Theories of Personality

MAJOR SCHOOLS OF PERSONALITY THEORYPsychoanalytic Theory~Sigmund Freud (the importance of motives hidden in the unconscious)

Humanistic Theorists~ Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers (stress one’s potential for growth, such as creativity and spontaneity

Social Learning Theorists (the impact of observational learning on personality)

Cognitive Theorists (how our thoughts, perceptions and feelings shape our personalities.

Biological Theorists (focus on the brain, neurochemistry, and genetics

B.F. Skinner~Behaviourists (the way rewards and punishments shape our actions)

(Discussed)Trait Theorists~ The Big 5~Gordon Allport and Hans Eyseenck, emphasize the importance of understanding basic personality characteristics such as friendliness and aggression.

PURPOSE OF PERSONALITY THEORIES

It is in the Personality (from text, p. 375)

Shelly and Deirdre both failed their semester exams in psychology, but they

reacted in very different ways. When Shelly saw her grade, she felt sick

to her stomach and had to fight back tears. She rushed home, and shut

herself up in her room to lie in bed, stare at the ceiling, and feel

inadequate. Deirdre, on the other hand, was all bluster. She ran to the

cafeteria to join her friends and make loud jokes about stupid

questions on the test.

--From Understanding Psychology, Richard A. Kasschau, 1995

THE PURPOSE OF THEORIES

Provides a means of organizing the many characteristics you know about

yourself and other people.

Personality Theorists try to determine whether certain traits go together, why

a person has some traits and not others, and why a person might exhibit

different traits in different situations.

Disagreement among theorists about which traits are

important/significant…but all theorists look to examine patterns in the way

people behave.

PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY

In contrast to trait theories that describe personality as it exists,

psychoanalytic theories of personality attempt to EXPLAIN individual

differences by examining how unconscious mental forces interplay with

thoughts feelings, and actions

Thoughts,

Feelings &

ActionsUnconscious


Who?

Sigmund Freud

Freud’s theory of personality has

been the most influential and

controversial in all of science

Freud’s impact on Western intellectual history cannot be

overstated—he attempted to explain dreams, religion, social

groupings, family dynamics, neurosis, psychosis, humour, the arts

and literature


Levels of Consciousness

Freud called the mind the “psyche” and

believed that it functioned on three

levels of awareness or consciousness


Conscious

Preconscious

Unconscious

Thoughts, motives and memories

blocked from normal awareness.

Includes primitive instinctual

motives, plus anxiety-laden

thoughts and memories blocked

from normal awareness (hidden

from personal inspection) this may

be your repressed sexual desires,

aggressive impulses, or irrational

thoughts and feelings

Thoughts or motives and memories

blocked from normal awareness.

Contains information that can be

viewed with a little extra effort, for

example it may include feelings of

hunger, thoughts of friends you

need to contact…

Thoughts or motives that a person

is currently aware of or is

remembering


The Iceberg Analogy

Freud believed that the unconscious is hidden from

our personal awareness, but it still has an

enormous impact on our behavior—and reveals

itself despite our intentions

Just as the enormous mass of iceberg below the

surface destroyed the Titanic, the unconscious may

similarly damage our psychological lives.

Unconscious

Freud believed that most repressed

(hidden)memories and instincts (sexual and

aggressive) are stored in the unconscious—to treat

these disorders, Freud developed Psychoanalysis


Conscious

Preconscious

Unconscious

The Freudian Slip: Freud believed that a small slip of

the tongue (known as a Freudian slip) can reveal

unconscious feelings that we normally keep

hidden…these slips are not accidental but intentional

ways of expressing unconscious desires


Conscious

Preconscious

Unconscious

In addition to proposing that the mind functioned at

three levels of awareness, Freud believed

personality was composed of three interacting

mental structures:

ID, EGO & SUPEREGO

Each of these structures reside in (fully or partially)

in the Unconscious Mind


ID

EGO

SUPEREGO

As a child grows older, the ego develops. The ego is

responsible for planning, problem solving, reasoning, and

controlling the Id. Unlike the Id, the ego resides primarily

in the preconscious and conscious mind. The ego

corresponds to the self—our conscious identity of

ourselves as a person

Ego operates on the Reality Principle (the ego is

responsible for delaying gratification until it is practical or

appropriate

The ID is made up of innate, biological instincts and

urges. It is immature, impulsive, irrational, and totally

unconscious. When its primitive drives build up, the id

seeks immediate gratification to relieve the tension…it

operates on the Pleasure Principle (the immediate and

uninhibited seeking of pleasure and avoidance of

discomfort)

This inner voice, sometimes known as your

“conscience,” is made up of the ethical standards

or rules for behavior that reside primarily in the

preconscious and unconscious. It develops from

internalized parental and societal standards.

Operating on the Morality Principle because

violating its rules result in feelings of guilt


ID

EGO

SUPEREGO

What happens when the ego fails to satisfy both the id

and the superego?

Defense Mechanisms

Anxiety slips into conscious awareness.

Because anxiety is uncomfortable, people avoid it

through defense mechanisms—which satisfy the id

and superego by distorting reality.

Example: When an alcoholic who uses his

paycheck to buy drinks (a message from the id)

May feel very guilty (a response from the

superego). He may reduce this conflict by telling

himself that he deserves a drink for working so

hard.

This is an example of a defense mechanism


ID

EGO

SUPEREGO

Defense Mechanism: the ego’s protective method of

reducing anxiety by distorting reality

Defense Mechanisms

Repression is the mechanism by which the ego

prevents the most anxiety-provoking or

unacceptable thoughts and feelings from entering

the consciousness.

