This document discusses theories of personality development, including psychoanalytic theory and psychosocial theory. It provides an overview of Freud's psychoanalytic theory, including the id, ego, superego, and psychosexual stages of development. It also summarizes Erik Erikson's psychosocial theory and the eight stages of development from infancy to adulthood. Key factors influencing personality like heredity, physiology, psychology, and social factors are also defined.

1. PSYCHOLOGICAL / PERSONALITY
DEVELOPMENT & THEORETICAL
PERSPECTIVES
prepared by : RN Aljina Rawat

2. Personality
• It is derived from the Latin word " persona" which means "
mask" used by the actors to change their appearance.
• It is the combination of an individual thoughts, characteristics,
behaviors, attitude, idea and habits.
• Personality is the total sum of all the behavioural & mental
characteristics by means of which an individual is recognized
as being unique.
• It also refers to the habits, attitudes as well as physical traits of
a person which are not same but have vary from group to
group & society to society.

3. • Personality is the most characteristics integration of an
individual structure , modes of behaviour , interests, attitudes
& abilities , especially from the point of adjustment in social
situation.
( MUNN)
• Personality is the impression an individual makes on others. It
refers to his/her social skills, charismatic qualities & the like.
( Hall, Calvin & gardener, 1985)

4. • Personality is a patterned body of habits, traits, attitudes &
ideas of an individual as these are organized externally into
roles & statuses, and as they relate internally to motivation,
goals & various aspects of selfhood.
( K. young )
• Personality is the sum of activities that can be discovered by
actual observations over a long enough period of times to give
reliable information.
( Watson )

5. • Personality is the dynamic organization within the individual
of the psychosocial system that determines the unique
adjustment to environment.
( G. W All port )
• Personality refers to deeply ingrained patterns of behaviour,
which include the way one relates to, receives & thinks about
the environment & oneself.
( American psychiatric Association ,1987)

6. Characteristics of personality
• It is something which is unique in each individual.
• Personality is greatly influenced by social interactions.
• Personality represents a dynamic orientation of an organism to
the environment.
• Personality does not just influence how we move & respond in
our environment , it also causes us to act in certain ways.
• Personality can also be seen in our thoughts , feelings, close
relationships & other social interactions.

7. Types of personality
• Extrovert personality : These type of individuals has the
tendency to live mostly outside & are highly socialized & have
contact with outside people in the society.
• Introvert personality : These type of individuals always live
alone in their rooms & have their own imaginary world. For
example : scientists, thinkers & philosophers.
• Ambivert personality : These type of individuals enjoy both
groups & attend them. They have middle mind & want to live
in both parties.

8. Factors affecting personality
1. Heredity :
• Heredity refers to those factors that are determined to
conception.
• Heredity is another factor determining human personality.
• Physical structure, facial attractiveness, gender, temperament
, muscle composition & reflexes, energy level & biological
rhythms are characteristics that are generally considered to be
either completely or substantially influenced by the parents.

9. • It has been established through research that those
psychological characteristics can be transmitted through
hereditary through it has not proven.
• Person tends to resemble his parents in physical appearance &
intelligence.
• Heredity does not mould human personality alone & unaided
there are other factors too which determine the individual's
personality , but there are some traits which seem to be more
directly affected by heredity than others.

10. • Manual skills , intelligence & sensory discriminates are some
of the abilities which appear more highly developed in some
family lines than others.
• But other traits such as one's beliefs , loyalties , prejudices &
manners are for the most part, the result of training &
experience.

11. 2. Physiological factors:
• Physiological factors refers to all the physical & chemical
processes that take place in organism in order for them to
perform all the functions & activities associated with living.
• Physiological factors like gender, hormone level, functioning
of endocrine glands like thyroid, parathyroid, pituitary gland,
adrenal gland, gonads e.t.c. will affect personality of a
person. This determines how an individual behaves in certain
situations.

12. • Individual's physiology is controlled by central nervous
system which includes brain & spinal cord which has
important role in determining behaviour of a person.
• Brain & spinal cord play an important role in person's reaction
& adjustment to a situation.
• Thus, growth & functioning of nervous system affects
personality of a person.

