THEORIES OF
PERSONALITY
Course Description
INTRODUCTION
The Nature of Personality Theory
Personality Theory and the
History of Psychology
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What is Personality?
What is a Theory?
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Personality Theory and other
Psychological Theories
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The comparison of Theories of
Personality
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
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The Nature of Personality Theory
Define personality and theory
Illustrate the role of personality theory in the development of psychology
Present the major contemporary theories of personality
Discuss relevant research and evaluation of personality theory
LEARNING content
The Nature of Personality Theory
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a. Personality Theory and the History of Psychology
b. What is Personality?
c. What is a Theory?
d. A Theory of Personality
e. Personality Theory and other Psychological Theories
f. The comparison of Theories of Personality
PSYCHOLOGY
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Applied
Discipline
Academic
Discipline
Cognitive
Functions
Behavioral
Functions
SCHOOL OF THOUGHTS
Structuralism
Experimental
Psychology
Wilhelm Wundt
Functionalism Gestalt Psychology
Perception of
Conscious Processes
Organization
William James
Max Wertheimer
Behaviorism
Observable
Behavior
John Watson
SCHOOL OF THOUGHTS
Psychoanalysis
Unconscious Desires
Sigmund Freud
Humanistic
Psychology
Human Potential
Abraham Maslow
Cognitivism
Cognitive Processes
Ulric Neisser
CHOOSE YOUR CHARACTER
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What Is Personality?
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https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-ab&biw=1920&bih=971&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=UMHKWmBHcil8AXduY6QDg&q=personality&oq=personality&gs_l=img.3..0l7j0i67k1j0l2.11759.14110.0.14565.11.9.0.0.0.0.344.1480.0j1j1j3.5.0....0...1c.1.64.img..6.5.1476....0.nASUsY
HlkRA#imgrc=nflBJjq00dQ2vM:
History
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https://www.slideshare.net/MotiveMetrics/a-history-of-personality-psychology-part1?from_action=save
History
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https://www.slideshare.net/MotiveMetrics/a-history-of-personality-psychology-part1?from_action=save
How did you describe your pet? (what types of
words?)
Would everyone agree with your description? (would
other people describe your pet the same way?)
How do you know about your pet’s personality? (i.e.
on what did you base your descriptions?)
Why is your pet the way he/she/it is?
What are the basic pieces of people?
How do we learn about people’s personality?
What makes people the way that they are?
Explain whole people
In this mission, idea is to combine subfields of
psychology into an integrated whole
Mission impossible – very difficult to look at
everything at once and still maintain a scientific
approach
Mission
Impossible/
Need to focus
efforts
Mission
Impossible/
Need to focus
efforts
A set of related assumptions that allows scientists to use
logical deductive reasoning to formulate testable
hypotheses
1.Individual level – what are individual
people like? What are (this person’s)
characteristics?
Approaches to
theory building
2.General level – general laws that apply
to all people
Relatives of
Theory
PHILOSOPHY
Love of Wisdom
EPISTEMOLOGY
Nature of Knowledge
HYPOTHESIS
Educated Guess
SPECULATIONS
Basis of Theory
TAXONOMY
Classifications
Approaches to
theory building
works from the “top” down
generate basic laws about
people
Make deductions about
what individual people will
be like based on those
laws
Example: Freud –
developed theory first
reasoning based on a
“bottom-up” approach.
Collect data about people
first
Develop the theory based
on the data
Example: Five Factor trait
model
•
Different Personal Backgrounds
Childhood experiences
Interpersonal relationships
Why Different
Theories?
•
Different Philosophical Orientations
•
Unique Ways of Looking at the World
•
Data Chosen to Observe is Different
Theorists’
Personalities &
Their Theories of
Personality
Psychology of Science
The personalities and
The empirical study of
psychology of different
scientific thought and
theorists influence the
behavior (including theory
kinds of theories that
construction) of the
they develop
scientist
What Makes a
Theory Useful:
Criteria for
Evaluating a
Theory
GENERATES
RESEARCH
GUIDES ACTION
FALSIFIABLE
INTERNALLY
CONSISTENT
ORGANIZES &
EXPLAINS DATA
PARSIMONIOUS
Dimensions
for a
Concept of
Humanity
Dimensions
for a
Concept of
Humanity
Research
Designs in
Personality
Nomothetic
• Fixed measures
• General characteristics
• Certain group of people or
population
• Correlational and experimental
researches
Ideographic
• Flexible measure
• Uniqueness and individuality
• A person
• Case studies.
SOURCES OF DATA
L – LIFE
REPORT DATA
O – OBSERVERREPORT DATA
T – TEST
REPORT DATA
S – SELFREPORT DATA
REALIZATION
Research in Personality Theory
Must Generate Research
Two Empirical Criteria for Instruments
• Theory gives meaning to data
• Reliability
• Data comes from experimental research
o Consistency of Measurement
• Validity:
designed to test hypothesis generated
o Construct Validity
by the theory
o Convergent
Systematic observations
• Predictions are consistent and accurate
o Divergent
o Discriminant
o Predictive Validity
THANK YOU!
Aclina, C. (2013) Effective Leadership, 5th ed. Australia: Cengage Learning
Feist, J. et.al. (2013) Theories of Personality, 8th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill