Abstract
Objective: The purpose of the present study was to explore the heritability of psychoanalyst Karen Horney’s three core neurotic trends (i.e., compliance, aggression, and detachment) in a twin paradigm to evaluate the validity of her theoretically assumed origins of neuroses. Method: Data were collected from 168 adult participants (M age = 21.54 years; range = 18 - 25 years) including 60 monozygotic twin pairs (10 male pairs and 50 female pairs) and 24 dizygotic twin pairs (4 male pairs and 20 female pairs). Participants completed the 57-item Horney-Coolidge Tridimensional Inventory (HCTI). Results: The best fitting model for compliance and detachment included additive genetic and nonshared environmental influences. For aggression, phenotypic variance was completely traced back to shared and nonshared environmental influences. Conclusions: The results are discussed in light of Horney’s hypotheses for the genesis of neurotic trends as well as findings from behavioral genetic research.
Highlights
IntroductionPsychoanalyst Karen Horney (1945, 1950) postulates that the difference between aHow to cite this paper: Coolidge, F
In her interpersonal theory, psychoanalyst Karen Horney (1945, 1950) postulates that the difference between aHow to cite this paper: Coolidge, F
The present sample was obtained from a larger twin registry at the Institute for Behavioral Genetics (IBG), Boulder, Colorado
Summary
Psychoanalyst Karen Horney (1945, 1950) postulates that the difference between aHow to cite this paper: Coolidge, F. As a reaction to this experienced inconsistent parental behavior, Horney theorized that a child would strive for ways or strategies to cope. Horney proposed that these coping mechanisms were not ad hoc ego defenses but that they could become chronic personality characteristics, which she labeled “neurotic trends”. Unlike other theorists of the time, Horney assumed them to be continuous with the normal life course rather than being a categorical, behavioral trend She assumed that neurotic trends were observable in all people and represented their coping attempts to maintain interpersonal control. Horney postulated three main and relatively independent defense mechanisms, which enabled a child to deal with external stressors: a child could move toward people (known as the compliant type), against people (known as the aggressive type) or away from people (known as the detached type)
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