Chapter 11 - Personality Flashcards
What is personality?
the unique characteristics that account for enduring patterns of inner experience and outward behaviour
What did Freud do?
decided that people are influenced by their “unconscious” (based on clinical practice); developed psychoanalysis; was the first to emphasize early childhood experiences
Conscious
thoughts and feelings that we are aware of at any given moment
Preconscious
holds memories or feelings that we aren’t consciously thinking of but can be brought to consciousness
Unconscious
holds memories or feelings that are so unpleasant or anxiety provoking that they are repressed
id (Structure of Personality)
a hedonistic, self-satisfying element that operates entirely by the pleasure principle; seeking immediate gratification for all it desires
Superego (Structure of Personality)
moral part of mind; wants to do what’s right; perfection principle; mostly unconscious
Ego (Structure of Personality)
mediator that tries to satisfy id and superego; operates according to reality principle; if it cannot strike a compromise it results in anxiety
Defense Mechanisms
Unconscious tactics used by ego to protect us from anxiety in knowing our unconscious desires
What did Freud suggest about psychosexual stages?
a child’s personality develops as they pass through stages driven by sexuality and aggression; named for the pleasure producing areas of the body that the id focuses o (erogenous zones; oral, anal, etc); conflicts between forces of the mind are centered around issues associated with the body part
Fixation (Psychosexual Stages)
can get stuck at any stage (unresolved conflict/trauma) resulting in certain personalities
ex. oral fixation when trying to wean
Oral Personality
needy/childlike behavior, demanding to be consoled, may have an oral fixation as an adult
Anal Personality
completely uptight, always wanting control OR the other end: apathy, little self control, hostility
Phallic Personality
sexual obsession OR despise all sex
Latency Personality
no fixations
Genital Personality
sexual dysfunction and unsatisfactory relationships
What were the beliefs of neo-Freudians?
human functioning is shaped by dynamic (interacting) psychological factors (id, ego, superego); defense mechanisms; much of mental life is unconscious; childhood shapes personality; we struggle with inner conflicts; disagreed with Freud’s fixation with sex
Individual Psychology
focus on feelings of control were important; need for power in compensation for feelings of inferiority
What did Alfred Adler do?
coined the term “inferiority complex”; development through social motives and social connections; birth order relating to personality
What did Erik Erikson do?
social relationships at various stages of life have different impacts on our personality; healthy personality develops through demonstrating ones competencies during each stage’s task
What did Carl Jung do?
proposed introversion and extroversion; publicly disagreed with Freud on 1. sexual drive being a primary motivator 2. the unconscious has two parts;
Analytical Psychology
balance opposing forces of conscious and unconscious thought; continuous process
Personal Unconscious
forms individual experiences
Collective Unconscious
Cumulative storehouse of inherited memories shared by humankind; universal version of personal unconscious
What did Karen Horney do?
first woman trained as a Freud psychoanalyst; believed in moving towards health instead of exploring the past
Behavioral/Learning (Approaches to Personality)
personality is shaped by reinforcements and consequences; we learn to respond in specific ways based on response tendencies (B.F. Skinner); personality develops all throughout life
Social-Cognitive Theory (Approaches to Personality)
both learning and cognition affect personality; Albert Bandura agreed that personality development is lifelong (behaviorist) but felt that thinking and reasoning were important too
Reciprocal Determinism (SCT)
3 way interaction between cognitive factors (thoughts/feelings), behavior, and environmental factors (social situations)
Observational Learning (SCT)
Bandura’s key contribution to psychology; through observation we model appropriate behaviors; reinforcers vary across individuals and cultures
Self-Efficacy (SCT)
one’s level of confidence or belief in ability based on social experiences; cognitive in nature; may be situational
Internal (Rotter’s Locus of Control)
outcomes are due to effort and decision (did well on test bc i studied/didnt do well bc i didnt study)
External (Rotter’s Locus of Control)
outcomes are beyond one’s control; belief that luck/fate/other people determine outcome (i didnt do well bc my prof made the test too hard)
Mischel’s Person-Situation Debate
What is the relative importance of personality traits (internal) and situations (external) in determining how we behave?
Humanism
grew out of discontentment with negative/dark views of humanity from Freud; desire to study healthy, normal individuals with healthy, positive aspirations
Carl Rogers believed.. (about humanism)
that people are basically good and strive for self-actualization (unless thwarted by a negative environment)
Client/Person Centered Therapy
client takes the lead; emphasizes unconditional positive regard, empathy, and genuineness
Self-Concept
thoughts and feelings about ourselves (who am i?) broken into ideal self and real self
Congruence vs Incongruence
congruence results in self-worth whereas incongruence can lead to maladjustment
Life-History Theory
how people expend time and energy (bodily growth, relationships, parenting)
Cost Signaling Theory
honest and deceptive signals regarding quality of mate or friend
Amygdala
emotionality; processing negative stimuli (fear/avoidance); inhibited children may have an easily activated amygdala in unfamiliar situations; can also contribute to neuroticism
Prefrontal Cortex
left: positive emotions right: negative emotions
Dopamine
regulates pleasure pathway; central to brain’s reward system; overall related to pleasure and levels of activity/motivation; low dopamine linked to anxiety, inhibition, low energy
Serotonin
low levels linked to violent behavior, impulsivity, depression
Cortisol
stress hormone; secreted by adrenal cortex to help regulate reactions to threatening experiences; children with inhibited temperament have increased cortisol stress reactions to unfamiliar situations
Temperament
genetically based personality differences present at birth; 3 types easy, difficult, slow to warm; environment and maturation interact with genetics
Personality Traits
tendencies to behave in certain ways that remain relatively constant across situations
Gordon Allport suggested…
personality is made up of 3 traits: Cardinal (dominates personality & life), Central (multiple traits make up personality), Secondary (not as obvious)
Raymond Cattell identified..
16 factors/dimensions of personality (16PF); not an absence or presence of a trait but more of a spectrum
Hans Eysenck and Factor Analysis
held the belief that bio had roots in development of personality; strong advocate of statistical measures; used factor analysis to determine which specific traits seemed to cluster together
Extroversion (Eysenck’s 3 Superfactors)
impulsive, sociable, and assertive on one extreme and passive, socially withdrawn, and shy on the other
Neuroticism (Eysenck’s 3 Superfactors)
extent to which person experiences emotions; mental instability on one hand, emotionally stable on the other
Psychoticism
extent to which someone is vulnerable to psychosis
The Five Factor Model
based on more recent empirical studies; proposes five superfactors: agreeableness/disagreeableness, extraversion/introversion, neurotisicm/stability, conscientiousness/irresponsibility, openness/unimaginativeness
Trait theorists make several assumptions..
- people have innate tendencies to respond to situations on certain ways 2. these tendencies can be linked together to form broad habits 3. such principles can be used to form the foundation of a scientifically testable theory
Collectivist Cultures
consider the needs of the group over those of the individual
Individualist Groups
consider the needs of themselves
Cultural-comparative (studying personality in cultural context)
western ideas applied to other cultures for the purpose of generalization
Indigenous (studying personality in cultural context)
reaction to Western European dominance in non WE cultures
Combined (studying personality in cultural context)
hybrid of Western and Indigenous perspectives
Personalities Inventories
questionnaires designed to asses various aspects of personality ; objective in nature; easy to administer and score
