Nancy Chodorow, The Reproduction of Mothering (New Preface, 1999; Chapters 2 and 12, Conclusion)
In her preface, how does Chodorow respond to her critics, feminist and otherwise? What changes in her position does she believe have occurred over the years? (sees benefits to mothering as opposed to shared parenting) Can you see other solutions or responses to what she sees as her earlier oversimplications and faith in the value of change?
What are some of the several ways in which Chodorow rewrites Freud's account of family dynamics? How does she modify his account of the instincts? (influence of cultural and individual factors should be added to biological)
How does she place new values and emphases on the Oedipal complex? (favors women, who spend longer with the mother before individuating, and who are less close to male figures) In her account, what are features of masculinity under this model? (anxious about masculinity)
What are some limitations of Chodorow's approach? Are these common to other psychological texts you have read, including those by Freud? (generalizing)
Are her theories limited in their assumption of heterosexuality in a nuclear family? If so, how might the inclusion of transgender, bisexual, same-sex, or single parents alter her model, if at all? How about single parent families in which the father is the sole parent? Might the role rather than the gender be the more significant factor?
What does she posit as the underpinnings of female and male friendships?
What effects does she ascribe to the sex/gender system? Do you think these conclusions are accurate, given her model? What does Chodorow advocate in her conclusion (shared parenting, equal roles, equal social opportunities, 217-18) Do you think these were/are effective methods for overcoming gender bias, and how would/could these alter the patterns she describes?
If she were writing this book, and even its preface, now, how might she have accommodated her views?
Bessel A. van der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma, Preface, Chapter 1, "Normal Vs. Traumatic Memory"
How is van der Kolk's approach different from that of Freud? (based on early abuse rather than family sexual identifications; emphasizes intergeneration patterns) What instances of older ways of thinking did he encounter in his early training and practice? (belief that veterans were not affected by PTST; little concern for topic of posttraumatic stress; belief that rape was rare)
What statistics does he give on the pervasiveness of trauma? (one in five Americans sexually molested as child; one in four severely beaten by a parent; one in three couples experiences physical violence; one out of eight witnessed their mother being beaten or hit)
What are some common symptoms of PTSD? (rages, emotional absence; altered thought patterns; recalibration of brain's alarm system, difficulty of discerning relative dangers--hyper-vigilence; inability to maintain stable relationships; repetitive emotions and thoughts; difficulty in learning from experience; impose trauma on everything; curtailed imagination) What are some emotions associated with PTSD? (the memory of terror, and the shame of utter weakness and vulnerability, 2)
What examples of the behaviors of traumatized veterans does van der Kolk provide? Why was Tom unwilling to be cured of his nightmares? (needed to be faithful to his buddies who had died, 10) What actions had he committed directly after witnessing the deaths of his friends and troop members? (multiple murders, killing of child)
What problems are created by the fact that the victim may have (been forced to) cooperate with the abuser? (confusion of emotions--love and terror, pain and pleasure)
What childhood experiences had prompted van der Kolk's interest in trauma? (father's and uncle's rages)
What seems indicated by the erroneous diagnosis that almost caused Bill to be diagnosed as a schizophrenic? (Freudian analysis, 15) What finally helped him? (able to experience and describe his flashbacks)
What patterns emerge when people with PTSD observe Rorschach images? (trauma reenacts, imposed on all around them)
What significant attribute does van der Kolk attribute to imagination? (opportunity to envision new possibilities)
How did traumatized veterans react when placed in a group? (bonded as insiders, wanted their therapist to share their experiences, 18)
What did he learn from women who described their traumas during rape? (activation of sensory memories) What had a previous textbook claimed about the effects of incest? (prevented psychosis!! 20) What effect did incest seem to have had upon its victims? (rage, emotional absence, difficulties in human relations) What does van der Kolk note is the relative incidence of PTSD in incest victims and veterans? (former much higher)
What does he describe as the difference between normal and traumatic memory? (not able to tell anyone after traumatic event, 195, overwhelmed; memories are dissassociated; gradually able to tell a more coherent story, 196) Who seem to have had the greatest difficulties? (those abused as children, 196)
How effective, according to van der Kolk, is the ability to describe what has happened to oneself? (of limited efficacy, 196)
What are some advantages of van der Kolk's approach to trauma? Are there limitations? (still difficult to heal)