Personality Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Outline 1. Definitions of Personality 2. Influences of Personality and Situation on Behavior Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. How do psychologists define Personality? Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Personality It involves psychological characteristics that give people a distinct and somewhat stable and predictable style of responding to the world. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Personality The unique, relatively enduring psychological aspects of a person’s character that influence behavior. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. What are the key words of the definitions? Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Psychological characteristics Distinct/ Unique Enduring Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Editi13 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. These characteristics cause people to have certain tendencies, pattens of behavior. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Editi13 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. We have certain tendencies—to view things in certain ways, to have certain emotional reactions, to be motivated by particular things, and to behave in particular ways. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. But note that … • Nobody acts the same way all the time. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Well-adjusted people are flexible enough to accommodate to the demands of the situations in which they find themselves. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. However, as we look at our behaviors across different situations and over time, we can see that even though changes are observed, tendencies are observed. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. For example: • To what extent are you outgoing and extraverted versus quiet and introverted? • Are you generally an organized or disorganized person? • Are you a morning person or an evening person? Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. • People differ on these kinds of personality characteristics, and those differences help create the kind of person you are and the kind of life you lead. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Psychologists who study personality want to understand how those differences affect people’s thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Note that • All thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are influenced both by _________________ and ___________ Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Note that • All thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are influenced both by people’s internal psychological characteristics—their personalities— and by the features of the situations in which they find themselves. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. So, remember … Wherever you go, you carry with you a large, complex set of psychological characteristics: Traits Beliefs Emotional tendencies Motivations Values They predispose you to respond in certain ways Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. • But your behavior also depends on the particular situation you are in at the time, not only the physical environment but also the social context. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. For example: You’ll react differently depending on: • the number of other people who are present • who they are • what kind of relationship they have with you Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Question • Which of these influences is most important in understanding human behavior? Personality vs. Situation Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Answer • In general, personality characteristics and situational factors account for about the same amount of variability we see in people’s reactions overall. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. However, note that … • The degree to which personality is important in understanding a particular behavior depends on the strength of the situation that a person is in. • A strong situation is one in which situational pressures are so strong that there’s little or no room for personality to play a role. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. For example: • Go to the movies is a strong situation—almost everyone acts the same by sitting quietly and attentively. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. For example: • In contrast, an example of a weak situation is going to the beach, where people participate in all kinds of different activities. Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. But note that … • The strength of the situation also depends on the person’s personality. • People differ in the degree to which their behavior is affected by situational pressures. • Some people are generally more affected by situational requirementsSchultz than & Schultzothers. Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Thank you! Schultz & Schultz Theories of Personality and Development, 10th Edition Copyright 2013 Wadsworth, a division of Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
