Module 19 & 20 Personality (or lack of) Focusing on:
Freudian, Humanistic, Social Cognitive and Trait Theories Personality Personality: refers toa combination of long-lasting and distinctive behaviors, thoughts, motives, and emotions that typify how we react and adapt to other people and situations. Theories of Personality: is an organized attempt to describe and explain how personalities develop and why personalities differ. Freuds psychodynamic theory of personality
Definition ~Freuds Psychodynamic Theory of Personality ~ emphasizes the importance of early childhood experiences, unconscious or repressed thoughts that we cannot voluntarily access, and the conflicts between conscious and unconscious forces that influence our feelings, thoughts, and behaviors Freuds psychodynamic theory of personality
~Conscious Versus Unconscious forces~ Conscious thoughts wishes, desires, or thoughts that we are aware of, or can recall, at any given moment Unconscious forces wishes, desires, or thoughts that, because of their disturbing or threatening content, we automatically repress and cannot voluntarily access Unconscious motivation Freudian concept that refers to the influence of repressed thoughts, desires, or impulses on our conscious thoughts and behaviors Freudian techniques to Discover the Unconscious
Free association technique in which clients are encouraged to talk about any thoughts or images that enter their head; the assumption is that this kind of free-flowing, uncensored talking will provide clues to unconscious material Freudian techniques to Discover the Unconscious
2.Dream interpretation technique of analyzing dreams, is based on the assumption that dreams contain underlying, hidden meanings and symbols that provide clues to unconscious thoughts and desires 3.Freudian slips mistakes or slips of the tongue that we make in everyday speech; such mistakes, which are often embarrassing, are thought to reflect unconscious thoughts or wishes Freud: Division of the Mind
Id, Ego, and Superego Freud divided the mind into three separate processes 1. Id 2. Ego 3. Superego each has a different function interactions among the id, ego, and superego result in conflicts Freud: Division of the Mind
Id: pleasure seeker first division of the mind to develop, contains two biological drives~ sex and aggression~ are the source of all psychic and mental energy; the ids goal is to pursue pleasure and satisfy the biological drives Operated by the Id is the Pleasure principle id operates according to the pleasure principle which is to satisfy drives and avoid pain, without concern for moral restrictions or societys regulations Freud: Division of the Mind
2.Ego: executive negotiator between id and superego Freuds second division of the mind, develops from the id during infancy; the egos goal is to find safe and socially acceptable ways of satisfying the ids desires and to negotiate between the ids wants and the superegos prohibitions largest part of ego is conscious smaller part is unconscious Followed by the Ego is the Reality principle this is a policy of satisfying a wish or desire only if there is a socially acceptable outlet available Freud: Division of the Mind
3.Superego: regulator Freuds third division of the mind, develops from the ego during early childhood; the superegos goal is to apply the moral values and standards of ones parents or caregivers and society in satisfying ones wishes these moral standards of which we are conscious or aware and moral standards that are unconscious or outside our awareness Freud: Division of the Mind
Anxiety In Freudian theory; is an uncomfortable feeling that results from inner conflicts between the primitive desires ofthe id and the moral goals of the superego basic concepts Id and superego are in conflict, but the ego caught in the middle the egos continuous negotiations to resolve conflict causes anxious feelings this anxiety causes the ego to use defense mechanisms to reduce the anxious feelings Freud: Defense mechanisms
Freudian processes that operate at unconscious levels and that use self-deception or untrue explanations to protect the ego from being overwhelmed by anxiety a persons ego has two ways to reduce anxiety: can take realistic steps for reducing anxiety use defense mechanisms to reduce anxiety Freud: Defense mechanisms
~Defense mechanisms~here is a sampling Rationalization involves covering up the true reasons for actions, thoughts, or feelings by making up excuses and incorrect explanations 2.Denial refusing to recognize some anxiety-provoking event or piece of information that is clear to others 3.Repression involves blocking and pushing unacceptable or threatening feelings, wishes, or experiences into the unconscious 4.Projection falsely and unconsciously attributes your own unacceptable feelings, traits, or thoughts to individuals or objects Freud: Defense mechanisms
