(7th Ed)
James A. McCubbin, PhD
Clemson University
Worth Publishers
1

is
 1 definition on “traits”
patterns of behavior based
 Personality: r elatively permanent set of traits that affect how we respond to certain situations
 Person’s usual pattern of thinking, feeling, & acting
 Basic perspectives: several views…
 Psychoanalytic: Freud
 Humanistic (Rogers, Maslow)
 Traits (Allport)
  …
…is it all situational & there is NO such thing as personality?? (Mischel)
2


 childhood sexuality & unconscious motivations influence personality & mental disorders come from problems w/ this!
 Psycho anal ysis
 methods to treat psych. disorders by exposing & interpreting unconscious tensions
 Jewish Austrian physician
 wanted to be a researcher, but had to settle for MD (
3

The Psychoanalytic Perspective

 according to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings and memories

 in psychoanalysis, method of exploring the unconscious
 person relaxes & says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing…(“couch” for relaxation, etc.)
 Also can use word association (“
st
4

Many of Freud’s ideas are
b/c they did not “test out” empirically…
valid…SO why still study him?



5

 Id: a “reservoir of unconscious psychic energy”
 attempts to satisfy basic sexual & aggressive drives
 operates on the pleasure principle , demanding immediate gratification ( want what I want when I want it!) NOT “evil” …just self-centered
 Superego: the part of personality that presents internalized ideals
 provides standards for judgment (the conscience) & for future aspirations
 Ego: the largely conscious, “executive” ( of personality in charge ) part
 mediates among the demands of the id, superego, & reality
 operates on the reality principle , satisfying the id’s desires in ways that will realistically bring pleasure, not pain
6

Ego
Id
Conscious mind
Unconscious mind
Superego
Freud (“ froid
Personality
”) :
Structure:
Superego, Ego, and the Id
 Freud’s idea of the mind’s structure:
Iceberg analogy:
Conscious: what we are aware of
Preconscious (aka subconscious): just at or below the surface
Unconscious: below the surface…what we hide from ourselves
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8


 childhood stages of development during which the id’s pleasure-seeking energies focus on distinct erogenous zones

 process by which kids incorporate their same
values into their developing superegos

lingering focus of pleasure-seeking energies at an earlier psychosexual stage, where conflicts were unresolved (
…)

 a boy’s sexual desires toward his mother & feelings of jealousy & hatred for the rival father
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Freud’s Psychosexual Stages:
See Anal Retentive Chef!)
Stage Focus
Oral Pleasure centers on the mouth--
(018 months) sucking, biting, chewing…task = weaning
Anal Pleasure focuses on bowel and bladder
(18-36 months) elimination; coping with demands for control; task = toilet training
Phallic Pleasure zone = genitals; cope w/ incestuous
(3-6 years) sexual feelings; task = ID w/ S-S parent
Latency Dormant sexual feelings; no major focus
(6 to puberty) & no major task; gender self-segregation
Genital Maturation of sexual interests; task = form
(puberty on) intimate relationships w/ opposite sex
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Defense Mechanisms :
The way the ego reduces anxiety & protects the personality by unconsciously distorting reality
8 Well-known defense Mech. of Freud’s :
1. Projection : defense mechanism by which people disguise their own threatening impulses by attributing them to others
2. Regression: defense mechanism in which an individual faced with anxiety retreats to a more infantile psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated
3. Reaction Formation: defense mechanism by which the ego unconsciously switches unacceptable impulses into their opposites
 ppl may express feelings that are the opposite of their anxiety-arousing unconscious feelings
4. Repression: basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, & memories from consciousness: This is the most common def. mech.

