Personality Theories PDF

16- Theories of personality Personality Personality - the unique and relatively stable ways in which people think, feel, and behave. Character - value judgments of a person’s moral and ethical behavior. Temperament - the enduring characteristics with which each person is born....

16- Theories of personality Personality Personality - the unique and relatively stable ways in which people think, feel, and behave. Character - value judgments of a person’s moral and ethical behavior. Temperament - the enduring characteristics with which each person is born. Four Perspectives in Study of Personality Psychoanalytic Behavioristic (including social cognitive theory) Humanistic Trait perspectives Sigmund Freud Founder of the psychoanalytic movement in psychology. Europe during the Victorian age. Men were understood to be unable to control their “animal” desires at times, and a good Victorian husband would father several children with his wife and then turn to a mistress for sexual comfort, leaving his virtuous wife untouched. Women, especially those of the upper classes, were not supposed to have sexual urges. Backdrop for this theory. Divisions of Consciousness Conscious mind - level of the mind that is aware of immediate surroundings and perceptions. Preconscious mind - level of the mind in which information is available but not currently conscious. Unconscious mind - level of the mind in which thoughts, feelings, memories, and other information are kept that are not easily or voluntarily brought into consciousness. Can be revealed in dreams and Freudian slips of the tongue. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Freud’s Theory: Parts of Personality Id - part of the personality present at birth and completely unconscious. Libido - the instinctual energy that may come into conflict with the demands of a society’s standards for behavior. Pleasure principle - principle by which the id functions; the immediate satisfaction of needs without regard for the consequences. Ego - part of the personality that develops out of a need to deal with reality, mostly conscious, rational, and logical. Reality principle - principle by which the ego functions; the satisfaction of the demands of the id only when negative consequences will not result. Superego - part of the personality that acts as a moral center. (morality principle) Ego ideal - part of the superego that contains the standards for moral behavior. Conscience - part of the superego that produces pride or guilt, depending on how well behavior matches or does not match the ego ideal. Freud’s Theory: Stages of Personality Development Fixation - disorder in which the person does not fully resolve the conflict in a particular psychosexual stage, resulting in personality traits and behavior associated with that earlier stage. Psychosexual stages - five stages of personality development proposed by Freud and tied to the sexual development of the child. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Freud’s Theory: Stages of Personality Development Oral stage - first stage occurring in the first year of life in which the mouth is the erogenous zone and weaning is the primary conflict. Id dominated. Freud’s Theory: Stages of Personality Development Anal stage - second stage occurring from about 1 to 3 years of age, in which the anus is the erogenous zone and toilet training is the source of conflict. Ego develops. Anal expulsive personality - a person fixated in the anal stage who is messy, destructive, and hostile. Anal retentive personality - a person fixated in the anal stage who is neat, fussy, stingy, and stubborn. Freud’s Theory: Stages of Personality Development Phallic stage - third stage occurring from about 3 to 6 years of age, in which the child discovers sexual feelings. Superego develops. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345  Oedipus complex- situation occurring in the phallic stage in which a child develops a sexual attraction to the opposite-sex parent and jealousy of the same-sex parent. Identification - defense mechanism in which a person tries to become like someone else to deal with anxiety. Freud’s Theory: Stages of Personality Development Latency - fourth stage occurring during the school years, in which the sexual feelings of the child are repressed while the child develops in other ways. Genital – sexual feelings reawaken with appropriate targets. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Neo-Freudians Neo-Freudians - followers of Freud who developed their own competing theories of psychoanalysis. Jung developed a theory of a collective unconscious. Personal unconscious - Jung’s name for the unconscious mind as described by Freud. Collective unconscious – Jung’s name for the memories shared by all members of the human species. Archetypes - Jung’s collective, universal human memories. Neo-Freudians Adler proposed feelings of inferiority as thedriving force behind personality and developed birth order theory. Karen Horney’s theory of personality, developed in the early 20th century, offers a psychoanalytic perspective that emphasizes social and cultural factors in personality development. Here’s a brief overview: Key Concepts of Horney’s Theory: 1. Basic Anxiety o Description: Horney introduced the concept of basic anxiety, which refers to the pervasive feeling of loneliness and helplessness that arises from a lack of security in childhood. This anxiety stems from unmet needs for affection, support, and safety. 