Personality

Jerry M. Burger
What is Personality?
Chapter 1
Chapter Outline
The person and the situation
Defining personality
Six approaches to personality
Personality and culture
The study of personality: Theory,
application, assessment, and research

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Let’s Consider...
9/11 attacks
2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami
The Person and the Situation
This is one of the enduring questions
in psychology
Both the situation and the person
influence behavior
Individual's personality determines:
How different he/she is from others
How he/she behaves in different
situations
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Personality psychologists are
interested in:
Why do some people make friends easily?
Why are some people prone to
depression?
Why are some people introverted, while
others are outgoing?
Personality Is…?
Consistent behaviour patterns and
intrapersonal processes originating
within the individual
Consistent patterns of behaviour
To an extent, individual behaviour is consistent
across time and situations
Intrapersonal processes
Emotional, motivational, and cognitive processes
that influence individual's feelings and actions

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Please bear in mind that psychologists
do not agree on a single answer to this
question! [and a lot of others too!
Sadly, we are an argumentative bunch
]
Most of the time = working definition
Approaches to Personality

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Approaches to Personality

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Approaches to Personality

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Examples
To get a better idea of how the 6
approaches to understanding
personality provide 6 different, yet
legitimate, explanations for consistent
patterns of behaviour
Aggression and depression
Aggression
Psychoanalytic approach’s explanation
People possess an unconscious desire to
self-destruct
Self-destructive impulses are expressed
against others in the form of aggression (if you
have a healthy personality)
Aggression occurs when people are
blocked from reaching their goals
(frustration)
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Aggression
Trait approach’s explanation
Focuses on individual differences and the
stability of aggressive behaviour
Aggressive children are most likely to become
aggressive adults
Biological approach’s explanation
Genetic predisposition towards aggression
Evolutionary theory  men > aggressive
than women
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Aggression
Humanistic approach’s explanation
People are basically good
Aggression arises when something interferes
with natural growth process
Inadequate basic needs, poor self-image
Behavioural/social approach’s explanation
People learn to be aggressive
Aggressive behavior that is rewarded will be
repeated

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Aggression
Cognitive explanation
Certain cues in the environment trigger a
network of aggressive thoughts and
emotions

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Depression
Psychoanalytic approach’s explanation
Depression is a result of holding
unconscious feelings of anger and hostility

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Trait approach’s explanation
Focuses on identifying depression-prone
individuals
Person’s general emotional level at
present can indicate that person’s emotions
in the future
Depression
Biological approach’s explanation
Certain people inherit a genetic
susceptibility to depression
Humanistic approach’s explanation
People frequently suffering from
depression are those who have low self-
worth

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Depression
Behavioural/social approach’s explanation
Depression results from a lack of positive
reinforcers in a person’s life
Cognitive approach’s explanation
Depression depends on how people interpret
their inability to control events
Certain individuals use a depressive filter to
interpret and process information

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Personality and Culture
Cultural context influences an
individual’s personality
Individualistic cultures: Emphasize on
individual needs and accomplishments
Individuals perceive themselves as
independent and unique
Includes Northern European countries and
the United States

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Personality and Culture
Collectivist cultures: Emphasize on
belonging to a larger group
Family, tribe, or nation
Includes Asian, African, Central
American, and South American countries
Cultural context influences
interpretation of an individual's
behaviour
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Concepts commonly studied by
Western personality psychologists often
take on very different meanings when
people from collectivist cultures are
studied
Study of Personality: Theory
Each approach to understanding
personality begins with a theory
Theory usually comes from the
writings of several important
psychologists who provide their own
descriptions of consistent patterns of
behaviour and intrapersonal processes
They explain the mechanisms that
underlie human personality and how
these mechanisms are responsible for
creating behaviours unique to a given
individual
Sometimes  even attempt to explain
how differences in personality develop
Also describe methods for changing
personality based on their theories
Study of Personality: Theory
Genetic versus environmental
influences
Biological and trait theorists argue that
psychologists fail to recognize the
significance of inherited predispositions
Psychoanalytic theorists emphasize innate
needs and unconscious behavior patterns

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Humanistic, behavioral/social learning,
and cognitive theorists rarely emphasize
inherited influences on personality
Study of Personality: Theory
Conscious versus unconscious
determinants of behavior
Psychoanalyst view asserts that much of
what people do is without awareness
Behavior perspective asserts that people
assume they understand the reasons for
their actions but in reality they do not

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Study of Personality: Theory
Trait and cognitive theorists assume
people can identify and report their level
of social anxiety
Humanistic theorists = middle ground

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Study of Personality: Theory
Free will versus determinism
Behaviorists argue that behavior is not
freely chosen but it is the result of
environmental forces and accumulated
history of experiences
Psychoanalytic theorists emphasize innate
needs and unconscious mechanisms

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Humanistic theorists identify personal
choice and responsibility as the basis of
mental health
Trait theorists and biological theorists
emphasize genetic predispositions
Study of Personality: Theory
Cognitive psychotherapists encourage
their clients to recognize the cause of their
problems and help them to develop
strategies to avoid future difficulties

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Figure 1.1 - Position of the Six Approaches to
Personality on Three Theory Issues

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Study of Personality:
Application
Psychoanalytic therapists attend to
unconscious causes of the problem
behavior
Humanistic therapists provide the
atmosphere for clients to explore their
feelings
Cognitive therapists try to change the
way their clients process information
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Study of Personality:
Application
Behaviorists structure the environment
to increase the frequency of desired
behaviors and decrease undesired
behaviors
Personality theory and research is used
by psychologists in educational,
organizational, and counseling settings

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Study of Personality:
Assessment
Many researchers use self-report inventories
to measure personality
Psychoanalytic psychologists focus on
learning unconscious thoughts
Require test takers to respond to ambiguous
stimuli
Behavioural psychologists observe
behaviour to determine consistent behaviour
patterns
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Study of Personality: Research
Test principles and assumptions central
to the theory
Further exploring some of the concepts
introduced by a personality theory

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Psychology researchers employ several
methods to uncover information about
personality (Chapter 2!)