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Chapter 12Personality

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Psychodynamic Perspectives Humanistic Perspectives Trait Perspectives Personological and Life Story Perspectives Social Cognitive Perspectives Biological Perspectives Personality Assessment Personality and Health and Wellness

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Personality

…a pattern of enduring distinctive thoughts,

emotions, and behaviors that characterize the

way an individual adapts to the world

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Psychodynamic Perspectives

personality is primarily unconscious

understanding personality involves exploring the symbolic meanings of behavior and the unconscious mind

early childhood experiences sculpt the individual’s personality

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Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory

Freud and Psychoanalysis sex drive – main determinant of personality

development

Hysteria physical symptoms without physical cause overdetermined – multiple unconscious causes

Iceberg Analogy of Human Personality

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Personality Structure

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Personality Structure

Id instincts and reservoir of psychic energy pleasure principle

Ego deals with the demands of reality reality principle

Superego moral branch of personality; “conscience”

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Defense Mechanisms

conflict between the id, ego, and superego results in anxiety

defense mechanisms reduce anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality – not necessarily unhealthy

repression foundation for all defense mechanisms push unacceptable impulses out of

awareness

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Defense Mechanisms

repression rationalization displacement sublimation projection reaction formation denial regression

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Defense Mechanisms

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Defense Mechanisms

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Psychosexual Stages

Oral Stage: 0-18 Months infant’s pleasure centers on the mouth

Anal Stage: 18-36 Months child’s pleasure involves eliminative functions

Phallic Stage: 3-6 Years child’s pleasure focuses on the genitals Oedipal complex castration anxiety

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Psychosexual Stages

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Psychosexual Stages (cont’d)

Latency Stage: 6 Years - Puberty psychic “time-out” interest in sexuality is repressed

Genital Stage: Adolescence and Adulthood sexual reawakening source of sexual pleasure is someone else

Fixation - remain locked in particular developmental

stage (e.g., anal retentive)

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Dissenters and Revisionists

sexuality – not pervasive force behind personality

early experience –not as powerful as Freud thought

importance of conscious thought

sociocultural influences

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Dissenters and Revisionists

Horney’s Sociocultural Approach both sexes envy the attributes of the other need for security, not sex, is primary motivator

Jung’s Analytical Theory collective unconscious and archetypes

Adler’s Individual Psychology perfection, not pleasure, is key motivator

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Evaluating Psychodynamic Theory

Criticisms too much emphasis on early experiences too much faith in unconscious mind’s control too much emphasis on sexual instincts theory can not be tested

Contributions importance of childhood experiences development proceeds in stages role of unconscious processes

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Humanistic Perspectives

…emphasis on a person’s capacity for

personal growth and positive human

qualities

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Humanistic Perspectives

Abraham Maslow third force psychology

self-actualization

peak experiences

biased since focus was on highly successful individuals

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Humanistic Perspectives

Carl Rogers personal growth and self-determination unconditional positive regard

- conditions of worth

- self-concept empathy genuineness

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Evaluating Humanistic Perspectives

Contributions self-perception is key to personality consider the positive aspects of human nature emphasize conscious experience

Criticisms too optimistic about human nature promotes self-love and narcissism

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Trait Perspectives

Trait an enduring disposition that leads to

characteristic responses traits are the building blocks of personality

Trait Theories people can be described by their typical

behavior strong versus weak tendencies

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Trait Perspectives

Gordon Allport personality understood through traits behavior consistent across situations lexical approach 4500 traits

W. T. Norman five factor model broad traits – main dimensions of

personality

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Five Factor Model of Personality

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Five Factor Model of Personality

Do the big five show up in the

assessment of personality in

cultures around the world?

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Five Factor Model of Personality

Do the big five personality

traits show up in animals?

