Theories of Personality for Psychology 12

2. MAJOR SCHOOLS OF PERSONALITY THEORYPsychoanalytic Theory~Sigmund Freud (the importance of
motives hidden in the unconscious)
Humanistic Theorists~ Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers
(stress one’s potential for growth, such as creativity and
spontaneity
Social Learning Theorists (the impact of observational
learning on personality)
Cognitive Theorists (how our thoughts, perceptions and
feelings shape our personalities.
Biological Theorists (focus on the brain, neurochemistry,
and genetics
B.F. Skinner~Behaviourists (the way rewards and
punishments shape our actions)
(Discussed)Trait Theorists~ The Big 5~Gordon Allport and
Hans Eyseenck, emphasize the importance of
understanding basic personality characteristics such as
friendliness and aggression.

3. PURPOSE OF PERSONALITY THEORIES
It is in the Personality (from text, p. 375)
Shelly and Deirdre both failed their semester exams in psychology, but they
reacted in very different ways. When Shelly saw her grade, she felt sick
to her stomach and had to fight back tears. She rushed home, and shut
herself up in her room to lie in bed, stare at the ceiling, and feel
inadequate. Deirdre, on the other hand, was all bluster. She ran to the
cafeteria to join her friends and make loud jokes about stupid
questions on the test.
--From Understanding Psychology, Richard A. Kasschau, 1995

4. THE PURPOSE OF THEORIES
Provides a means of organizing the many characteristics you know about
yourself and other people.
Personality Theorists try to determine whether certain traits go together, why
a person has some traits and not others, and why a person might exhibit
different traits in different situations.
Disagreement among theorists about which traits are
important/significant…but all theorists look to examine patterns in the way
people behave.

5. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
In contrast to trait theories that describe personality as it exists,
psychoanalytic theories of personality attempt to EXPLAIN individual
differences by examining how unconscious mental forces interplay with
thoughts feelings, and actions
Thoughts,
Feelings &
Actions
Unconscious

6. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
Who?
Sigmund Freud
Freud’s theory of personality has
been the most influential and
controversial in all of science
Freud’s impact on Western intellectual history cannot be
overstated—he attempted to explain dreams, religion, social
groupings, family dynamics, neurosis, psychosis, humour, the arts
and literature

7. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
Levels of Consciousness
Freud called the mind the “psyche” and
believed that it functioned on three
levels of awareness or consciousness

8. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
Conscious
Preconscious
Unconscious
Thoughts, motives and memories
blocked from normal awareness.
Includes primitive instinctual
motives, plus anxiety-laden
thoughts and memories blocked
from normal awareness (hidden
from personal inspection) this may
be your repressed sexual desires,
aggressive impulses, or irrational
thoughts and feelings
Thoughts or motives and memories
blocked from normal awareness.
Contains information that can be
viewed with a little extra effort, for
example it may include feelings of
hunger, thoughts of friends you
need to contact…
Thoughts or motives that a person
is currently aware of or is
remembering

9. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
The Iceberg Analogy
Freud believed that the unconscious is hidden from
our personal awareness, but it still has an
enormous impact on our behavior—and reveals
itself despite our intentions
Just as the enormous mass of iceberg below the
surface destroyed the Titanic, the unconscious may
similarly damage our psychological lives.
Unconscious
Freud believed that most repressed
(hidden)memories and instincts (sexual and
aggressive) are stored in the unconscious—to treat
these disorders, Freud developed Psychoanalysis

10. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
Conscious
Preconscious
Unconscious
The Freudian Slip: Freud believed that a small slip of
the tongue (known as a Freudian slip) can reveal
unconscious feelings that we normally keep
hidden…these slips are not accidental but intentional
ways of expressing unconscious desires

11. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
Conscious
Preconscious
Unconscious
In addition to proposing that the mind functioned at
three levels of awareness, Freud believed
personality was composed of three interacting
mental structures:
ID, EGO & SUPEREGO
Each of these structures reside in (fully or partially)
in the Unconscious Mind

12. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
ID
EGO
SUPEREGO
As a child grows older, the ego develops. The ego is
responsible for planning, problem solving, reasoning, and
controlling the Id. Unlike the Id, the ego resides primarily
in the preconscious and conscious mind. The ego
corresponds to the self—our conscious identity of
ourselves as a person
Ego operates on the Reality Principle (the ego is
responsible for delaying gratification until it is practical or
appropriate
The ID is made up of innate, biological instincts and
urges. It is immature, impulsive, irrational, and totally
unconscious. When its primitive drives build up, the id
seeks immediate gratification to relieve the tension…it
operates on the Pleasure Principle (the immediate and
uninhibited seeking of pleasure and avoidance of
discomfort)
This inner voice, sometimes known as your
“conscience,” is made up of the ethical standards
or rules for behavior that reside primarily in the
preconscious and unconscious. It develops from
internalized parental and societal standards.
Operating on the Morality Principle because
violating its rules result in feelings of guilt

13. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
ID
EGO
SUPEREGO
What happens when the ego fails to satisfy both the id
and the superego?
Defense Mechanisms
Anxiety slips into conscious awareness.
Because anxiety is uncomfortable, people avoid it
through defense mechanisms—which satisfy the id
and superego by distorting reality.
Example: When an alcoholic who uses his
paycheck to buy drinks (a message from the id)
May feel very guilty (a response from the
superego). He may reduce this conflict by telling
himself that he deserves a drink for working so
hard.
This is an example of a defense mechanism

14. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
ID
EGO
SUPEREGO
Defense Mechanism: the ego’s protective method of
reducing anxiety by distorting reality
Defense Mechanisms
Repression is the mechanism by which the ego
prevents the most anxiety-provoking or
unacceptable thoughts and feelings from entering
the consciousness.
It is the first and most basic form of anxiety
reduction
This concept has basically stood the test of
time and are an accepted part of modern
psychology, not the case for his other theory:
Stages of Psychosexual development
Freud described many kinds of defense mechanisms, but
believed that Repression was the most important

15. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
ID
EGO
SUPEREGO
Strong biological urges reside in the Id, and push all
children through five universal psychosexual stages
during the first 12 years of life
Psychosexual Stages of Development
STAGES: Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency, Genital
At each psychosexual stage, the id’s impulses
and social demands come into conflict.
If a child’s needs are not met, or are overindulged,
at one particular stage, the child may fixate and a
part of the personality will remain stuck at that
stage
Most people pass through each stage, but at times
they may return or Regress to an earlier stage in
which earlier needs were badly frustrated or
overgratified.
See the textbook for more details

16. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
ID
EGO
SUPEREGO
The ego’s protective method of reducing
anxiety by disturbing reality
Blogging: Defense Mechanisms
Write about an example from your
own experience(s) in which you
have used one or more of the
defense mechanisms. Discuss the
consequences of using the
defense mechanism.
[Create a new page (blog page) and add it
as a tab on your webpage titled:
“Blogging about Psychology”
Begin a new entry titled: “Defense
Mechanism”]

17. NEO-FREUDIAN THEORIES OF PERSONALITY
Alfred Alder (1937)
Instead of seeing behavior as motivated by unconscious
forces, he believed that it is purposeful and goal-
directed.
Individual Psychology—we are motivated by our goals in
life—especially our goals of obtaining security and
overcoming feelings of inferiority.
Believed that almost everyone suffers from an INFERIORITY
COMPLEX, or deep feelings of inadequacy and
incompetence that arise from feelings of helplessness as
infants.
These early feelings result in “will-to-power” that can take one of two paths:
1. Cause children to strive to develop superiority over others through dominance,
aggression, or expressions of envy
2. More positively—cause children to develop their full potential and creativity
and to gain mastery and control in their lives

19. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY REVISED
Carl Jung (1961)
Two forms of the unconscious mind:
personal unconscious (created from our
individual experiences) and collective
unconscious– (identical to each person
and inherited patterns of thought,
feeling, behavior—also known as
archetypes)
Believed that the unconscious contains positive and spiritual
motives as well as sexual aggressive forces

20. Humanistic theories of personality emphasize internal
experiences—feelings and thoughts—and the individual’s own
feelings as a basic . worth
In contrast to Freud’s generally negative view of human nature, humanists
believe people are naturally good (or at worst, neutral). And they
possess a positive drive toward self-fulfillment
Personality and behavior depend on how we perceive and interpret the
world, not on traits, unconscious impulses, or rewards and punishment
(behaviourism).
To fully understand another human being we must know how
he/she perceives the world.
HUMANISTIC THEORY

21. Roger’s Theory: The Importance of Self
The most important component of
personality is the self—what a person
comes to identify as “I” or “me”
“Self-Concept” refers to all the
information and beliefs you have
regarding your own nature, unique
qualities, and typical behaviours.

22. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need
Psychologist Abraham
Maslow (1943, 1954)
stated that human
motivation is based on
people seeking fulfillment
and change through
personal growth.

23. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need
Maslow believed there was
basic “goodness” to human
nature and a natural tendency
toward self-actualization
based on people seeking
fulfillment and change through
personal growth. Self-
actualized people as those
who were fulfilled and doing
all they were capable of.
Self Actualization: the inborn drive to develop all one’s
talents and capabilities

24. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need
Self Actualization: the inborn drive to
develop all one’s talents and
capabilities
Self Actualization involves understanding one’s potential, accepting oneself and
others as unique individuals, and taking a problem-centred approach to life
situations. Self-actualization is the end product or accomplishment—a road to travel
rather than the final destination
Only a few, rare individuals are self-actualized (Albert
Einstein, Gandhi) However, self-actualization is part
of every person’s basic hierarchy of needs

25. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need
1. Biological and Physiological needs - air,
food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep.
2. Safety needs - protection from elements,
security, order, law, limits, stability, freedom
from fear.
3. Social Needs - belongingness, affection
and love, - from work group, family, friends,
romantic relationships.
4. Esteem needs - achievement, mastery,
independence, status, dominance, prestige,
self-respect, respect from others.
5. Self-Actualization needs - realizing
personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking
personal growth and peak experiences.

26. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need
Maslow (1970) estimated that only
two percent of people will reach the
state of self actualization. He was
particularly interested in the
characteristics of people whom he
considered to have achieved their
potential as persons.
By studying 18 people he
considered to be self-actualized
(including Abraham Lincoln and
Albert Einstein) Maslow (1970)
identified 15 characteristics of a self-
actualized person.
Only a few, rare individuals are self-actualized (Albert
Einstein, Gandhi) However, self-actualization is part
of every person’s basic hierarchy of needs

27. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need
Characteristics of self-actualizers:
1. They perceive reality efficiently and can tolerate
uncertainty;
2. Accept themselves and others for what they are;
3. Spontaneous in thought and action;
4. Problem-centered (not self-centered);
5. Unusual sense of humor;
6. Able to look at life objectively;
7. Highly creative;
8. Resistant to enculturation, but not purposely
unconventional;

28. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need
Characteristics of self-actualizers:
9. Concerned for the welfare of humanity;
10. Capable of deep appreciation of basic life-experience;
11. Establish deep satisfying interpersonal relationships with
a few people;
12. Peak experiences;
13. Need for privacy;
14. Democratic attitudes;
15. Strong moral/ethical standards.