Unit Ten:

1. Unit Ten: Personality

2. What is Personality? • Definition • A relatively enduring set of behavioral, emotional and mental characteristics • remains relatively stable over time • makes each of us unique Begin Lec. 1 Guide

3. Enduring Issues in Psychology • Nature vs. Nurture • Is personality genetically encoded or learned?

4. Enduring Issues in Psychology • Unconscious or Conscious? • Do you know why you do what you do?

5. Enduring Issues in Psychology • Fixed vs. Situational • Is personality stable or does it change from situation to situation?

6. Sigmund Freud Background Hot. • Victorian Era • A time of repression • Rigid gender roles - separate spheres for males and females • Clothing restricted movement and covered head to toe • Rumors said people were even scandalized by bare table and piano legs! Queen Victoria of England

7. Sigmund Freud Background • Personal History • Remarriage of his father • Older half-brothers • Young, doting mother • “Golden Sigi” • Favored over his other siblings ABOVE: Freud and his Dad. BELOW: Freud and his Mom

8. Sigmund Freud ThreeMain Beliefs • Childhood experiences determine the adult personality • Unconscious mental processes influence everyday behavior • Conflict causes most human behavior

9. Sigmund Freud 3-Part Theory of Personality Structure DO IT NOW! • Part 1: The Id • Born with this intact • Governed by “Pleasure Principle” • Houses unconscious drives of sex (libido) and aggression • Selfish, irrational, seeks instant gratification

10. Sigmund Freud 3-Part Theory of Personality Structure • Part 2: The Superego • Develops during childhood (6 years) • Governed by “Judicial” or “Moral Principle” • The internalized parent • Seeks to do what is right and good (conscience) • Causes us to feel guilty for our desires/id impulses Behave!

11. Sigmund Freud 3-Part Theory of Personality Structure • Part 3: The Ego • Develops during childhood (6 months) • Governed by “Reality Principle” • Seeks to gratify Id urges at an appropriate time • Inherits inevitable anxiety produced by Id-Superego conflict ?

12. Sigmund Freud Evidence for Existence of the Unconscious • Dream Interpretation • Dreams allow unconscious urges to leak out • Dreams allow unconscious wishes to be fulfilled in a safe way • Dreams are symbolic and may be interpreted

13. Sigmund Freud Evidence for Existence of the Unconscious • “Slip of the tongue” • AKA “Freudian Slip” • Your unconscious thoughts leak out and you say something you did not mean to

14. Sigmund Freud Evidence for Existence of the Unconscious • Free Association • Freudian therapeutic technique • Say whatever comes to mind without censorship • Unconscious comes to the surface

15. Sigmund Freud Evidence for Existence of the Unconscious S’up. • “Tip of the Iceberg” • Freudian saying that implies we are unaware of most of what motivates us • What is conscious is just the “tip of the iceberg” • A LOT more is beneath the surface What we are aware of at any given time. What we can easily retrieve What we are unaware of and is deeply buried

16. Sigmund Freud The Psychosexual Stages • Oral Stage (0-1.5) • Erogenous Zone=Mouth • Libido satisfied by breast feeding • Major conflict: weaning • Failure to resolve the issue leads to an oral fixation • Suck/chew things for security • Smoking, obsessive eating, nail biting, pen chewing, drinking • Sarcasm, aggressiveness

17. Sigmund Freud The Psychosexual Stages • Anal Stage (1.5-3) • Erogenous Zone=Anus • Libido satisfied by defecating • Major conflict: toilet training • Failure to resolve the issue leads to an anal fixation • Anal Retentive - tightly controlled, OCD, fear of dirt, obsessed with punctuality • Anal Expulsive - messy, disorganized, rebellious, overly giving, obsession with bathroom humor I refuse!

18. Sigmund Freud The Psychosexual Stages HA! WT*!! • Phallic Stage (4-6) BOYS • Erogenous Zone=Penis • Libido satisfied by genital stimulation • Oedipus Complex • Boy desires mother, wants to eliminate father • Resolved through castration anxiety, where boy fears father will find out about his plan and cut “it” off • Boy relinquishes desire for mom and befriends dad out of fear Uh-oh AHA!!

19. Sigmund Freud The Psychosexual Stages MUAHAHAHA HAHAHAHA! WHAT!? Take That! • Phallic Stage (4-6) GIRLS • Erogenous Zone=Clitoris • Libido satisfied by genital stimulation • Oedipus Complex • Resolved FAST due to PENIS ENVY • Girl then seeks penis through father during Electra Complex • Girl resolves this by replacing her desire for a penis with her desire for a baby and plays with dolls Nope. You don’t have one.