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Evaluating Trait Perspectives

Contributions traits influence health, cognitions, career

success, and interpersonal relations

Criticisms ignores the role of the situation in behavior ignores nuances of an individual’s personality

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Personological Perspectives

…focusing on an individual’s

life history or life story

Henry Murray personology: the study of the whole person motives are largely unconscious thematic apperception test (TAT)

- need for achievement, affiliation, and power

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Life Story Approach

Dan McAdams our life story is our identity intimacy motivation

Psychobiography applying personality theory to one

person’s life

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Evaluating Life Story Approach

Contributions rich record of an individual’s experience

Criticisms difficult and time-consuming

- extensive coding and content analysis

prone to bias not easily generalized

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Social Cognitive Perspectives

emphasize conscious awareness, beliefs, expectations, and goals

incorporates principles from behaviorism when exploring:

- reasoning

- beliefs

- self reflection

- interpretation of situation

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Social Cognitive Perspectives

Albert Bandura reciprocal determinism

- behavior, environment, and cognitive

factors interact to create personality

Key Processes and Variables observational learning personal control self-efficacy

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Reciprocal Determinism

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Social Cognitive Perspectives

Walter Mischel

Situationalism

- behavior and personality vary considerably across context

CAPS Model of Personality

- stability over time rather than across situations

- interconnections among cognitions and emotions affect our behavior

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Evaluating Social Cognitive Theory

Contributions focuses on interactions of individuals with

their environments suggests people can control their environment

Criticisms too concerned with change and the situation ignores the role of biology very specific predictions hinder generalization

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Biological Perspectives

Personality and the Brain brain damage alters personality brain responses correlate with personality

Eysenk’s Reticular Activation System Theory extraverts and introverts have different base-line levels

of arousal

Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory behavioral activation system and behavioral inhibition

system

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Biological Perspectives

Role of Neurotransmitters

growth of dopamine receptors stimulated by warm care-givers

disposes person to reward-sensitivity (extraversion)

less serotonin in circulation leads to negative mood (neuroticism)

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Biological Perspectives

Behavioral Genetics twin studies reveal substantial genetic

influence on Big Five traits most traits influenced by multiple genes

Evaluating the Biological Perspective ties personality to animal learning, brain

imaging, and evolutionary theory criticisms (e.g., biology may be the

affect, not the cause, of personality)

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Personality –Stability vs Change

Traits are stable by definition yet Traits are stable by definition yet positive traits increase across positive traits increase across adulthood (social maturity).adulthood (social maturity).

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Personality Assessment

Self-Report Tests

beware social desirability

empirically-keyed tests used to get around social desirability problem

- test takers do not know what is being measured

- test items not related to purpose of test

- MMPI is an example

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Personality Assessment

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory 567 items controls for social desirability assesses mental health and used to make hiring

decisions and to determine criminal risk

Neuroticism Extraversion Openness

Personality Inventory-Revised assesses the big five factors and 6 subdimensions

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Personality Assessment

Myers Briggs Type Indicator four dimensions used to make personnel

decisions:

- extraversion-introversion

- sensing-intuiting

- thinking-feeling

- judgment-perception not empirically supported Barnum effect

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Personality Assessment

Projective Tests

…psychodynamic approach

…project own meaning on ambiguous stimuli

Rorschach inkblot test personality score based on description of inkblots questionable reliability and validity

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) series of ambiguous pictures viewed one at a time elicited stories reveal an individual’s personality

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Rorschach Inkblot Test

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Thematic Apperception Test

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Other Assessment Methods

direct behavioral observation

cognitive assessment of attention and memory

peer ratings

psychophysiological measures (e.g., polygraph)

brain imaging

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Personality and Health and Wellness

Personality traits correlated with health

conscientiousness personal control self efficacy optimism type A/type B behavior pattern

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Personality and Health and Wellness

Subjective Well-Being

…person’s assessment of own positive

affect relative to negative affect, and

evaluation of own life in general

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Chapter Summary

Define personality. Discuss the following perspectives on personality

psychodynamic humanistic trait personological and life story social cognitive biological

Characterize the main methods of personality assessment. Summarize how personality relates to health and wellness.

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Chapter Summary

Psychodynamic Perspectives focus on unconscious determinants personality structure and defense mechanisms psychosexual stages of development

Humanistic Perspectives Maslow and self-actualization Rogers and unconditional positive regard

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Chapter Summary

Trait Perspectives traits are stable over time and situations

Personological and Life Story Perspectives personology - study the whole person identity can be understood through life stories

Social Cognitive Perspectives behavior, environment, and cognitive factors self-efficacy and personal control

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Chapter Summary

Biological Perspectives

Personality Assessment self-reports tests projective tests other assessment techniques

Personality and Health and Wellness healthful personality traits