According to Karen Horney, what is a significant factor that governs neurotic personality?

Karen Horney, a prominent psychoanalyst, highlighted the concept of "basic anxiety" as a critical factor that influences neurotic personality. Basic anxiety arises from feelings of helplessness and insecurity that develop during childhood due to inadequate parenting or environmental factors. This anxiety drives individuals to seek security and approval, often leading to neurotic behaviors and personality traits.

In her theory, individuals with a neurotic personality may become overly dependent on others for approval as a way to cope with their basic anxiety. They might engage in strategies such as striving for perfection, seeking affection, or aiming for status to mitigate feelings of insecurity. However, this reliance on external approval ultimately stems from the underlying basic anxiety, making it a central theme in understanding neurotic behavior.

The other options, such as expectations of the future, reinforcement, and the need for approval, play roles in psychological development and behavior but do not encapsulate the foundational issue that Horney identified as basic anxiety. Instead, these concepts can be viewed in the context of how basic anxiety manifests and influences an individual's coping mechanisms and relational dynamics.