It is the first and most basic form of anxiety

reduction

This concept has basically stood the test of

time and are an accepted part of modern

psychology, not the case for his other theory:

Stages of Psychosexual development

Freud described many kinds of defense mechanisms, but

believed that Repression was the most important


ID

EGO

SUPEREGO

Strong biological urges reside in the Id, and push all

children through five universal psychosexual stages

during the first 12 years of life

Psychosexual Stages of Development

STAGES: Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency, Genital

At each psychosexual stage, the id’s impulses

and social demands come into conflict.

If a child’s needs are not met, or are overindulged,

at one particular stage, the child may fixate and a

part of the personality will remain stuck at that

stage

Most people pass through each stage, but at times

they may return or Regress to an earlier stage in

which earlier needs were badly frustrated or

overgratified.

See the textbook for more details


ID

EGO

SUPEREGO

The ego’s protective method of reducing

anxiety by disturbing reality

Blogging: Defense Mechanisms

Write about an example from your

own experience(s) in which you

have used one or more of the

defense mechanisms. Discuss the

consequences of using the

defense mechanism.

[Create a new page (blog page) and add it

as a tab on your webpage titled:

“Blogging about Psychology”

Begin a new entry titled: “Defense

Mechanism”]

NEO-FREUDIAN THEORIES OF PERSONALITY

Alfred Alder (1937)

Instead of seeing behavior as motivated by unconscious

forces, he believed that it is purposeful and goal-

directed.

Individual Psychology—we are motivated by our goals in

life—especially our goals of obtaining security and

overcoming feelings of inferiority.

Believed that almost everyone suffers from an INFERIORITY

COMPLEX, or deep feelings of inadequacy and

incompetence that arise from feelings of helplessness as

infants.

These early feelings result in “will-to-power” that can take one of two paths:

1. Cause children to strive to develop superiority over others through dominance,

aggression, or expressions of envy

2. More positively—cause children to develop their full potential and creativity

and to gain mastery and control in their lives

PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY REVISED

Carl Jung (1961)

Two forms of the unconscious mind:

personal unconscious (created from our

individual experiences) and collective

unconscious– (identical to each person

and inherited patterns of thought,

feeling, behavior—also known as

archetypes)

Believed that the unconscious contains positive and spiritual

motives as well as sexual aggressive forces

Humanistic theories of personality emphasize internal

experiences—feelings and thoughts—and the individual’s own

feelings as a basic . worth

In contrast to Freud’s generally negative view of human nature, humanists

believe people are naturally good (or at worst, neutral). And they

possess a positive drive toward self-fulfillment

Personality and behavior depend on how we perceive and interpret the

world, not on traits, unconscious impulses, or rewards and punishment

(behaviourism).

To fully understand another human being we must know how

he/she perceives the world.

HUMANISTIC THEORY

Roger’s Theory: The Importance of Self

The most important component of

personality is the self—what a person

comes to identify as “I” or “me”

“Self-Concept” refers to all the

information and beliefs you have

regarding your own nature, unique

qualities, and typical behaviours.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need

Psychologist Abraham

Maslow (1943, 1954)

stated that human

motivation is based on

people seeking fulfillment

and change through

personal growth.


Maslow believed there was

basic “goodness” to human

nature and a natural tendency

toward self-actualization

based on people seeking

fulfillment and change through

personal growth. Self-

actualized people as those

who were fulfilled and doing

all they were capable of.

Self Actualization: the inborn drive to develop all one’s

talents and capabilities


Self Actualization: the inborn drive to

develop all one’s talents and

capabilities

Self Actualization involves understanding one’s potential, accepting oneself and

others as unique individuals, and taking a problem-centred approach to life

situations. Self-actualization is the end product or accomplishment—a road to travel

rather than the final destination

Only a few, rare individuals are self-actualized (Albert

Einstein, Gandhi) However, self-actualization is part

of every person’s basic hierarchy of needs


1. Biological and Physiological needs - air,

food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep.

2. Safety needs - protection from elements,

security, order, law, limits, stability, freedom

from fear.

3. Social Needs - belongingness, affection

and love, - from work group, family, friends,

romantic relationships.

4. Esteem needs - achievement, mastery,

independence, status, dominance, prestige,

self-respect, respect from others.

5. Self-Actualization needs - realizing

personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking

personal growth and peak experiences.


Maslow (1970) estimated that only

two percent of people will reach the

state of self actualization. He was

particularly interested in the

characteristics of people whom he

considered to have achieved their

potential as persons.

By studying 18 people he

considered to be self-actualized

(including Abraham Lincoln and

Albert Einstein) Maslow (1970)

identified 15 characteristics of a self-

actualized person.

Only a few, rare individuals are self-actualized (Albert

Einstein, Gandhi) However, self-actualization is part

of every person’s basic hierarchy of needs


Characteristics of self-actualizers:

1. They perceive reality efficiently and can tolerate

uncertainty;

2. Accept themselves and others for what they are;

3. Spontaneous in thought and action;

4. Problem-centered (not self-centered);

5. Unusual sense of humor;

6. Able to look at life objectively;

7. Highly creative;

8. Resistant to enculturation, but not purposely

unconventional;


Characteristics of self-actualizers:

9. Concerned for the welfare of humanity;

10. Capable of deep appreciation of basic life-experience;

11. Establish deep satisfying interpersonal relationships with

a few people;

12. Peak experiences;

13. Need for privacy;

14. Democratic attitudes;

15. Strong moral/ethical standards.

Theories of Personality

Education

Transcript of Theories of Personality