5.Reaction Formation involves substituting behaviors, thoughts, or feelings that are the direct opposite of unacceptable ones Displacement involves transferring feelings about, or response to, an object that causes anxiety to another person or object that is less threatening 7.Sublimation a type of displacement, involves redirecting a threatening or forbidden desire, usually sexual, into a socially acceptable one Freudian: Developmental Stages
~Psychosexual stages five developmental periods-oral, anal, phallic, latency, andgenital stages- each marked by a potential conflict between parent and child. The conflicts arise as a child seeks pleasure from different body areas that are associated with sexual feelings (different erogenous zones). Freud emphasized that the childs first five years were most important in personality development. Freudian: Developmental Stages
Fixation: ~the source forpotential personality problems~ can occur during any of the first three stages oral, anal, phallic -refers to a Freudian process through which an individual may be locked into a particular psychosexual stage because his or her wishes were either overgratified or under gratified Freudian: Developmental Stages
Five psychosexual stages; that Freud said every child goes through~ Oral stage: early infancy: first 18 months of life is a time when the infants pleasure seeking is centered on the mouth withactivities include:sucking, chewing, and biting Fixation (manifestation as an adult) adults who continue to engage in oral activities, such as overeating, gum chewing, or smoking; oral activities can be symbolic as well, such as being overly demanding or mouthing off Freudian: Developmental Stages
2.Anal stage: late infancy: 11/2 to 3 years a time when the infants pleasure seeking is centered on the anus and its functions of elimination Fixation results in adults who continue to engage in activities of retention or elimination retention: very neat, stingy, or behaviorally rigid elimination: generous, messy, or behaving very loose or carefree Freudian: Developmental Stages
3.Phallic stage: early childhood: 3 to 6 years a time when infants pleasure seeking is centered on the genitals manifestation Oedipus complex: process in which a child competes with the parent of the same sex for the affections and pleasures of the parent of the opposite sex Boys: develops attraction to his mother and begins to hate his father;fears castration;will go through life trying to be tough Girls: (Electra Complex): realizes she has no penis and develops penis envy; she turns against her mother and develops feelings for her father; will feel inferior to men Freudian: Developmental Stages
4.Latency stage: middle to late childhood: 6 to puberty time when the child represses sexual thoughts and engages in nonsexual activities, such as developing social and intellectual skills at puberty, sexuality reappears and the next stage begins Freudian: Developmental Stages
5.Genital stage: puberty through adulthood time when the individual has renewed sexual desires that he or she seeks to fulfill through relationships with other people conflict resolution depends on how conflicts in the first three stages were resolved: if the individual resolved issues in earlier stages they will adapt well in this stage; on the other hand if they did not they will not be able to develop healthy relationships FREUDS FOLLOWERS & CRITICS
Carl Jung Jung was a devoted follower of Freud until about 1914 split with Freud was that Jung disagreed with Freuds emphasis on the sex drive believed the collective unconscious and not sex to be the basic force in the development of personality Collective unconscious consists of ancient memory traces and symbols that are passed on by birth and are shared by all peoples in all cultures Analytical Psychology Jungs elaborate theory of personality FREUDS FOLLOWERS & CRITICS (CONT.)
Alfred Adler contemporary of Freud voiced disagreement with Freud at one of the societys meetings Adler disagreed with Freuds theory that humans are governed by biological and sexual urges Adler proposed that humans are motivated by social urges each person is a social being with a unique personality Adler formed his own group philosophy became known as individual psychology we are aware of our motives and goals have the capacity to guide and plan our futures FREUDS FOLLOWERS & CRITICS (CONT.)
Karen Horney trained as a psychoanalyst her career peaked after Freuds death dean of the American Institute of Psychoanalysis in New York objected to Freuds view of women being dependent, vain, and submissive because of biological forces and childhood sexual experiences took issue with Freuds idea of penis envy FREUDS FOLLOWERS & CRITICS (CONT.)
