Chapter 107. Comparing Personality Theories

Learning Objectives

collective unconscious
according to Jung, an inherited set of shared memories from the experiences of our ancestors
psychodynamic theory
personality theory that focuses on the conscious and unconscious forces that control present behavior and experiences; based on Freud’s ideas
conscious
In Freud’s theory, the part of an individual’s personality and memory that is currently part of that individual’s awareness
psychosexual stages
according to Freud, the five stages of personality development from infancy to adulthood
ego
according to Freud, the self that we know; mediates between the demands of the id and the moral ideals of the superego
reciprocal determinism
the interaction, or two-directional influences, among an individual’s personality and cognition, the individual’s social environment, and the individual’s behavior
environment
external influences from the physical and social world
self-actualization
the desire for self-fulfillment; to reach one’s full potential as a human being; sometimes treated as Maslow’s highest level of motivation
fixation
according to Freud, being stuck at a particular stage of pyschosexual development
self-concept
the way in which a person thinks about himself/herself and the kind of person she/he is
five-factor model of personality
an important theory of personality based on the "Big Five" factors that emerged from research on personality traits
social-cognitive theory
personality theory that emphasizes the interaction between a person’s individual characteristics and the social environment
humanistic theory
personality theory that recognizes the full richness of each individual human, including the potential for personal growth
superego
according to Freud, the component of the personality that holds our moral values and societal standards; develops during the phallic stage as the child identifies with the same-sex parent and takes on that parent’s values
id
according to Freud, an unconscious component of the personality; present from birth, it is the repository of the sexual and aggressive urges that help humans survive
theory
an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes and predicts observations
interaction
the combined result of influences from two or more factors; typically, the presence of one factor changes the impact of the other factor
trait
characteristic of a person’s behavior across situations; used to describe personality
libido
according to Freud, the “life force” or “psychic energy” that drives human behavior
trait theory
personality theory that emphasizes enduring characteristics of a person’s behavior, thoughts, and emotions across situations
personality
the enduring characteristics of an individual that distinguish him/her from other people
unconscious
in Freud’s theory, the part of our personality and memory that is not available to our ordinary conscious awareness
psychoanalytic theory
personality theory that emphasizes unconscious conflicts stemming from childhood sexuality; proposed by Freud
Comparing Personality Theories
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Learning Objectives:

Contrast the psychoanalytic, psychodynamic, humanistic, trait, and social-cognitive theories of personality.

Identify the theorists associated with each of the major theories of personality.

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1. Your personality is the characteristic way that you think, act, and react to your environment. Your personality makes you who you are; it distinguishes you from other people.

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2. Dozens of theories have been proposed to help psychologists understand and explain personality. Four main perspectives have been especially influential in mainstream psychology: psychodynamic theory (which also includes psychoanalytic theory), humanistic theory, trait theory and social-cognitive theory.

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3. Psychoanalytic theory is based on the ideas of Sigmund Freud. Freud argued that the adult personality has three components: the id operates in the unconscious and attempts to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives. The superego is the voice of our conscience, judging our actions and producing feelings of pride or guilt. Between the id and the superego is the ego, the largely conscious, reality-oriented executive part of the personality. The ego attempts to reconcile the impulses of the id with the demands of the superego and those of the external world.

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4. Freud claimed that personality develops through a series of five psychosexual stages as the child moves from infancy to adolescence: the oral stage, anal stage, phallic stage, latency stage, and genital stage. At each stage, the libido, or "life force," is channeled into a different region of the body. If the id doesn’t get enough gratification at a particular stage, the libido could become fixated at that stage and produce maladaptive behavior in adulthood. For example, an oral fixation could lead an adult to chew her fingernails.

Oral stage: 0 to 18 months

The page includes five scenes representing the age groups in Freud's stages of psychosexual development.  0to 18 months has a baby with a toy in her mouth

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Anal stage: 18 to 36 months

18 to 36 months has a toddler girl sitting on the floor.

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Phallic stage: 3 to 6 years

3 to 6 years has a young girl being carried and hugged by her father

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Latency stage: 6 years to puberty

6 years to puberty has an older girl petting a dog.

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Genital stage: From puberty on

From puberty on has a teenage girl with her arm around the shoulders of a teenage boy.

