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Introduction to Psychology
Personality
Psychodynamic Views of Personality
• Freud invoked a role of unconscious processes in the control of behavior– Based on his observations of clients
• Topographical model: argued for 3 levels of consciousness– Conflict occurs between the different
aspects of consciousness– Requires compromise formation
– Id, ego, superego
Freud’s Developmental Model• Human behavior is motivated by two drives
– Aggressive– Sexual
• Libido refers to pleasure-seeking and sensuality as well as desire for intercourse
• Libido follows a developmental course during childhood– Stages of development– Fixed progression of change from stage to stage– Notion of fixation at a particular libidinal stage
Freud’s Psychosexual Stages
ORAL 0-18 mos Dependency
ANAL 2-3 yrs Orderliness, cleanliness
PHALLIC 4-6 yrs Parental Identification Oedipal complex Penis envy, castration complex
LATENCY 7-11 yrs Sublimation of sexual and aggressive urges
GENITAL 12+ yrs Mature sexuality and relationships
STAGE AGE CONFLICTS AND CONCERNS
Ego Defense Mechanisms
• Defense mechanisms are unconscious mental processes that protect the conscious person from anxiety– Repression: anxiety-evoking thoughts are kept
unconscious- Denial: person refuses to recognize reality
- Projection: person attributes their own unacceptable impulses to others
Ego Defense Mechanisms
– Reaction Formation: person converts an unacceptable impulse into the opposite impulse
– Sublimation: person converts an unacceptable impulse into a socially acceptable activity
– Rationalization: person explains away their actions to reduce anxiety
– Displacement: diverting emotional feelings from their original source to a substitute target
Projective Tests
• Projective tests assume that persons presented with a vague stimulus will “project” their own impulses and desires into a description of the stimulus
• Rorschach Inkblots• Thematic Apperception
Test
"I see a …..”
Other Psychoanalytic Theorists
• Jung’s Analytical Psychology
• Adler’s Individual Psychology
• Anna Freud
• Erik Erikson
• Harry Sullivan
Evaluation of Freud’s Contributions to Personality Theory
• Contributions– Emphasis on unconscious processes
– Identification of defense mechanisms
– Importance of childhood experiences in shaping adult personality
• Limitations– Theories are not solidly based on scientific observation
– Excessive emphasis on drives such as sex and aggression
B.F. Skinner (1904-1990): Radical Behaviorism
• scientific analysis of behavior• personality a collection of behavior patterns
• black box theory
• explanatory fictions (e.g., freedom, “the self”)
Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory
Observational (Vicarious) Learning• people learn by merely observing what others do
and what happens to them• two processes:
– acquisition
– acceptance/performance
• consequences are an important influence
RECIPROCAL DETERMINISM
PERSON
(cognitions, expectations)
BEHAVIOUR ENVIRONMENT
(contingencies)
Albert Ellis: Rational Emotive Therapy (RET)
• Assumes that all humans have fundamental goals, purposes and values (e.g., stay alive, be satisfied)
• if people choose to stay alive & try to be happy/satisfied they are acting “rationally”
• when people think/emote/behave in a way that interferes with these goals, they act “irrationally”
Evaluation of Cognitive-Social Personality Theory
• Contributions– Provided emphasis on the role of thought and
memory in personality
• Limitations– Overemphasis of rational side of personality– Avoidance of explanations of unconscious
processes in personality
Humanistic Personality Approaches
• Humanistic personality theorists reject the behaviorist and psychodynamic notions of personality
• Humanists emphasize the notion that each person has a potential for creative growth
• The intent is to assist the person in developing to their maximal potential
Roger’s Person-Centered Approach
• Rogers believed that humans are good by nature (in contrast to psychodynamic view of human nature)
• Rogers emphasized the notion of self-concept
• Each person has multiple selves:– True-self: the core aspect of being– False-self: the self that is created by distortions from
interpersonal experiences– Ideal-self: what the person would like to be
Evaluation of Humanistic Personality Theory
• Contributions– Focus on how humans strive to determine the
meaning of life
• Limitations– Humanistic approach is not a complete
theoretical account of personality– The approach has not generated a body of
testable hypotheses and research
Trait Approach
• ASSUMPTION 1: traits are stable over time• ASSUMPTION 2: traits are stable across situations• people differ on continuous variables or dimensions• traits exist on a continuum• basic differences between people are quantitative• traits are used to understand and predict behaviour• emphasizes measurement of traits through tests
TRAIT: Consistent patterns of thoughts, feelings, or actions that distinguish people.
The Big Five Factors of Personality
• Openness to experience
• Conscientiousness
• Extroversion
• Agreeableness
• Neuroticism
• OCEAN...
Genetics of Personality
• Biological relatives are more similar in personality than are strangers
• Twins raised together and raised apart provide evidence for a genetic aspect of personality
Raised Apart Raised Together
MZ DZ MZ DZ
.48 .18 .58 .23
.29 .30 .57 .24
Well-being
Social Closeness
Genetic effect
Environmental effect
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