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Transcript of Personality. Personality Defined Individual’s characteristic manner of interacting with the world,...
Personality Defined
Individual’s characteristic manner of interacting with the world, and other people in particular
Person’s unique pattern of thoughts, feelings, behaviors, that persist over time and across situations
Trait Theories
TRAIT: relatively stable disposition to behave a certain way
Characteristics or factors on which individuals differ
State vs. Trait Traits triggered by environmental cues which
elicit behavior Traits are dimensional, not categorical
Trait Theories
• Trait theories: specify a manageable set of distinct personality dimensions that summarize fundamental differences between people
• Focus on describing personality
Hippocrates’ Humors
1. Black Bile: sad (melancholic) personality
2. Yellow Bile: excitable (choleric) personality
3. Phlegm: slow, sluggish (phlegmatic) personality
4. Blood: relaxed, playful (sanguine) personality
Constitutional Theory
• William Sheldon: body type related to personality type
1. Ectomorphic: thin and frail
2. Mesomorphic: strong and muscular
3. Endomorphic: soft and round
Constitutional Theory
• 3 Personality Types
1. Cerebrotonic: quiet, scholarly, timid
2. Somatotonic: bold and adventurous
3. Visceratonic: cheerful, calm, relaxed
Raymond Cattell (1950)
Chemist Molecules to atoms Traits to personality 18,000 adjectives reduced to 170 Self report surveys & factor analysis Identified 16 central traits
Cattell’s 16 Central Traits
1. Sociable – Unsociable
2. Intelligent – Unintelligent
3. Emotionally stable – Unstable
4. Dominant – Submissive
5. Cheerful – Brooding
6. Conscientious – Undependable
7. Bold – Timid
8. Sensitive - Insensitive
9. Suspicious – Trusting
10. Imaginative – Practical
11. Shrewd – Naïve
12. Guilt proclivity – Guilt rejection
13. Radicalism – Conservatism
14. Self-sufficiency – Group adherence
15. Disciplined – Uncontrolled
16. Tense - Relaxed
Hans Eysenck (1952)
2 basic personality traits
1. Introversion – Extroversion• Tendency to avoid or seek excitement• Extroverts = sociable, adventurous• Introverts = unsociable, introspective
2. Neuroticism – Stability• Emotional stability, tendency to be upset
Hans Eysenck (1952)
3. Psychoticism – Nonpsychoticism• Proclivity for aggression, lack of concern for
others vs. cooperative, empathetic
The Big Five
1. Neuroticism – Stability
2. Extroversion – Introversion
3. Openness to experience – Non-openness
4. Agreeableness – Antagonism
5. Conscientiousness - Undirectedness
1. Neuroticism (Emotional Stability)
• High Scorers: unexcitable, unemotional, autonomous, individualistic
• Low Scorers: insecure, anxious, touchy, emotional, anxious
2. Extroversion
• High scorers: enthusiastic, gregarious, playful, happy-go-lucky, energetic, talkative, confident, optimistic
• Low scorers: unsociable, nonverbal, detached, unadventurous, moody
3. Openness
High scorers: introspective, deep, insightful, intelligent, creative, curious
Low scorers: shallow, unimaginative, unobservant, ignorant
4. Agreeableness
High scorers: accomodating, genial, understanding, leniant, courteous, flexible, affectionate
Low scorers: antagonistic, unsympathetic, demanding, irritable, distrustful, stubborn
5. Conscientiousness
High scorers: organized, efficient, reliable, persistent, cautious, punctual
Low scorers: disorganized, careless, inconsistent, forgetful, aimless, lazy, impractical
Stability of traits
Stable throughout adulthood Especially after age 30 r’s: .50 - .70 over 30-40 yrs Personality may change somewhat in
response to life changes (career, marital status, critical events)
Predictive value
Reliability vs. Validity Do personality tests predict actual behavior? YES Extroverts: less startled by loud noise,
live/work with more people, sexually open minded
Conscientiousness: better job performance, marital fidelity
Situationists
People behave in a certain way not because of their traits, but because of the situations we find ourselves in
Interactionism: compromise position– Acknowledges both traits and situations
Physiological Theory of Extraversion
• Eysenck – arousability hypothesis• Extroverts: brains less easily aroused,
sensation seeking• Introverts: hypersensitive to arousal,
sensation avoidant• Learning in presence of loud noise, startle
response, salivation response, tolerance for shock
Physiological impact of genetics
• Relationship between Neuroticism and gene related to increased serotonin
• Novelty seeking (impulsivity, excitability) and gene related to decreased dopamine
Heritability of Traits
Nature vs. Nurture Heritability estimate for monozygotic twins
= .50 (50% of variability) Dyzygotic twins no more similar than
unrelated individuals University of Minnesota studies
Heritability of Traits
Traditionalism – measure of conservative values (.60)
Opposition to the death penalty (.50) Genetic predispositions influence attitudes
individual attends to and adopts
Environmental Influences
Not unimportant, but less important than assumed 2 kids raised in same environment will experience
that environment very differently Scarr (1981) – compared non-twin adopted kids with
(a) bio sibs and (b) adoptive sibs Bio siblings more similar than adopted No more similar to adoptive sibs than strangers
Psychodynamic Theories
Emphasize the interplay of mental forcesa people are often unconscious of their
motivesb processes called defense mechanisms work
to keep unacceptable drives/urges out of consciousness
Personality differences lie in unconscious motives & how they are ultimately manifested
Psychodynamic Theories
Freud - to understand patient’s problems/personality, must learn about content of unconscious
Conscious thought a poor reflection of true wants, needs, desires
unconscious “leaks” (Freudian slips, dreams, free associations)
Psychodynamic Theories
