Psychodynamic theory

Conscious and unconscious mental systems: id, ego, and superego

Anxiety and defense mechanisms

Free association and projective tests (e.g., Rorschach test)

Humanistic theory

Self-concept: the actual and ideal self

Self-actualization, conditions of worth

Measures of self-concept (e.g., Q-sort technique)

Trait theory

Stable individual differences in average behavioral tendencies

Trait-based individual differences in reactions to stimuli

Comprehensive self-report questionnaires (e.g., NEO-PI-R)

Social-cognitive theory

Socially acquired cognition (self-referent cognition, skills) and affective systems

Acquiring skills, regulating emotion and behavior

Contextualized measures of cognition and behavior (e.g., self-efficacy measures, if … then … profiles)