Theories of Personality

Personality

people’s typical ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving

Traits

relatively enduring predispositions that influence our behavior across situations

Nomothetic

explains personality across individuals

ex: large-scale survey studies (individual studies)

Idiographic

explains personality within an individual

ex: case studies

Personality Influences

nonshared- experiences that make individuals within the same family less alike

shared- experiences that make individuals within the same family more alike

genetics- biological explanations that explain similarities

Twin Studies

analysis of how traits differ in identical vs fraternal twins

even when reared apart, correlation is still high because genetics plays a huge role

Adoption Studies

analysis of how traits vary in individuals raised apart from their biological relatives

children’s personalities more closely resemble biological parents

Psychoanalytic Theory

sigmund freud

psychic determinism- all psychological events have a cause

symbolic meaning- no action is meaningless

unconscious motivation- we rarely understand what we do

Personality Structure

the mind is like an iceberg, it floats with 1/7 of its bulk above water

id- pleasure principle, instant gratification, most primitive part

superego- internalizes society’s ideals, values, and morals; enforcing right vs wrong, not bound by reality

ego- reality principle, constrains id to reality and works to redirect urges

Defense Mechanisms

projection, displacement, rationalization, repression, denial and regression

Psychosexual Development- Oral

birth to 12-18 months

erogenous zone: mouth

conflict: weaning

consequences of fixation: unhealthy oral behaviors such as chewing gum or being manipulated

can be fixated in this stage

Psychosexual Development- Anal

18 months to 3 years

erogenous zone: anal

conflict: toilet training

consequences of fixation: anal retentive/explosive such as a disregard for authority or trying to find order in their lives, so very messy, but the opposite can be obeying authority and being introverted

can be fixated in this stage

Psychosexual Development- Phallic

3 to 6 years

erogenous zone: genitals

conflict: oedipus/electra complex

consequences of fixation: aggressive and dominant causes inferiority complex. penis envy and castration anxiety

can be fixated in this stage

Psychosexual Development- Latency

6 to 12 years

erogenous zone: stays dormant

can not be fixated in this stage

Psychosexual Development- Genital

12+ years

erogenous zone: genitals

sexual preferences are found in this stage

can not be fixated in this stage

Humanism

was a response to deterministic views of personality and placed an emphasis on conscious awareness of needs, choice and free will

more optimistic about human nature and focused on self-actualization which means become who we’re meant to be

Humanistic Models

carl rogers contributions: condition vs unconditional positive regard (no strings attached love vs ill love you if type of love)

concludes that unconditional positive self regard leads to self actualization

abraham maslow contributions: characteristics of self actualized people are as follows- creative, spontaneous, accepting, few deep friendships, not afraid to rock the boat, and prone to peak experiences

literacy of needs in pyramid form

Behavioral Theories

contingencies: reinforces and punishers

determinism: behavior due to situational contingencies that we’re unaware of

Social Learning Theories

thinking as a cause of personality, reciprocal determinism, and observational learning