Drives equivalent to physical forms of energy build up, must be released to function in society, must learn to direct
sexual/aggressive drives in acceptable ways Defense mechanisms serve to reduce
anxiety by keeping unacceptable drives out of consciousness
Defense mechanisms
Repression: anxiety-produc9ing thoughts pushed and kept out of consciousness
“I don’t remember much about my childhood” repression dams up mental energy “leaks” are dealt with via other defense
mechanisms
Defense mechanisms
Displacement: unconscious wish/drive that would be unacceptable to conscious mind is redirected toward acceptable alternative
breast feeding --> cigarette smoking, eating Sublimation: channeling one’s energies
towards behaviors valued by society E.g., corporate killers, surgeons
Defense mechanisms
Reaction formation: turning a frightening wish into its safer opposite
Norman Bates - Hate Mom vs. Love Mom Homophobia “The lady doth protest too much”
Defense mechanisms
Projection: person consciously experiences an unconscious drive or wish as though it were someone else’s
Holden Caulfield - Catcher in the Rye Rationalization: use of conscious reasoning
to explain away anxiety-provoking thoughts/feelings
“I only hit you because I love you”
Neo-Freudians
Karen Horney - focused on security as inborn need– parents influence kid’s personality via ways in
which they succeed/fail at alleviating kid’s anxiety– 3 unhappy personality styles1 Moving away from people (Avoiding others)2 Moving towards people (Giving in to others)3 Moving against people (Dominating others)
Neo-Freudians
Alfred Adler: drive for competence, striving for significance, sense of achievement
we all begin with sense of inferiority (helpless, dependent)
Inferiority complex: act inadequate, dependent
Superiority complex: better than others, overcompensation
Social-Cognitive theories
Personality has a lot to do with our own perceptions of ourselves and our abilities
Social learning theory learned beliefs and habits become ingrained
and automatic (unconscious) learned beliefs/habits in thinking increase or
decrease ability to take control of own life
Julian Rotter - Locus of Control
Locus of control: beliefs about whether outcomes are under internal vs. external control
Internal: belief that one controls one’s own fate– takes credit for successes– responsibility for failures
Julian Rotter - Locus of Control
External: belief that one’s fate is governed by luck, chance, or forces beyond one’s control
Internal generally better than external preventive health care measures, resist
group pressures in social situations (jury), prefer games of skill over chance
promotes hard work, perseverance, success
Bandura’s Social Learning Theory
Personality is behavior, and behavior is dependant on our expectancies
expectancies: what a person thinks will result from behaving in a certain way under certain circumstances
self-efficacy - expectation that one will be successful in his/her efforts
Bandura’s Social Learning Theory
Reciprocal determinism: we act as a stimulus on the social environment and the environment, in turn, acts on us
attractive, socially adept child is well received and valued by peers, which in turn increases self-esteem and self-efficacy, which makes him more well liked
reverse also true
Bandura’s Social Learning Theory
Self efficacy vs. locus of control Self efficacy - person’s sense of own ability Locus of control - subjective sense of
whether or not that ability will produce rewards
Child-rearing that emphasizes abilities/successes lead to future success
Humanistic theories
Any personality theory that asserts the fundamental goodness of people and their striving toward higher levels of functioning
Carl Rogers self-actualizing tendency: drive of all
humans to fulfill their potential fully functioning person: congruence between
actual and ideal self
Humanistic theories
Unconditional vs. Conditional positive regard the individual’s perception/experience is the
only one that really matters “I am not being my real self” “I don’t want people to know the real me” Natural tendency for self-actualization
stunted by demands and judgments the world places on us
Maslow’s Hierarchy
Self-actualization needs (self expression, creativity, connectedness with the “broader universe”)
Esteem needs Belongingness and love needs Safety needs Physiological needs
Personality as adaptation
Personality in terms of function, ruvival value Diversification of investment - reduces
potential for dramatic loss, maintains likelihood of long term gains
Alternative niches
Sibling contrasts
Parents and individuals emphasize sibling differences
sibling contrast: if sibs seen as having different abiliities, needs, etc, less likely to compete, more likely to be valued for uniqueness
split parent identification: reduces competition for parental investment
Birth Order
Earlier born are bigger, stronger, wiser, more competent
First borns tend to adopt parental roles and values
respect for authority and conservative attitudes
Later born, higher on Openness factor
Sex Differences
Nature vs. Nurture Agreeableness - Antagonism (females more
concerned about establishing/maintaining relationships)
Women higher on Conscientiousness and Neuroticism
Men tend to be higher on sensation seeking (decreases with age)
Correlation coefficients
What are they? How to interpret them? Direction & magnitude correlation vs. causation
Classical & Operant Conditioning
Terms (e.g., reinforcement, punishment, conditioned & unconditioned stimulus, extinction)
Process Reinforcement schedules (e.g., fixed ratio) Little Alberta experiment (Watson)
Stress & Coping
Definition and types subjective nature of stress frustration-aggression hypothesis compliance with medical recommendations Constructive coping vs. defense mechanisms Selye’s G.A.S.
Social development
Gender differences Kohlberg’s moral development parenting styles attachment styles Piaget Vygotsky