2. Neurotic Needs o Description: To cope with basic anxiety, individuals develop neurotic needs, which are excessive and unrealistic demands or desires for security and approval. These needs are categorized into three main strategies: ▪ Moving Toward People: Seeking approval and affection, often leading to dependency. ▪ Moving Against People: Aggressively pursuing power and control to overcome feelings of insecurity. ▪ Moving Away from People: Detaching and withdrawing from relationships to avoid dependence and vulnerability. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Erikson developed a theory based on social rather than sexual relationships, covering the entire life span. Carl Jung theory of personality Carl Jung established a theory, which saw universal types in human personality. The types categorized by Carl Jung are present in all of us. But, certain types are predominant over the normal mode of organizing our experience. Jung disagreed with Freud regarding the role of sexuality. He believed the libido was not just sexual energy, but instead generalized psychic energy. The first layer called the personal unconscious is essentially the same as Freud’s version of the unconscious. The personal unconscious contains temporality forgotten information and well as repressed memories. The collective unconscious is a universal version of the personal unconscious, holding mental patterns, or memory traces, which are shared with other members of human species These ancestral memories, which Jung called archetypes, are represented by universal themes in various cultures, as expressed through literature, art, and dreams. Jungian Archetype Archetypes have universal meanings across cultures and may show up in dreams, literature, art or religion. Jung believes symbols from different cultures are often very similar because they have emerged from archetypes shared by the whole human race which are part of our collective unconscious. The persona (or mask) is the outward face we present to the world. It conceals our real self The “anima/animus” is the mirror image of our biological sex, that is, the unconscious feminine side in males and the masculine tendencies in women. Next is the shadow. This is the animal side of our personality (like the id in Freud). It is the source of both our creative and destructive energies. there is the self which provides a sense of unity in experience. For Jung, the ultimate aim of every individual is to achieve a state of selfhood Carl Jung also developed a theory of personality. His theory is one of the type theories of personality, as it involved typology of introversion and extroversion. Introverts Introverts are people who prefer their own world of thoughts, dreams, feelings, fantasies and need private space. Interaction drains their energy whereas being alone energizes them. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Extroverts The characteristics of extroverts are in contrast to introverts. They prefer outer world and interaction with people to being alone. They are sociable beings who get energized from going to parties, interacting with people and so on. Alfred Adler’s Personality Theory and Personality Types Adler thought that the basic psychological element of neurosis was a sense of inferiority According to Adler, all infants have a feeling of inferiority and inadequacy immediately as they begin to experience the world. Sometimes, the process of compensation goes awry. One way in which this happens is that the feelings of inferiority become too intense, and the child begins to feel as though he has no control over his surroundings. He will strive very strenuously for compensation, to the point that compensation is no longer satisfactory. This culminates in a state of overcompensation, where the child’s focus on meeting his goal is exaggerated and becomes pathological. Inferiority Complex Overcompensation can lead to the development of an inferiority complex. This is a lack of self-esteem where the person is unable to rectify his feelings of inferiority. According to Adler , the hallmark of an inferiority complex is that “persons are always striving to find a situation in which they excel” Superiority Complex For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 The superiority complex occurs when a person has the need to prove that he is more superior than he truly is. Adler (2013a) provides an example of a child with a superiority complex, who is “impertinent, arrogant and pugnacious The term birth order refers to the order in which the children of a family were born. Adler believed that birth order had a significant and predictable impact on a child’s personality The term birth order refers to the order in which the children of a family were born. Adler (2013b, pp. 150-155) believed that birth order had a significant and predictable impact on a child’s personality: First-born children have inherent advantages due to their parents recognizing them as “the larger, the stronger, the