Personality Psychology Personality The Nature of Personality PART

Personality Psychology

Personality: The Nature of Personality PART ONE

Personality: The Nature of Personality �Personality The unique & relatively stable ways in which people think, feel and behave � Not to be confused with… Character • Refers to a person’s moral & ethical behavior Temperament • The enduring characteristics with which each person is born �Irritability, adaptability, etc.

Personality: The Nature of Personality �Big Issues in Personality Nature v. Nurture � Is personality genetically encoded or learned? Unconscious v. Conscious � Do you know why you do what you do? Fixed v. Situational � Is personality stable or does it change from situation to situation?

Personality: Psychodynamic Perspective PART TWO FREUDIAN

Theorist: Sigmund Freud �Three primary beliefs… Childhood experiences determine the adult personality Unconscious mental processes influence everyday behavior Conflict causes most human behavior �Four major theories… Personality Structure Levels of Consciousness Defense Mechanisms Development

Theory: (1) Personality Structure �Part 1: The Id The id is fully intact from the moment of birth � The primitive & instinctive component of our personality � Houses unconscious drives such as libido (sex) & aggression � Selfish & irrational Operates according to the pleasure principle � Demands INSTANT gratification… “Primary-Process” thinking

Theory: (1) Personality Structure �Part 2: The Superego Develops during childhood (around the age of 6) � The internalized parent of our personality � Causes us to feel guilty for our desires/id impulses � Strives for perfection Operates according to the Judicial or Moral Principle � Seeks to do what is right and good…

Theory: (1) Personality Structure �Part 3: The Ego Develops during infancy (around the 6 th month) � The decision-making component of our personality Operates according to the reality principle � Seeks to gratify the id’s urges at an appropriate time, given an appropriate outlet; will otherwise delay gratification “Secondary-Process” thinking

Theory: (2) Levels of Consciousness �Conscious Mind Consists of our awareness at any point in time �Preconscious Contains material just beneath the surface of awareness; can be easily retrieved �Unconscious Mind Contains thoughts, memories and desires that are well below the surface of conscious awareness

I’m just the tip of the iceberg! Executive mediation Freudian-Slip Central… Internalized ideals Unconscious urges & desires

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �The inevitable conflict between the id & the superego produces anxiety This anxiety is inherited by the ego, which uses defense mechanisms (largely unconscious) to better manage it, as well as other unpleasant emotions � Types of Anxiety (1) Realistic Anxiety • External threat; fear (2) Moral Anxiety • Internal threat from superego (3) Neurotic (Nervous) Anxiety • Fear of being dominated by impulses residing in the id

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �Denial Refusing to experience a certain situation � Example Despite being told that their son cheated on the SAT, Mr. and Mrs. Smith refuse to believe that their son is capable of such actions…

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �Displacement Redirecting impulses towards an acceptable/symbolic substitute � Example Children who fear expressing anger towards their parents, may displace it by kicking their dog

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �Identification (Introjection) Incorporating personality characteristics associated with someone else into your own personality in order to deal with a specific situation Forming a real or imaginary alliance (with a person or a group) in order to bolster self-esteem; often seen in insecure individuals � Example Joining a fraternity, clique, etc.

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �Projection Attributing one’s own unacceptable thoughts to another person � Example “He doesn’t trust me” may be a projection of the actual feeling “I don’t trust him” or “I don’t trust myself…”

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �Rationalization Distorting facts to make an event or desire seem less threatening � Example Habitual drinkers may say they drink with friends “just to be sociable” �Reaction Formation To unconsciously switch unacceptable impulses into their opposites � Example People may express feelings of purity when they are suffering from unconscious feelings about sex

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �Regression Retreating to a more infantile psychosexual stage A reversion to immature patterns of behavior � Example A child, anxious about the first day of school, may regress to the oral comfort of thumb-sucking A teenager who throws a temper-tantrum because her parents won’t buy her a car

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �Repression “Motivated forgetting” Failure to remember a traumatic event � Example We do not remember our childhood lust for our parent (Oedipus/Electra)

Theory: (3) Defense Mechanisms �Sublimation Transforming an unacceptable impulse into a socially acceptable one � Example A surgeon becomes a surgeon so he or she can “cut” in a socially acceptable manner

Theory: (4) Developmental Stages �Oral Stage (Age: 0 -1. 5) Erogenous Zone � Mouth � Libido satisfied by breast feeding Major Conflict � Weaning � Failure to resolve the issue leads to oral fixation Suck/chew things for security Sarcasm, aggressiveness

Theory: (4) Developmental Stages �Anal Stage (Age: 1. 5 -3) Erogenous Zone � Anus � Libido satisfied by defecating Major Conflict � Toilet training � Failure to resolve the issue leads to anal fixation Anal Retentive: tightly controlled, OCD, fear of dirt, obsessed with punctuality, etc. Anal Expulsive: messy, unorganized, rebellious, overly giving, obsession with bathroom humor, etc.