13. • For example : when individual's body's chemistry is off due to
unbalanced nutrition, dehydration, alcohol e.t.c the
neurotransmitters that control thinking process can be affected.
• Physiological factors also include changes to the brain's
structure due to injuries, extended periods of inactivity or
physical stress.

14. 3. Psychological factors :
• Psychological factors refers to the thoughts , feelings & other
cognitive characteristics that affect the attitude , behaviour &
functions of the human mind.
• These factors can influence how a person thinks & later affect
the decisions & a relation in daily life.
• This specific style which is different foe each individual
actually gets determined through the accumulative
characteristics of mental trends, emotions, sentiments, thought
patterns & complexes.

15. • Some of the psychological factors like : motives, acquired
interests ,attitudes, character, intellectual capacities, mental
conflicts, wishes & aspirations , feelings of repression ,
sublimation & emotional well- being.
• Beyond the influence of these factors, the relative contribution
of each factor to personality varies with character or
personality process involved & with the individual concerned.

16. 4. Social factors :
• The things that occur around a person on a regular basis
determines how that person will behave & perceive
themselves.
• A person's social factor includes co-ordination, co-operation ,
family relationships, organizational relationships, workplaces
relationships, involvement in communities e.t.c.
• Parents & other family members have a strong influence on
the personality development of the child.

17. • Parents have more effect on personality development as
compared to other members of the family.
• Friends, neighbor, relatives, traditional practices , norms,
customs, rules & regulations, values are also highly influential
determinants of personality as these factors are the elements of
society.
• Many other social factors like environment, group life, family,
media which an individual interact in his/her society daily life
mold their personalities.

18. PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT
THEORIES
1. Psychoanalytic theory by Sigmund Freud :
• Sigmund Freud ( 1856 to 1939) was the founding father of
psychoanalysis, a method for treating mental illness and also
theory which explains human behaviour.
• Freud explored on the structure of the mind, & developed a
therapeutic framework that intends to understand & treat
disturbing mental issues.
• Freud thought of personality as being based upon a structure
of three parts like : Id, ego, superego.

19. 1. The Id :
• It is present since birth.
• It functions on pleasure principle & demands immediate
fulfillment of needs & wants.
• It does not consider the environment , the needs of other or
reality but demands immediate complete self satisfaction.
• Id is very important during early years of life as it ensures
that an infant's needs are immediately met or he/she would
cry until the demands are met.

20. • Id is completely selfish, concerned with immediate
gratification & composed of biological instincts.
• When the Id achieves its demands, we experience pleasure
when it is deprived of we experience unpleasure or tension.
• For example : one start eating before the formal program
starts.

21. 2. Ego :
• Ego functions on reality principle which deals with reality.
• It begins to develop between ages 4 to 6 months.
• Sometimes ego has a hard time resolving the conflict & has to
build defenses. They are called defense mechanism.
• Ego waits for the right moment for the satisfaction of a desire.
• Ego weights costs & benefits before deciding on an action.
• Ego acts as a mediator or balancer between demands of id &
wishes of superego.

22. 3. Superego :
• It is based on perfection principle or moral principle.
• It develops between ages of 3 to 6 years.
• Superego is the moral part of personality & is a product of
socialization.
• It is the sense of right & wrong.
• It is developed through cultural environment & learning from
social contacts such as parents, family, teachers & authority
members.

23. • It includes rules & standards for good/ standard behaviour
which is approved by parents & other authoritative figures of
society .
• For example : If a student have a strong presence of superego
in his/her personality , he/she would decide to study for the
next day's exam & abandon sleep or movie.

24. Stages of psychoanalytic theory
a. Oral phage ( birth to about 18 months ) :
• The infant's primary source of interaction occurs through the
mouth. So the child drives pleasure through mouth by
sucking , biting & swallowing e.t.c.
• Child also develops a sense of trust & comfort because child
is entirely dependent upon caretakers, mothers.
• Infants derives pleasure from oral stimulation through tasting
& sucking.