older.” This gives first-born children the traits of “a guardian of law and order.” These children have a high amount of personal power, and they value the concept of power with reverence. Second-born children are constantly in the shadow of their older siblings. They are incessantly “striving for superiority under pressure,” driven by the existence of their older, more powerful sibling. If the second-born is encouraged and supported, he will be able to attain power as well, and he and the first-born will work together. Youngest children operate in a constant state of inferiority. They are constantly trying to prove themselves, due to their perceptions of inferiority relative to the rest of their family. According to Adler, there are two types of youngest children. The more successful type “excels every other member of the family, and becomes the family’s most capable member.” Another, more unfortunate type of youngest child does not excel because he lacks the necessary self-confidence. This child becomes evasive and avoidant towards the rest of the family. Behaviorism and Personality Behaviorists define personality as a set of learned responses or habits. Habits - in behaviorism, sets of well-learned responses that have become automatic. Social cognitive learning theorists – theorists who emphasize the importance of both the influences of other people’s behavior and of a person’s own expectancies on learning. Social cognitive view – learning theory that includes cognitive processes such as anticipating, judging, memory, and imitation of models. Behaviorism and Personality Reciprocal determinism - Bandura’s explanation of how the factors of environment, personal characteristics, and behavior can interact to determine future behavior. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Self-efficacy – individual’s perception of how effective a behavior will be in any particular circumstance (NOT the same as self-esteem). Behavioral and social cognitive explanations of personality Humanistic Theories of Personality Humanistic perspective - the “third force” in psychology that focuses on those aspects of personality that make people uniquely human, such as subjective feelings and freedom of choice. Developed as a reaction against the negativity of psychoanalysis and the deterministic nature of behaviorism. Roger’s Theory of Personality Self-actualizing tendency – the striving to fulfill one’s innate capacities and capabilities. Self-concept - the image of oneself that develops from interactions with important, significant people in one’s life. Self - archetype that works with the ego to manage other archetypes and balance the personality. Real self - one’s perception of actual characteristics, traits, and abilities. Ideal self - one’s perception of whom one should be or would like to be. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Roger’s Theory of Personality Unconditional positive regard - positive regard that is given without conditions or strings attached. Fully functioning person – a person who is in touch with and trusting of the deepest, innermost urges and feelings. Trait Theories of Personality Trait theories - theories that endeavor to describe the characteristics that make up human personality in an effort to predict future behavior. Trait - a consistent, enduring way of thinking, feeling, or behaving. Allport first developed a list of about 200 traits and believed that these traits were part of the nervous system. Cattell reduced the number of traits to between 16 and 23 with a computer method called factor analysis. Allport’s trait theory Cardinal traits: Allport suggested that cardinal traits are rare and dominate, usually developing later in life. Central traits: These general characteristics form basic personality foundations. While central traits are not as dominating as cardinal traits, they describe the major characteristics you might use to describe another person. Secondary traits: Secondary traits are sometimes related to attitudes or preferences. They often appear only in certain situations or under specific circumstances. Cattell Trait Theories of Personality Cattell's personality factors are included in the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF) that is widely used today for career counseling in education. Cattell used the factor analysis techniques to create his own personality taxonomy. Surface traits - aspects of personality that can easily be seen by other people in the outward actions of a person. Source traits - the more basic traits that underlie the surface traits, forming the core of personality. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345  Example: Introversion - dimension of personality in which people tend to withdraw from excessive stimulation. The Big Five Theory Paul Costa and Robert R. McCrae The Big Five Theory of Personality is a widely accepted model that describes human personality in terms of five broad dimensions. These dimensions are often referred to as the "Big Five" traits, and they provide a comprehensive framework for understanding personality differences. Here’s a brief overview: The Big Five Traits 1. Openness to Experience o Description: Reflects the extent to which a person is imaginative, curious, and open to new experiences and ideas. o High Scores: Creative, adventurous, and open-minded. o Low Scores: Conventional, routine-oriented, and less curious. 