20. Sigmund Freud The Psychosexual Stages • Phallic Stage (4-6) • Major conflict: relinquishing desire for opposite sex parent • Failure to resolve the issue leads to fixation • Excessive masturbation, overly flirtatious • Excessive modesty, or excessively timid • Overly proud • Promiscuous • Fetishes

21. Sigmund Freud The Psychosexual Stages • Latency (7-11) • Erogenous Zone=NONE • Child goes to school • Sexual feelings repressed • Child develops academic, social and extracurricular skills • Typically plays in same-sex play groups

22. Sigmund Freud The Psychosexual Stages Hi, I’m your dad! • Genital (puberty on) • Erogenous Zone=Penis/Vagina • Libido satisfied through sex • Begins when child hits puberty/sexual maturity • Normal sexual relationships occur at this stage No he’s not.

23. Sigmund Freud The Defense Mechanisms • The inevitable conflict between id and superego produces anxiety. • This anxiety is inherited by the ego, which uses the defense mechanisms to better manage it.

24. Sigmund Freud The Defense Mechanisms • Denial (Negation) • Refusal to acknowledge a painful reality • Repression • Unpleasant thoughts are excluded from consciousness; “motivated forgetting” • Projection • Attributing one’s own feelings, motives, or wishes to others • Identification • Taking on the characteristics of other to avoid feeling incompetent • Regression • Reverting to childlike behavior • Rationalization • Making up a logical explanation for an emotionally painful event rather than dealing with the pain

25. Sigmund Freud The Defense Mechanisms • Intellectualization • Thinking about stressful problems in an abstract way to detach oneself from them • Reaction formation • Expression of exaggerated ideas and emotions that are opposite of true feelings • Displacement • Shift repressed motives from an original object to a substitute object • Sublimation • Redirecting repressed motives and feelings into socially acceptable activities • Undoing • After-the-fact defense mechanism involving “making up” for guilt-producing actions

26. Neo Freudians General Themes • The Neo-Freudians were a group of psychologists who followed Freud’s teachings and were often his best and brightest students. • They eventually had some minor disagreements with Freud about his theory, and developed theories of their own. • Freud had little patience for these dissenters, and quickly kicked them to the curb. Begin Lec. 2 Guide

27. Neo Freudians Alfred Adler • He was the younger, “weaker” son in his family • Inferiority was the key to understanding personality • Inferiority complex • Fixation on feelings of personal inferiority that can lead to emotional and social paralysis • Fictional Finalism • Setting long-term goals that may never be reached, but help you to achieve a sense of satisfaction along the way

28. Neo Freudians Alfred Adler • Birth Order • Oldest • Middle • Youngest • Only • Dethronement • When the next child is born, the older one is forced to share parental attention • Compensation • Our efforts to win back parental love after dethronement

29. Neo Freudians Karen Horney (Horn-EYE!) • One of the first female psychoanalysts to study with Freud. • Got divorced to pursue her career – rare at the time! • Viewed anxiety as a powerful motivating force • Environmental and social factors important seen as being as important as unconscious sexual conflict

30. Neo Freudians Karen Horney • Developed Coping Mechanisms to deal with insecurity • Compliance – moving toward others • Aggression – moving against others • Withdrawal – moving away from others • Neurotic trends • Irrational strategies for coping with emotional problems

31. Neo Freudians Carl Jung • One of Freud’s best students – his “surrogate son” • Freud was said to have fainted in his presence several times! • Believed in the collective unconscious, in addition to the personal unconscious • Collective unconscious was comprised of archetypes • Anima and Animus?

32. Neo Freudians Erik Erikson • Another of Freud’s best students and biggest advocates • Strayed from Freud’s theory due to disagreement with the psychosexual stages • Erikson believed in the psychosocial stages which involved a series of conflicts that lasted throughout the entire lifespan • Trust vs. mistrust • Autonomy vs. shame and doubt • Initiative vs. guilt • Industry vs. inferiority • Identity vs. role confusion • Intimacy vs. isolation • Generativity vs. stagnation • Ego integrity vs. despair

33. Personality Assessment:Psychodynamic Theories • Projective tests • Ambiguous stimuli presented to subject/client • Open-ended – no “correct” answer • Answers are interpreted by therapist for underlying meaning • Preferred by psychodynamic theorists to unleash the unconscious • Examples • Rorschach test • Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

34. Personality Assessment:Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) • Developed by Henry Murray in 1935 • Examiner chooses 10 cards with ambiguous black-and-white drawings of people in various situations • Subjects must tell a story about each card • Results analyzed based on need for achievement, affiliation, and aggression • Heroes, needs, themes and outcomes of the stories provide insight • Relies too much on the examiner’s interpretation – little reliability/validity

35. Personality Assessment:RorschachTest • Developed by Hermann Rorschach in 1921 • 10 inkblots – 5 color, 5 bw • Subjects describe all 10 inkblots • Examiner then goes through cards again and asks questions for clarification/detail • Provides subject with considerable freedom to respond, but lacks reliability and validity.

