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a. Basic Attitudes
Horney identifies what she calls as the three basic attitudes: 1 Moving toward People, 2 Moving against People, 3 Moving away from People. The
three basic attitudes are also known as Neurotic Trends 168. Horney states that the three basic attitudes constitute not only for neurotic people but also for normal
people. The difference is that whereas normal people choose all these three attitudes, neurotics are limited to one of the attitudes. Each of the basic attitudes
has a certain needs or Neurotic Needs.
1 Moving toward People
It does not mean moving toward people in the spirit of genuine love. Rather, it refers to a neurotic need to protect oneself against feeling of
helplessness—it is about moving toward people in order to get the feeling of security. In order to achieve this want, normal people or neurotic people fulfill the
two needs: that is they desperately strive for affection and approval of others, or they seek a powerful partner who will take responsibility of their lives 170.
Besides, for the neurotics, this attitude is the result of their continuous feeling of insecurity—they always feel insecure. Therefore, they have this
attitude: they move toward people. It means that the neurotics have a kind of narrow limit of life. They see their life narrow. They have no courage to develop
their lives.
2 Moving against People
This attitude is the result of the way of thinking that people are hostile. Horney, as cited by Feist and Feist, says that aggressive people employ this
15 attitude 170. People with this attitude are motivated by a strong need to exploit
others and to use them for their own benefit. They seldom admit their mistakes and are compulsively driven to appear perfect, powerful, and superior.
The needs of this attitude include the need to be powerful, to exploit others, to receive recognition and prestige, to be admired, and to get personal
achievement. The neurotics will be obsessed with these needs. They will aggressively fulfill these needs. They may get high personal achievement and
admiration; though, Horney, as cited by Feist and Feist, also states the neurotics who possess this attitude will fail to consider the meaning of love, affection, and
the capacity of true friendship 170.
3 Moving away from People
In order to be free from isolation, some people behave in a detached manner and adopt an attitude of moving away from people. This attitude is an
expression of needs for privacy, independence, and self-sufficiency. Each of these needs can lead to positive behaviors, with some people satisfying these needs in a
healthy fashion. However, these needs become neurotic when people try to satisfy them by compulsively putting emotional distance between themselves and other
people. Many neurotics find associating with others an intolerable strain.
Consequently, they are compulsively driven to move away from people to attain autonomy and separateness. They frequently build a world of their own and refuse
to allow anyone to get close to them. They value freedom and self-sufficiency and often appear to be aloof and unapproachable. If married, they maintain their
16 detachment even from their spouse. They shun social commitments, but their
greatest fear is to need other people 171.
b. Neurotic
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