Unit 6: Study Guide
Personality
In this section of the course, students come to understand the major theories and
approaches to personality: psychoanalytic/psychodynamic, humanistic, cognitive, trait, and
behaviorist. In the process, they learn about the background and thought of some of the
major contributors to the domain of personality, such as Alfred Adler, Gordon Allport, Albert
Bandura, Raymond Cattell, Hans Eysenck, Sigmond Freud, Carl Jung, Walter Mischel, and
Carl Rogers. Through their study in this area, students recognize that each of the
approaches to personality has implications for their understanding of both normal and
abnormal personality, the assessment of personality, models of personality development, and
the treatment of dysfunctional behavior.
Students also learn about research in personality, including the kinds of methods that are
employed (such as case studies and surveys), the differences among research orientations,
and the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. The course exposes students to the
major assessment techniques used in the study of personality, such as personality
inventories, projective tests, and behavioral observations. Discussion of these instruments
necessarily includes consideration of the reliability and validity of each.
In addition, students examine the idea of the self and the related issues of self-concept and
self-esteem. They learn how the self develops, how self-concept and self-esteem are
assessed, and how both of these constructs are related to the other aspects of the
individual’s functioning.
CR10: The course provides instruction in personality
Text:
Student Resources:
Timeline:
Chapter 15 (pp. 595 – 636)
Flashcards from text
www.worthpublishers.com/myers8e
Racing against your heart, Forty Studies, pp. 210 – 216
You’re getting defensive again! Forty Studies, pp. 234 – 241
6 days
An emphasis on
 Personality Theories and Approaches
 Assessment Techniques
 Types of Tests
 Standardization and Norms
 Reliability and Validity
 Ethics and Standards in Testing
 Self-concept, Self-esteem
 Growth and Adjustment
 (6 – 8 % of multiple choice)
Unit 6: Personality
Key Terms
Free Association
Preconscious
Superego
Psychosexual Stages
Phallic
Anal Expulsive
Electra Complex
Repression
Reaction Formation
Sublimation
Denial
Intellectualization
Validity
Collective Unconscious
Personality Inventories
Extravert
Empirically Derived
Self-Esteem
Collectivism
Internal Locus of Control
Learned helplessness
Psychoanalysis
Libido
Ego
Oral
Latency
Anal Retentive
Identification
Regression
Rationalization
Humor
Avoidance
Projective Test
TAT
Personal Unconscious
MMPI
Factor Analysis
Hierarchy of Needs
Self-Serving Bias
Reciprocal Determinism
External Locus of Control
Positive Psychology
Unconscious
Id
Iceberg Theory
Anal
Genital
Oedipus Complex
Fixate
Projection
Displacement
Undoing
Compensation
Reliability
Rorschach Test
Traits
Introvert
Self-Actualized
Self-Concept
Individualism
Optimism
Key Concepts
Psychosexual Stages (Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency, Genital)
Big Five Personality Factors
Defense Mechanisms
Key People
Sigmund Freud*
___
Erik Erikson*
Karen Horney
___
Carl Jung*
Hermann Rorschach* ___
Henry Murray
Martin Seligman*
___
Albert Bandura*
Hans Eysenck and Sybil Eysenck ___
___
___
___
___
Alfred Adler*
___
Carl Rogers*
___
Abraham Maslow*___
Walter Mischel ___
A. Extroverts, Introverts, and the Collective Unconscious
B. I’m positive psychology can help us be optimistic
C. Icebergs. Principles. Defenses. Dreams. Hypnosis. Couch. Complexes.
D. Project your feelings onto the inkblots
E. I gave you bobo dolls and social-cognition
F. Consistently conscientious, huh? Well, maybe not always
G. I’m smart enough, strong enough, and doggone it, self-actualized!
H. Crisis, crisis – seems like my life is one crisis after another
I. I positively regard people as being good at heart, overall
J. TAT: ambiguous, but it may tell me something about you
K. Freud underestimated women and should have focused on attachments
L. It may sound complex, but I need to compensate for inferiorities
M. Factor these traits: extrovert, introvert, stable, unstable
Learning Outcomes
(from the Myers text – Chapter 15: Personality)
1. Define personality.
2. Explain how Freud’s experiences in private practice led to his theory of psychoanaysis.
3. Discuss Freud’s view of the mind as an iceberg, and explain how he used this image to
represent conscious and unconscious regions of the mind.
4. Describe Freud’s view of personality structure, and discuss the interactions of the id, ego,
and superego.
5. Identify Freud’s psychosexual stages of development, and describe the effects of fixation on
behavior.
6. Describe the function of defense mechanisms, and identify six of them.
7. Contrast the views of the neo-Freudians and psychodynamic theorists with Freud’s original
theory.
8. Describe two projective tests used to assess personality, and discuss some criticisms of
them.
9. Summarize psychology’s current assessment of Freud’s theory of psychoanalysis.
10. Summarize Abraham Maslow’s concept of self-actualization, and explain how his ideas
illustrate the humanistic perspective.
11. Discuss Carl Rogers’ person-centered perspective, and explain the importance of
unconditional positive regard.
12. Explain how humanistic psychologists assessed personality.
13. State the major criticisms of the humanistic perspective on personality.
14. Cite the main difference between the trait and psychoanalytic perspectives on personality.
15. Describe some of the ways psychologists have attempted to compile a list of basic personality
traits.
16. Explain how psychologists use personality inventories to assess traits, and discuss the most
widely used personality inventory.
17. Identify the Big Five personality factors, and discuss some of the strengths of this approach
to study personality.
18. Summarize the person-situation controversy, and explain its importance as a commentary on
the trait perspective.
19. Explain why psychologists are interested in the consistency of the trait of expressiveness.
20. Describe the social-cognitive perspective, and explain how reciprocal determinism illustrates
that perspective.
21. Discuss the effects of a perception of internal or external control and describe the concept of
learned helplessness.
22. Discuss the link between performance and optimistic or pessimistic attributional style, and
contrast positive psychology with humanistic psychology.
23. Explain why social-cognitive researchers assess behavior in realistic situations.
24. State the major criticism of the social-cognitive perspective.
25. Explain why psychology has generated so much research on the self, and give three examples
of current research on the self.
26. Give two alternative explanations for the positive correlation between low self-esteem and
personal problems.
27. Discuss some ways that people maintain their self-esteem under conditions of discrimination
or low status.
28. Discuss self-serving bias, and contrast defensive and secure self-esteem.