Gordon Allport, a famous dispositional theorist, was arrested for smoking and blowing smoke at people along a highway. David Buss, an evolutionary theorist, claims that a new evolutionary process will change society by making women dominant over men. The document discusses the differences between dispositional theories, which focus on individual traits, and evolutionary theories, which see traits as products of natural selection. It also summarizes the Big Five personality theory and concludes by noting how both approaches contribute uniquely to understanding personality.

1. Running head: DISPOSITIONAL, EVOLUTIONARY, AND BIOLOGICAL 1
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The Psychopathological
Times
Dispositionaland Evolutionaryor Biological Theories
By Jason Sills March 7, 2016
Depress · Distress · Oppress ·
Suppress

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Dispositional, Evolutionary, and Biological Theories Article
Gordon Allport, a famous dispositional theorist, was found in Cambridge, Massachusetts along
Interstate 495, smoking cigarettes nonstop, chanting “personal dispositions!” at passing cars, and
blowing smoke at bystanders; ultimately leading to his arrest. Local psychology professor,
Steven Pinker, after recognizing Allport from a news report, immediately requested for his
release. Allport had no recollection of tobacco law MGL c.270. S.23, prohibiting the use of
tobacco along interstate highways, while carrying with him a strange device that Pinker states
might allow time travel. Harvard University has taken this device for further scientific
examination. Also, another incident is occurring in Princeton, New Jersey at this time. It
appears that David Buss, famous evolutionary theorist, states that he has shocking news of a new
evolutionary process that will change the world. According to Buss, women are becoming the
new man, and food supplies are scarce. He states that soon, females will dominate other females,
and the dominant female will have mate preference. The female will psychologically dominate
the male. Careers will disappear, and men will work as farmers and scientists to increase the
food supply. He states this process is an act of evolution, and males will no longer see qualities
in females that once made them attractive or unattractive. According to Buss, this survival and
reproductive process will save humanity. It is 2016, and women prefer trucks over cars, and
proving that they can be as equal to any man. This new trend is baffling scientists around the
world.

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Differences between Dispositional and Evolutionary or Biological Theories
Many people may ponder why Allport was screaming “personal dispositions!” at cars.
Likely because personal dispositions were Allport’s greatest contributions to what is known in
modern psychology as attribution or trait theory. Gordon Willard Allport was no stranger to
human personality theories such as that of Freud, Skinner, Maslow, Rogers, and Eysenck. He
built his dispositional personality theory as a reaction to Freud and Skinner’s non-humanistic
personality theories, which Allport’s humanistic theory style focuses on individual uniqueness.
The human personality is a structure consisting of many layers or building blocks.
According to Feist, Feist, and Roberts (2013), “To Freud, the basic units were instincts;
to Eysenck, they were biologically determined factors” (p. 355). Gordon Allport’s theory was
different; to Allport, the human personality encompasses individual characteristics known as
personal dispositions; critical structures that permit an individual’s description characteristically
through traits, and the proprium. The proprium is all characteristics that individuals see as their
own (An individual conscience consistent with his or her adult beliefs), and those characteristics
are warm, central, and important (Feist, Feist, & Roberts, 2013, p. 357). Most importantly,
Allport carefully decides to separate common traits that commonly exist between groups, with
personal dispositions, which exist independently and uniquely among humans.
In contrast to Allport’s theory, many people want to know why David Buss is important,
and why his newfound evolutionary process will change the world. Because his theory takes a
holistic approach to personality from a different perspective; one many modern psychologists
avoid. David Buss, much like Allport, believes personality has biological and environmental
influences. Natural selection, made famous by Charles Darwin, is a process of evolution that

