Personality (5-7%) Flashcards
Personality
a unique pattern of consistent thoughts, behaviors that originate within the individual
Nomothetic Method
describe people’s personalities (group level) (nature)
Idiographic Method
few traits that best characterize that unique individual (nurture)
Biological Personality Theory
biological psychologists have linked personality to fluids in the body
Temperament
first personality; when you are a baby
Psychoanalytic Theory
personality was set in early childhood
Conscious
includes everything of which we are aware of at a particular moment
Preconscious
contains thoughts, memories, feelings, and images that we can recall easily (STM)
Unconscious
wishes, impulses, memories, and feelings that you are unaware of, repressed trauma/memories
-glimpses into slips of the tongue, dreams, projection
Id
devil, demands immediate gratification (nature)
-pleasure principle
Ego
you, mediator, decision maker, prevents discharge of tension
-reality prnciple
Superego
composed of conscience (guilt for doing bad things) and ego ideal (proud of yourself for good things)
Defense Mechanisms
deny, falsify, distort reality
-when ego is overwhelmed by threats, becomes flooded by anxiety and takes extreme measures to relieve pressure
Repression
pushing away thoughts/feelings/memories into unconscious mind (trauma/inside out dungeon)
Regression
immature behavior (regress to earlier development)
Rationalization
excuses, socially inappropriate behavior -> make behavior seem more normal
Displacement
shifting emotion from a more threatening person to a less threatening person/object (punting your dog out the window when you are mad at your mom)
Denial
refusing to believe reality despite overwhelming evidence
Projection
projecting your insecurities onto others (hypocrite)
Reaction Formation
saying you feel really strongly about something when its really the opposite (dealing with internal conflict)
Sublimation (substitute)
displacing negative emotions into something productive (really angry -> running)
Psychosexual Development Theory
“pleasure center” moves to a different area of sensitivity and unconscious conflict occurs
-believed sexual conflicts (pleasure obtained from the world) hidden from awareness caused most problems
Libido
life energy (specific to pleasure center)
Oral Stage
infant - explore world by sucking, biting, chewing
Anal Stage
1-3 toddler - potty training forcing/depriving
Phallic Stage
3-5 - stimulation of genitals becomes source of pleasure
-Oedipus Complex: girls have a sexual desire for fathers, boys have a sexual desire for mothers
Latency Period
6-12 - cooties stage, sexual energy -> finding friends
Genital Stage
puberty on - sexual attractions, dating, intimate relationships, stimulation obtained from others instead of own body
Criticism to Freud
-little to no empirical evidence
-exaggerating early childhood/sex
-he thought men were superior to women
Carl Jung - Psychodynamic
-agreed with early childhood but rejected Freud’s sex theory
-believed personality is shaped by cumulative experiences from past
Psyche
personality - 3 systems
-ego, personal unconscious, collective unconscious
Ego - Psychodynamic
conscious mind, feelings, how you see yourself, finding your identity
Personal Unconscious
unconscious mind (complexes)
Collective Unconscious
very powerful/influential, ancestors memories passed down through DNA
Archetypes
in collective unconscious, inherited memories
Individuation
psychological process by which a person becomes an individual, a unified whole (balance/acceptance) (yin yang)
Alfred Adler
believed people are motivated by fear of failure (inferiority complex)
Oldest Child
responsible, protective, power-hungry
Middle Child
ambitious, well adjusted
Youngest Child
spoiled and weak
Humanistic Theory of Personality
determinism id the belief that what happens is dictated by what has happened in the past
-humanists don’t believe in determinism they believe in free will
-needs met: problem centered rather than self centered approach to life
Abraham Maslow + Carl Rogers
self actualization: best version of yourself, life’s goal (fully functioning)
-demands of society make you get off track
Rogers Self Theory
self: an organized consistent set of beliefs and perceptions about yourself because of experiences
-further apart ideal and real self are, the more problems you have
Real Self
how we really are
Ideal Self
what we think society wants us to be
Self Actualization (fully functioning)
real and ideal self have combined
Self Concept
overall view of our abilities, behavior, and personality (what we know about ourselves)
-if we are well adjested we can adapt by modifying our self concept
Self Esteem
part of self concept - how you evaluate yourself
Unconditional Positive Regard
love and accept people around you unconditionally
Behavioral Theory of Personality
Skinner believed behavior is personality, environment and experienced reinforcement shape who we become
-you change someones environment you change their personality
Personal Construct Theory
George Kelly - bipolar categories help us categorize and interpret the world
-happy/mad, energetic/lazy, selfish/generous
-pattern of personal constructs determines out personality
People who use too few categories
stereotype
People who use too many categories
have difficulty predicting behavior
Albert Bandura
reciprocal determinism: characteristics of the person, the persons behavior, and the environment
-change one and the others get changed too
Person
your personality, how you think, how in control of emotions are you
Persons Behavior
nature, frequency, and intensity of actions
Environment
stimuli from social or physical environment and reinforcement
Self Efficacy
belief that we can preform behaviors that are necessary to accomplish tasks; perssitent, confident
-affects risk-taking and trying new things
-can be high in one area and low in another
Collective Efficacy
group based, group will achieve desired outcome
Collectivism
primary identification of an individual as a member of a group, goals of a group as one’s own goals
High Self Efficacy
North America, Western Europe
High Collective Efficacy
Asian Societies
Julian Rotter
locus of control: our life is a result of our own behavior or personal characteristics or function of luck and fate (control over your own life)
Internal Locus of Control
you are in control, hardwork is rewarded
External Locus of Control
everything is based on fate, luck, others
The Big Five - Extraversion
outgoing/energetic, group seeking vs. solitary, reserved, alone
The Big Five - Agreeableness
how trustworthy are you of others (suspicious and detached or friendly and compassionate)
The Big Five - Conscientiousness
efficient, organized, in control vs. easy going, crazy, flexible
The Big Five - Neuroticism
emotional stability (anxiety, depression, self consciousness vs. secure, confident, stable
The Big Five - Openness to Experience
risk taking and curious/adventurous vs. cautious
Behavioral Signatures
consistent ways of responding in similar situations
Trait
relatively permanent characteristic of our personality that can be used to predict our behavior
Gordon Allport
proposed 3 levels of traits
-Cardinal Trait: personality trait that dominates your personality
-Central Trait: general characteristic, average person has 5-10
-Secondary Trait: only happens in certain situations (phobias)
Hans Eysenck
factor analysis: tried to classify traits with actions (criminals)
Neuroticism
stability, in control of emotions, calm level headed vs. hot headed
Psychoticism
how insensitive or empathetic you are (empathy vs apathy)
Assessment
techniques: how you collect data, interviews, observations
Structured Interview
series of planned questions ask a bunch of people the same questions (verbal and non verbal)
Unstructured Interview
pretty much a conversation, guided by the answerer
Direct Observation
creeping
Behavioral Assessment
frequency of specific behaviors
Projection
defense mechanisms used to cope with difficult feelings or emotions
Projective Personality Test
present inkblots/pictures, reveal unconscious mind (psychoanalytic)
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
believe you will an internal psychological state onto an external; peoples stories would reveal themselves (sex, power, achievement)
Self Report Method
fill out a questionnaire, most common assessment
MMPI-2
most widely used self report instrument
-567 true/false questions that reveal things about your personality
Barnum Effect
how gullible we are when taking personality tests, behaviorists would reject ALL personality tests; you need to watch and observe their behavior