5. Displacement: defense mechanism that shifts sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person (kick the cat or scream at kid when you are angry at your boss)
 as when redirecting anger toward a safer outlet
6. Denial: defens. mech. in which we refuse to accept something that is fairly obvious b/c the truth would be too painful or make us feel bad about ourselves (“…Oh, no, he would never go out on me…he loves me…”)
7. Sublimation: redirecting problems, stresses, etc., into a more socially acceptable outlet ( abused as a child writing a novel about an abused child surviving)
8. Rationalization : defense mechanism that offers selfjustifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening, unconscious reasons for one’s actions (“…I only drink to socialize…”)
12

Assessing ( measure or test) the Unconscious
[Used MAINLY by psychoanalytical (aka psychodynamic) psychologists]
Projective Tests
 a personality test, such as the Rorschach or TAT, that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of one’s inner dynamics…that is, get into your unconscious, the “real you…”
 Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
 a projective test in which people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes
 Rorschach Inkblot Test
 the most widely used projective test
 a set of 10 inkblots designed by Hermann Rorschach
 seeks to identify people’s inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of the blots (again, ambiguous …)
13

Assessing the Unconscious—TAT:
14

Assessing the Unconscious—Rorschach:
“inkblot tests”…
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16

Neo-Freudians: ( aka psychodynamic, psychosocial)
 Alfred Adler
 importance of childhood social tension
 birth order determines personality (has NOT tested out)
 Also superiority & inferiority complexes: self-image
 Karen Horney
 sought to balance Freud’s masculine biases; contested penis-envy
“…it’s not the penis; it’s the power they envy!”
 Carl Jung: Freud’s chosen…but they had big blow-up
 emphasized the collective unconscious … & archetypes as support for this (“mandelas”?)
 concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species’ history
 established idea of introvert vs. extrovert 17

2 big guys = Carl Rogers & Abraham Maslow
 Maslow (1908-1970): studied self-actualization processes of productive & healthy people
(e.g., A. Lincoln)
 Also hierarchy of needs
 Self-Actualization
 the ultimate psychological need that arises after basic physical & psychological needs are met & self-esteem is achieved
 the motivation to fulfill one’s potential …”be all you can be!”
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 Carl Rogers (1902-1987)

 We want to be good & do well
Therapist should help us by showing….
 genuineness
 acceptance
 empathy

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Humanistic Perspective
 Unconditional Positive Regard
 an attitude of total acceptance toward another person

 Self-Concept
 all our thoughts & feelings about ourselves, is an answer to the question, “Who am I?”
 how we see ourselves
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Research – Trait Perspective
 See Gordon Allport’s encounter w/ Freud
(t-591)
-this began Allport’s study & theories of traits in behavior…which became the trait perspective
Allport wanted to describe traits … not explain them…
 Trait
 a characteristic pattern of behavior
 a disposition to feel and act, as assessed by selfreport inventories and peer reports
 Personality Inventory
 a questionnaire (often with true-false or agreedisagree items) on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors
 used to assess selected personality traits
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Anxious
Rigid
Moody
UNSTABLE
Touchy
Restless
Aggressive
Factor Analysis:
 Hans & Sybil Eysenck use 2 primary personality factors
(traits) as axes ( axis to describing personality variation
)
Sober
Pessimistic
Reserved
Excitable
Changeable
Impulsive
Introvert vs. extrovert
Stable vs. unstable
Unsociable
Even-tempered
Optimistic
Quiet
Passive melancholic
INTROVERTED choleric
EXTRAVERTED phlegmatic sanguine
Sociable
 Look at N/S & E/W

