ch 12 txtbk Flashcards
historical approaches to personality
for the first half of the 20th century, it was dominated by the psychodynamic approaches of Freud and his followers
behaviourists like Skinner, attempted to apply principles of learning to personality
humanistic psychologists like Carl Rogers, actively rebelled against Freud
psychodynamic
theory put fwd by Sigmund Freud in which psychic energy moves among the compartments of the personality (ego, id, superego)
id proposed by Freud
the component of Freud’s personality theory containing primitive drives present at birth
ego
the component of the personality that is readily seen by others, so it acts as the person’s “self”
-coordinates the needs of the id with reality
superego
develops when a child begins to internalize society’s rules for right and wrong, forming what we refer to as a conscience
defence mechanisms
a protective behaviour that reduces anxiety
psychosexual stages
stage in Freud’s theory of the developing personality
5 stages: oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital
neo-Freudian
a theorist who attempted to update and modify Freud’s original theory of personality
Alfred Adler
suggested that an inferiority complex can lead to overcompensation in the form of seeking the appearance of sueriority
unconscious mind
the part of mental activity that cannot be voluntarily retrieved
Skinner’s belief
believed the principles of operant conditioning would lead to the development of stable “response tendencies” that might appear to others as “traits”
humanistic psych
convinced that humans are unique, and they argued that the animal research favored by behaviorists was irrelevant
trait
stable personality characteristic
big five theory
identified 5 core traits;
openness to experience, conscientiousness, surgency (extraversion), agreeableness, and neuroticism
OCEAN acronym
openness to experience
involves fantasy, aesthetics (an appreciation for the arts), feelings, actions, ideas, and values. People high on openness are curious, unconventional, and imaginative. They are interested in exploring aspects of life that are different from their own, whether this means trying new foods, travelling to exotic locations, or studying other religions. People low on openness are more practical, traditional, and conforming. They prefer the familiar over the new, choosing a chain restaurant in a new city rather than experimenting with the local cuisine
conscientiousness
incorporates competence, order, dutifulness, achievement striving, self-discipline, and deliberation
People high on this trait are reliable, work hard, and complete tasks on time. People low on this trait are unreliable, somewhat lazy, and undependable. It is frustrating to work on group projects with people who are low in conscientiousness, but under some circumstances, they make valuable contributions
For example, they might identify unnecessary steps in a process, reducing the time pressure felt by a group, or promote some forms of “outside the box” thinking and problem solving.
extraversion
characterized by warmth, gregariousness, assertiveness, activity, excitement seeking, and positive emotion, although extraverts also tend to be insensitive and overbearing
introversion
characterized by coolness, reserve, passivity, and caution, although introverts also tend to be sensitive and reflective.
agreeableness
includes trust, straightforwardness, altruism, compliance, modesty, and tender mindedness. People low in this trait are cynical, uncooperative, and rude. It is challenging to identify advantages for a trait like disagreeableness
neuroticism
combines anxiety, angry hostility, depression, self-consciousness, impulsivity, and vulnerability. The opposite trait could be described as emotional stability
social-cognitive learning theories
a theory of personality that features cognition and learning, especially from the social environ, as important sources of individual differences in personality
locus of control
If you have an EXTERNAL locus of control (locus means “place” in Latin), you expect that most of your outcomes occur because of chance, luck, opportunity, or other factors beyond your control
However, if you have an INTERNAL locus of control, you believe that most of your outcomes are due to your own talent and effort
-manage stress more efficiently, perform better academically, less sympathetic
reciprocal determinism
features the mutual influence of the person and that of the situation on each other
self-efficacy
the belief that you can handle a challenging situation and obtain future rewards
idiographic approach
qualitative approach to studying personality that emphasizes the uniqueness of each individual
nomothetic approach
quantitative approach to studying personality that focuses on common traits that apply to all people
personality inventories
objective tests, often using numbered scale or multiple choice (big five test)
projective tests
derived directly from projection, one of Freud’s defence mechanisms
self-concept
people’s description of their own characteristics
self-schemas
cognitive organization that helps us think about the self and process self-relevant info
self-esteem
judgement of the value of the self
schizophrenia
produces distortions in a person’s sense of self
