Personality Psych Exam 2 (Erikson, Carl Rogers, Maslow, Allport, Cattell, Eysenck)

Abraham Maslow

Father of humanism; developed the theory of self-actualization and hierarchy of human needs.

Theory of Self-Actualization

The process by which healthy development allows people to fulfill their true nature and reach their potential.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Five levels of human needs: self-actualization and growth needs, esteem needs, belongingness and love needs, safety needs, and physiological needs

Deficiency Needs (Basic Needs)

Needs that arise from a lack of something essential; include physiological, safety, belongingness and love, and esteem needs.

Growth Needs (Meta Needs)

Needs involving self-actualization, personal growth, and cognitive understanding.

Physiological Needs

Basic biological needs such as hunger, thirst, and sex.

Safety Needs

The need for security, protection, structure, law, order, limits, and freedom from fear and chaos.

Belongingness Needs

The need to feel wanted, accepted, and connected to others.

D-Love (Deficiency Love)

Love that begins with the selfish desire to receive affection and love from others.

B-Love (Being Love)

A more mature form of love involving the ability to genuinely love and care for others.

Internal Esteem

Respect based on one's own competence, independence, and accomplishments.

External Esteem

Respect based on others' evaluations, including recognition, status, fame, and appreciation.

Self-Actualization

The need to reach one's fullest potential and highest level of functioning.

Characteristics of High Self-Actualization

More capable of affection, intimate relationships, mature love, and less resentment toward former lovers.

Jonah Complex

Fear or reluctance to use one's full potential because success may bring new responsibilities, duties, or uncertainty.

Conditions for Self-Actualization

Basic needs must be met, and the environment must be supportive, nurturing, and encourage positive development.

Socialization

Poor socialization practices can hinder movement toward self-actualization.

Environment and Self-Actualization

A supportive environment that provides love, boundaries, guidance, and opportunities helps people reach their potential.

Basic Freedoms

Freedoms such as freedom of speech are essential for satisfying basic needs and pursuing personal growth.

Self-Transcendence

Going beyond personal concerns to serve a cause greater than oneself and connect with others or nature.

Transcending Self-Actualizing Person

A psychologically healthy individual who moves beyond selfish concerns to improve humankind.

Personal Orientation Inventory (POI)

A self-report questionnaire measuring values and behaviors associated with self-actualization.

Maslow's Therapeutic Approach

Therapists act as supportive friends who provide respect, love, belongingness, and a nonthreatening environment.

Criticism of Maslow's Assessment Methods

His procedures for identifying self-actualizers were ambiguous, imprecise, and possibly based on his personal values.

Maslow's Research Limitation

It is unclear exactly how Maslow assessed and selected the self-actualizing individuals in his research.

Personality Trait

A relatively stable characteristic that influences how individuals think, feel, and behave.

Three Criteria of a Trait

A trait must be consistent, stable, and vary from person to person.

Gordon Allport

Trait theorist who emphasized both general personality patterns and the unique characteristics of individuals.

Cardinal Traits

Rare, dominant personality traits that influence almost every aspect of an individual's behavior.

Central Traits

Major personality characteristics that form the foundation of someone's personality (behavior, feelings, and thinking)

Examples of Central Traits

Honesty, intelligence, shyness, generosity, and anxiety.

Characteristics of Central Traits

Common, descriptive, moderately influential, and different in strength across individuals.

Secondary Traits

Personality characteristics that appear mainly in particular situations and are less consistent or influential.

Examples of Secondary Traits

Public speaking anxiety, impatience while waiting in line, and specific personal preferences.

Cardinal vs. Central Traits

Cardinal traits dominate nearly all behavior and are rare; central traits describe major personality characteristics.

Central vs. Secondary Traits

Central traits influence behavior across many situations; secondary traits appear in specific circumstances.

Allport's View of Individual Differences

Allport emphasized that personality psychology should study both general patterns of human behavior and the distinctive characteristics of each person

Functional Autonomy

Motives that originally developed for one purpose can become independent of their original purpose.

Example of Functional Autonomy

A student initially studies for praise but eventually studies because they genuinely enjoy learning.

Allport's Proprium

The aspects of personality experienced as uniquely one's own, including personal identity, values, goals, and experiences.

Purpose of the Proprium

Provides a sense of personal identity and continuity throughout life. Ability to understand who they are.

Raymond Cattell

Trait theorist who used statistical methods to identify the underlying personality characteristics that distinguish people.

Cattell's Trait Reduction

Reduced Allport's list of over 4,000 traits to 171 by eliminating uncommon traits and combining similar characteristics using factor analysis.

Cattell's 16-Factor Personality Model

A model proposing that 16 underlying personality traits account for major differences in human personality.

16 Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF)

A personality inventory developed by Cattell to measure 16 primary personality traits.

Fluid Intelligence (Gf)

The ability to solve unfamiliar problems, recognize patterns, and reason in new situations.

Crystallized Intelligence (Gc)

Knowledge and skills acquired through education, learning, and life experiences.

Example of Fluid Intelligence

Solving a new logic puzzle without relying on previously learned information.

Example of Crystallized Intelligence

Remembering vocabulary, historical facts, or information learned in school.