25. • Primary conflict at this stage is weaning process- the child
must become less dependent upon caretakers.
• If fixation ( addiction) occurs at this stage, the individual
would have issues with dependency or aggression.
• Oral fixation can result in problems with drinking, eating ,
smoking or nail- biting.

26. b. Anal phage (18 months to 3 years) :
• During this stage, the primary focus was on controlling
bladder & bowel movements.
• Major conflict at this stage is toilet training- the child has to
learn to control their bodily needs.
• Anus is associated with pleasure.
• If parents are too strict or begin toilet training too early, anal-
retentive personality develops in which the individual is
rigid, obsessive in his/her adulthood.

27. • According to Freud , inappropriate parental responses can
result in negative outcomes.
• Positive experiences during the toilet training stage serve
individual to become competent, productive & creative adults.

28. c. The phallic stage( 3 to 6 years ) :
• During the phallic stage, the primary focus is on the genitals.
• Child begins to discover the differences between males &
females.
• At this stage, children frequently plays with their genitals in
order to explore them.
• In this stage, a boy is more attracted towards his mother &
daughter is attracted towards his father & both dislike the
same sex partner.

29. • Oedipus complex & Electra complex can occur.
• Oedipus complex : It describes boy's sense of competition with
his father for the affection of his mother.
• Electra complex :It describes girl's sense of competition with
her mother for affection of her father.

30. d. The latency stage( 6 years to puberty) :
• This stage begins around the time that children enter into
school & become more concerned with peer relationships,
hobbies & other interests.
• Sexual energy is repressed or hidden.
• This stage is important in development of social &
communication skills & self- confidence.

31. • Develops social skills, values & relationships with peers &
adults outside of the family.
• Children become fixated in this stage which can result in
immaturity and an inability to form fulfilling relationships as
an adult.

32. e. The genital stage ( Puberty to 20 years ) :
• In this stage, individual develops a strong sexual interest in
the opposite sex.
• This stage begins during puberty but last through out the rest
of a person's life.
• This phase represents the reappearance of sex drive in
adolescence & more specific focusing of pleasure in sexual
intercourse.
• If other stages have been completed successfully, individual
will be well-balanced, warm & caring.

33. 2. Psychosocial theory by Erik Erikson :
• Erik Erikson (1902-1994) was a German American
developmental psychologist & psychoanalyst known for his
theory on psychological development of human beings.
• Erikson's psychosocial theory explores that personality
develops in pre determined order through eight stages of
psychosocial development, from infancy to adulthood.
• According to the theory, successful completion of each stage
results in a healthy personality & failure to complete further
stages can result in unhealthy personality & reduce sense of
self.

34. Stages of psychosocial theory
a. Infancy ( trust vs. mistrust ):
• This stage begins at birth & continues to 18 months of age.
• During this stage, the infant is not certain about the world in
which they live, & looks towards their primary care giver for
stability & consistency of care.
• If the care provider gives constant , predictable & reliable
care, infant will develop a sense of trust which will carry
with them to other relationships.

35. • If the care is inconsistent , unpredictable & unreliable , then
the infant may develop a sense of mistrust, suspicion &
anxiety.
• By developing a sense of trust infant can have hope that as
new crisis arise, there is a real possibility that other people
will be there as a source of support.
• Failing to acquire trust will lead to the development of fear &
mistrust which may result in anxiety, heightened insecurities &
an over feeling of mistrust in the world around them.
• Success in this stage will lead to the virtue of hope.

36. b. Toddler ( Autonomy vs. shame & doubt ) :
• This stage occurs between the age of 18 months to 3 years.
• At this stage children focused on developing a sense of
personal control over physical skills & a sense of
independence.
• If children are encouraged & supported they increased
independence, become more confident & secure in their own
ability to survive in the world.

37. • If children are criticized , overly controlled , or not given
opportunity to assert themselves , they became dependent upon
others, lack self- esteem, begin to feel inadequate in their
ability to survive & feel sense of shame or doubt in their
abilities.
• In this stage, child develop physically & become more
independent & discovers many skills & ability. Such skills
demonstrate the child's growing sense of independence &
autonomy.

38. • So, the parents need to encourage the child to become more
independent.
• Success in this stage will lead to the virtue of will.

