AP Psych - Personality - Ehret

for that personality test y'all forgot about

What is personality?

a person’s consistent pattern of thinking, feeling, or acting

*Personality comes from the Latin word:

“Persona” which means “mask*” (funny, considering we can’t really mask our true personalities)

What are the FOUR psychological approaches to personality?

1. Psychoanalytic(Psychodynamic)

2. Humanistic Approach

3. Social-Cognitive Approach(Behavioral)

4. Trait Approach

1) Who is the father of the Psychoanalytic approach?

Sigmund Freud

What are the key features of the Psychoanalytic approach?

• emphasis on childhood as crucial time in forming personality

• personality comes from unconscious forces

What is the goal of psychoanalytic therapy?

bring unconscious feelings to the surface through:

→analyzing dreams

→hypnosis

→free association (talk therapy)

what is the “iceberg or consciousness?”

top: conscious-what we are aware of

middle: preconscious-what we can be aware of

bottom: unconscious-deep hidden reservoir that holds the true “us”

what is catharsis?

the process of releasing strong or repressed emotions; leads to relief

what is Freud’s personality structure?

• ID

• SUPEREGO

• EGO

what is the ID?

• we’re born with this

• “The Pleasure Principle”

• no contact with reality

• instant gratification

• helps us get necessities as newborns

• doesn’t think about consequences

what is the SUPEREGO?

• conscience & morals

• “Morality Principle”

• no contact with reality

• develops due to moral & ethical restraints

• dictates right & wrong

• unrealistic

• “should”

what is the EGO?

• maintains balance between ID & SUPEREGO

• “Reality Principle”

• in touch with reality

• job is to meet ID needs while considering reality

what are defense mechanisms?

according to Freud, the ego needs to be protected from threatening thoughts in our unconscious; you are usually unaware your defense mechanisms are even occuring

when do problems with defense mechanisms occur?

the overuse of defense mechanisms lead to personality difficulties

what is PROJECTION?

leads people to disguise their own threatening impulses by attributing them to others

ex: “I’m not scared, you are!”

what is REACTION FORMATION?

the converting of unwanted or dangerous thoughts, feelings, or impulses into their opposites

ex: falling in love with someone you “shouldn’t,” so you say you hate them and make yourself believe it

what is DENIAL?

if something anxiety producing takes place, you deny the existence or reality of the situation

ex: getting broken up with and telling everybody (and yourself) you’re “just on a break”

what is REPRESSION?

the unconscious blocking of unacceptable thoughts, feelings, & impulses

ex: having a traumatic childhood and being unable to remember certain parts of it

what is DISPLACEMENT?

shifts an aggressive impulse toward a more acceptable object

ex: getting a bad grade on a test so you go home and take it out on a loved one

what is RATIONALIZATION?

putting something into a different light or offering a different light or offering a different explanation for one’s perceptions or behaviors in the face of a changing reality

ex: “I didn't get the job, but I didn't want the responsibility anyway”

what is SUBLIMATION?

taking a socially unacceptable action/behavior & turning it into a more socially acceptable one

ex: if you really want to punch people, randomly you become a boxer

what is REGRESSION?

taking the position of a child in some problematic situation, rather than acting in a more adult way

ex: getting into a fight with somebody and sucking on your thumb, stamping your foot, acting childish

getting into the unconscious:

• catharsis is the goal!

• hypnosis

• dream analysis/interpretation

• free association

• projective tests

→inkblot test

Rorschach Inkblot Test

• most widely used test

• set of 10 inkblots designed to identify feelings

2) what is the Humanistic Approach?

• emphasis on uniqueness & richness, strive for self-actualization (Abraham Maslow; Hierarchy of Needs)

• Founders: Abraham Maslow & Carl Rogers

what did CARL ROGERS do?

• genuineness, empathy, & acceptance nurture growth

• UNCONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD: needed to grow as a person

• one’s SELF-CONCEPT is central to one’s personality

→we have an ACTUAL SELF

→and an IDEAL SELF

(*goal of therapy: match ideal to actual (congruence)

3) Social-Cognitive Approach (Behavioral)

• Founders: John Watson(Little Albert), B.F. Skinner(Operant Conditioning), Albert Bandura(BoBo Doll)

→ we develop personality by learning it & by observation (social) + what we think about our situations (cognitive)

self-efficacy:

“I think I can, so I will.”

4) what is the Trait Approach?

• personality is made up of measurable & studiable traits

• trait: consistent, long-lasting way you behave

trait theorists:

• Gordon Allport: identified 18,000 traits (1936)

• Raymond Cattell: narrowed it to 35 (1965)

• Robert McRae: down to 5, OCEAN (the BIG FIVE)

*trait approach is based on the…

nomothetic approach: seeks to establish general laws and universal principles by studying large groups, using quantitative methods (experiments, statistics) to find commonalities and make broad predictions

The Big 5 Theory:

Open-mindedness vs Closed-mindedness

Conscientiousness vs Laziness

Extroversion vs Introversion

Agreeableness vs Argumentative

Neurotic vs Stable

personality assessment quirks

• Barnum Effect

• Halo Effect

• Hawthorne Effect

Barnum effect:

the tendency to accept personality assessments because it’s so vague

Halo effect:

the tendency to accept personality assessments because it’s positive

Hawthorne effect:

the tendency to act differently when you know you’re being watched

how do we assess personality?

• Projective tests (Rorschach inkblots*)

*must be RELIABLE & VALID

• Subjective tests (personality inventory: MMPI)

→10 clinical scales for crisis or mental health issues

• Myers-Briggs