Personality Wadsworth, a division of Thomson Learning

Personality w Defined-a consistent pattern of behavior, thoughts and feelings that is different for every individual

Personality Assessment w Self-Report Inventories-Questionnaires given to individuals pursuing what characteristics an individual find to be true (ex: Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory) w Projective Tests-use ambiguous stimuli to assess personality (ex: Rorschach ink blots)

Freud w Believed that personality disturbance is due to unmet needs of sex and aggression w The needs exist in the unconscious and periodically we are given a brief view of what those needs are (ex: through dreams, Freudian slips, etc.)

Freud Parts of the Mind w Id-the pleasure-seeking, instinctual part of personality w Ego-the reality-seeking part of personality w Super-Ego-the element of personality serves as your conscience

Defense Mechanisms-coping with anxiety w Repression-when anxious thoughts are pushed into the unconscious w Projection-attributing unwanted thoughts and feelings to other people w Denial-refusal to acknowledge an anxiety-provoking experience w Rationalization-replacing unacceptable thoughts with socially acceptable ones w Reaction Formation-defeating anxiety by acting out in an opposite manner than one’s own feelings w Displacement-placing one’s feelings on a less threatening person than the one who caused the feelings w Sublimation-a form of displacement that involves aiming an aggressive impulse toward a socially acceptable object w Regression-returning to behaviors used at an earlier level of development

Neo-Freudians w Carl Jung broke from Freud believed in the collective unconscious w Alfred Adler believed people were driven by a need for superiority w Karen Horney believed that personality disturbances are caused by anxiety that we all feel when the world is an unfriendly place

Trait Theorists-Allport w Gordon Allport Set out to compose a list of critical personality traits Used language to define stable characteristics of humans In the end, he composed a list of over 4500 words (its usefulness is questioned)

Trait Theorists-Cattell w Raymond Cattell collapsed data from a large number of personality measures to identify sixteen personality traits These traits can be used to describe anyone, however, the level of each of these traits that a person exhibits is different

Trait Theorists-Eysenck w Hans Eysenck Identified three basic traits (collapsed categories for personality lists) extraversion-how much people focus on external stimuli and are outgoing in their approach to life neuroticism-a measure of emotional instability psychoticism-a measure of impulsiveness and aggression

Trait Theories-the “Big Five” w This theory believes that personality can be broken down into five basic traits extraversion-outgoing agreeableness-someone who is trusting, warm, giving and tolerant conscientiousness-responsible and dependable neuroticism-negative, anxious, and poor self- esteem openness to experience-creative and adventure seeking

Learning Theories and Personality w B. F. Skinner (Behaviorist) Believed that personality and behavior are determined by past experience with reinforcement and punishment w Social-Cognitive Theorists Albert Bandura Proposed Social Cognitive Theory Behavior is determined by an individual’s cognitions and their environment –reciprocal determinism –self-efficacy-your beliefs about your ability to perform a tast Julian Rotter Proposed Social Learning Theory Behavior is determined by expectancies and whether you have an internal or external locus of control Locus of Control

Humanistic Personality Theories w Abraham Maslow Suggested that personality is determined by a hierarchy of needs Basic physiological needs supercede safety needs, which supercede belongingness needs, etc. The goal is self-actualization

Humanistic Personality Theories w Carl Rogers Believes that people’s efforts to achieve personal fulfillment are being blocked People’s self-concept are distorted by outside influence True psychological health occurs when the perceived self-concept is consistent with your ideal self-concept

Biological Foundations of Personality w Twin studies indicate that some personality characteristics are inherited w Evidence suggests that some personality characteristics may be related to varying levels of certain neurotransmitters (ex: decreased levels of serotonin are correlated with aggressiveness)