KAREN HORNEY:

CULTURE AND FEMINISM

REPORTED BY: VIVIAN BALDERAMA

Please mark True or False
1. Its very important to me to please other people.
2. When I feel distressed, I seek out an emotionally strong person to
tell my troubles
3. I prefer routine more than change
4. I enjoy being in a powerful leadership position.
5. I believe in and follow the advice: “Do unto others before they can
do unto me”
6. I enjoy being the life of the party
7. Its very important to me to be recognized for my accomplishments
8. I enjoy seeing the achievements of my friends
9. I usually end relationships when they begin to get too close
10. It’s very difficult for me to overlook my own mistakes and
personal flaws
Biography
Born 15 September 1885
Hamburg, Germany
Died 4 December 1952 (aged 67)
New York City, New York, United States
Nationality German

Father Brendt Wackels Danielsen

Mother Clotilde van Ronzelen
Brother Brendt

Education University of Freiburg, 1906

University of Göttingen
Graduated to University of Berlin (1915)
Biography

Husband Oscar Horney

Marriage Date 1909
Children 3
Date Separated 1926
Divorced Date 1938
 Biography
Works and Carreer Founding Member of Berlin Psychoanalytic
Institute
1917: She had written her first Paper on
Psychoanalysis: “ The Technique of
Psychoanalytic Therapy”
1932: She became the Asso. Dir of Chicago
Psychoanalytic Institute
1934: She moved to New York and taught at the
new school for Social Research
1939: Published her book New Ways in
Psychoanalysis
1941: Founded the Association for the
Advancement of Psychoanalysis (AAP)
1943: change AAP to Karen Horney
Psychoanalytic Clinic
1950: Published her most important work,
Neurosis and Human Growth
1952: Established the Karen Horney Clinic
Horney’s Critized Freud’s theories:
1. The strict adherence to orthodox psychoanalysis would lead to stagnation
on both theoretical thought and therapeutic process

2. She rejected Freuds idea on feminine psychology

Psychoanalytic Social is built on the assumption that social and

Theory cultural conditions especially the childhood
experiences are largely responsible for shaping
personality
Horney vs Freud
Arguments Horney Freud
Penis Envy
Girls develops  She believes that  Believes that little girls
feelings of women’s inferiority become upset when they
inferiority and comes from the ways recognize that they do not
jealousy they are raised in the have a penis as the boys and
society. (masculine men have
vs feminine)

Basic Hostility Define as a child’s fear  Anxiety - felt, affective,

vs Basic of being alone, helpless unpleasant state accompanied
Anxiety and insecure which by physical sensation that
arises from problems in warns the person against
child’s relations with impeding danger
his parents • Neurotic Anxiety
• Moral Anxiety
• Realistic Anxiety
Horney vs Freud
Arguments Horney Freud
The Self  Real Self – Inner core  Id, Ego, Super Ego
of the personality
 Despised Self –
consisting of perception
of inferiority
 Ideal Self – the one we
view as perfect and we
want to achieve
 
She emphasizes that it is
important to accept one’s
real self than to achieve his
Ideal self.
 
Horney vs Freud

Arguments Horney Freud

Neuroses  Neuroses was  Neurosis was essentially an
primarily the result outgrowth of the person’s
of disturbed human inability to cope with sexual
relationships impulses and striving
 10 Neurotic Needs
 Neurotic Trends
- Moving toward
People
- Moving against
People
- Moving away from
People
10 Neurotic Needs
The Neurotic Need for Affection
and Approval
The Neurotic Need for a Partner
Who Will Take Over One’s Life
The Neurotic Need to Restrict One’s Life
Within Narrow Borders
The Neurotic Need for Power
The Neurotic Need to Exploit
Others
The Neurotic Need for Prestige
The Neurotic Need for Personal
Admiration
The Neurotic Need for Personal
Achievement
The Neurotic Need for Self-
Sufficiency and Independence
The Neurotic Need for Perfection
 desires to be liked, to please other people,
and meet the expectations of others
 This involves the need to be centered on a
partner
 Individuals with this need prefer to remain
inconspicuous and unnoticed
 Need seek power for its own sake
 Focused on manipulating others to obtain
desired objectives
 Individuals who value themselves in terms of
public recognition and acclaim
 Individuals with a neurotic need for personal
admiration are narcissistic 
 These individuals fear failure and feel a constant
need accomplish
 These individuals exhibit a “loner” mentality
 searching for personal flaws in order to quickly
change or cover up these perceived imperfections.
NEUROTIC TRENDS
Horney vs Freud

Arguments Horney Freud

 Free Association and Dream  Free Association and Dream Analysis
Assessment Analysis  Interpreted patient’s free association and dream
Techniques  Focused on the disturbances her reports in terms of thwarted sexual or aggressive
patient’s experienced in their strivings
personal relationships and on the
neurotic trends they used to cope
with their basic anxieties and
fears