36. Assessing Psychodynamic Theories of Personality • Strengths • Early experiences shape personality and these should be studied from a developmental perspective • Human emotion and motivation are important in understanding personality • Concept of the unconscious • Therapeutic techniques • Criticisms • Not testable • Data to support this theory comes primarily from case studies based on the memories of clients, which we know can be flawed • Pessimistic outlook on human nature • Sexist/biased against women

37. Humanistic Theories • As you already know, these theories stress the potential for human goodness and the natural desire to achieve personal goals • Unlike psychodynamic theories, humanistic theories • give individuals the power to control their own destiny (self determinism) • Are much more optimistic about human nature • Emphasize immediate subjective experiences that are unique to each of us • Representatives include Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers Begin Lec. 3 Guide

38. Self-actualized people use their ability to their fullest potential accurately perceive reality accept themselves and others have a good sense of humor have frequent peak experiences (insightful, meaningful) Humanistic TheoriesAbraham Maslow’s Theory of Self Actualization

39. Humanistic TheoriesCarl Rogers’ Person-Centered Approach • Behavior is goal-directed and worthwhile • Positive Regard • Conditional – you are only loved when you conform to others’ wishes • Unconditional – you are loved no matter what choices you make • Positive regard impacts personality and happiness • Real self – who we are based on our experiences • Ideal self – who we truly want to be • Should have some overlap – you will if you get unconditional positive regard! • Maladjustment results from discrepancy between real and ideal selves REAL SELF IDEAL SELF REAL SELF IDEAL SELF

40. Humanistic Theories:An Evaluation Strengths Impact of these ideas on understanding happiness and fulfillment Positive self-concept, empathy, optimistic outlook on human nature are things most agree are important in finding happiness Weaknesses Subjective concepts – not scientific Individualism encouraged by humanistic theorists can lead to self-indulgence and selfishness Does not explain real examples of evil in humans

41. Trait and Type Theories • Personality is best explained in terms of descriptive adjectives and categories comprised of related qualities • Earliest of all types of personality theories • Representatives include Hippocrates, Eysenck and Allport

42. Trait and Type TheoriesThe Four Humors • The oldest theory of personality structure dating back to the Classical period (400 BCE) • Personality can be explained by the amounts of the four body fluids you have at a given time • A healthy personality meant a balance of these body fluids (humors)

43. Trait and Type TheoriesThe Four Humors • Image from the Middle Ages depicting the personality types associated with the four humors. • Top Left (A): Melancholic (Black Bile) moody, glum • Top Right (B): Choleric (Yellow Bile) irritable and hot tempered • Bottom Right (C): Phlegmatic (Phlegm) slow and droopy • Bottom Left (D): Sanguine (Red Bile) happy, energetic, passionate A B D C

44. Trait and Type TheoriesHans Eysenck • Eysenck evaluated personality based on 3 major dimensions: • Stable vs. Unstable (Neurotic) • Are you predictable? • Are you sponteneous? • Introverted vs. Extroverted • Are you social and outgoing? • Are you reserved? • Psychoticism • Are you EXTREMELY stable, unstable, introverted or extroverted?

45. Trait and Type TheoriesGordon Allport • Allport perused the dictionary to extract every possible adjective that could be used to describe personality • After finding several thousand words, he decided this task was…overwhelming • He decided to describe personality in terms of three types of traits • Cardinal Traits – DEFINING trait • Central Traits – top 8-10 descriptives • Secondary Traits – situational descriptives

46. Trait and Type TheoriesBig Five • The “Big Five” traits currently thought to be central to describing personality (OCEAN) • Openness • Will you try new things? Do you keep an open mind? Are you intelligent? • Conscientiousness • Are you goal directed and driven? • Extroversion • Are you outgoing? • Agreeableness • Are you a peace-maker or a trouble-maker? • Neuroticism/stability • Are you predictable? Do you enjoy routine?

47. Trait and Type TheoriesBig Five Why not try eating spiders? • Open to new experiences… • NOT open… I’m not eating that! Hmpf!

48. Trait and Type TheoriesBig Five I am working ‘til it’s DONE! • Conscientious… • Undirected… Whatever…

49. Trait and Type TheoriesBig Five I hate people. • Introvert! • Extrovert! Yeeeehaw!

50. Trait and Type TheoriesBig Five Break it up! • Agreeable… • Antagonistic… I am gonna kick your a**!