2. Conscientiousness o Description: Measures a person’s degree of organization, dependability, and goal-oriented behavior. o High Scores: Responsible, organized, and reliable. o Low Scores: Disorganized, careless, and less goal-focused. 3. Extraversion o Description: Indicates the level of sociability, energy, and assertiveness a person exhibits. o High Scores: Outgoing, energetic, and talkative. o Low Scores: Reserved, introverted, and more solitary. 4. Agreeableness o Description: Reflects a person’s tendency to be compassionate, cooperative, and friendly. o High Scores: Trusting, empathetic, and cooperative. o Low Scores: Competitive, suspicious, and less cooperative. 5. Neuroticism o Description: Measures the degree of emotional stability and tendency to experience negative emotions such as anxiety and mood swings. o High Scores: Anxious, moody, and easily stressed. o Low Scores: Calm, emotionally stable, and resilient. Cultural Personality Hofstede studied people who worked for IBM in more than 50 countries. Initially, he identified four dimensions that could distinguish one culture from another. Later, he added fifth and sixth dimensions Hofstede’s Theory of Cultural Dimensions Hofstede's theory identifies key dimensions that differentiate cultures and impact behavior: 1. Power Distance o Description: The degree to which less powerful members of a society expect and accept unequal power distribution. o High Power Distance: Acceptance of hierarchical order and unequal power. o Low Power Distance: Preference for egalitarianism and decentralized decision-making. 2. Individualism vs. Collectivism For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345  o Description: The extent to which individuals prioritize personal goals over group goals or vice versa. o Individualism: Focus on individual rights and personal achievement. o Collectivism: Emphasis on group cohesion and collective interests. 3. Masculinity vs. Femininity o Description: The degree to which a culture values traditionally masculine traits (e.g., competitiveness) versus feminine traits (e.g., nurturing). o Masculinity: Emphasis on achievement and assertiveness. o Femininity: Emphasis on care, cooperation, and quality of life. 4. Uncertainty Avoidance o Description: The extent to which a culture tolerates ambiguity and uncertainty. o High Uncertainty Avoidance: Preference for clear rules and stability. o Low Uncertainty Avoidance: Comfort with ambiguity and flexibility. 5. Long-Term vs. Short-Term Orientation o Description: The degree to which a culture values long-term planning and perseverance versus immediate results and traditions. o Long-Term Orientation: Focus on future rewards and persistence. o Short-Term Orientation: Emphasis on immediate results and respect for tradition. 6. Indulgence vs. Restraint o Description: The extent to which a culture allows for the gratification of basic and natural human desires versus controlling them. o Indulgence: Emphasis on enjoying life and having fun. o Restraint: Emphasis on controlling desires and adhering to social norms.. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Social-Cognitive Perspectives on Personality by Mischel Mischel's Cognitive-Affective Model of Personality and the Person-Situation Debate Mischel's cognitive-affective personality theory countered earlier trait theories and resulted in the person– situation debate. The social- cognitive perspective on personality is a theory that emphasizes cognitive processes, such as thinking and judging, in the development of personality. Mischel suggests that an individual's behavior is fundamentally dependent on situational cues Mischel's experiments suggested that an individual's behavior is not simply the result of his or her traits, but fundamentally dependent on situational cues—the needs of a given situation Mischel's cognitive-affective model became known as the person–situation debate, or "trait vs. state." If someone is considered "nice," are they nice in every situation? Social learning theory Julian Rotter The main idea in Julian Rotter's social learning theory is that personality represents an interaction of the individual with his or her environment. One cannot speak of a personality, internal to the individual, that is independent of the environment. Neither can one focus on behavior as being an automatic response to an objective set of environmental stimuli. Rather, to understand behavior, one must take both the individual. Rotter sees personality, and therefore behavior, as always changeable. Change the way the person thinks, or change the environment the person is responding to, and behavior will change. Behavior Potential. Behavior potential is the likelihood of engaging in a particular behavior in a specific situation. In other words, what is the probability that the person will exhibit a particular behavior in a situation? Expectancy. Expectancy is the subjective probability that a given behavior will lead to a particular outcome, or reinforcer. How likely is it that the behavior will lead to the outcome? Having high or strong expectancies