39. c. Preschool age ( Initiative vs. guilt ) :
• This stage occurs between the age of 3- 5 years.
• In this stage, primary feature involves child regularly
interacting with other children at school , focused on play, as
it provides opportunity to explore their interpersonal skills
through initiating activities, directing play & other social
interaction.
• Children begin to plan activities , make up games & initiate
activities with others.

40. • If this opportunity is given , children develop a sense of
initiative & feel secure in their ability to lead others & make
decisions.
• If this tendency is stopped through criticism or control ,
children develop a sense of guilt.
• At this stage, the child will begin to ask many questions as
child eagerness to get knowledge grows.

41. • If parents treat the child's question as insignificant, a nuisance
or embarrassing then the child may have feeling of guilt for
"being a nuisance"
• Too much guilt can make child slow to interact with others &
may inhibit their creativity.

42. d. School age ( Industry vs. inferiority) :
• It occurs between the age of 5-12 years.
• In this stage children will start to learn, to read & write , to
do sums, to do thing on their own.
• Teachers begin to take an important role in the child's life as
they teach the child specific skills.
• At this stage, child's peer groups helps to develop own self –
esteem.

43. • The child now want to win approval from the society & begin
to develop a sense of pride in their accomplishment.
• If children are encouraged & reinforced for their initiative,
they begin to feel competent & confidence in their ability to
achieve goals.
• If this initiative is not encouraged, restricted by parents or
teacher, then the child begins to feel inferior, doubt his own
abilities & may not reach his/her potential.

44. e. Adolescence ( Identity vs. Role confusion) :
• This stage occurs between the age of 12- 18 years.
• During this stage, adolescents search for a sense of self &
personal identity through an intense exploration of personal
values, beliefs & goals.
• This is major stage of development where child has to learn
roles that is to be adopted as an adult.
• Individual wants to belong to a society & fit in & become
more independent & begin to look at the future in terms of
career , relationships, family , housing e.t.c.

45. • Adolescents may feel uncomfortable about their body for a
while until they can adapt & grow into the changes.
• During this period, they explore possibilities & begin to form
their own identity based upon the outcome of their
explorations.
• Failure to establish a sense of identity within society can lead
to role confusion.
• In response to role confusion or identity crisis, an adolescent
may begin to experiment with different lifestyles.

46. f. Early adulthood ( Intimacy vs. isolation) :
• This stage occurs between the age of 18 to 40 years.
• In this stage major conflicts centers are on forming intimate ,
loving relationships with other people.
• An individual begin to share oneself more intimately with
others.
• People explore relationships leading toward long term
commitments with someone rather than family members.

47. • Successful completion of this stage can result in happy
relationships, & a sense of commitment, safety & care within a
relationship.
• Avoiding intimacy , fearing commitments & relationships can
lead to isolation, loneliness & sometimes depression.

48. g. Middle adulthood ( Generativity vs. stagnation) :
• This stage occurs between the age of 40 to 65 years.
• Generativity refers to " making your mark " on the world
through creating or developing thing that will last longer than
an individual .
• An individual give back to society through raising children,
being productive at work , & becoming involved in
community activities & organizations.

49. • Through Generativity an individual develop a sense of being a
part of the bigger picture.
• If an individual fails to contribute the person become stagnant
& feel unproductive & also may feel disconnected &
uninvolved with their community & with society as a whole.
• Success leads to feelings of usefulness & accomplishment.

50. h. Late adulthood/ old age ( Ego integrity vs. despair ) :
• Final stage of psychosocial development begins at 65 & ends
at death.
• During this time person consider own accomplishments &
can develop integrity if a person see oneself as leading a
successful life.
• When the individual become senior citizens they tend to slow
down own productivity & explore life as a retired person.

51. • If we see our lives as unproductive , feel guilt about our past or
feel that we did not accomplish our life goals , we become
dissatisfied & develop despair , leading to depression &
hopelessness.
• Thus, wise people are not characterized by continuous state of
ego, integrity but they experience both ego integrity & despair.
Thus , late life is characterized by both integrity & despair as
alternating states that need to be balance.

