PERSONALITY

Personality is an individual’s unique pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that persists over time and across situations. •Unique differences•Relatively stable and enduring

Psychodynamic Theory: views personality as the result of unconscious, often sexual motivations and conflicts

Freud Neo-Freudians (Jung, Adler,

Horney, Erikson)

Humanistic Theory: emphasize the role of positive growth motives and the realization of potential in shaping personality.

Carl Rodgers

Social-Cognitive Theory: finds the roots of personality in the ways people think about, act on, and respond to their environment.-personal expectancies-locus of control -learn from experiences-Behaviorism! (B.F. Skinner)-Albert Bandura

Trait theories: focus on categorizing and describing the ways in which people’s personalities differ.

-subjective-done through extensive personality

tests-you can assess your own

personality by describing yourself! -Gordon Allport—OCEAN—BIG 5 test

Concentrates on how adult personalities are different, not how they develop

Traits are the building blocks of personality

Traits cannot be seen but they can be inferred from behavior

Problem: obviously subjective and descriptive, not scientific

Look at packet page 5 for more info…

When he was 22, he traveled to Vienna.  He had arranged to meet with the great Sigmund Freud!  When he arrived in Freud’s office, Freud simply sat and waited for Gordon to begin.  After a little bit, Gordon could no longer stand the silence, and he blurted out an observation he had made on his way to meet Freud.  He mentioned that he had seen a little boy on the bus who was very upset at having to sit where a dirty old man had sat previously.  Gordon thought this was likely something he had learned from his mother, a very neat and apparently rather domineering type.  Freud, instead of taking it as a simple observation, took it to be an expression of some deep, unconscious process in Gordon’s mind, and said “And was that little boy you?”

This experience made him realize that psychology sometimes digs too deeply

Organized all human traits into 5 main categories- Allport’s OCEAN

• Openness• Conscientiousness• Extraversion• Agreeableness• Neuroticism Allport designed a personality trait test

called the Big 5. You will take this online quiz tonight. What were your results? What is your opinion of the test?

Tonight you will take Allport’s online OCEAN test.

However, can you brainstorm the following about yourself? • Any cardinal trait(s)?

Remember: Not everyone has a cardinal trait!• What are your central traits? • What are your secondary traits?

Essentially, presenting this is your trait theory assignment! (due Friday)

This paper (described on page 3) is your assessment for this unit.

You will be hearing of many theories of personality and essentially, forming your own theory based on the thoughts of psychologists and your own personal experiences.

Details: 3-4 pages, 3 outside sources and the use of your packet, in-text citations, MLA format bibliography.

You must use turnitin.com by 4/15/10 at midnight. The assignment is due regardless of your attendance on 4/15/10 OR 4/16/10

Morris, Charles G. Psychology: an Introduction. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1996. Print.

In text: (Morris, 1996).

3 additional sources needed!

Use in-text citation and a formal works cited!