WEEK 7: PERSONALITY

Introduction to Personality Theories

 PERSONALITY
The set of psychological traits and
mechanisms within the individual that is
organized and relatively enduring and that
influences his or her interactions with, and
adaptations to, the environment
 PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAITS
• Characteristics that describe ways in
which people are different from each other
• Relatively enduring over time
• Consistent over situations
PSYCHOLOGICAL MECHANISMS
• Processes of personality
• In which conditions, personality
presents itself
 KEY NOTES
• Personality stresses the important sources
of personality reside within the individual,
and are at least somewhat stable overtime
and consistent with other situations
• Personality plays a key role in affecting
how people shape their lives, how they
think, how they act, and how they feel 
difference of perception between
individuals
 PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH ON
PERSONALITY
• GRAND THEORIES OF PERSONALITY
– Attempt to provide universal account of the
fundamental psychological processes and
characteristics of the human species
– Statements about the universal core of human
nature lie at the center of grand theories of
personality, such as Sigmund Freud’s
Psychoanalytic Theory
 PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH ON
PERSONALITY
• CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH
– Addresses ways in which individuals and
groups differ, not human universals
– Personality psychologists specialize in a
particular domain, such as biological aspects
of personality or how culture impacts
personality
ROLE OF PERSONALITY THEORY
• Serves as guide for researchers
• Organizes known findings
• Makes predictions about behaviour and
psychological phenomena that not one has
yet documented or observed
• Key note: scientific theories need to be
distinguished from beliefs
FIVE STANDARDS FOR EVALUATING
PERSONALITY THEORIES
COMPREHENSIVENESS
- Does the theory explain most or all of the
facts and observations within its domain?
- Theories that explain more empirical
data within their domains are generally
more superior than to those that explain
fewer
FIVE STANDARDS FOR EVALUATING
PERSONALITY THEORIES
HEURISTIC VALUE
- Does the theory provide a guide to future
research? Is it useful?
- Good personality theories will guide
personality researchers to make
discoveries that were previously unknown
FIVE STANDARDS FOR EVALUATING
PERSONALITY THEORIES
TESTABILITY
- Can the theory be tested empirically by
personality psychologists?
- As a general rule, the testability of a
theory rests with the precision of its
prediction. If a theory does not lend itself
to being tested empirically, it is generally
judged to be a poor theory
FIVE STANDARDS FOR EVALUATING
PERSONALITY THEORIES
PARSIMONY
- Can the theory be summarized or not?
- Parsimony refers to preferring the
simpler of two otherwise equally
adequate theories because of its
usefulness to various fields
FIVE STANDARDS FOR EVALUATING
PERSONALITY THEORIES
COMPATIBILITY AND INTEGRATION ACROSS
DOMAINS AND LEVELS
- A personality theory in one domain that
violated well-established principles in
another domain is judged to be highly
problematic
- A personality theory should be able to
coordinate with other branches of
scientific knowledge
THEORIES OF PERSONALITY
MAJOR SCHOOLS OF PERSONALITY
• Pscyhoanalytical
• Behaviorists
• Social Learning
• Humanistic
• Trait
 PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY:
SIGMUND FREUD
• UNCONSCIOUS/SUBCONSCIOUS
- The part of the mind that contains
material of which we are unaware but
that strongly influences conscious
processes and behaviours
 PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY:
SIGMUND FREUD
• THREE PARTS OF A PERSONALITY
– ID: contains the needs, drives, instinct and
repressed materials of the individual; selfish,
makes demands, and wants instant
gratification
– EGO: in touch with reality and strives to meet
the demands of the ID and the SUPEREGO
– SUPEREGO: source of conscience and
counteracts the socially undesirable impulses
of ID
PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY: CARL
JUNG
• A person’s past and childhood
experiences determined future behaviour
(adapted Freud’s claims), but the future is
also shaped by aspirations
• Distinguished between the personal
unconscious and the collective
unconscious  a storehouse of instincts,
urges, and memories of the entire human
species throughout history  archetypes
PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY: CARL
JUNG
• THE ARCHETYPES
– Persona  the social mask: what the public
can see and should see
– Shadow  similar to Freud’s ID
– Anima/Animus  male and female sides
 PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY:
ALFRED ADLER
• Believed that the driving force in people’s
lives is a desire to overcome their feelings of
inferiority
• Described a person who continually tries to
compensate for his weaknesses and avoid
feelings of inadequacy as having an
inferiority complex
• Believed that the way parents treat their kids
influences the style of life they choose
 PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY:
ABRAHAM MASLOW
• Based his theory of personality on studies
of healthy, creative, self-actualizing
people who fully utilized their talents and
potential, rather than on studies of
disturbed individuals
 PSYCHOANALYTICAL THEORY:
ABRAHAM MASLOW
• TRAITS OF A SELF-ACTUALIZED PERSON
– Perceive reality accurately  acceptance of
self, other people, and enivironment
– Able to focus on tasks and are more likely to
base decisions on ethical principles  strong
sense of identity
– Spontaneous and independent
 CARL ROGER: SELF THEORY
For a person to “grow” , they need:
- An environment that provides them with
genuineness (openness and self-
disclosure)
- Acceptance (being seen with
unconditional positive regard)
- Emotional stability: calm vs high strung
 CARL ROGER: SELF THEORY
For a person to “grow” , they need:
- An environment that provides them with
genuineness (openness and self-
disclosure)
- Acceptance (being seen with
unconditional positive regard)
- Empathy (being listened to and
understood)
 SELF-CONCEPT
THREE COMPONENTS:
- Self-worth (self esteem) – what the
individual thinks about himself
- Congruence – self-actualization occurs
when a person’s “ideal self” is congruent
with their actual behaviour (self-image)
 FULL-FUNCTIONING PERSON
An individual who is actualizing as a fully
functioning person exhibits the following
traits:
- Open to experience
- Existential living (in touch with different
experiences as they occur in life)
- Trustful feelings
- Creativity
-Fulfilled life
 TRAIT THEORY: ALLPORT
Three levels:
1. Cardinal traits – traits that dominate an
indiviudal’s whole life, often to the point that
the person becomes known specifically for
these traits
2. Central traits – major characteristics you
might use to describe another person
3. Secondary Traits – traits that are
sometimes related to attitudes or
preferences and often appear only in certain
situations or under specific circumstances
RAYMOND CATTELL: SIXTEEN TRAIT
THEOR
1. Abstractedness: imaginative vs.
practicality
2. Apprehension: worried vs competent
3. Dominance: Forceful vs submissive
4. Emotional Stability: calm vs. high strugh
5. Liveliness: Spontaneous
RAYMOND CATTELL: SIXTEEN TRAIT
THEOR
6. Openness to change: flexible vs attached to
the familiar
7. Perfectionism: controlled vs undisciplined
8. Privacy  Discreet vs open
9. Reasoning  abstract vs concrete
10. Rule Consciousness  Conforming vs non-
conforming
11. Sensitivity  tender-hearted vs tough-
minded
RAYMOND CATTELL: SIXTEEN TRAIT
THEOR
12. Social Boldness  uninhibited vs shy
13. Tension  Impatient vs relaxed
14. Vigilance  Suspicious vs trusting
15. Warmth  Outgoing vs reserved
16. Self-reliance  Self-sufficient vs
dependent
 REFERENCES
Larsen, R.J., & Buss, D.M. (2009). Personality
Psychology: Domains of Knowledge About
Human Nature (4th ed). New York: McGraw-
Hill

Singh, I. (n.y). Lecture: Theories of

Personality [pdf]. Retrieved from Noida
International University