Topic 8 Personality Lecture Notes PDF

PSYC 1001 Introduction to Psychology 1 Topic VIII: Personality What is personality? Personality – a characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. Relatively stable and enduring. Inherited & shaped by...

PSYC 1001 Introduction to Psychology 1 Topic VIII: Personality What is personality? Personality – a characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. Relatively stable and enduring. Inherited & shaped by life events and experiences Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic View of Personality Three Phases of Freud’s Evolving Theory PHASE I—“affect-trauma model” The ID - Source of instinctual drives. o Pleasure principle - Selfish and pleasure-oriented o Aim of instincts = satisfaction o Only ID present at birth; the baby is preoccupied with the fulfilment of ID wishes The Ego -Develops after the ID o The executive branch of the personality o Mediates between the demands of the ID and the realities of the external world o Reality principle The Superego o Emerges from the ego o Moral values of society o Works with ego to inhibit ID o Morality principle ID, Ego and Superego are striving for different goals. Neurosis - when the Ego is overwhelmed by the ID.Emotional health - based on ego’s capacity to manage conflict & stay in touch with reality PHASE II—“topographical perspective” The Conscious – awareness Preconscious or subconscious - out of awareness, but which can easily be retrieved Unconscious - out of awareness - most material resides here, forgotten, repressed information. PHASE III—“structural model” The mind has three agencies or structures (id, ego, superego) The Drives - we are motivated by: sexual - erotic component of mental activity aggressive drives - destructive component of mental activity Dives are biologically rooted and innate.  PSYC 1001 Introduction to Psychology 2 Psychosexual Stages of Development Stage Focus (erogenous zones) Personality Oral (0-18 Mouth, sucking, biting, Desires and gratification of mouth. Fixation leads to months chewing Oral passive personality - may seek oral gratification from smoking or excessive eating. Oral aggressive or oral sadistic – argumentative, sarcastic, displaying cruelty to others. Anal (18months Bowel movement, coping with If the parent is excessively demanding, the child may defecate – 36 months) demands for control. where and when the parent disapproves. Fixation leads to - Defecation leads to erotic Lead to aggressive personality -cruelty, destructiveness and pleasure, so children learn to temper tantrums, tend to be disorderly and view others as postpone pleasure. possessions. Retaining faeces, anal retentive personality – stubborn, stingy, compulsively neat, inflexible, overly conscientious (careful) Phallic (3 – 6 Genitals, coping with Oedipus complex – unconscious desire a boy has for his years) incestuous sexual feelings mothers, with the desire to replace or destroy his father. They experience castration anxiety – fear that their father would cut off his penis. Electra complex – unconscious desire a girl has for her father, with the desire to replace or destroy her mother. Penis envy – the envy female feels towards the male, a sense of loss because the female does not have a penis. (this is never resolved and leads to women having poorly developed superegos and is partially compensated by having a male child). Children’s superegos gain strength through identification and adopting the parent’s values. Identification with the same-sex parent leads to gender identity development. Early childhood relations influence our development of identity, personality and frailties. Latency (6 to Dormant sexual feelings The sex instinct is dormant; the focus is on school activities, puberty) hobbies and developing friendships with members of the same sex. Genital (puberty Maturation of sexual No fixations lead to an everyday life. The adolescent conforms onwards) interests. to societal sanctions concerning sexual expression and goes on to find satisfaction with work and relationships. Defence Mechanism Defence mechanism – ego’s protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality. Repression – the primary defence mechanism of blocking anxiety arousing thoughts, feelings and memories and underlies all defence mechanisms. Regression – returning to an earlier stage of development when experiences were more manageable and felt safe. E.g. sucking thumb Projection- repressing anxiety-provoking truths about oneself and seeing them in others. (e.g. a thief thinks everyone is a thief) Reaction formation – converting unwanted or dangerous thoughts or feelings into the opposite. For example, instead of expressing angry feelings, show happiness or friendliness. Rationalization- rationalising or justifying for behaviour that may be anxiety-provoking. (Finding explanations to distort reality). E.g. alcoholics saying they drink socially.  