Careful
Active
Outgoing
Thoughtful
Peaceful
Controlled
Reliable
Talkative
Responsive
Easygoing
Lively
Can also see a connection to old idea of “humors” to explain personality
Carefree
Leadership
Calm
STABLE
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The “4 bodily humors” from ancient Greeks:
Sanguine = amorous, happy, generous, optimistic,irresponsible
Melancholic = Introspective, sentimental, gluttonous (spleen)
Phlegmatic = unemotional, sluggish, pallid, cowardly
Choleric = violent, vengeful, short-tempered, ambitious (liver)
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The Trait Perspective
 Empirically (?) Derived Test: test developed by testing a pool of items & then selecting those that discriminate betwn groups EX: the MMPI
 Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
 the most widely researched & clinically used of all personality tests ( now is MMPI-2 )
 originally developed to ID emotional disorders (still considered its most appropriate use) v. long! (567?’s)
 now used for many other screening purposes
EX:?: Choose 1: yes…no…or unsure: “I'm afraid that I might make the cause of my head pain worse if I concentrate ...”
 Myers-Briggs type indicator: Looks at personality
“types” using 126 item inventory of ?’s (not disorders)
--based on G. Allport’s trait ideas
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Stress & the Heart: Personality Types
(these are NOT traits, but a separate theory RE: stress)
 Type A
 Friedman and Rosenman’s term for competitive, hard-driving, impatient, verbally aggressive, & anger-prone people
*Possible sub-category of “A”?? Some say there’s a..
TYPE D : Newer term:
--gets very angry , is destructive emotionally
…road-rage, etc. ( d
d
)
Type B
 Friedman & Rosenman’s term for easygoing, relaxed people (“
”)
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Personality & Stress on the Heart:
Pessimists: ___% Optimists: ___%
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Trait Perspective: Assessing Traits w/ MMPI b4 & after therapy (treatment)
Hypochondriasis
(concern with body symptoms)
1
Depression
(pessimism, hopelessness)
2
3
Hysteria
(uses symptoms to solve problems ) 4
Psychopathic deviancy
(disregard for social standards)
5
Masculinity/femininity
(interests like those of other sex)
6
Paranoia
(delusions, suspiciousness)
7
8
Psychasthenia
(anxious, guilt
9 feelings)
Schizophrenia
(withdrawn, bizarre thoughts)
10
Hypomania
(overactive, excited, impulsive)
Social introversion
(shy, inhibited)
After treatment
(no scores in the clinically significant range)
Clinically significant range
0 30 40 50 60 70 80
Before treatment
(anxious, depressed, and displaying deviant behaviors)
T-score
MMPI profile
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Trait Perspective (t-595):
The
“
”
Personality Factors
Trait Dimension Description
Emotional Stability Calm vs. anxious
Secure vs. insecure
Self-satisfied vs. self-pitying
Extraversion Sociable vs. retiring
Fun-loving vs. sober
Affectionate versus reserved
Openness (to Imaginative versus practical experience) Preference for variety versus preference for routine… risk-taking
Independent versus conforming
Agreeableness Soft-hearted versus ruthless
Trusting versus suspicious
Helpful versus uncooperative
Conscientiousness Organized versus disorganized
Careful versus careless
Disciplined versus impulsive
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NOTE: Reverse means that…...if you put 1, change it to 5;
2 becomes 4, & 3 = 3, 4 = 2, 5 = 1
Ex : Extroversion: If for #7 I had put 4, I would change to a 2 & put that into the space beside #7, & If I’d put 2 for #19, it would = 4, & if 5 for # 33, it would = 1.
Reverse 7___ 19___ 33___
AFTER reversing,put others as they are, THEN add ‘em up!
---------------------------
NOTE:
Ppl that did the 2-factor analysis…what are factors they…& who came up w/ these 2?
16 factor analysis…R. Catell
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1) How stable are the traits? (childhood  adulthood?)
2) How heritable are they? (generally 50%+ )
3) How well do they apply to other cultures? cultural?)
(Cross-
4) Do the Big 5 traits predict other personal attributes?
(Yes… EX: Introverts are usually AM folks
Extroverts usually PM folks)
BUT…Is it the person or is it situational ?
Effects on Personality & Health/Happines/Life
Choices?? 
(from Stress & Health Chapter 14) 30

Life events
Personal appraisal
Challenge Threat
Easy going
Nondepressed
Optimistic
Personality type
Hostile
Depressed
Pessimistic
Nonsmoking
Regular exercise
Good nutrition
Personality habits
Smoking
Sedentary
Poor nutrition
Level of social support
Close, enduring Lacking
Tendency toward
Health Illness
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Mischel & situational factors:
Walter Mischel said it’s the situation …NOT really a
“personality trait”
Scores on personality inventories only mildly predict actual behaviors… situation IS a factor
EX: Good day or bad day: How does it affect your response? Dispositional? (their disposition …)
Or situational?
32

