategy of surfing the Web and looking at self-help books at the bookstore to better understand herself? What are the dangers of this approach?

4)      What advice would you give Alexis to help her solve her problem?

 

Describe the basic differences between healthy and unhealthy personality, based on the concepts that you have chosen to include and exclude from your theory.  This completed section will be approximately one page.

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Research a minimum of eight scholarly sources related to these concepts in the Ashford University Library to support your statements in the paper. Popular websites and your textbook may augment, but they will not count toward, the minimum number of sources needed for the paper.  The following content and headings must be included in your paper.

Please visit the Ashford Writing Center for guidance on how to format headings in APA Style. Also, please take note of the suggestions provided for the length for each section in the instructions below.

Instructions:
Provide a general introduction to the topic of theories of personality. Explain what you plan to cover and describe the direction your paper will take. This section will not feature a heading, and it will be approximately two to three paragraphs.

Major Concepts
In this section, you will present the seven specific concepts identified from the seven models you think best apply to the study of personality in distinct subheadings.  For each concept, identify the major personality model from which the concept was taken as well as the theorist associated with that model.  This completed section will be approximately four to five pages.

Excluded Concepts
In this section, present the concepts you have chosen to exclude in your theory of personality development.  Reflect on the basic assumptions that define personality and identify three specific excluded concepts from any of the theories studied in the course.  For each of the excluded concepts, provide a rationale explaining the various aspects of the concept that make it unsuitable for your use.  This section will be approximately one to two pages.

The Differences between Healthy and Unhealthy Personalities
Describe the basic differences between healthy and unhealthy personality, based on the concepts that you have chosen to include and exclude from your theory.  This completed section will be approximately one page.

The Roles of Heredity, the Environment, and Epigenetics
Provide your analysis of the roles heredity, the environment, and epigenetics play in the development of personality. Discuss how heredity and the environment might affect personality disorders. This completed section will be approximately one page.

Assessment and Measurement of the Theory
Reflect on the major concepts you have selected for inclusion and provide a brief description about how those concepts are measured and/or assessed. Review the assessment sections of each chapter and discuss those measures you think are most applicable and effective.  This completed section will be approximately one page.

Self-Reflection
In this section of the paper, review the self-reflection you wrote in Week One of this class and describe how and in what ways your views have or have not changed. Analyze your Week One self-assessment using the concepts that you have included in your integrative theory and describe how your theory explains your personality. This section will be approximately one page.

Provide a brief conclusion that summarizes the ideas presented in your integrative theory of personality. This section will not feature a heading and it will be approximately two to four paragraphs.

Allport, G. W. (1968). The person in psychology: Selected essays. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.

The Integrative Personality Theory paper:

  • Must be eight to ten double-spaced pages in length (not including the title page and references page) and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site..
  • Must include a separate title page with the following:
    • Title of paper
    • Student’s name
    • Course name and number
    • Instructor’s name
    • Date submitted
  • Must use at least eight scholarly sources in addition to the course text.
  • Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
  • Must include a separate references page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center