Theory: (4) Developmental Stages �Phallic Stage (Boys) (Age: 3 -6) Erogenous Zone � Penis � Libido satisfied by genital stimulation “Oedipus Complex” � Desires mother; wants to eliminate father � Resolved through castration anxiety Fears that father will find out & castrate him Relinquishes desire for mother & befriends father out of fear

Theory: (4) Developmental Stages �Phallic Stage (Girls) (Age: 3 -6) Erogenous Zone � Clitoris � Libido satisfied by genital stimulation “Electra Complex” + Penis Envy � Reverse of Oedipus Complex (kind of…)

(More about Electra…) Soon after the libidinal shift to the penis, the girl develops her first sexual impulses towards her mother (Oedipus…) 2. The girl realizes that she is not equipped to have a heterosexual relationship with her mother… 3. As a result, she desires a penis, and the “power” it represents… 4. She sees the solution as obtaining her father’s penis; develops a sexual attraction towards him (Electra…) 5. The girl now blames her mother for her apparent “castration” (which she views as punishment for being attracted to her father…) 1.

(More about Electra…) 6. Sexual desire for her father leads to feelings of 7. 8. 9. 10. wanting to eliminate her mother… Girl IDENTIFIES with her mother, so that she might learn to mimic and thus replace her… The girl anticipates that this action may lead to punishment… The girl employs DISPLACEMENT to shift the object of her sexual desires from her father to men in general… The end.

Theory: (4) Developmental Stages �Phallic Stage (Age: 3 -6) Major Conflict � Relinquishing desire for the opposite sex parent � Failure to resolve this issues leads to fixation Excessive masturbation; overly flirtatious Excessive modesty Overly proud Promiscuous

Theory: (4) Developmental Stages �Latency (Age: 7 -11) Erogenous Zone � None � Sexual feelings are repressed Child develops academic, social and extracurricular skills Typically play in same-sex play groups

Theory: (4) Developmental Stages �Genital (puberty on…) Erogenous Zone � Penis/Vagina � Begins when a child hits sexual maturity Normal sexual relationships occur at this stage

Personality: Psychodynamic Perspective PART THREE 1. Carl Jung 2. Alfred Adler 3. Karen Horney NEO-FREUDIAN

Theorist: (1) Carl Jung �Analytic Psychology Major criticisms of Freud? � Believed that Freud went overboard on centering his theory around sexual conflict � Disagreed on the nature of the unconscious mind Jung believed that the unconscious mind consisted of two layers… � (1) Personal Unconscious � (2) Collective Unconscious

Theorist: (1) Carl Jung �(1) Personal Unconscious Houses material that is not within one’s conscious awareness because it has been repressed or forgotten � (Essentially the same as Freud’s version of the unconscious)

Theorist: (1) Carl Jung �(2) Collective Unconscious Houses latent memory traces inherited from people’s ancestral past � Each person shares the collective unconscious with the entire human race Contains the “whole spiritual heritage of mankind’s evolution, born anew in the brain structure of every individual…” � These ancestral memories are referred to as archetypes

Theorist: (1) Carl Jung �Archetypes Emotionally charged images and thought forms that have universal meaning � Archetypal images & ideas frequently show up in dreams and are often manifested in a culture’s use of symbols in art, literature and religion

Theorist: (2) Alfred Adler �Individual Psychology Major criticism of Freud? � Believed that Freud went overboard on centering his theory around sexual conflict Adler believed that the foremost source of human motivation is a striving for superiority �A universal drive to adapt, improve oneself and master life’s challenges

Theorist: (2) Alfred Adler �Other Major Ideas Compensation � The idea that everyone has to work to overcome feelings of inferiority, real or imagined, by developing one’s abilities Inferiority Complex � Fixation on feelings of personal inferiority that can lead to emotional and social paralysis Fictional Finalism � Setting long-term goals that may never be reached, but help you to achieve a sense of satisfaction along the way (Theory of Birth Order)

Theorist: (3) Karen Horney �One of the first females in the field… Major criticisms of Freud? � Believed that Freud went overboard on centering his theory around sexual conflict; “womb envy” Horney believed that anxiety was one of the most powerful motivating forces � Basic Anxiety Created when a child is born into the bigger & more powerful world of adults and older children

