Chapter 12

1. Chapter 12 Personality: Theory, Research, and Assesment

2. OBJECTIVES: • Explain the 5 Factor Model • Describe Freud’s theory of personality development: • Id, Ego & Superego • Iceberg theory of consciousness • Psychosexual stages

3. Defining Personality: Consistency and Distinctiveness • Personality Traits • Dispositions and dimensions • The Five-Factor Model • Openness to experience • Conscientiousness • Extraversion • Agreeableness • Neuroticism

4. The “Big Five” Personality Factors Trait Dimension Description Emotional Stability Calm versus anxious (Neurosis) Secure versus insecure Self-satisfied versus self-pitying Extraversion Sociable versus retiring Fun-loving versus sober Affectionate versus reserved Openness Imaginative versus practical Preference for variety versus preference for routine Independent versus conforming Agreeableness Soft-hearted versus ruthless Trusting versus suspicious Helpful versus uncooperative Conscientiousness Organized versus disorganized Careful versus careless Disciplined versus impulsive The Trait Perspective

5. Psychodynamic Perspectives • Freud’s psychoanalytic theory • Structure of personality • Id - Pleasure principle • Ego - Reality principle • Superego - Morality • Levels of awareness – “ice berg” • Conscious – 10% above water • Unconscious – 90% below water • Conflict • Sex and Aggression • Anxiety • Defense Mechanisms

6. Ego Conscious mind Unconscious mind Superego Id Personality Structure • Freud’s idea of the mind’s structure

7. The school year is ending and final exams are near.You have done well, but are having difficulty in your Psychology class.You know that in order to get a grade of “B”, the minimum acceptable by your parents, you must get an “A” on the final.You have tried studying, but feel it is an unattainable goal.As you are leaving campus to go home on the afternoon prior to the test, you find a group of papers in the hall which has apparently been dropped by someone.You look down, and find that one of the dropped papers has the heading “Psychology: Final Exam”.You pick up the paper and look at it quickly, noticing that no one has seen you.What do you do next?

8. Psychology:Final Exam • Create dialogue on how your ID, EGO and SUPEREGO would discuss this problem.What would the ID be telling you to do, what would the SUPEREGO be telling you to do, how is the EGO involved. • ex. • ID: “bla bla bla” • SUPEREGO: “bla bla bla”

9. Freud on Development: Psychosexual Stages • Sexual = physical pleasure • Psychosexual stages • Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency, Genital • Fixation = Excessive gratification or frustration • Overemphasis on psychosexual needs during fixated stage • Oedipus Complex • a boy’s sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father • necessary for development of superego; the boy identifies with the father

13. Other Psychodynamic Theoristsa.k.a = Neo-Freudians • Carl Jung • Analytical Psychology • personal unconscious -which houses material that is not within one’s conscious awareness because it has been repressed or forgotten; and the collective unconscious - which houses latent memory traces inherited from people’s ancestral past. • Archetypes - emotionally charged images and thought forms that have universal meaning… • Introversion/Extroversion • Alfred Adler - argued that Freud had gone overboard with his focus on sexual conflict • Individual Psychology • Striving for superiority • Compensation • Inferiority complex/overcompensation • Birth order

15. Evaluating Psychodynamic Perspectives • Pros • Insights regarding • The unconscious • The role of internal conflict • The importance of early childhood experiences • Cons • Poor testability • Inadequate empirical base • Sexist views

17. Behavioral Perspectives • Skinner’s views • Conditioning and response tendencies • Environmental determinism • Bandura’s views • Social leaning theory • Cognitive processes and reciprocal determinism • Observational learning • Models • Self-efficacy • Mischel’s views • The person-situation controversy

21. Evaluating Behavioral Perspectives • Pros • Based on rigorous research • Insights into effects of learning and environmental factors • Cons • Over-dependence on animal research • Fragmented view of personality • Dehumanizing views

22. Humanistic Perspectives • Carl Rogers • Person Centered Theory • Self-concept • Conditional/unconditional positive regard • Incongruence and anxiety • Abraham Maslow • Self-actualization theory • Hierarchy of needs • The healthy personality

27. Evaluating Humanistic Perspectives • Humanistic theories are credited with highlighting the importance of a person’s subjective view of reality. They are also applauded for focusing attention on the issue of what constitutes a healthy personality. • They are criticized for lacking a strong research base, poor testability, and what may be an overly optimistic view of human nature (Maslow had a hard time finding live people who had self-actualized).

28. Biological Perspectives • Eysenk’s theory • 3 higher order traits • Extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism • Determined by genes • Twin studies • Novelty seeking and genetics • The evolutionary approach • Traits conducive to reproductive fitness

32. Evaluating Biological Perspectives • Pros • Convincing evidence for genetic influence • Cons • Conceptual problems with heritability estimates - heritability estimates vary depending on sampling procedures and other considerations, and should only be used as ballpark figures. • Artificial carving apart of nature and nurture - they interact in complicated ways • No comprehensive biological theory

33. Self-Reporting Tests • 16 PF - Hans Eysenck • Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) • the most widely researched and clinically used of all personality tests • originally developed to identify emotional disorders (still considered its most appropriate use) • now used for many other screening purposes

34. Assessing the Unconscious • Projective Test • a personality test, such as the Rorschach or TAT, that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of one’s inner dynamics • Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) • a projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes

35. Assessing the Unconscious--TAT

36. Assessing the Unconscious--Rorschach

37. Assessing the Unconscious • Rorschach Inkblot Test • the most widely used projective test • a set of 10 inkblots designed by Hermann Rorschach • seeks to identify people’s inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of the blots