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produces answers to problems such as physical (physiological organs and systems) issues in the
form of mechanisms.
The psychological mechanism is different from the physical mechanism (see in
parenthesis above) as it involves the evolution of internal brain processes such as specific
cognitive, personality, and motivational processes to solve survival and reproductive problems
(Feist, Feist, and Roberts, 2013, p. 426). The main difference between dispositional theory and
evolutionary or biological theory is that when evolution occurs, people cannot select these traits
or choose them, yet nature does, whether it be physically or psychologically. According to
Kruger (2009), “Everything about us as individuals is a product of complex interactions between
our genetic instructions and aspects of the environments in which they are expressed.” (para. 4).
Strengths and Limitations of Dispositional and Evolutionary or Biological Theories
Allport’s theory has strengths. He has spent more time evaluating the definition of
personality than any other psychologist. Allport’s work has enough aspectual criteria to generate
research; carefully devising trait terminology and producing research in values, religion, and
prejudice (Feist, Feist, & Roberts, 2013, p. 370). Allport’s theory serves as excellent grounds for
practitioners. Allport’s dispositional theory also has limitations. Allport’s dispositional theory
centers on common sense more than scientific investigation. His scope of personality is narrow,
limiting itself in motivational theory. Allport focuses on psychologically healthy adults, yet does
not cover psychologically unstable adults, or psychologically healthy adults with unstable
behaviors. Allport leaves his theory questioning unconscious forces, drives, or motivations
behind adult behavior.
Evolutionary or biological theory has its strengths too. Buss’s theory leaves much room
for scientific progress and speculation. Evolutionary personality theory is generating greater

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amounts of empirical research; offering a broad scope of explanations unseen outside of social
science. Evolutionary personality theory explains the ultimate origins of biological systems and
provides explanations expanding to human thought, personality, and behavior (Feist, Feist, &
Roberts, 2013, p. 441). According to Buss (2009), “Many mechanisms evolved to solve social
adaptive problems, such as when social anxiety functions to motivate behavior that prevents an
individual from losing status within a group” (para. 7).
Evolutionary or biological theory has its limitations. For instance, some scholars believe
testing evolution in animal behavior would take thousands of years, yet is untestable because
many could construct stories to explain evolutionary outcomes (Feist, Feist, & Roberts, 2013, p.
440). Evolutionary theorists, Tooby and Cosmides, believe that personality variability is not an
adaptation (Feist, Feist, & Roberts, 2013, p. 441). Additionally, evolutionary personality theory
is not recommendable to practitioners.
The Big Five Personality Test
Until the 1980s, little was known about the major dimensions of personality, until Robert
McCrae and Paul Costa (using factor analysis) came up with the Five-Factor Theory. This is a
dispositional theory (Gordon Allport), trait theory, or even a “factor theory” (Feist, Feist, &
Roberts, 2013, p. 375). The “Big Five” personality test encompasses extraversion, neuroticism,
openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness traits. According to this test,
people scoring high in extroversion are talkative, affectionate, jovial, joiners, and fun-loving.
Those who score low are quiet, loners, reserved, preserved, and lack strong emotions; people
who score high on openness to experience are creative, imaginative, liberal, and curious, whereas
people who score low are conventional, down-to-earth, conservative, and lack curiosity;
individuals who score high on agreeableness are trusting, generous, acceptant, yielding, and

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good-natured. Low scores indicate general suspicion of others, stinginess, unfriendliness,
irritable, and criticality; high scores in conscientiousness indicate orderly, controllability,
organization, ambition, greater achievement-orientation, and self-disciplinary. Low scores
indicate disorganization, laziness, negligent, and aimless; lastly, high scores in neuroticism
indicate anxiety, temperamental, self-pity, emotional, self-conscientious, and vulnerable,
whereas low scores indicate calm, even-temperament, self-satisfaction, comfortableness, hardy,
and unemotional (Feist, Feist, & Roberts, 2013, p. 383).
Conclusion
This article originates with a satirical theme, by no means should one consider it to be
completely uninformative. Dispositional and evolutionary or biological theories are influential
to many modern theories such as criminology, biogenetics, biochemical science, cytogenetics,
neurophysiology, comparative anatomy, comparative embryology, molecular biology,
paleontology, social sciences, clinical psychology, and industrial psychology namely. While
both studies differ idealistically, they have similarities such as studying traits from a holistic
standpoint (humanistic ideology, factor analysis, etc.), but most importantly, they explain
personality from unique perspectives of both nature and nurture.

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References
Buss, D. M. (2009, May n.d.). Evolutionary Theory and Psychologists. Psychological Science
Agenda. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2009/05/sci-brief.aspx
Feist, A., Feist, G.J., & Roberts, T. A. (2013). Theories of Personality (8th ed.). Retrieved from
the University of Phoenix eBook Database Collection.
Kruger, D. (2009, May n.d.). Evolutionary Theory and Psychologists. Psychological Science
Agenda. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2009/05/sci-brief.aspx
Image Reference
Mason, A. (2005). Inside. [Digital Image]. Retrieved May 7, 2016 from
https://www.flickr.com/photos/a_mason/4006709/in/photostream/