Theorist: (3) Karen Horney �Believed that those with loving parents would overcome basic anxiety; those that didn’t would develop neurotic personalities How do children deal with anxiety and insecurity? � Coping Mechanisms Compliance: move toward others Withdrawal: move away from others Aggression: move against others

Evaluation: Psychodynamic Approach �In support of… Research has demonstrated that… � Unconscious forces can influence behavior � Internal conflict often plays a key role in generating psychological distress � Early childhood experiences can have a powerful impact on adult personality � People do use defense mechanisms to reduce their experience of unpleasant emotions

Evaluation: Psychodynamic Approach �Criticisms of… Poor testability � Ideas are often too vague and conjectural Unrepresentative samples � Narrow Inadequate evidence � Depend & biased samples too heavily on clinical cases Sexism � Many psychodynamic theories are characterized by a sexist bias against women Pessimistic outlook on human nature

Personality: Humanistic Perspective PART FOUR Humanism is a theoretical orientation that emphasizes the unique qualities of humans, especially their freedom and their potential for personal growth

Personality: Humanistic Perspective �Major Assumptions… People can rise above their primitive animal heritage People are largely conscious, rational beings who are not dominated by unconscious, irrational conflicts People are not helpless pawns of deterministic forces �Self-Actualizing Tendency Striving to fulfill one’s innate capacities & capabilities

Theorist: Carl Rogers �Person-Centered Perspective The Self (Self-Concept) �A collection of beliefs about one’s own nature, unique qualities and typical behavior � More-or-less subjective… “I’m easygoing” “I’m hardworking” “I’m pretty” � Individuals are aware of their self-concept; it is NOT buried in their unconscious

Theorist: Carl Rogers �The Self is divided into 2 major components… The Real Self � One’s perception of actual characteristics, traits & abilities The Ideal Self � One’s perceptions of whom one should be or would like to be �Congruence v. incongruence?

Theorist: Carl Rogers �Development of the Self Positive Regard � Warmth, affection, love and respect that comes from significant others; impacts personality and happiness � Vital to a person’s abilities to cope with stress and to strive for self-actualization Unconditional positive regard • Will provide overlap between real and ideal self Conditional positive regard

Evaluation: Humanistic Approach �Criticisms of… Poor testability � Ideas are often too vague, subjective or conjectural � Lacking scientific hypotheses Unrealistic & naive view of human nature � Is anyone really this perfect? What about the human capacity for evil? Inadequate evidence � Though empirical research has been done, it is difficult to quantify human experience Social influence?

Personality: Trait Perspective PART FIVE Trait theories are less concerned with the explanation for personality development & changing personality, than they are with describing personality & predicting behavior based on that description

Personality: Trait Perspective �Trait A consistent, enduring way of thinking, feeling or behaving; a characteristic pattern of behavior � Trait theorists believe that personality is best explained in terms of descriptive adjectives and categories comprised of related qualities

Theorist: (1) Gordon Allport �Trait Theory Cardinal Traits � Dominate and shape a person’s personality Ruling passions and/or obsessions Desire for money Central Traits � General traits found in every person (to some degree) Honesty Secondary traits � Seen only in certain circumstances Certain likes or dislikes

Theorist: (2) Raymond Cattell �Factor Analysis Approach A statistical procedure that identifies clusters of correlated test items Used this method to develop a 16 Personality Factor Inventory (16 PF) � Believed that large groups of traits could be reduced to 16 core personality traits based on statistical correlations Later added 7 for a total of 23 traits

Theorist: (3) Hans Eysenck �Biological Trait Theory Suggested that personality could be evaluated on two polar dimensions � Extraversion v. introversion Are you social and outgoing? Reserved? � Stability v. instability Are you predictable? Spontaneous? � (Psychoticism) Are you EXTREMELY stable, unstable, introverted or extraverted?