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5. The other psychodynamic theorists who followed Freud, including Carl Jung, Karen Horney, and Alfred Adler, maintained many of the basic ideas of psychoanalytic theory. However, they shifted the emphasis away from childhood sexuality to the child’s entire social world, and also recognized that the unconscious mind interacts with and is influenced by the person’s conscious awareness and intentions. Horney challenged Freud’s male-dominated perspective of personality. Adler proposed the idea that an inferiority complex based on childhood insecurities can influence adult behavior. Jung claimed that humanity’s shared dream images (such as a threatening shadow) flow from a collective unconscious, shaped by the experiences of early humans.

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6. Humanistic theory derives from the work by of Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers. In contrast to Freud’s claim that personality is based on unconscious conflicts stemming from childhood, the humanistic approach focuses on a person’s conscious experience of the self (the self-concept) and the natural progression toward achieving one’s full potential (called self-actualization). In an environment where one’s basic needs are met, personality growth (becoming a "whole person" who is "fully human") requires self-awareness, self-acceptance, and taking responsibility for one’s own actions and feelings.

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7. Trait theory focuses on the enduring behavioral characteristics called personality traits. After decades of research, including work by Gordon Allport, Hans Eysenck, Paul Costa, and Robert McRae, five clusters of traits, or "factors," emerged as most important: extraversion, agreeableness, openness, neuroticism, and conscientiousness. These "big five" factors form the basis of the five-factor model of personality. Each of the five factors is considered a continuum from low to high, and a person’s position on each of the factors provides a comprehensive picture of that person’s personality.

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8. Social-cognitive theory, as championed by Albert Bandura, emphasizes the interaction between the person and the situation. The principle of reciprocal determinism proposes that our personal tendencies and ways of thinking interact with our social environment to produce our behavior—but then our behavior changes our environment and shapes our future tendencies. From this perspective, our "enduring" personality characteristics are always a bit flexible, and could evolve as our situation changes.

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Practice: Exploring Personality Theories

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Practice: Exploring Personality Theories

Roll over each personality theory to see a brief description of that theory.

Psychoanalytic theory

Psychodynamic theory

Humanistic theory

Trait theory

Social-cognitive theory

Key aspects:

personality theory that emphasizes unconscious conflicts stemming from childhood sexuality and relationships with parents; proposed by Sigmund Freud

personality theory that builds on Freud’s ideas and focuses on the conscious and unconscious forces that control behavior; proposed by Carl Jung, Karen Horney, and Alfred Adler

personality theory that emphasizes the full richness of each individual human, including the potential for personal growth; proposed by Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers

personality theory that emphasizes enduring characteristics of a person’s behavior, thoughts, and emotions across situations; proposed by Gordon Allport, Hans Eysenck, Paul Costa, and Robert McRae

personality theory that emphasizes the interaction between a person’s individual characteristics and the social environment; proposed by Albert Bandura

Quiz 1

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Quiz 1

Match the personality theories to their descriptions by dragging each colored circle to the appropriate gray circle. When all the circles have been placed, select the CHECK ANSWER button.

Select the NEXT button and move to Quiz 2.
Perhaps you should go back to review the theories of personality.
Trait theory
Psychoanalytic theory
Social-cognitive theory
Humanistic theory
Psychodynamic theory
focuses on unconscious conflicts stemming from childhood sexuality and relationships with parents
emphasizes the conscious and unconscious forces that control behavior
emphasizes the full richness of each individual human, including the potential for personal growth
emphasizes enduring characteristics of a person’s behavior, thoughts, and emotions across situations
emphasizes the interaction between a person’s individual characteristics and the social environment

Quiz 2

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Quiz 2

Match the personality theories with the names of prominent theorists by dragging each theory name to the gray area near the appropriate name or names. When all the theories have been placed, select the CHECK ANSWER button.

Select the NEXT button and move to the Conclusion.
Perhaps you should go back to review the names of the psychologists who helped establish each of the theories of personality.
Psychoanalytic theory
Psychodynamic theory
Humanistic theory
Trait theory
Social-cognitive theory

Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers

Carl Jung, Karen Horney, and Alfred Adler

Albert Bandura

Sigmund Freud

Gordon Allport, Hans Eysenck, Paul Costa, and Robert McRae

Conclusion

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