arousal–performance relationship

the pattern of association between cognitive or physiological arousal (or both) and achievement at physical or cognitive tasks. Also called anxiety–performance relationship. See catastrophe theory; inverted-U hypothesis; reversal theory.

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Psychology term of the day

November 27th 2024

psychoanalytic play technique

psychoanalytic play technique

a method of child analysis developed by Melanie Klein during the 1920s, in which play activity is interpreted as symbolic of underlying fantasies and conflicts and substitutes for free association. The therapist provides toys for the child and encourages free, imaginative play in order to reveal the child’s unconscious wishes and conflicts.