Theorist: (4) Robert Mc. Crae �Today’s trait researchers believe that Eysenck’ s personality dimensions are too narrow and Cattell’s 16 PF are too large �The Big-Five (Five-Factor Model) Suggests that most personality traits are derived from FIVE higher-order traits � OCEAN � CANOE

Evaluation: Trait Perspective �Criticisms of… Personality traits will not always be expressed in the same way across the same situation � Trait-Situation Interaction (Walter Mischel) The assumption that the particular circumstances of any given situation will influence the way in which a trait is expressed As a result, traits are not good predictors of behavior �On the other hand… Trait theorists argue that behaviors from a situation may be different, but average behaviors remain the same

Personality: Social-Cognitive Perspective PART SIX The social-cognitive perspective emphasizes the interaction of traits and situations ***Sometimes known as social-behavioral perspective

Theorist: (1) Albert Bandura �Social-Cognitive Theory Reciprocal Determinism � The idea that internal mental events (cognition), external environmental events and overt behavior all influence one another � The environment determines behavior; however, behavior also determines the environment… Self-Efficacy � An individual’s expectancy of how effective his or her efforts to accomplish a goal will be in any particular circumstance High levels v. low levels of self-efficacy?

Theorist: (2) Julian Rotter �Expectancy Theory Personal Control � The extent to which people perceive control over their environment; impacts personality development External Locus of Control • The perception that chance or forces beyond one’s control determine his or her fate Internal Locus of Control • The perception that one controls his or her own fate

Theorist: (3) Walter Mischel �The Person-Situation Controversy Asserted that people make responses that they think will lead to reinforcement given the situation at hand � Predicts that people will often behave differently in different situations… Sparked a major debate regarding: � The consistency of personality � The relative importance of the person as opposed to the situation in determining behavior

Evaluation: Social-Cognitive Perspective �In support of… Theories are firmly rooted in extensive empirical research (as opposed to clinical intuition) Situational factors are important in shaping behavior �Criticisms of… Dehumanizing nature of radical behaviorism � In regards to the denial of free will & the importance of cognitive processes Dilution of the behavioral approach � Behavioral theories aren’t behavioral anymore?

Personality: Assessment Strategies PART SEVEN

Method: (1) Interviews �An assessment in which the client is able to answer questions, either in a structured or unstructured fashion Used by… � Psychoanalysts � Humanistic theorists

Method: (1) Interviews �Advantages The “inside scoop” �Disadvantages Distortion of the truth, misremembering, etc. Halo effect � The tendency to form a favorable or unfavorable impression of someone at the first meeting; impacts interpretation of all consecutives meetings Reliability?

Method: (2) Projective Tests �Assessments that provide ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger the projection of one’s inner dynamics (unconscious thoughts…) Used by… � Psychoanalysts

Method: (2) Projective Tests �Advantages Provide a starting point for digging deeper into a client’s recollections, concerns & anxieties (? ) (Are there any? ) �Disadvantages Very subjective No standard scoring scale; low reliability and validity

Method: (2) Projective Tests �Types of Tests Rorschach Inkblot Test (1921) � 10 inkblots (5 in black ink, 5 in colored ink) � Subjects are asked to interpret the blots Thematic Apperception Test, TAT (1935) � 20 ambiguous images � Subjects are asked to tell a story Sentence Completion Test � “I wish my mother…” Draw-a-Person Test House-Tree-Person Test

Method: (3) Personality Inventories �A personality assessment that consists of statements requiring a specific, standardized response from the person taking the test Used by… � Trait theorists

Method: (3) Personality Inventories �Advantages Standardized; everyone gets the same list of questions Generally scored on a computer Include validity scales Generally more reliable than projective tests �Disadvantages Still a form of self-report � Issues?

Method: (3) Personality Inventories �Types of Tests The Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16 PF) � Based on: Raymond Cattell’s work Neuroticism/Extraversion/ Openness Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) � Based work on: Robert Mc. Crae’s

Method: (3) Personality Inventories �Types of Tests (continued) Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) � Based on: Carl Jung’s work Relies on four personality dimensions • • Sensing/Intuition Thinking/Feeling Introversion/Extraversion Perceiving/Judging Keirsey Temperament Sorter

Method: (3) Personality Inventories �Types of Tests (continued) Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI 2) � Assesses “abnormal” personality tendencies; widely used in clinical settings � Consists of 567 statements such as… “I am often tense” “I believe I am being plotted against” � Includes 10 clinical validity scales

Method: (4) Behavioral Assessment �A personality assessment that examines real world behaviors Used by… � Behavioral psychologists � Social-Cognitive theorists

Method: (4) Behavioral Assessment �Advantages Allows for the examination of behavior in everyday circumstances �Disadvantages Observer effect Observer bias No control over external environment

Method: (4) Behavioral Assessment �Types of Tests Direct Observation � Observation of client engaged in ordinary day-to-day behavior in either a clinical or natural setting Rating Scale � An assessment in which a numerical value is assigned to a specific behavior that is listed on the scale Frequency Count � An assessment in which the frequency of a particular behavior is counter