Chapter 12 Personality

Chapter Preview Psychodynamic Perspectives Humanistic Perspectives Trait Perspectives Personological and Life Story Perspectives Social Cognitive Perspectives Biological Perspectives Personality Assessment Personality and Health and Wellness

Personality …a pattern of enduring distinctive thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that characterize the way an individual adapts to the world

Psychodynamic Perspectives personality is primarily unconscious understanding personality involves exploring the symbolic meanings of behavior and the unconscious mind early childhood experiences sculpt the individual’s personality

Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory Freud and Psychoanalysis sex drive – main determinant of personality development Hysteria physical symptoms without physical cause overdetermined – multiple unconscious causes Iceberg Analogy of Human Personality

Personality Structure Id instincts and reservoir of psychic energy pleasure principle Ego deals with the demands of reality reality principle Superego moral branch of personality; “conscience”

Personality Structure

Defense Mechanisms conflict between the id, ego, and superego results in anxiety defense mechanisms reduce anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality – not necessarily unhealthy repression foundation for all defense mechanisms push unacceptable impulses out of awareness

Defense Mechanisms repression rationalization displacement sublimation projection reaction formation denial regression

Defense Mechanisms

Defense Mechanisms

Psychosexual Stages Oral Stage: 0-18 Months Anal Stage: 18-36 Months infant’s pleasure centers on the mouth Anal Stage: 18-36 Months child’s pleasure involves eliminative functions Phallic Stage: 3-6 Years child’s pleasure focuses on the genitals Oedipal complex castration anxiety

Phallic Stage Pleasure focuses on genitals Oedipus Complex discovery that self-stimulation is enjoyable Oedipus Complex boy’s intense desire to replace father and enjoy affections of mother castration Anxiety boy’s intense fear of being mutilated by father identifying with father and adopting male gender role to reduce conflict, as foundation for superego without experience of castration anxiety, girls cannot develop superego like boys

Psychosexual Stages (cont’d) Latency Stage: 6 Years - Puberty psychic “time-out” interest in sexuality is repressed Genital Stage: Adolescence and Adulthood sexual reawakening source of sexual pleasure is someone else Fixation - remain locked in particular developmental stage (e.g., anal retentive)

Psychosexual Stages

Dissenters and Revisionists sexuality – not pervasive force behind personality early experience –not as powerful as Freud thought importance of conscious thought sociocultural influences

Dissenters and Revisionists Horney’s Sociocultural Approach both sexes envy the attributes of the other need for security, not sex, is primary motivator Jung’s Analytical Theory collective unconscious and archetypes Adler’s Individual Psychology perfection, not pleasure, is key motivator

Evaluating Psychodynamic Theory Criticisms too much emphasis on early experiences too much faith in unconscious mind’s control too much emphasis on sexual instincts theory can not be tested Contributions importance of childhood experiences development proceeds in stages role of unconscious processes

Humanistic Perspectives …emphasis on a person’s capacity for personal growth and positive human qualities

Humanistic Perspectives Abraham Maslow third force psychology self-actualization peak experiences biased since focus was on highly successful individuals

Humanistic Perspectives Carl Rogers personal growth and self-determination unconditional positive regard - conditions of worth - self-concept empathy genuineness

Evaluating Humanistic Perspectives Contributions self-perception is key to personality consider the positive aspects of human nature emphasize conscious experience Criticisms too optimistic about human nature promotes self-love and narcissism

Trait Perspectives Trait Trait Theories an enduring disposition that leads to characteristic responses traits are the building blocks of personality Trait Theories people can be described by their typical behavior strong versus weak tendencies

Trait Perspectives Gordon Allport W. T. Norman personality understood through traits behavior consistent across situations lexical approach  4500 traits W. T. Norman five factor model broad traits – main dimensions of personality

Five Factor Model of Personality

Evaluating Trait Perspectives Contributions traits influence health, cognitions, career success, and interpersonal relations Criticisms ignores the role of the situation in behavior ignores nuances of an individual’s personality

Personological Perspectives …focusing on an individual’s life history or life story Henry Murray personology: the study of the whole person motives are largely unconscious thematic apperception test (TAT) - need for achievement, affiliation, and power

Life Story Approach Dan McAdams our life story is our identity intimacy motivation Psychobiography applying personality theory to one person’s life

Evaluating Life Story Approach Contributions rich record of an individual’s experience Criticisms difficult and time-consuming - extensive coding and content analysis prone to bias not easily generalized

Social Cognitive Perspectives emphasize conscious awareness, beliefs, expectations, and goals incorporates principles from behaviorism when exploring: - reasoning - beliefs - self reflection - interpretation of situation

Social Cognitive Perspectives Albert Bandura reciprocal determinism - behavior, environment, and cognitive factors interact to create personality Key Processes and Variables observational learning personal control self-efficacy

Reciprocal Determinism

Social Cognitive Perspectives Walter Mischel Situationalism - behavior and personality vary considerably across context CAPS Model of Personality - stability over time rather than across situations - interconnections among cognitions and emotions affect our behavior

Evaluating Social Cognitive Theory Contributions focuses on interactions of individuals with their environments suggests people can control their environment Criticisms too concerned with change and the situation ignores the role of biology very specific predictions hinder generalization

Biological Perspectives Personality and the Brain brain damage alters personality brain responses correlate with personality Eysenk’s Reticular Activation System Theory extraverts and introverts have different base-line levels of arousal Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory behavioral activation system and behavioral inhibition system

Eysenck’s RAS Theory Reticular Activating System (RAS) Located in brain stem Plays role in wakefulness or arousal Eysenck’s Theory All share optimal arousal level RAS of extraverts and introverts may differ in baseline levels of arousal, with behaviors aimed at regulating arousal around these baselines But introverts may just be more sensitive to stimuli

Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Behavioral approach system (BAS) and behavioral inhibition system (BIS) underlie personality Differences in sensitivity to rewards and punishers BAS Sensitive to rewards Predisposition to positive emotion Underlies extraversion BIS Sensitive to punishers Predisposition to fear Underlies neuroticism

Biological Perspectives Role of Neurotransmitters growth of dopamine receptors stimulated by warm care-givers disposes person to reward-sensitivity (extraversion) less serotonin in circulation leads to negative mood (neuroticism) 38

Biological Perspectives Behavioral Genetics twin studies reveal substantial genetic influence on Big Five traits most traits influenced by multiple genes Evaluating the Biological Perspective ties personality to animal learning, brain imaging, and evolutionary theory criticisms (e.g., biology may be the effect, not the cause, of personality) 39

Personality Assessment Self-Report Tests beware social desirability empirically-keyed tests used to get around social desirability problem - test takers do not know what is being measured - test items not related to purpose of test - MMPI is an example 40

Personality Assessment Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory 567 items controls for social desirability assesses mental health and used to make hiring decisions and to determine criminal risk Neuroticism Extraversion Openness Personality Inventory-Revised assesses the big five factors and 6 subdimensions

Personality Assessment Myers Briggs Type Indicator four dimensions used to make personnel decisions: - extraversion-introversion - sensing-intuiting - thinking-feeling - judgment-perception not empirically supported Barnum effect

Personality Assessment Projective Tests …psychodynamic approach …project own meaning on ambiguous stimuli Rorschach inkblot test personality score based on description of inkblots questionable reliability and validity Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) series of ambiguous pictures viewed one at a time elicited stories reveal an individual’s personality 43

Rorschach Inkblot Test

Thematic Apperception Test

Other Assessment Methods direct behavioral observation cognitive assessment of attention and memory peer ratings psychophysiological measures (e.g., polygraph) brain imaging