52. 3. Cognitive theory by jean piaget :
• Jean piaget ( 1896-1990) was born in Switzerland , &
developed cognitive development theory.
• He states that children sort the knowledge they acquire through
their experiences & interactions into groupings known as
schemas.
• Piaget supported for the idea that children think differently
than adults.
• According to piaget , children are born with very basic mental
structure on which all subsequent learning & knowledge are
based.

53. • Jean piaget states that , there are three basic components of
cognitive development :
a. Schemas :
 Schemas are an organized , repeatable action sequence
possessing component actions that are tightly interconnected
& governed by a core meaning.
 This means that we store these mental representatives &
apply them when needed.

54. b. Adaptation :
 Adaptation is the tendency to adjust to the environment.
 It is the process by which humans match the original
experience & the new experience and this may not fit
together.
 According to piaget there are three processes in cognitive
development. They are :

55. i. Assimilation :
 It is the cognitive process of making new information fit
with the existing understanding of the world.
 In early childhood , children are constantly assimilating new
information & experience into their existing knowledge
about the world.
ii. Accommodation :
 If new experiences cause the person to alter or completely
change their existing beliefs then it is known as
accommodation.

56. iii. Equilibrium :
 According to piaget, in the process of learning ,children
learn to strike a balance between the use of assimilation &
accommodation.
 This process, known as equilibration, allows children to find
a balance between applying their existing knowledge &
adapting their behaviour to new information.

57. c. Stages of development :
• Jean piaget's theory of cognitive development states that
children move through four different stages of intellectual
development which reflect the increasing difficulty of
children's thought.
• His theory focuses on understanding how children acquire
knowledge regarding fundamental concepts such as object,
number, categorization, quantity , justice e.t.c.
• Piaget's four stages of cognitive development include:

58. a. Sensory-motor stage ( Birth to 2 year)
• During this stage of cognitive development, infants & toddlers
acquire knowledge through sensory experiences &
manipulating objects.
• A child's entire experience occurs through basic reflexes ,
senses & motor responses.
• Children not only learn how to perform physical actions such
as crawling & walking, they also learn more about language
from the people with whom they interact.

59. • This stage has the following characteristics :
 Infants knows the world through their movements &
sensations.
 Children learn about the world through basic actions such as
sucking, grasping, looking & listening.
 Infants learn that things continue to exist even though they
cannot be seen.
 They realize that their actions can cause things to happen in
the world around them.

60. 6 Different subdivisions
i. Reflexive stage :
• In the first stage, newborn will tend to respond reflexively to
any kind of touch or other stimulation.
• This usually happens by grasping , sucking, or sometimes
even smiling.
• Eventually, these actions will become intentional rather than
reflexive.

61. ii. Primary circular reaction stage ( 1-4 months ) :
• During this period, the baby start to make precise
movements for their own pleasure.
• If they make a specific sound or movement without meaning
& they enjoy how it feels, then they will try doing it again &
again.
• For examples : kicking, thumb sucking, smiling intentionally
e.t.c.

62. iii. Secondary circular reactions stage ( 4-8 months) :
• By this period baby starts using objects to learn about their
worlds.
• They will start throwing or dropping things, shaking a rattle,
banging objects together to see what sounds they make &
they will also be able to make more sounds by themselves.
• For example : they will try to make speech-like sounds; they
will laugh , & even use certain noises to express their
happiness , unhappiness , or excitement.

63. iv. Coordinating secondary circular reactions stage ( 8 months –
1 year) :
• During this period , they will start crawling to pick up a toy
from across the room or begin to push aside toys that they
want & are blocked.
• The child is also able to co-ordinate & plan their actions in
response to their thoughts.
• Some other development seen in baby includes : enjoying
simple games, turns to look whenever they hear something,
start to recognize some words & respond to them & also
start saying a few words or try to irritate speech of others.

64. v. Tertiary circular reactions stage ( 12- 18 months ) :
• At this stage, child is able to explore their surroundings &
learn more about world through planning , experiments &
motor co-ordination.
• May also be able to take things apart in order to join them
back again .
• Child starts to carry out a series of planned steps for
completing a given task.
• Start understanding & responding to simple questions &
begin to speak simple phrases, listen to or show some
preference for certain songs or short stories.

