Personality

Psychology of Difference: Personality & Intelligence

Meghan Fraley, PhD Skyline College, Summer 2015

Group Check-In and Review

Three Words

  If you had to describe yourself using three words, it would be…

Concept Review

What does it mean to have a personality? Are there different types of people? What are some examples?

The Depths and Potential of the Personality

The Self: Identity & Personality

Self: • All characteristics of a person • Self-understanding, self-esteem, self-

concept

Identity: • The set of behavioral or

personal characteristics by which an individual is recognizable as a member of a group.

Personality: • Enduring personal

characteristics of individuals. • Young children perceive self

as external characteristics. • Older children recognize

difference between inner and outer states.

The Self

Issues with Self-Esteem   Modest correlations link self-esteem and school performance; links vary

between adult job performance and self-esteem

  Self-esteem related to perceived physical appearance across life-span

  Depression lowers high self-esteem

The Self

Persons with high self-esteem:

Increased happiness

Have greater initiative

Prone to both prosocial and antisocial actions

Undeserved high self-esteem:

Narcissism: self-centered, self-concerned

Conceited

Lack of awareness linked to adjustment problems

Self-Esteem Across the Lifespan

Prenatal Development

People Search

What is Identity?

Self-portrait of many identities:

  Vocational/career   Political   Religious   Relationship   Achievement/intellectual

Identity

•  Sexual •  Cultural/ethnic •  Interests •  Personality •  Physical

Models of Identity: Marcia & Erikson

Marcia:   Individuals go through periods of-

  Crisis: exploring alternatives during identity development.

  Commitment: individuals show personal investment in what they are going to do.

_____________________________________________________________

Erickson:

  Identity versus identity confusion:   Adolescents examine who they are, what they are about, and where they

are going in life.

  Psychosocial moratorium:   Gap between childhood security and adult autonomy, part of adolescent

identity exploration.

Identity

Identity

Marcia’s Identity Statuses

Personality: Erikson Erikson’s Stages MISGRIS

Stage Age Strength

M: Many Mistrust/Trust Infancy Hope

S: Steps Shame/Autonomy 1-3 Will

G: Go Guilt/Initative 3-6 Purpose

I: In Industry/Inferiority 7-12 Competence

R: Really Role confusion/Identity

Teens Fidelity

I: Independent

Isolation/Intimacy 18-35 Love

S: Stages Stagnation/Generativity

Midlife: 35-60

Care

D: During Life

Despair/Integrity End of life

Wisdom

Erikson’s Strengths and Pathologies

Definition of Personality?

n  Personality refers to the relatively enduring characteristics that differentiate one person from another and that lead people to act in a consistent and predictable manner, both in different situations and over extended periods of time.

n  Personality is defined as: the enduring or lasting patterns of behavior and thought (across time and situation).

Personality

Four Major Perspectives on Personality

Psychoanalytic - unconscious motivations Trait - specific dimensions of personality Humanistic - inner capacity for growth Social-Cognitive - influence of environment

Approaches to Personality

Trait

Psychodynamic

Humanistic

Social Cognitive

We have Stable Internal Characteristics: Trait Personality Theories

Source of information about personality:

Observation of behavior

Questionnaires

People in therapy.

Cause of behavior, thoughts, and feelings:

Stable internal characteristics;

Genetics

Outlook on humans:

neutral - neither positive nor negative.

Body Types & Personality

Sheldon’s Theory

Crash Course in Personality

Cardinal, Central, & Secondary Traits

n  Allport: Most important personality traits are those that reflect our values.

n  Allport suggested that there are 3 kinds of traits: •  cardinal: a single personality trait that directs most

of a person’s activities (e.g., greed, lust, kindness).

•  central: a set of major characteristics that make up the core of a person’s personality.

•  secondary: less important personality traits that do not affect behavior as much as central and cardinal traits do.

Eysenck: Two Major Trait Dimensions

n  Hans Eysenck: found two (2) major trait dimensions: •  introversion

versus extroversion (quiet versus sociable).

•  Neuroticism versus emotional stability (moody versus calm).

Cattell’s Distinguishes 3 Types of Traits

n  Cattell’s Trait Theory: n  Distinguished 3 types of traits:

n  Dynamic. n  Ability. n  Temperament.

n  Also: n  Surface Traits: Less important to personality. n  Source Traits: More important basic underlying traits.

n  Cattell identified 16 basic traits. •  He developed the 16PF to measure these traits.

