Personality - Clinton Community College
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Transcript Personality - Clinton Community College
Personality
Introduction
Mystery of Personality?
Brief class assessment of unique personality
Nature of Personality
Consistency Across Situations- Tendency to behave in certain ways
across situations
Distinctiveness- Each individual has his/her own distinctive set of
personality traits
Personality – Individuals unique collection of relatively consistent
behavioral traits.
Basic Personality Traits
Five Factor Model of Personality traits
McCrae and Costa belief most personality traits are derived from just
five higher order traits:
1.) Extraversion
2.) Openness to experience
3.) Conscientiousness
4.) Agreeableness
5.) Neuroticism
1.) Extraversion
How does person behave if high in extraversion?
How does person behave if low in extraversion (or is introverted)?
2.) Openness to experience
What is someone like who is high in openness to experience?
What is someone like who is not open to experience?
3.) Conscientiousness
What is an individual like who is high in this trait?
What is a person low on this trait like?
4.) Agreeableness
What is a person high in agreeableness like?
What is a person like who is low in agreeableness?
5.) Neuroticism
What is an individual like who is high in neuroticism?
What is an individual like who is low in neuroticism?
Class Activity:
Think of a fictional character and analyze him/her/it according
to the big five
Dueling Personality Theories
1.) Psychodynamic
2.) Behavioral
3.) Humanistic
4.) Biological
1.) Psychodynamic
Theory founded by Sigmund Freud
Psychoanalytic theory explains personality by childhood
experiences, unconscious motives, and methods used to
cope with sexual and aggressive urges
Freud outlined 3 major personality components
1.) id
2.)ego
3.) superego
Freudian personality structure conflict
1.) Id – primitive, instinctive part of personality
Operates according to pleasure principle (“wants”)
2.) Ego – decision making component
Operates according to reality principle
Delay id gratification until appropriate outlet found
3) Superego- Moral component that incorporates social standards
of right and wrong
Example of how these conflict and work together
Freudian belief about anxiety
We all have difficulty with anxiety
Freud believed we resort to defense mechanisms to deal with it
Defense mechanism – Largely unconscious reaction that protect a
person from unpleasant emotions like anxiety
Important Defense mechanisms:
Repression
Projection
Displacement
Reaction Formation
Regression
Rationalization
Identification
Defense Mechanisms
Repression – Bury any thoughts and feelings that cause anxiety
Ex
Displacement- Divert emotional feelings from original source to
another
Ex
Reaction Formation – Behave in a way exactly opposite of one’s true
feelings
Ex
Regression – Revert to immature or childish behavior
ex
Defense Mechanisms
Rationalization – Create false but plausible excuse to justify
unacceptable behavior.
Ex
Identification – Increase self-esteem by forming imaginary or real
alliance with some person or group
ex
2.) Behavioral Perspective
Behaviorist review
B.F. Skinner views
Determinism – Personality and Behavior fully determined by
environment
Human responses are shaped by operant conditioning (rewards and
punishment determine personality)
How can reinforcement and punishment shape our personality?
2.) Behavioral Perspective
Albert Bandura- Observational Learning
Observational Learning – Organisms responding is
influenced by observation of others.
ex
3.) Humanistic Perspective
Humanism – Emphasize unique qualities of humans (like our
potential for freedom and personal growth)
Carl Roger’s Person Centered Therapy
Views personality structure in terms of one construct:
The Self (Self-Concept)- collection of beliefs about one’s own nature,
unique qualities and typical behavior.
-Anxiety is result of experiences that don’t fit with our self-concepts
-We thus ignore reality to protect self-concept
Abraham Maslow’s Theory of Self- Actualization
Humans have a hierarchy of needs that must be met to reach full
potential
4.) Biological Theories
Eyesenck Theory – Humans personality largely determined
by genes
Minnesota twin study
Recent research in behavioral genetics providing more
support that personality largely inherited
Personality Assessment
Self-Report Inventories – Personality Tests that ask
individuals to answer a series of questions about their
behavior
Ex.) MMPI
Strengths and Weaknesses
Projective Tests – Ask participants to respond to vague
ambiguous stimuli in ways that may reveal subjects needs,
feelings, and personality traits
Rorschach test