INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY Chapter 12 Personality Personality Personality

INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY Chapter 12 - Personality

Personality Personality: a complex set of psychological qualities that influence a variety of characteristic behavior patterns across different situations and over time Trait: One enduring personal quality or attribute that influences behavior across situations The whole person A single characteristic Factor Analysis Correlations among many variable are analyzed to identify closely related clusters of variables

Personality Where does it come from? Interactions between genes, biology, & environment Personality becomes more complex as we develop (Baltes & Elder): Age-graded normative influences History-graded influences Non-normative influences

Personality Theories Trait Theories Psychodynamic Theories Social-Learning & Cognitive Theories

Trait Theories There are universal traits on which people lie on a continuum The Five Factor Model (“The Big Five”): Openness � Conscientiousness � Extraversion � Agreeableness � Neuroticism � The Five Factor Model has been replicated in 56 different nations!

Traits Is a behavior the result of someone’s personality, or is it the situation? Cross-situational consistency - does this person always behave this way? Are other people in this situation behaving similarly?

Culture & Personality Individualistic Cultures Value personal goals over group goals Identify is defined in terms of personal attributes “the squeaky wheel gets the grease” Collectivistic Cultures Groups goals are more important than personal ones Identity is defined in terms of belonging to a group “the nail that stands up gets hammered down”

Culture & Personality Individualism Collectivism

Psychodynamic Personality Theories The psychodynamic personality theories share the assumption that personality is shaped by the interaction between internal drives and the environment Focus on early childhood experiences Focus on levels of consciousness

Freudian Freud Psychosexual development Stage Fixation: an inability to process normally through a particular psychosexual stage, resulting in inappropriate thoughts and behaviors Age Erogenous Zone Dev. Task Adult Fixation Oral 0 -1 Mouth Weaning Smoking, overeating Anal 2 -3 Anus Toilet Training Orderliness vs. Messiness Phallic 4 -5 Genitals Oedipus/Electra Complex Vanity, recklessness, promiscuity vs. chastity Latent 6 -12 None Development of Defense Mechanisms Genital 13 -18 Genitals Mature Sexual intimacy Adults that have successfully gone

Freudian The psyche is divided into 3 components: Id Superego Innate and primitive Hedonistic Last structure to develop Represents morality and values of society passed down by authority figures Ego Mediates the relationship between the Id’s desires and the Superego’s values Reality principle

Freudian

Freudian Defense Mechanisms – mental strategies used by the ego to defend itself against conflicts experienced in the normal course of life � Repression: pushing painful thoughts/memories out of consciousness � Displacement: discharging pent-up feelings (usually aggression) on other objects/persons � Identification: increasing self-worth by identifying with another person or institution � Regression: retreating to an earlier developmental level � Sublimation: gratifying or working off sexual frustration on substitutive non -sexual, socially accepted activities

Freudian Examples of Freudian fixations & defense mechanisms Oral Fixation https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=CSM 5 W 41 jl 74 Regression https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=Ju. Xp 2 PIVk. KY

Psychodynamic (Neo-Freudian) Carl Jung � Collective unconscious: part of an individual’s unconscious that is inherited and common to all members of that species � Archetype: a universal, inherited, primitive, and symbolic representation of a particular experience The Persona The Anima/Animus The Shadow

The Collective Unconscious

Cognitive Theories Expectancy Theory Expectancy: the extent to which people believe that their behaviors in particular situations will have predictable results Locus of Control Internal External

Social-Learning Theories Bandura’s Reciprocal Determinism Model There is a complex interaction between a person, their behavior, and the environment that contributes to personality

Social Cognitive Theories Self-efficacy: a belief that one can perform adequately in a particular situation Self-esteem: a generalized evaluative attitude toward the self that influences mood and behavior Self-handicaping: the process of developing, in the anticipation of failure, behavioral reactions and explanations that minimize damage to self -esteem

Humanistic Theories Humanistic theories: emphasize people’s innate goodness and desire to achieve higher levels of functioning Self-actualization: a state of self-fulfillment in which people realize their full potential in a unique way Humanistic therapy Unconditional positive regard Non-judgmental Listening Sequence

Personality Assessment: The MMPI � Originally made in 1943 by psychologists and psychiatrists at the University of Minnesota � � The took hundreds of True/False questions, gave them to a clinical sample, and looked for patterns of responses in the different populations Includes 10 clinical scales, as well as validity and lie-detecting scales � � � Considered the “gold standard” in personality testing � � Hypochondriasis (concern with bodily symptoms) Depression Hysteria (feelings of vulnerability) Psychopathic Deviate (antisocial, anger) Masculinity/Femininity Paranoia Psychasthenia (anxiety) Schizophrenia Hypomania (excitability) Social Introversion Good for clinical diagnosis and “normal” personality testing for employers Now the MMPI-2 -RF

Personality Assessment: The MMPI False True False True False True False True False True False True False True False True 1. I like mechanics magazines. 2. I have a good appetite. 3. I wake up fresh and rested most mornings. 4. I think I would enjoy the work of a librarian. 5. I am easily awakened by noise. 6. My father is a good man (or if your father is dead) my father was a good man. 7. I like to read newspaper articles on crime. 8. My hands and feet are usually warm enough. 9. My daily life is full of things that keep me interested. 10. I am about as able to work as I ever was. 11. There seems to be a lump in my throat much of the time. 12. My sex life is satisfactory. 13. People should try to understand their dreams and be guided by or take warning from them. 14. I enjoy detective or mystery stories. 15. I work under a great deal of tension. 16. Once in a while I think of things too bad to talk about. 17. I am sure I get a raw deal from life. 18. I am troubled by attacks of nausea and vomiting. 19. When I take a new job, I like to find out whom it is important to be nice to. 20. I am very seldom bothered by constipation. 21. At times I have very much wanted to leave home. 22. No one seems to understand me. 23. At times I have fits of laughing and crying that I cannot control. 24. Evil spirits possess me at times. 25. I would like to be a singer. 26. I feel that it is certainly best to keep my mouth shut when I am in trouble. 27. When people do me wrong, I feel I should pay them back, just for the principle of the thing. 28. I am bothered by an upset stomach several times a week. 29. At times I feel like swearing. 30. I have nightmares every few nights.

Personality Assessment: The Rorschach � Type of Projective personality assessment � Developed by Herman Rorschach in 1921 � Used primarily by clinical psychologists and some forensic (criminal) psychologists � Responses are measured by: � � � Content Location Whole vs. details Originality # of responses Test has had issues of validity and reliability � � Inter-rater reliability Proliferation of images � http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=GLh 7 ki 27 HNU

Personality Assessment: The TAT Type of projective personality measure Similar to the Rorschach, but consist of interpersonal scenes Includes works of art and photography Participant must come up with a story about the picture