The Big Five

Five Factor Model of Traits

Multiple Perspectives on Personality

Psychoanalysis: The Unconscious “the mind is like an iceberg - mostly hidden”

Conscious Awareness small part above surface

(Preconscious)

Unconscious below the surface

(thoughts, feelings, wishes, memories)

Repression Banishing unacceptable thoughts and passions to unconscious: Dreams and Slips

Psychoanalysis: Freud’s Theory of Personality

n  Three levels of consciousness:

n  Conscious mind: things we are focusing on.

n  Preconscious mind: things are are not currently aware of but which we could focus on.

n  Unconscious mind: that which we are unaware of.

Freud’s Theory of Personality: Id, Ego, & Superego

n  The id, the ego, and the superego are continually in conflict with one another.

n  This conflict generates anxiety.

n  If the ego did not effectively handle the resulting anxiety, people would be so overwhelmed with anxiety that they would not be able to carry on with the tasks of everyday living.

n  The ego tries to control anxiety (i.e., to reduce anxiety) through the use of ego defense mechanisms.

The Humanistic Perspective

Maslow’sMaslow’sSelf-ActualizingSelf-Actualizing

PersonPerson

Roger’sRoger’sPerson-CenteredPerson-CenteredPerspectivePerspective

“Healthy” rather than “Sick”Individual as greater than the sum of test scores

Humanistic Personality Theories:

Maslow and Rogers

  Humanistic approach (Third Force):   Rejected Freud’s pessimistic view of personality.   Rejected Behaviorist’s mechanistic view.   More optimistic/positive about human nature.   Humans are free and basically good.   Humans are inner-directed.   Everyone has the potential for healthy growth.   Health growth involves Self actualization:

  “Be all you can be.”   Given the right environmental conditions, we can reach our full potential.

Roger’s Person-Centered PerspectivePeople are basically goodwith actualizing tendencies.

Given the right environmentalconditions, we will develop

to our full potentials

Genuineness, Acceptance, Empathy

Self ConceptSelf Concept: central featureof personality (+ or -)

Humanistic Personality Theories:

Carl Rogers n  Self-concept: our image or perception of ourselves

(Real Self versus Ideal Self).

n  We have a need for positive regard/approval from others. n  Conditions of worth or conditional positive regard.

n  The conditions under which other people will approve of us.

n  We change our behavior to obtain approval. n  What we need is: Unconditional positive regard.

n  Anxiety signifies that we are not being true to our ideal self.

n  Well-adjusted persons: self-concept & experience.

n  Poorly adjusted person: self-concept & experience.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of human motives: one must satisfy lower needs before one

satisfies higher needs.

Humanistic Personality Theories:

Abraham Maslow n  Self-actualization is the culmination of a lifetime of

inner-directed growth and improvement: •  Challenging ourselves to the fullest. •  Can you identify a self-actualized individual? •  Characteristics of the self-actualized person:

n  Creative and open to new experiences. n  Committed to a cause or a higher goal. n  Trusting and caring of others, yet not dependent. n  Have the courage to act on their convictions.

Social-Cognitive-Learning Perspective

Behavior learned through conditioning and observation

What we think about our situation affects our behavior

Interaction of Environment and Intellect

How do we explain…

How do we explain…

How do we explain…

Social-Cognitive Personality Theories: Reciprocal Determination

Social-Cognitive Personality Theories: Outcomes of Personal Control

Learned Helplessness: Uncontrollable

bad events Perceived

lack of control Generalized

helpless behavior

Important Issues: •  Nursing Homes

•  Prisons • Colleges

How do we measure “Personality”?

n  (1) Interview: n  Ask the person about themselves. n  Obtain information that reveals personality.

n  (2) Behavioral Observation: n  Watch the individual’s behavior in an actual or simulated

situation.

n  Personality Tests: n  (3) Objective tests (questionnaire tests). n  (4) Projective tests.

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2)

n  Most widely used personality instrument. n  Used in clinical and employment settings. n  MMPI-2 Has several different scales (multiphasic).

n  MMPI sample items: n  ‘I usually feel that life is worthwhile and

interesting (FALSE) = Depression. n  ‘I seem to hear things that other people can’t

hear’ (TRUE) = Schizophrenia.

n  Measures aspects of personality that, if extreme, suggest a problem: n  Extreme suspiciousness may indicate paranoia.

Rorschach Inkblot Test n  Most popular projective technique.

n  Respond to inkblot: “What could this be?”

Assignments

  Enneagram RHETI Sampler

  What were the top two types and what is more or less like you?

Forum Topic & Discussion

  Attribution Style Questionnaire Discussion

Reflection Activity & Journal

Other Chapter Reading & Review

Read & Review Personality Chapter

Clarify the Who, What, Where, Why, and When of the problem