means the individual is confident the behavior will result in the outcome. Reinforcement Value. Reinforcement is another name for the outcomes of our behavior. Reinforcement value refers to the desirability of these outcomes. Things we want to happen, that we are attracted to, have a high reinforcement value. Things we don't want to happen, that we wish to avoid, have a low reinforcement value. Predictive Formula. Behavior Potential (BP), Expectancy (E) and Reinforcement Value (RV) can be combined into a predictive formula for behavior: BP = f(E & RV). This formula can be read as follows: behavior potential is a function of expectancy and reinforcement value. Or, in other words, the likelihood of a person's exhibiting a particular behavior is a function of the probability that that behavior will lead to a given outcome and the desirability of that outcome. Measuring Personality: Interviews Interview - method of personality assessment in which the professional asks questions of the client and allows the client to answer, either in a structured or unstructured fashion. Halo effect – tendency of an interviewer to allow positive characteristics of a client to influence the assessments of the client’s behavior and statements. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Measuring Personality: Projective Tests Projective tests – personality assessments that present ambiguous visual stimuli to the client and ask the client to respond with whatever comes to mind. Rorschach inkblot test - projective test that uses 10 inkblots as the ambiguous stimuli. Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) - projective test that uses 20 pictures of people in ambiguous situations as the visual stimuli. Measuring Personality: Behavioral Measures Direct observation – assessment in which the professional observes the client engaged in ordinary, day-to-day behavior in either a clinical or natural setting. Rating scale- assessment in which a numerical value is assigned to specific behavior that is listed in the scale. Frequency count – assessment in which the frequency of a particular behavior is counted. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345 Measuring Personality: Personality Inventory Several well-known personality inventories are widely used in psychology to assess various aspects of personality. Here’s a brief overview of some of the most prominent ones: 1. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) Description: One of the most widely used psychological assessments for diagnosing mental disorders and assessing personality structure. Features: o Contains over 500 true-false questions. o Provides scales for various psychological conditions, including depression, paranoia, and schizophrenia. o Includes validity scales to assess response styles and accuracy. 2. NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) Description: Measures the Big Five personality traits. Features: o Assesses five broad dimensions: Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism. o Includes detailed subscales for each dimension to provide a nuanced view of personality. 3. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Description: A popular tool for understanding personality types based on preferences in perception and judgment. Features: o Classifies individuals into 16 different personality types based on four dichotomies: Introversion vs. Extraversion, Sensing vs. Intuition, Thinking vs. Feeling, and Judging vs. Perceiving. o Used in career counseling, team building, and personal development. 4. California Psychological Inventory (CPI) Description: Assesses personality traits relevant to interpersonal behavior and social interactions. Features: o Includes scales measuring traits such as socialization, self-control, and interpersonal relationships. o Designed to evaluate personality in non-clinical populations, often used in organizational settings. 5. Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF) Description: Measures 16 primary personality factors and five global factors. Features: For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345  o Provides a comprehensive assessment of personality traits, including factors like warmth, reasoning, emotional stability, and dominance. o Used in various settings, including clinical, counseling, and organizational contexts. 6. Holland’s Occupational Themes (RIASEC) Description: Assesses personality in relation to career interests and vocational preferences. Features: o Identifies six types: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. o Helps individuals understand their career preferences and find suitable vocational paths. 7. Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) Description: Measures three primary dimensions of personality: Extraversion, Neuroticism, and Psychoticism. Features: o Provides a straightforward assessment of major personality traits. o Often used in research and clinical settings. These inventories offer different perspectives on personality, ranging from clinical assessments to career guidance, and are valuable tools for understanding individual differences and psychological functioning. For CUET PG Preparation Download Our App CUET Study Capital -Contact Us: 9336257345