PSYC 1001 Introduction to Psychology 3 Displacement—reacting thoughts or feelings directed from one person to another. For example, a girl might kick the family dog after being sent to her room. Denial of reality-denying that a painful event, thought, or feeling exists. E.g. denying an extramarital affair. Sublimation is simply channelling unacceptable impulses, thoughts, and emotions into more acceptable ones. For example, someone who is aggressive becomes a police officer. Behaviourism View of Personality Development Behavioural psychology contributes to our understanding of personality development by emphasising the role of the environment and learning experiences. Operant/Instrumental conditioning - BF Skinner Behaviour is shaped by reinforcement Operant conditioning Reinforcers strengthen & increase behaviour Punishers decrease behaviour Early childhood experiences, social influences, and environmental factors shape our personality. Experience observation and imitating the behaviour of our parents, siblings, teachers, and peers influence how we develop social skills, moral values, and even our occupational interests. Humanistic Psychology View of Personality Humanistic psychology is an approach that emphasises the study of the whole person and the uniqueness of everyone. It emerged as a reaction to the deterministic nature of psychoanalysis and behaviourism, focusing on free will, self-efficacy, and self-actualisation. Carl Rogers: Person-Centred Perspective Focused on the growth and fulfilment of individuals Self and self-concept - organised, consistent perceptions and beliefs about oneself. Factors needed for growth and sound development – genuineness – acceptance – empathy Trait Perspective Views personality as stable and enduring behaviour patterns or traits Trait a characteristic pattern of behaviour a disposition to feel and act, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports Allport – focused on describing rather than explaining traits. He identified 17,953 adjectives that could be used to describe a person. Cattell – reduced the list using factor analysis. He identified 35 surface traits, which he later reduced to 16 source traits. Source Traits are stable, permanent traits that are essential personality factors derived from factor analysis. Surface traits show a correlation but do not constitute a factor behaviour; a single source does not determine them. Eysenck – Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. This perspective uses factor analysis to identify clusters of traits to explain different personality types, which are influenced by genetics. Extraversion ---- Introversion Emotional stability ----emotional instability Neuroticism ----psychoticism  PSYC 1001 Introduction to Psychology 4 Five-Factor Theory of Personality Disorganized, careless, impulsive --------Conscientiousness--------- Organized, careful, disciplined Ruthless, suspicious, uncooperative -------Agreeableness ----------- Soft-hearted, trusting, helpful Calm, secure, self-satisfied ---------------------Neuroticism------------- Anxious, insecure, self-pitying Practical, prefers routine, Conforming --------Openness-------------- Imaginative, prefers variety, independent. Retiring, sober, Reserved------------------------Extraversion-------------Sociable, fun-loving, affectionate Social Cognitive Perspective Bandura, We learn our behaviour by: Conditioning – classical and operant Observation – modelling Modelling = observing & imitating behaviour Bandura – Reciprocal Determinism – the interacting influences of behaviour, internal cognition and environment. Different people choose different environments – what degree, school, or community to live in is determined by us and then influences us. Our personality shapes how we interpret and react to events, and disposition influences how we perceive events. Anxious persons are more likely to react strongly to threats and anticipate threats. Our personalities help create situations in which we react—how we treat people influences how they treat us. Rotter - Personal control Personal Control - our sense of controlling our environments rather than feeling helpless External Locus of Control - the perception that chance or outside forces beyond one’s control determine one’s fate Internal Locus of Control - the perception that one controls one’s fate  PSYC 1001 Introduction to Psychology 5 Self-Study Reading the corresponding book chapter is important for success in this course. Attempt these questions only after reading the notes and chapter in the text. This will help you assess if you have retained the information. It would be best to try the exercises without referring to your notes. Fill in the Blanks 1. _____________ is a characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. 2. The ID operates on the ________ principle and is oriented towards satisfaction. 3. The ________ emerges from the ego and embodies the moral values of society. 4. According to Freud, _____________occurs when the ego is overwhelmed by the id. 5. ______________________ are the ego's protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality. 6. ________ is a defense mechanism where one returns to an earlier stage of development. 7. In operant conditioning, ________ strengthens and increases behaviour, while ________ decreases behaviour. 8. According to the humanistic perspective, factors needed for growth and good development include ________, ________, and ________. 9. ________________ the interacting influences of behaviour, internal cognition and environment. 10. The Five Factor Theory of Personality Traits are __________________________________________________________________________ Short Answer Questions 1. Describe the role of the superego in Freud's psychoanalytic theory of personality. 2. Explain how Bandura's concept of reciprocal determinism influences personality development. 3. Discuss the differences between an internal and external locus of control, according to Rotter.