Concept
Idealized image
In Karen Horney's theory, the glorified picture of himself or herself that a neurotic person creates in place of the actual self, in which conflicting trends appear transfigured as aspects of a rich personality. Unlike genuine ideals it is static and unattainable, demands to be lived up to and confirmed by others, and breeds arrogance and self-contempt; in her later work it becomes the idealized self, pursued in a search for glory.
- Introduced by
- Karen Horney
- Key works
- 2
introduced by
- Karen Horney 1945
gave rise to
- Tyranny of the should The shoulds are the demands by which the neurotic tries to close the gap between the idealized image and the actual self.
derives from
- Neurotic trends In Our Inner Conflicts the idealized image is one of the attempts to solve the conflict between the neurotic trends, by transfiguring them into aspects of a single grand self.