Chapter 2: Personality

Defining personality and traits Personality Distinctive and relatively stable pattern of behaviors, thoughts, motives, and emotions that characterizes an individual Trait A characteristic of an individual, describing a habitual way of behaving, thinking, and feeling

Are you introverted or extraverted?

Big Five Theory of Personality Openness vs resistance Openness vs resistance Conscientiousness vs impulsiveness Conscientiousness vs impulsiveness Extraversion vs introversion Extraversion vs introversion Agreeableness vs antagonism Agreeableness vs antagonism Neuroticism vs emotional stability Neuroticism vs emotional stability

II. The biological contribution

Heredity and temperament Temperaments Physiological dispositions to respond to the environment in certain ways Present in infancy, assumed to be innate Relatively stable over time IncludesReactivitySoothability Positive and negative emotionality

Genes Made up of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) Made up of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) Units of heredity that make up the chromosomes Units of heredity that make up the chromosomes

Twins Identical twins develop from a single fertilized egg Identical twins develop from a single fertilized egg –AKA: monozygotic twins Fraternal twins develop from two separate eggs that have each been fertilized by a sperm cell Fraternal twins develop from two separate eggs that have each been fertilized by a sperm cell –AKA: dizygotic twins

Twin Studies Often look for similarities as evidence for genetic influences

Epigenetics Field of study focusing on how the expression of genes is modified by the environment

III. The learning contribution

B.F. Skinner Radical behaviorism Radical behaviorism Personality is ones behavior Personality is ones behavior Change environment to change behavior Change environment to change behavior

Albert Bandura’s social cognitive perspective Reciprocal determinism Two-way interaction between aspects of the environment and aspects of the individual in the shaping of personality traits

IV. The cultural contribution

Culture, values, and traits Culture A program of shared rules that govern the behavior of members of a community or society A set of values, beliefs, and attitudes shared by most members of that community Please get a blank piece of paper ready for the following psychological tests… Please get a blank piece of paper ready for the following psychological tests…

1. On your piece of paper, make a list of everything you saw in the picture just shown…

BA C 2. Write down which two images go together

3. Draw a diagram of your social network, with circles representing you and your friends, connected by lines.

Culture, values, and traits Individualist cultures Cultures in which the self is regarded as autonomous, and individual goals and wishes are prized above duty and relations with others Collectivist cultures Cultures in which the self is regarded as embedded in relationships, and harmony with one’s group is prized above individual goals and wishes

When briefly shown a picture of a complex scene, people from individualistic cultures (U.S.) tend to look at the center of a picture and remember the main object in it. people from individualistic cultures (U.S.) tend to look at the center of a picture and remember the main object in it. People from collectivist cultures (East Asians) tend to scan the periphery and remember the overall scene. People from collectivist cultures (East Asians) tend to scan the periphery and remember the overall scene.

Individualists tend to choose rabbit and dog (categorical approach); Collectivists tend to choose the rabbit and carrots (a holistic, relational approach) Individualists tend to choose rabbit and dog (categorical approach); Collectivists tend to choose the rabbit and carrots (a holistic, relational approach) When asked which two images go together…

Social network diagram Those from U.S. (individualists) tend to place the circle representing themselves in the middle of the page, and the circle is larger than the others. East Asians (collectivists) tend to draw their self circle smaller than the other ones.

V. The humanist contribution

Humanists—the inner experience  capacity for personal growth  freedom to choose  positive qualities

Carl Rogers Unconditional positive regard A situation in which the acceptance and love one receives from significant others is unqualified Conditional positive regard A situation in which the acceptance and love one receives from significant others is contingent upon one’s behavior

Carl Rogers Self concept: an individual’s overall perceptions of their abilities, behaviors, and personality Self concept: an individual’s overall perceptions of their abilities, behaviors, and personality The self and the ideal self The self and the ideal self

Evaluating humanist approaches Hard to operationally define many of the concepts Added balance to the study of personality Encouraged others to focus on “positive psychology” Fostered new appreciation for resilience

VI. The psychodynamic contribution

Psychodynamic theories Theories that explain behavior and personality in terms of unconscious dynamics within the individual, with a focus on:  Early life experiences  Stages of psychological development  Fantasies  Symbolic meanings

Sigmund Freud

The structure of personality Id: operates according to the pleasure principle Primitive, unconscious part of personality Ego: operates according to the reality principle Mediates between id and superego Superego: moral ideals, conscience

Defense mechanisms Methods used by the ego to to prevent unconscious anxiety or threatening thoughts from entering consciousness

Defense mechanisms Repression Repression Rationalization Rationalization Displacement Displacement Sublimation Sublimation Projection Projection Reaction formation Reaction formation Denial Denial Regression Regression

Repression The basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness

Rationalization The defense mechanism that offers self- justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening, unconscious reasons for one’s actions [not in textbook]

Displacement A defense mechanism that shifts sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person

Sublimation Occurs when the ego replaces an unacceptable impulse with a socially acceptable one

Projection A defense mechanism by which people disguise their own threatening impulses by attributing them to others

Reaction Formation A defense mechanism by which the ego unconsciously switches unacceptable impulses into their opposites [not in textbook]

Denial Occurs when the ego refuses to acknowledge anxiety-producing realities

Regression A defense mechanism in which an individual faced with anxiety retreats to a more infantile stage of development

Identifying defense mechanisms in everyday life

Personality development Freud’s 5 stages of psychosexual development OralAnalPhallicLatencyGenitalFixationoccurswhenstagesaren’tresolvedsuccessfully chapter 2

Evaluating psychodynamic theories Three scientific failings 1. Violating the principle of falsifiability 2. Drawing universal principles from the experiences of a few atypical patients 3. Basing theories of personality development on retrospective accounts and the fallible memories of patients