65. vi. Symbolic thought stage ( 18 months ) :
• At this age, children starts understanding that symbols
represent objects, which refers to the knowledge that objects
continue to exists even when they cannot be seen or heard.
• Child should be able to remember & repeat actions or worlds
from previous days.
• Child's vocabulary will also begin to develop significantly.
• They will even start asking short questions & also make
requests with the use of one or two words.

66. b. Pre-operational stage ( 2- 7 years )
• During this stage, children begin to engage in symbolic play &
learn to manipulate symbols.
• Children do not yet understand concrete logic.
• Child is able to use an object to represent something else.
• Role- playing also becomes important as child often play the
roles of " mommy", "daddy", "doctor" & many other
characters.

67. Key features
a. Centration :
• It is the tendency to focus on only one aspect of a situation at
one time .
• During this stage child have more difficulties thinking about
more than one aspect of any situation at the same time.

68. b. Egocentrism :
• Egocentrism refers to the child's inability to see a situation
from another person's point of view.
• Children's thought & communications are typically
egocentric ( about themselves).
• Egocentric child assumes that other people see , hear & feel
exactly the same as the child does.

69. c. Play :
• At the beginning of his stage , child engages in parallel play.
• That they means they often play in the same room as other
children but they play next to others rather than with them.
• Child is absorbed in its own private world & speech is
egocentric.
• Main function of speech at this stage is to externalize the
child's thinking rather than to communicate with others.

70. d. Symbolic representation :
• In early pre-operational period (2-3yrs) child increases the
use of symbolic function.
• This is the ability to make one thing- a word or an object –
stand for something other than itself.
• Language is the most obvious form of symbolism that young
children display.

71. e. Pretend or symbolic play :
• Toddlers often pretend to be people they are not & may play
these roles with props that symbolize real life objects.
• Now, egocentrism declines & children begin to enjoy the
participation of another child in their games.

72. f. Animism :
• For the pre-operational child the world of nature is alive,
conscious & has a purpose.
• They believe that inanimate objects such as : toys , dolls have
human feelings & intentions.
• Piaget has given four stages of animism :
 Up to age of 4 or 5 yrs , child believes that almost everything
is alive & has purpose.

73.  During 5-7 yrs , only objects that move have a purpose.
 In 7-9 yrs , only objects that move spontaneously are thought
to be alive.
 In 9-12 yrs , the child understands that only plants & animals
are alive .

74. c. Concrete operational stage ( 7-11 years)
• Third stage of piaget's theory of cognitive development is
characterized by development of organized & rational
thinking.
• This stage is a major turning point in client's cognitive
development because it marks the beginning of logical or
operational thought.
• Child becomes mature enough to use logical thought or
operations.

75. • children gain the abilities of conservation ( number, area,
volume, & orientation ), reversibility e.t.c.
• Although children can solve problems in a logical fashion,
they are typically not able to think abstractly or hypothetically.
• Major developmental tasks are :
 Learning to apply logic to thinking.
 Develops understanding of reversibility & spatiality.

76.  Learning to differentiate & classify.
 Able to think about past & present events but not future.
 Child is able to acknowledge new points of others &
appreciate feelings.

77. d. Formal operational stage ( 11-15 years )
• Thinking becomes much more sophisticated & advanced.
• Children can think about abstract & theoretical concepts & use
logic to come up with creative solutions to problems.
• Skill such as logical thought, reasoning, systematic planning ,
mathematical calculation, think creatively, imagining the
outcome of particular actions emerge during this stage .
• Children can do mathematical calculations, think creatively ,
use abstract reasoning , & imagine the outcome of particular
actions.

78. • Major developmental tasks are :
 Learning to think & reason in abstract terms.
 Makes & tests hypothesis.
 Logical thinking & reasoning ability to expand are refined.
 Can think of future events & develops strategies for solving
complex problems.
 Cognitive maturity is achieved during this stage.