Albert Bandura : behaviorist (which area?) w/ view that says conditioning, modeling, etc., influence us to think & act certain ways
Views behavior as influenced by the interaction between ppl & their environment
 
 Bandura’s process of the interacting influences between personality & environmental factors
 1 thing influences us…
…which causes us to choose certain things…
…which continue to influence us more
(“Interaction”) EX’s: ?? 
33

Social-Cognitive Perspective
34

Social-Cognitive Perspective & Stress w/ Personality
 External Locus of Control
 belief that chance or outside forces beyond one’s personal control determine one’s fate…Luck, chance,
God, etc.
 Internal Locus of Control
 the perception that “I control my OWN fate”
 Poem “Invictus”: “ I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul…”
 Learned Helplessness: complete extern. L-O-C
 hopelessness & passive acceptance an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events…
“ Nothing helps…Why try?” EX: Dog & shock?
35

WHO has control in your life? (Plural = “loci”)
Internal vs. External Locus of Control…
Which leads to Learned Helplessness?
36


Uncontrollable bad events
Perceived lack of control
Generalized helpless behavior
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Social-Cognitive Perspective
(604):
 scientific study of optimal human functioning
 Idea that a culture at certain levels of development & prosperity can focus on making that society better for all
 aims to discover & promote conditions that enable individuals & communities to thrive
3 pillars of positive psy.:

: satisfaction w/ past, present, & hope about future: optimism

: Enhance virtues (
?)

schools, neighborhoods, families, media, etc.
38

Exploring the Self
Spotlight Effect: Overestimating others noticing & evaluating our appearance, performance, & blunder
I’ll mess up! Everyone is watching me!
-espec. affects ppl w/ social anxiety disorders
Self Esteem: one’s feelings of high or low self-worth
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Self-Serving Bias:
EX: Most ppl see self as better than avg. & tend to take credit for success,
But find excuses for any failure… “odds were against me!”
But…Other ppl “get what they deserve…”
“It’s their own fault if they are poor…etc.”
Remember “just world phenomenon?”
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Cultural Aspects of how we see our “Self”
Individualism: giving priority to one’s own goals over group goals & defining one’s identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications
EX: most Western Eur. & N. Amer. Cultures
“Nuclear family” = my family
Collectivism: giving priority to the goals of one’s group
(often one’s extended family or work group) & defining one’s identity accordingly
EX: most Asian, Latin Amer., & African cultures
“Extended family” = My Family
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Exploring the Self (613)
Value Contrasts Between Individualism and Collectivism
Concept Individualism Collectivism
Self Independent Interdependent
(identity from individual traits) identity from belonging)
Life task Discover and express one’s uniqueness
Maintain connections, fit in
What matters Me--personal achievement and We-group goals and solidarity; fulfillment; rights and liberties social responsibilities and relationships
Coping method Change reality Accommodate to reality
Morality Defined by individuals Defined by social networks
(self-based) (duty-based)
Relationships Many, often temporary or casual; Few, close and enduring; confrontation acceptable harmony valued
Attributing Behavior reflects one’s personality Behavior reflects social behaviors and attitudes and roles 42

