Gordon Allport

Gordon Allport Born in 1897 in Indiana Attended Harvard as an undergraduate and graduate student Became an instructor of social ethics at Harvard Taught the first course offered in personality

The Nature of Personality Personality a real entity Hoped that neurophysiological and psychological research would one day show us the location of personality Distinguished between continuity theories of personality that are closed and admit little change and discontinuity theories that are open and provide for extensive growth

Traits Neuropsychic structures within a person that influence behavior; they are not simply labels we use to describe or classify behaviors Common traits – hypothetical constructs that permit us to make comparisons between individuals Personal dispositions – unique to each person Cardinal – so pervasive that they influence almost every behavior of an individual Central – highly characteristic of individual Secondary – specific, focused tendencies

Thinking Critically Central Dispositions Think of a close friend you know well. Describe your friend’s personality by jotting down words or phrases that express his or her essential characteristics. Do the same thing for yourself. Count the number of words or phrases necessary to describe your friend and yourself. Research suggests the number of central dispositions fall between 5-10. Does your evidence support this claim? Do you think this number reflects a certain level of complexity in personality or does it simply reflect the number of traits the observer is able to keep track of?

The Proprium, Functional Autonomy Central experiences of self-awareness that people have as they grow and move forward Propriate functions (Table 10.1) Functional Autonomy – implies that adult motivation is not necessarily tied to the past Perseverative Propriate

Allport's Propriate Functions

A Definition of Maturity Extension of Sense of Self Warm Relating of Self to Others Emotional Security (Self-Acceptance) Realistic Perception, Skills, and Assignments Self-Objectification (Insight and Humor) Unifying Philosophy of Life

Assessment and Research in Allport’s Theory View of personality as open and discontinuous did not lend itself well to study Allport encouraged idiographic approach to study that centers on the individual in order to understand uniqueness Use of content analysis in study of personal documents

Philosophy, Science, and Art: Allport’s Theory Allport used rigorous scientific methods to establish common traits Recognized the value of methodologies used in literature, philosophy, art and religion to study uniqueness of individual Many of his ideas have been useful to clinicians