March 2, 2011

I. Psychodynamic Views on Personality

II. Behaviorist and Social Cognitive Views III. Humanistic Views IV. Trait Perspectives V. Personality Assessments

Outline of the Lecture

PERSONALITY consists of enduring, distinctive thoughts, emotions, and behavior that characterize the way an individual adapts to the world.

Psychodynamic

Trait

Perspectives on Personality

Humanistic

Behavioral and Social Cognitive

Psychodynamic Perspective
Sigmund Freud and the Neo-Freudians

According to Freud, the personality has 3 structures:

ID

EGO

SUPEREGO

ID

Pleasure principle Always seeks pleasure and avoids pain.

EGO

Reality principle Tries to bring the individual pleasure within the norms of society.

SUPEREGO

Ideal Principle Abides by the moral standards of the society.

The EGO serves as the executive director. It balances the demands of the ID and the standards of the SUPEREGO.

Nakapulot ka ng twenty pesos sa kalsada?

ID: Finders keepers! Ice cream na ito! SUPEREGO: Ipagtatanong ko ito at ibabalik sa may-ari. EGO: Ipagtatanong ko muna ito. Kapag hindi ko nakita ang may-ari, akin na ito!

The ego calls on a number of strategies to resolve the conflict between its demands for reality, the wishes of the id, and the constraints of the superego.

The defense mechanisms reduce anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality.

The ego replaces a less acceptable motive with a more acceptable one.

The ego shifts unacceptable feelings from one object to another, more acceptable object.

The ego replaces an unacceptable impulse with a socially acceptable one.

Reaction Formation
The ego transforms an unacceptable motive into its opposite

Regression
The ego seeks the security of an earlier developmental period in the face of stress

The three parts of the personality develops in a series of stages.

EROGENOUS ZONES area of the body that produces pleasurable feelings; can become source of conflict.

Psychosexual Stages of Development

ORAL STAGE (0-18 months) mouth chew, suck, bite, cry, etc.

Fixation in the oral stage may result to thumb sucking, smoking, biting of nails, and fascination with chewing gums.

ANAL STAGE (18mos 3 yrs) Anus Toilet training anal expulsive anal retentive

ANAL EXPULSIVE

ANAL RETENTIVE

MESSY ; LOVES BATHROOM HUMOR, ETC.

EXCESSIVELY NEAT; STINGY; STUBBORN

PHALLIC STAGE (3-6 yrs) Genitalia Oedipus complex Elektra complex Penis envy

Heavy reliance on masturbation, flirtatiousness, expressions of virility Interest in poetry, love of love, interesting acting, striving for success

LATENCY STAGE (6 yrs Puberty) Social and intellectual skills

GENITAL STAGE (Puberty onwards) sexual reawakening Someone outside the family

NEOFREUDIANS NEOFREUDIANS

They object to Freuds emphasis on biology, especially sexuality. They alter the focus instead to impact of social environment.

KAREN HORNEY
Womb envy -Childbearing ability Basic Anxiety -the anxiety created in a child born into a world that is so much bigger and more powerful than the child. neurotic personalities

-Driving force of human endeavors: seeking superiority

Birth order theory - the birth order of a child affects the personality

Firstborn: feels inferior with younger siblings; becomes overachievers Middle children: feel superior over the dethroned older child and while dominating younger sibling; tend to be competitive Younger children: are supposedly pampered and protected but feel inferior because they are not allowed the freedom and responsibility of older children.

Behaviorist and Social Cognitive Perspective

B.F. Skinner and Albert Bandura

B.F.

Albert

Skinners Behaviorism
Personality is the individuals observed, overt behavior which is determined by the external environment, specifically the reinforcements and punishments associated by behavior.

Personality = Learned habits

SHYNESS

Humanistic Perspective
Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow

Carl Rogers
Ones personality is dictated by the motivation to become a fully functioning

person.

UNCONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD

Abraham Maslow
-hierarchy of needs

- Highest need: self-actualization

Hierarchy of Needs (Motives)

Trait Perspectives
Alllport, Eysenck, Costa & McCrae, and Mischel

Trait theories are concerned with describing personality and predicting behavior based on that description.

1.Cardinal traits 2.Central traits

- Most powerful and pervasive - Dominate an individuals personality

- limited number of traits (about 6-12) that are usually adequate to describe most peoples personalities; e.g. friendly, kind, calm, humorous

- limited in frequency and least important in understanding an individuals personality; e.g. type of food or music

PERSONALITY ASSESSMENTS

Projective Tests
presents individuals with an ambiguous stimulus and then asks them to describe it or tell a story about it. the ambiguity of the stimulus allows individual to project their feelings, desires, needs, and attitudes

Rorschach Inkblot Test

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

Self-Report Tests - also called personality inventories. - directly ask people whether items describe their personality traits or not.