 Freud’s views today: Psy. no longer stick w/ Freud’s
“iceberg” theory
 Note: Some of Freud’s ideas have been redefined …
EX: ”Projection” now is false consensus effect..
“ Everyone cheats on their taxes” (just b/c you do so…
 Terror-Management Theory
 Idea that faith in our worldview & the pursuit of self-
esteem give us protection against a deeply rooted fear of death
 ...i.e, if we feel good about the world & have a good feeling about who we are, we are less likely to have a high level of anxiety about death
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1. 2 types of projective tests
2. Main problem w/ proj. tests
3. Main psychologist c) psychoanalytical
(+ later
who may be ID’ed w/ each personality perspective below: a) humanistic b) trait
) d) no real “personality”: it’s all just situational
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Can U ID each below?
 Self-serving bias…
 Reciprocal Determinism (Social-Cognitive
Perspective)
 Locus of Control (Personal Control)
 Learned Helplessness:
 3 pillars of positive psy
 Spotlight Effect
 (Extra related idea: “Halo Effect”)
 Terror-Management Theory
 Individualist vs collectivist cultures
 False consensus effect: now know as what?
45

(Further explanation of Freud’s theories: Optional but
helpful)
 PARTS OF THE Personality: Id, ego, & superego…
id : These are our basic drives, our wants & desires; “I want what I want when I want it…” not really “evil”, just selfish, self-centered
superego : tells you to follow society’s rules & moral teachings; “Listen to your mother!!”
ego : has to negotiate between these 2 & make decisions about how to behave…
 Conflicts among/between these 3 personality parts cause mental disorders and stresses
 Freud said we use defense mechanisms” to “hide” these conflicts from ourselves; we hide them in our unconscious….and this keeps the disorders going…
-we have to face them to “clear the air”
-therapist is the one to guide you to this
*Like a “ festering sore ”…we have to clean out this infections which can cause these mental problems
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 Ways to access the unconscious & subconscious :
1) free association : Say the 1st things that comes to mind… “I say a word & you tell me what pops into your mind…” OR relax on couch & say 1 st thing in your mind
2) dream analysis & symbolism in dreams : psychoanalyst interprets & explains dreams to help rid you of what’s bothering you
3) info you give to the analyst RE: your childhood , thoughts, etc .: he/she interprets & “figures you out”
4) hypnosis could also access unconscious mind
 Psychosexual Development : Fr. thought all human development was based on sexual stages that were tied to the development of our personalities & our minds
-these stages were controlled by certain “ erogenous zones ” at different times thru our childhood
-he felt we had to work out or “solve” a certain task at each of these stages in order to move on properly to the next stage
-if didn’t work it out properly, we could get “stuck” in a stage & have problems from that (fixation) 47

 Freud’s Stages of psychosexual devel.: (Remember… NOT valid!!)
1) oral stage : birth – 18 months; main task = weaning
--if don’t do properly can be sarcastic (“biting”) or obsessed w/ things in their mouth…chew fingernails, pencils, smoke, etc.
2) anal stage : about 1 ½ yrs. – 3 yrs.
-main task = toilet training
-conflicts or problems w/ this can cause either anal retentiveness (extremely neat/orderly/concerned with details) or
3) anal expulsiveness phallic stage complex
(extremely messy, disorderly)
: about 3 yrs. – 6 yrs.: task = identify sexually w/ same sex parent
-if not done properly, could = either Oedipus or Electra
-boys love Mom & want to replace/kill father
-girls love Daddy & want to replace/kill mother
-girls also develop “penis envy” at this stage b/c see themselves as missing something & blame Mom
-also said homosexuality could devel. from problems at this time 48

4)
5) latent stage genital
: 6 yrs. – 11 yrs.; no real task to work out
--experience gender stage gender segregation : separate selves by
: 11 yrs. thru adolescence: Identify romantic feeling for opposite sex
-then develop into “normal” relationships
-homosexuality was seen as a disorder
NOTE: it is no longer viewed as disorder by psych.
libido : to Freud, was the drive & the energy that pushes & motivates us to do and/or get things; it now mainly refers to our “sex drives”
** There are now very few if any true Freudian psychoanalytical psychologists
-those now based on Freud’s ideas call themselves psychodynamic or psychosocial psychologists
(neo-Freudians)
--no longer believe sex = main motivation
-they say the urge to driving urge in humans , from parents to friends to lovers, etc… socialize with others is the main
49

OUT of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
vs.
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