Personality
• Personality – an individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking feeling and acting –
• Example –
Personality Theories
• Historical– Psychoanalytic Theory– Humanistic Theory
• Modern – based on scientific Method– Trait Theories– Social Cognitive Theories
HistoricalTheories1. Psychoanalytic Theory
(Freud) –
– Included stage theory of psychosexual development
2. Humanistic Theory (Maslow, Rogers)
–
– Maslow’s Hierarchy– “Man is Good” philosophy
Psychoanalytic Theory• Psychoanalysis –
• Techniques used to expose the
unconscious included:1. 2. 3. Free association –
• Example:
Our Personality• Conscious-
• Preconscious-
• Unconscious-
– Repression –
• Expressed in disguised forms
– Freudian slips– Dreams– Forgetting
Parts of Personality
• Id - unconscious impulses that want to be gratified, without regard to potential punishment.– pleasure principle –
• Ex.
• Ego– moderates the impulsive demands of id and restraining demands of superego.– Reality principle -
• Ex.
• Superego - tells us right from wrong and our ideal standards– Moral principle -
• Ex.
Freud’s Psychosexual stages
• Psychosexual development – a series of developmental stages that forms their personality
• erogenous zones -
• fixation -
Freud’s Psychosexual Stages
• Oral (0-18 months)• Anal (18-36 months)• Phallic (3-6 years)• Latency (6-Puberty)• Genital (Puberty on)Owen And Phillip Like
Girls
Anal Stage• Develops during toilet
training (2-4).• Important erogenous zone
=
• Focused on
• Fixation– potty training too early =
• Examples:
Phallic Stage• Period of time when children first
recognize their gender (4-7).• Important erogenous zone = • Unconscious sexual desires for parent
of the opposite sex– Oedipus Complex –
– Electra Complex –
• Penis Envy - • Castration Anxiety -
• Identification – children incorporate same sex parents’ values into superego =
• Fixation
Latency Stage
• Libido is hidden (7-11).• Cooties stage• • Boys hang with Dad, Girls
hang with mom• Fixation -
Defense Mechanisms
• Defense Mechanisms tactics of the ego to reduce anxiety by distorting reality• Ex:1.Repression2.Rationalization3.Reaction formation4.Projection5.Regression6.Displacement7.Sublimation8.Denial
ScenarioQuarterback of the high school football team,
Brandon, is dating Jasmine. Jasmine dumps Brandon and starts dating
Drew, president of the chess club.
Drew Brandon Jasmine
Repression• Pushing anxiety arousing
thoughts into our unconscious.
•
• Slips of the tongue =
• Why don’t we remember our Oedipus and Electra complexes?
• Ex.
Projection• Projection –
• Believe that the feelings one has toward someone else are actually held by the other person and directed at oneself.
Rationalization• Rationalization –
• Brandon thinks he will find a better girlfriend. “Jasmine was not all that anyway!”
Neo-Freudian TheoristsPsychodynamic Theory
• Accept Freud’s basic ideas– Struggle with – Importance of – Personality develops in
• Different– More emphasis on – Disagreed with the importance of – Adler and Horney – tensions
are important to personality development
The Neo-Freudian Theorists
• Adler – – inferiority complex –
• Horney – sense of helplessness –
– Women’s superego is not weaker as Freud claimed
• Jung’s – collective unconscious -
• EX.
Getting into the Unconscious
• Psychodynamic Psychologist – contemporary Freudian Psychologist
• Projective Tests - – Examples
• Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) –
• Rorschach Inkblot Tests -
– Criticized for lacking
Criticisms of Freud’s theory:1. Freud had no
2. Freud’s theories (unconscious, libido, etc.) cannot be
3. Theory explains behavior
4. Doubt that conscience and gender identity form as child resolves Oedipus complex at age 5-6—
5. Research contradicts that painful memories are
Criticism’s of Freud6. Neural networks not
7. Freud overestimated and underestimated
8. New ideas of why we dream dispute Freud’s belief that dreams
9. Slips of tongue can be explained through
Pros of Freud’s theory• 1. Argued that are
important in personality development.• 2. Information outside of awareness influence us, but much
different than Freud’s concept of unconsciousness – Examples:
• 3. Defense mechanisms—good descriptions of some of our behaviors.– Examples:
• 4. Defense Against Anxiety– Terror management theory –
Humanistic Theory of Personality
• Do not believe in Determinism –
• free will - .• Humans are
innately good and as long as our
• Studied healthy ways people strive for
Abraham Maslow’s Self Actualizing Person
• Hierarchy of Needs
•Self- actualization –
•Self-transcendence –
•Studied healthy people
Self-Actualized People• Problem centered rather than
Focused their energies on
Few , rather than many superficial ones.
Carl Rogers• Objective of humans -
become self-actualized.• We are like Acorns• What do Acorns need to
grow?• Water sun and soil.
• To grow into healthy humans we need interactions with others who are :
•
•
•
Roger’s Person-Centered Perspective
• Carl Rogers– Unconditional positive regard –
total acceptance of another person
• Ex. –
– Self-concept – all of our thoughts and feelings about ourselves
• Central feature of personality• Promoted by unconditional positive regard
– Assessing Personal Growth• Ideal self vs. Actual self•
Trait Theory• Trait Theory (Gordon Allport) –
describe personality in terms of _____________
• Trait –
– Describe rather than explain– Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
• classifies people according to personality types identified by Carl Jung (flattering terms)
• Used in • Not valid predictor• EX.
Factor Analysis
• Factor analysis – statistical analysis used to identify the most basic personality traits– Factor -
• Ex.
–Eysenck and Eysenck• 2 Dimensions
– –
• Eysenck Personality Questionnaire
Biology and Personality• Brain scans
– Brain arousal - • Frontal lobe -
• Genetics– Temperament– Autonomic nervous system
reactivity is• Greater anxiety, less inhibition
Assessing Traits• Personality inventory –
– Example:• Minnesota Multiphasic
Personality Inventory (MMPI) –
– Empirically derived test -
– Objective test– Lie scale – assesses faking
The Big Five Factors• The Big Five – evaluates
personality on 5 dimensions (more comprehensive)– – –
• Emotional stability vs instability
– –
The Big Five Factors
• Stability – Big 5 stable over time
• Heritablity – • Predictability –
– Conscientious people earn better grades and are more likely morning types
– Extroverts – evening types
Somatotype Theory• A biological Theory by
William Sheldon.• Endomorphs -
• Mesomorphs –
• Ectomorphs -
• Study has not been replicated.
Traits and the Stars• Stock spiel – builds on
the observation that each of us is in some ways
• Barnum effect – Peoples tendency to accept
“There’s a sucker born every minute”
• Aries (March 21-April 19): Do some detective work so that you can better understand those you love. Figure out what the other person is going through. Only then will you find out how you can help.
Taurus (April 20-May 20): In your midst, there's a person intent on the worst-case scenario. He or she is a valuable ally today. You'll find humor in the exaggeration, and your laughter is healing.
Gemini (May 21-June 21): Go out of your way to add elements of absurdity to your day. Your quality of life will be increased immeasurably.
Cancer (June 22-July 22): A strength exaggerated becomes a weakness. But does a weakness exaggerated become a strength? Highlight a limitation and you'll find you're better off for having this flaw.
Leo (July 23-Aug. 22): People pay attention when you walk into the room today. Make your exit with equal grace. Leave before they want you to and they'll want more.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Show up in person. You have more than your fair share of charisma today. Noting your winning presence, others will want to help you succeed.
Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 23): You have a talent for making relationships work. You're full of solutions, but it's important to know which problem is the most pressing. Pump the other person for information.
Scorpio (Oct. 24-Nov. 21): There is a fine line between sharing and over-sharing. Give others the sense of who you are. But do it briefly.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Relating to others has very little to do with what or who you know. Most people are thinking about themselves and what you can do for them. If you make them feel good about themselves, they'll like you.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You're in danger of being too thrifty. Show some disregard for the rules of frugal finance. As you spend, you'll widen the channel for greater earning.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): It would benefit you to get involved in a group effort. There is much you could contribute, and you have much to gain. You'll ask excellent questions and learn all you need to know to fit in nicely.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20): You will be certain of your course. But that alone will not be enough to make it go the way you want. Whatever happens, don't complain or explain.
The Person-Situation Controversy• Person-situation controversy –
– Traits are stable over time– People don’t act consistently in all situations
(Walter Mischel studies)– Scores on Personality Tests fail to predict
behavior in real-life situations– Ave. outgoingness (expressive style), happiness or
carelessness over many situations is predictable•
• •
The Social-CCognitive Perspective
• Social-cognitive perspective (Bandura) – interactive influences on
• learn many of our behaviors either through
• Emphasize the importance of
• Focus on our interaction with the environment (interpretation and response to external events)
Social-Cognitive Theories on Personality
• Focus on how we interact with our culture and environment
• Reciprocal Determinism - traits, environment and behavior all interact and influence each other.• Example *:
Reciprocal Influences
• Ways individuals and the environment interact–Different people choose different
environments–Our personalities shape how we
interpret and react to events–Our personalities help create
situations to which we react
Personal Control
• Personal control – extent to which people perceive
– Two ways to study personal control• Correlate people’s feelings of control
with their behaviors and achievements• Experiment by raising and lowering
people’s sense of control and noting the effects
Internal and External Locus of Control
• External locus of control –
– Can lead to a state of learned helplessness.
– Ex.
• Internal locus of control –
– Ex.
Self-Control• Self-control – ability to control impulses
and delay gratification– Predicts
– Requires attention and energy
Benefits of Personal Control
• Learned helplessness –
• Tyranny of choice –
Optimism Versus Pessimism• Optimism and Health• Excessive Optimism• Blindness to one’s own
incompetence• Positive psychology (Seligman) –
Different from Humanistic –
• Similar to Humanistic -
• Self Serving Bias –
Self• Self –
– Possible selves –
• Motivates us to achieve success and avoid failure
• Ex.
– Spotlight effect –
• Adolescents • Ex.
Self-Serving Bias• Self-serving bias – readiness to
perceive yourself favorably– People accept more responsibility for
– Most people see themselves
• Defensive self-esteem -
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