Psychology 3051 Psychology 305: Theories of Personality Lecture 4

Psychology 3052 Lecture 4 The Dispositional Perspective 1. Has a comprehensive taxonomy of personality traits been developed? (continued) 2. What are needs? 3. What are motives? 4. What is environmental press?

By the end of today’s class, you should be able to: 1.identify correlates of the five dimensions of the FFM. 2. discuss common criticisms of the FFM. 3. define the term “need.” 4. distinguish between Murray’s categories of needs. 3

7. define the term “environmental press.” 4 6. distinguish between a need and a motive. 5. discuss Murray’s interrelations among needs.

Psychology 3055 Correlates of the Big 5 1.Extraversion is associated with:  Greater peer acceptance.  A greater number of positive life events.  Use of more effective coping strategies (i.e., active coping strategies). Has a comprehensive taxonomy of personality traits been developed? (continued)

Psychology Agreeableness is associated with:  Greater peer acceptance.  Lower levels of depression.  Fewer behavioural problems (e.g., alcoholism). 3.Conscientiousness is associated with:  Higher grades and levels of job performance.  More positive and committed social relationships.  Greater physical health and longer lifespan.

Psychology Neuroticism is associated with:  Higher levels of depression.  A greater number of negative life events.  Poorer physical health and shorter lifespan. 5.Openness to Experience is associated with:  A greater number of positive life events.  More varied life experiences.

Psychology 3058 What are needs? “A need is a physiochemical force in the brain that organizes perception, intellection, and action in such a way as to transform an unsatisfying situation into a more satisfying one” (Murray, 1981). Noteworthy points about this definition: 1. “Physiochemical” 2.“Organizes perception, intellection, and action” 3.“As to transform an unsatisfying situation into a more satisfying one” Dispositional Perspective: Needs and Motives Approach

Psychology 3059 Murray divided needs into 2 broad categories: 1. Viscerogenic or primary needs: Basic biological needs; related to survival. E.g., n Coldavoidance, n Expiration, n Food, n Harmavoidance, n Heatavoidance, n Inspiration, n Noxavoidance, n Sentience, n Sex, n Water.

Psychology Psychogenic or secondary needs: Needs that arise or derive from primary needs; related to emotional satisfaction or psychological gratification rather than survival, per se. E.g., n Abasement, n Achievement, n Affiliation, n Aggression, n Autonomy, n Blamavoidance, n Deference, n Dominance, n Exhibition, n Infavoidance, n Inviolacy, n Social Recognition, n Understanding.

Psychology Murray believed that the viscerogenic and psychogenic needs that he identified are experienced by all people to varying degrees. He maintained that each person’s viscerogenic and psychogenic needs could be rank ordered from strongest to weakest, to create a “hierarchy of needs.” This hierarchy, he argued, could be used to define the individual’s personality.

Psychology Murray identified 4 possible interrelations among needs. 1.Fusion of needs: Occurs when two or more non-conflicting needs are satisfied by a single action pattern. E.g., A child who tackles her bully is satisfying: n Aggression and n Harmavoidance.

Psychology Subsidiation of needs: Occurs when one or more needs are activated to aid in the satisfaction of another need. E.g., A politician removes a spot from his suit because he doesn’t wish to make a bad impression, and thus diminish his chances of winning the approval and friendship of Mr. Smith, from whom he hopes to obtain slanderous facts relating to his political opponent, Ms. Doe. He plans to publish these facts to damage the reputation of Ms. Doe and thus assure his own election to office.

Psychology E.g., continued A politician removes a spot from his suit because he doesn’t wish to make a bad impression (n Inviolacy), and thus diminish his chances of winning the approval and friendship of Mr. Smith (n Affiliation), from whom he hopes to obtain slanderous facts relating to his political opponent, Ms. Doe. He plans to publish these facts to damage the reputation of Ms. Doe (n Aggression) and thus assure his own election to office (n Achievement).

Psychology Contrafaction of needs: Occurs when conflicting needs arise and are satisfied in alternating phases. E.g., An individual who is highly dominant at work but highly deferential at home with his family is alternating between phases characterized by: n Dominance and n Deference, respectively.

Psychology Conflict of needs: Occurs when conflicting needs arise simultaneously; the conflict ensures that both needs are only moderately satisfied. E.g., An individual who moderates her sexual conduct because she is concerned that her family will disapprove of her actions is experiencing a conflict between: n Sex and n Blamavoidance.

Psychology What are motives? According to Murray’s theory, motives: (a) are elicited by needs. (b)influence thought. (c) direct behaviour toward or away from specific objects, people, or goals.

Psychology Need (for food) Motive (hunger) Thought (thinking of last night’s dinner, fantasizing about a big meal, perceiving a rock as a loaf of bread) Behaviour (prepare a meal, go to a restaurant) E.g.,

Psychology What is environmental press? According to Murray’s theory, environmental press refers to any environmental or situational factor that influences people’s motives. Through its influence on motives, environmental press can alter thought and behaviour.

Psychology Need (for food) Motive (hunger) Thought (thinking of last night’s dinner, fantasizing about a big meal, perceiving a rock as a loaf of bread) Behaviour (prepare a meal, go to a restaurant) E.g., Environmental press (upcoming exam, exposure to a noxious stimulus)

Psychology Need (for food) Motive (hunger) Thought (I’ll eat after I finish reading this chapter, I’ll fail the exam if I don’t focus on studying right now) Behaviour (continue studying) E.g., Environmental press (upcoming exam)

Psychology Lecture 4 The Dispositional Perspective 1. Has a comprehensive taxonomy of personality traits been developed? (continued) 2. What are needs? 3. What are motives? 4. What is environmental press?