Understanding Personality Theories

Personality

• Persona refers to the mask worn by actors, symbolizing the traits and behaviors that define someone's character.
• Personality encompasses long-standing traits, thoughts, feelings, and behaviors influenced by genetics, environment, and experiences.

Theories of Personality

Social Learning Theory / Behavioral Perspective

• Emphasizes observation and modeling as crucial elements of learning.
• Highlights the dynamic interaction between personal factors, behavior, and environment.
• Asserts that personality traits are not inherent but developed through experiences and responses to new situations.
• Albert Bandura, a Canadian-American psychologist, is a key figure in this theory.

Self and Self-Concept

• Self represents a union of elements that shape an individual’s identity and behavior.
• Self-esteem reflects one’s ability to value oneself; low self-esteem may lead to fear-based manipulation.
• Self-efficacy is the belief in one's capability to perform specific behaviors, critical for personal development.

Importance of Self-Awareness

• Increased self-awareness can lead to greater fear of the self, influencing behavior and perceptions.

Psychodynamic Perspective

• Personality is shaped by irrational forces, unconscious motivations, biological instincts, and drives.
• Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, proposed that unconscious processes heavily influence behavior.
• Early experiences in childhood significantly impact adult behavior.

Personality System

• Id: Represents primal drives and impulses.
• Ego: Mediates decision-making between id and superego, balancing desires with reality.
• Superego: Encompasses values, morals, and societal rules.

Levels of Mental Life

• Unconscious: Contains instincts, fears, and motives not accessible to awareness.
• Preconscious: Holds memories and knowledge that can be made conscious with effort.
• Conscious: Encompasses thoughts and perceptions currently in awareness.

Dreams

• Are considered the "royal road" to understanding unconscious mental activities.

Humanistic Theories

• Humanism focuses on the individual’s active role in shaping personal reality.
• The actualizing tendency refers to the potential to achieve one's highest capabilities.
• Carl Rogers, an American psychologist, believed in the inherent goodness of people and their pursuit of self-actualization.
• Anxiety can arise when fundamental needs are unmet.

Self-Concept

• Comprises cognitive structures that help individuals understand their goals, focus attention, and protect their self-identity.