Module 2.2: Personality

Question 1

Define Personality

Answer 1

The characteristic patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviours, that impact how people see themselves, others, and the world around them. It drives how we feel, how we think, what we want, and how we behave.

Question 2

List the 4 Characteristics of Personality

Answer 2

1) Internal – It is an inherent quality within individuals.
2) Different – Each person possesses a distinctive and individualized personality.
3) Stable – While traits may vary in intensity, the core of one’s personality remains relatively stable over time.
4) Consistent –Behaviour tends to exhibit consistency across diverse situations.

Question 3

Define the ‘Id’

Answer 3

An irrational, emotional, impulsive part of the mind, that pushes people to act on their impulses and seek instant gratification.

The id is found in the unconscious

Question 4

Define the ‘Ego’

Answer 4

The rational part of the mind that considers all perspectives, and weighs the pros and cons of a course of action.

The ego has more long-term perspective than the id.

Question 5

Define the ‘Super-Ego’

Answer 5

The moral part of the mind that seeks to follow rules, social norms, and personal value. It pushes people to act in accordance with their values & ideals.

Question 6

Denial

Answer 6

Refusing to acknowledge something.

Question 7

Repression

Answer 7

Pushing something completely out of mind so you don’t have to think about it, until you eventually forget about it.

Question 8

Reaction Formation

Answer 8

Convincing yourself the opposite of what is actually true, to avoid showing your true feelings.

Question 9

Projection

Answer 9

Attributing an unwanted trait or thought to someone else.

Question 10

Regression

Answer 10

A threatening experience sends us back to a simpler time, when we felt happier or calmer.

Freud believed that the mouth area reminds us of when we were very young. The first area that is stimulated when we were children was the mouth area. According to Freud people who smoke use this as a defense mechanism, to self-soothe, go back to their childhood and push their adult responsibilities away.

Question 11

Displacement

Answer 11

Redirecting an unwanted impulse toward something more acceptable. The anger is displaced from one person to another.

Question 12

Rationalization

Answer 12

Coming up with a logical, rational (but false) explanation for a shameful thought or action.

Question 13

Fixation

Answer 13

Failure to progress through each of Freud’s 5, psycho-sexual stages of development (due to frustration or over-gratification) will lead to fixation.

Fixation is a lingering process to pleasure-seeking energies at an early psycho-sexual stage, during which conflicts were unresolved.

Question 14

Oral Stage (Birth to 18 months)

Answer 14

At this age, children are mainly stimulated by the mouth area.
They may experience problems due to forceful weaning or being underfed.

Fixation at the Oral Stage can lead to,

(a) Oral Receptive Character - Adult is overly trusting and very dependent on others

or

(b) Oral Aggressive Character - Adult is overly-dominating, independent and aggressive.

Adults who are fixated at the oral stage will typically use the mouth to self-soothe (biting fingernails, sucking thumb, smoking)

Question 15

Anal Stage (18 months - 3.5 years)

Answer 15

This is the age when toilet training occurs, and the anal area is the main source of stimulation.
Fixation at the anal stage may lead to,

(a) Anal Receptive Personality - Adult is very generous and giving

or

(b) Anal Retentive Personality - Adult is mean, stubborn, and obsessively tidy.

Question 16

Phallic Stage (3.5 years - 6 years)

Answer 16

This is the age where gender identity begins to be developed, the penis becomes the major source of satisfaction.
Fixation at the Phallic stage may lead to,

(a) Overly-Sexual Character (overly flirtatious and provocative character)

or

(b) Under-Sexual Character (overly modest)

Question 17

Latency Stage (7 years - puberty)

Answer 17

During this stage, boys and girls experience relatively few sexual feelings and tend to ignore one another. Freud identified no psychological struggles at this stage. All earlier issues remain hidden in the unconscious.

Question 18

Genital Stage (Puberty onwards)

Answer 18

Children who have avoided problems during the earlier stages of development develop a genital character in adulthood.

Freud believed that people very rarely overcome this struggle, but if they were to, they would develop into a well-adjusted, healthy and mature adult.

Question 19

Self Concept

Answer 19

The self-concept and the self-understanding is the individual’s belief about him/herself.

Question 20

Ideal Self

Answer 20

The self-concept that one would like to achieve. The ideal self is what someone wants to become in his life.

Question 21

Incongruence

Answer 21

The gap between an individual’s self-concept and a person’s actual experience leads to ‘incongruence’.

Question 22

Congruence

Answer 22

A common ground between self-concept and ideal-self. A person has greater self-worth and adopts a more positive frame-of-mind.

Question 23

Self-Actualization

Answer 23

When a person’s perception’s of who they are (self-concept) aligns with who they want to be, they achieve self-actualization. This satisfies their need to reach and express their full potential.

Question 24

Unconditional Positive Regard (UPR)

Answer 24

When a person feels loved, accepted, and listened-to in a non-judgmental way.

UPR means receiving love and support that is unconditional. UPR is very important in order to come closer to becoming self-actualized.

Question 25

3 Characteristics Needed for UPR

Answer 25

(1) Genuineness
(2) Acceptance
(3) Empathy

Question 26

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Answer 26

(1) Physiological/Basic needs
(2) Safety and Security
(3) Love and Belonging
(4) Self-esteem
(5) Self-actualization

Question 27

Raymond Cattell

Answer 27

Used factor analysis to discover 16 separate primary trait factors, within the normal personality sphere.

Question 28

Hans Eysenck

Answer 28

Proposed a casual theory of personality based on biological factors, he explained personality by properties in the brain; he believed we inherited a nervous system that influenced our behaviour.

Question 29

Robert McCrae and Paul Costa

Answer 29

Known for the Big Five Theory (O-C-E-A-N)

Critique: It is mainly descriptive and does not give insight to why these behaviours actually occur.

They believed that personality is a biological trait, but did not exclude the influence of environmental factors.

Question 30

Openness

Answer 30

High scorers tend to seek art, adventures and new experiences.

Low scorers tend to dislike change, and resist new ideas - not very imaginative.

Question 31

Conscientiousness

Answer 31

High scorers tend to finish important tasks right away, pay attention to detail and enjoy having a set schedule.

Low scorers are more likely to dislike structure and schedules, make messes and do not take care of things, and procrastinate tasks.

Question 32

Extraversion

Answer 32

High scorers enjoy being the center of attention, like to start conversations and enjoy meeting new people.

Low scorers prefer solitude, feels exhausted when having to socialize a lot, and find it difficult to start conversations.

Question 33

Agreeableness

Answer 33

High scorers have a great deal of interest in other people, care about others, and feel empathy and concern for other people.

Low scorers take little interest in others, do not care about how other people feel, and have little interest in other people’s problems.

Question 34

Neuroticism

Answer 34

High scorers experience a lot of stress, worry about many different things and get upset easily.

Low scorers are emotionally stable. cope well with stress and rarely feels sad or depressed.

Question 35

Criticism of the Trait Theory

Answer 35

Although traits have proven useful for describing personality, it gives no insight or explanation as to what causes personality. It is criticized for being purely descriptive.