Fluid vs. Crystallized Intelligence

Fluid intelligence involves reasoning through new problems; crystallized intelligence involves using acquired knowledge.

Surface Traits

Observable behaviors or characteristics that frequently occur together.

Source Traits

Underlying personality traits that explain patterns of observable surface behaviors.

Example of Surface Traits

A person frequently talks, smiles, and initiates conversations.

Surface vs. Source Traits

Surface traits are observable behaviors; source traits are the underlying characteristics that produce them.

Cattell's Statistical Approach

Used statistical analysis to identify patterns among observed behaviors and discover underlying personality traits.

Hans Eysenck

Psychologist who developed a three-dimensional personality model

Eysenck's PEN Model

A personality model consisting of Psychoticism, Extraversion, and Neuroticism.

Extraversion

A personality dimension describing sociability, outgoing behavior, energy, and the desire for stimulation.

High Extraversion

Characterized by sociability, talkativeness, energy, and outgoing behavior.

Low Extraversion (Introversion)

Characterized by being reserved, quiet, reflective, and comfortable with less social stimulation.

Example of Extraversion vs. Introversion

An extravert enjoys a busy party, while an introvert prefers a quiet evening with close friends.

Neuroticism

A personality dimension describing the tendency to experience negative emotions and emotional distress.

High Neuroticism

Characterized by anxiety, worry, mood changes, and greater emotional sensitivity.

Low Neuroticism (Emotional Stability)

Characterized by calmness, emotional consistency, and being less easily upset.

Example of Neuroticism

After receiving a poor exam grade, one student worries for days while another recovers quickly.

Psychoticism

A personality dimension that has difficulty dealing with reality and may be antisocial, hostile, non-empathetic, and manipulative

High Psychoticism

May involve hostility, impulsivity, aggression, manipulation, and reduced empathy.

Low Psychoticism

Associated with cooperation, empathy, consideration, and greater social conformity.

Psychoticism vs. Psychosis

A high psychoticism score does not automatically mean someone has psychosis or another mental illness.

Biological Basis of Eysenck's Theory

Personality differences are influenced by biological and genetic factors.

Five-Factor Model (Big Five)

A descriptive personality model organizing personality into five broad, measurable dimensions.

Why the Big Five Emerged

Researchers believed Cattell emphasized too many traits and Eysenck emphasized too few.

Big Five Personality Traits

Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism.

Openness

Level of creativity, curiosity, adventure, and willingness to experience new things.

Conscientiousness

Level of organization, responsibility, thoughtfulness, and structure.

Agreeableness

Level of cooperation, compassion, kindness, and concern for others.

Neuroticism (Big Five)

Level of emotional instability, moodiness, and sensitivity to stress.

Limitation of the Five-Factor Model

It describes personality structure but does not fully explain personality causes or predict every behavior.

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)

A personality inventory that categorizes people into 16 personality types using four dichotomies.

16PF vs. MBTI

The 16PF measures 16 primary personality traits, while MBTI categorizes individuals into 16 personality types.

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

A widely used true/false personality inventory originally designed to assess mental health problems in clinical settings.

Original MMPI Purpose

To assess psychological conditions and mental health problems using 10 clinical subscales.

Erik Erikson

Psychologist who developed the eight-stage theory of psychosocial development and coined the term identity crisis.

Erikson's Influence

Expanded Freud's developmental theory to emphasize social influences and personality development across the lifespan.

Ego Psychology

A theory emphasizing how biological, psychological, and social forces interact to shape personality.

Erikson's View of the Ego

The ego is a powerful force that helps resolve inner conflicts and environmental challenges.

Epigenetic Principle

Human development follows a genetically determined, universal sequence of stages.

Psychosocial Crisis

A developmental conflict between an individual's psychological needs and society's expectations.

Positive Crisis Resolution

Strengthens the ego and increases the likelihood of successfully resolving later developmental crises.

Negative Crisis Resolution

Can weaken ego development and make future developmental challenges more difficult.

Virtue (Ego Strength)

A psychological strength developed through successful resolution of a psychosocial crisis.

Erikson's Eight Stages

Oral Sensory Stage, Muscular-Anal Stage, Locomotor-Genital Stage, Latency Stage, Adolescence, Young adulthood, Middle Adulthood, Late Adulthood

Oral-Sensory Stage (Trust vs. Mistrust, 1y/o)

Pleasure centers around the mouth and feeding. Crisis, basic trust or mistrust, a direct result of parenting.

Oral-Sensory Stage Ego Strentgh

Hope

Muscular-Anal Stage (Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt, 2-3 y/o)

Children at this stage are focused on developing a sense of personal control over physical skills and a sense of independence.

Muscular-Anal Stage Ego Strength

Will

Locomotor-Genital Stage (Initiative vs. Guilt, 4-5 y/o)

Children assert themselves more frequently through directing play and other social interaction.

Locomotor-Genital Stage Ego Strength

Purpose

Latency Stage (Industry vs. Inferiority, 6-12 y/o)

The child’s peer group will gain greater significance and will become a major source of the child’s self-esteem. The child now strives for a sense of accomplishment and self-esteem based on the values of society.

Latency Stage Ego Strength

Competence