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omnipotence

n. in psychology, the delusion that one can personally direct, or control, reality outside of the self by thought or wish alone. Psychology generally considers feelings of omnipotence to fall anywhere between neurosis, in its milder forms, and psychosis, when the delusion is expressed as alienation from or outright denial of reality. In psychoanalytic theory, the main emphasis is on the infant’s feeling that he or she is all-powerful, which is thought to arise (a) out of satisfaction of the child’s slightest gesture; (b) out of increasing cognitive and physical abilities; and (c) as a reaction formation to feelings of helplessness and anxiety. See also megalomania; primary narcissism. —omnipotent adj.

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Psychology term of the day

May 9th 2024

x-intercept

x -intercept

n. in an equation representing a straight-line relationship between two variables, the value of variable x when the value of variable y equals zero. For example, in the general linear equation format x = a + by, a represents the x-intercept.