Karen Horney personality development, (women or men) can be found in child-parent social interactions Horney theorized that: child-parent conflicts are avoidable if the child is raised in a loving, trusting, and secure environment founded the psychology of women HUMANISTIC THEORIES Three characteristics of Humanistic theories:
Phenomenological perspective your perception or view of the world, whether or not it is accurate, becomes your reality Holistic view personality is more than the sum of its individual parts; instead, the individual parts form a unique and total entity that functions as a unit Self-actualization refers to our inherent tendency to develop and reach our true potentials HUMANISTIC THEORIES Maslow: need hierarchy and self-actualization
Hierarchy of Needs arranges needs in ascending order biological needs at the bottom and social and personal needs at the top Maslows hierarchy: must satisfy biological safety needs before using energy to fulfill your personal and social needs devote time and energy to reach true potential, called self-actualization HUMANISTIC THEORIES Carl Rogers: self theory
also called self-actualization theory is based on two major assumptions: personality development is guided by each persons unique self-actualization tendency, and that each of us has a personal need for positive regard Rogers self-actualization tendency refers to an inborn tendency for us to develop all of our capacities in ways that best maintain and benefit our lives relates to biological functions meeting basic need for food, water, and oxygen HUMANISTIC THEORIES Real Self Versus Ideal Self: Self or self-concept:
real self: is based on our actual experiences and represents how we see ourselves. Ideal self: is based on our hopes and wishes and reflects how we would like to see ourselves HUMANISTIC THEORIES Rogers: self theory
Positive regard: includes love, sympathy, warmth, acceptance, and respect, which we crave from family, friends, and people important to us Conditional and unconditional positive regard: conditional positive regard: refers to the positive regard we receive if we behave in certain acceptable ways, such as living up to or meeting the standards of others Unconditional positive regard: the warmth, acceptance, and love that others show you because you are valued as a human being, even though you may disappoint people by behaving in ways that are different from their standards or values or the way they think Personality Assessment Projective tests
Psychological assessment: refers to the use of various tools, psychological tests/interviews, to measure various characteristics, traits, or abilities in order to understand behaviors and predict future performances or behaviors. Personality Tests: used to measure observable or overt traits and behaviors as well as unobservable or covert characteristic. Per. tests are used to identify personality problems and psychological disorders as well as to predict how a person might behave in the future. Ability Tests: measure what we have learned;aptitude tests, which measure our potential for learning or acquiring a specific skill; Projective tests Projective tests: require individuals to look at some meaningless object or ambiguous photo and describe what they see. In describing or making up a story about the ambiguous object, individuals are assumed to project both their conscious and unconscious feelings, needs, and motives. Rorschach inkblot tests: used to assess personality by showing a person a series of ten inkblots and then asking the person to describe what he or she thinks an image is. Swiss psychiatrist Hermann Rorschach Used to assess personality traits and identify problems of adolescents and adults Personality Assessment Projective tests
Thematic Apperception Tests (tat): involves showing a person a series of 20 pictures of people in ambiguous situations and asking the person to make up a story about what the people are doing or thinking in each situation. Personality Assessment Projective tests
Draw-a-person tests: many Civil Servants exams or any occupation where an individual interacts with the public, use these types of tests Test taking subjects are often motivated to provide a favorable impression of themselves, and this response bias will distort their answers. Draw a picture of yourself Draw a picture of a house (any house does not have to resemble where you live). Draw a picture of a tree Personality (or lack of)
Module 20 Personality (or lack of) Focusing on: Social Cognitive & Trait Theories Social cognitive Theory
Social Cognitive Theory: states that personality development is shaped primarily by three forces: environmental conditions (learning), cognitive-personal factors and behavior, which all interact to influence how we evaluate, interpret, organize, and apply information Social cognitive Theory
Interaction of three factors Cognitive-personal factors: include our beliefs,expectations, values, intentions, and social roles.Personal factors include our emotional makeup an our biological and genetic influences Behaviors:include a variety of personal actions, such as the things we do and say Environmental factors: include our social, political, and cultural influences, as well as our particular learning experiences Social cognitive Theory
Banduras social cognitive theory: assumes that personality development, growth, and change are influenced by four distinctively human cognitive processes: highly developed language ability observational learning purposeful behavior self analysis Social cognitive Theory
Delay of gratification: refers to not taking an immediate but less desirable reward and instead waiting and using an object or completing a task that promises a better reward in the future Self-efficacy: refers to the confidence in your ability to organize and execute a given course of action to solve a problem or accomplish a task use previous experiences compare listen use feedback Locus of control: refers to our beliefs about how much control we have over situations or rewards Internal locus of control: believe that we have control over situations and rewards External locus of control: believe that we do not have control over situations and rewards and that events outside ourselves (fate) determine what happens Trait theory Trait Theory: is an approach for analyzing the structure of personality by measuring, identifying, and classifying similarities and differences in personality characteristics or traits Trait: is a relatively stable and enduring tendency to behave in a particular way In the 1930s Gordon Allport found 18,000 terms; out of these 4,500 were considered to fit definition of personality traits In the 1940s Raymond Cattell narrowed these traits down to 35 then 16. Trait theory Big five: Five factor model organizes personality traits and describes differences in personality using five categories: openness conscientiousness extraversion agreeableness neuroticism 180 degree change? Quantum personality change: refers to making a very radical or dramatic shift in ones personality, beliefs, or values in minutes, hours, or a day. Four theories of personality
3 1 2 4 Trait theory assessment: objective tests
Objective personality tests: also called self-report questionnaires, consist of specific written statements that require individuals to indicate, for example, by checking true or false, whether the statements do or do not apply to them Minnesota Multiphasic Personality inventory (MMPI-2): is a true-false self-report questionnaire that consists of 567 statements describing a wide range of normal and abnormal behaviors. The purpose of this test is to measure the personality style and emotional adjustment in individuals with mental illness.