79. Methods of personality assessment
• Assessment of personality means judging, evaluation &
measurement of personality traits or the general personality
pattern possessed by an individual.
• Some of the methods of personality assessment are :

80. a. Interview :
• Interview is the most common method of judging personality.
• The interviewer questions or lets the individual speak freely
so as to get a clear picture of individual.
• From what he says , the interviewer knows about his
interests, problems , assets & limitations.

81. • The interviewer evaluates personality traits not only from the
content of the answers to questions asked , but also from
intolerance with which the news are expressed by the interest
shown by vocabulary which the subject employs
unintentionally show in his conversation & by observing his
hesitations, his emotionally e.t.c.
• The limitation of the method is that it is subjective & is less
valid than one believes it to be.

82. b. Observation methods :
• It is one of the method for collecting actual data of the
individual.
• It involves watching a participant & recording relevant
behaviour for later analysis.
• This method do not depend on the person's own statements
about himself but on his overt behaviour as revealed to others
who serves as observers , examiners or judges.

83. • The person is observed or studied in certain life situations
where his particular traits, habits, needs & other characteristics
are brought into play & can thus be observed directly by
examiner.
• This method has the advantage of providing direct evidence of
process that is being studied.

84. • This is more objective than other ways of collecting data for
examples: Interviewing the children or their teacher.
• For example : If we want to study how children manage
sharing of toys we could observe a group of children playing
in classroom & record what things they say or do that
determine their ways of thinking.

85. c. Projective technique :
• In this method, the examiner does not observe the overt
behaviour of the person as in observation technique , nor
does he ask the person to state his opinion of his own
behaviour or his feeling about certain experiences.
• Instead, person is requested to behave in imaginative way i.e.
by making up a story , interpreting ink-blots or constructing
some objects out of plastic & draw what he wants.

86. • The person is encouraged to ' project' or throw his thoughts ,
emotions, wishes & other reactions freely in some situations
which are provided.
• This method intend to reveal underlying traits, moods,
attitudes & fantasies that determine behaviour of individual in
actual situations.
• By this method , individual can reveal his innermost
characteristics or his personality.
• Some of the important projective techniques are given below :

87. i. Rorschach ink blot test :
• It was developed by a Swiss psychologist Herman
Rorschach (1921) consists of 10 inkblots having symmetrical
designs.
• Five of these cards are in black & white , two with splashes
of red & three in other colors.
• The test is usually administrated individually.
• When the card is shown or placed before client.

88. • At first he is asked to tell what he sees in inkblot or what is
means to him or what this might be.
• In second phase , called the enquiry the examiner ascertains
more fully not only what the person sees , but also what &
how he sees it.
• In third phase called " testing the limits" the examiner tries to
ascertain whether the subject responds to color , shading &
other meaningful aspects of the inkblots , or whether the whole
or parts of the blots are used by the subject in his response.

89. • All these responses are then subjected to a scoring system.
• The scoring categories of the test such as movement & color,
are interpreted as signifying different functions of personality:
intellectual creativity, outgoing emotionality, practical
mindedness e.t.c.
• Limitation of this method is it needs highly trained personnel
to administer & interpret Rorschach & it is also time
consuming.

90. ii. Thematic appreciation test :
• It is developed by Murry & Morgan (1935) consists of a
series of 20 pictures.
• The person is asked to tell the story that each one suggests to
him.
• These pictures are arranged in appropriate groups for male &
female & for children.
• On each picture , the subject tells the story by identifying the
characters explaining their relationship to each other ,
describing what preceded the situation shown in picture &
stating an outcome.

91. • The record of story is analyzed according to major theories :
the hero, sexual interests, vocational ambition, family conflict
& social status e.t.c.
• These theme projects implicit attitudes , habits of thought,
ideas, drives of subject, as well as characteristics of other
characters-father, mother, bother, sister, husband & wife.
• It throws light on functioning of personality.

92. d. Sentence – completion test :
• The sentence- completion technique may be considered a
logical extension of word- association method.
• In administering a sentence – completion test, the evaluator
presents the subject with a series of partial sentences that he
is asked to finish in his own words i.e. ( " I feel stressed
when ……………").
• This methods helps to analyze them in terms of what they
judge to be recurring attitudes , conflicts & motives reflected
in them.