Myers’ EXPLORING
PSYCHOLOGY
(6th Ed)
Chapter 12
Personality
Modified from:
James A. McCubbin, PhD
Clemson University
Worth Publishers
What is Personality?
 Personality
 Individual’s characteristic pattern of
thinking, feeling, & acting
 Historic perspectives
Psychoanalytic
Humanistic
Psychoanalytic
Perspective
 Freud’s Theory
 Proposed that childhood sexuality &
unconscious motivations influence personality
 Psychoanalysis
 Attributes thoughts & actions to unconscious
motives & conflicts
 Treat psychological disorders by seeking to
expose & interpret unconscious tensions
 Used free association to explore unconscious
Psychoanalytic
Perspective
 Unconscious
 According to Freud - a reservoir of mostly
unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings &
memories
 Contemporary viewpoint - information
processing of which we are unaware
Personality Structure
 Id
 Reservoir of unconscious psychic energy
 Strives to satisfy basic sexual & aggressive drives
 Pleasure principle (immediate gratification)
 Ego
 Largely conscious, “executive” part of personality
 Mediates among demands of id, superego, & reality
 Reality principle, satisfying id’s desires in ways that will
realistically bring pleasure rather than pain
 Superego
 Internalized ideals
 Standards for judgment (conscience) & aspirations
Personality
Development
 Psychosexual Stages
 Childhood stages of development during
which id’s pleasure-seeking energies
focus on distinct erogenous zones
 Fixation
 Lingering focus of pleasure-seeking
energies at earlier psychosexual stage,
where conflicts unresolved
Personality
Development
Freud’s Psychosexual Stages
Stage
Focus
Oral
(0-18 months)
Pleasure centers on the mouth-sucking, biting, chewing
Anal
(18-36 months)
Pleasure focuses on bowel and bladder
elimination; coping with demands for
control
Pleasure zone is the genitals; coping with
incestuous sexual feelings
Phallic
(3-6 years)
Latency
(6 to puberty)
Dormant sexual feelings
Genital
(puberty on)
Maturation of sexual interests
Defense Mechanisms
 Ego’s protective methods of reducing
anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality
 Repression
 Regression
 Reaction Formation
 Projection
 Rationalization
 Displacement
Humanistic
Perspective
 Focused on ways “healthy” people strive
for self-determination & self-realization
 Maslow’s Self-Actualization
 Ultimate psychological need that arises
after basic physical & psychological
needs met & self-esteem achieved
 Motivation to fulfill one’s potential
Humanistic
Perspective
 Rogers’ Person-Centered Perspective
 Focused on growth & fulfillment of individuals
 Requires genuineness, empathy & acceptance
 Unconditional Positive Regard
 Attitude of total acceptance toward another
 Self-Concept
 Central feature of personality for Rogers &
Maslow
 All thoughts & feelings about ourselves, in
answer to question, “Who am I?”
Contemporary Research:
Trait Perspective
 Trait
 Characteristic pattern of behavior or
 Disposition to feel & act, as assessed by selfreport inventories & peer reports
 Personality Inventory
 Questionnaire (often true-false or agreedisagree items) on which respond to items
designed to gauge wide range of feelings &
behaviors
 Assesses selected personality traits
Trait Perspective
 Minnesota Multiphasic Personality
Inventory (MMPI)
 Most widely researched & clinically used
of all personality tests
 Originally developed to identify
emotional disorders (considered most
appropriate use)
 Now used for other screening purposes
 Empirically Derived Test
Trait Perspective
The “Big Five” Personality Factors
Trait Dimension
Description (Endpts of Dimension)
Emotional Stability
Calm versus anxious
Secure versus insecure
Self-satisfied versus self-pitying
Extraversion
Sociable versus retiring
Fun-loving versus sober
Affectionate versus reserved
Openness
Imaginative versus practical
Preference for variety versus
preference for routine
Independent versus conforming
Agreeableness
Soft-hearted versus ruthless
Trusting versus suspicious
Helpful versus uncooperative
Organized versus disorganized
Careful versus careless
Disciplined versus impulsive
Conscientiousness
Contemporary Research:
Social-Cognitive Perspective
 Views behavior as influenced by
interaction between persons & social
context
 Reciprocal Determinism (Bandura)
 Interacting influences between
personality & environmental factors
Social-Cognitive
Perspective
 Personal Control
 Sense of controlling environments rather
than feeling helpless
 External Locus of Control
 Perception that chance or outside forces
beyond personal control determine fate
 Internal Locus of Control
 Perception that one controls own fate
 Learned Helplessness
Exploring the Self
 Spotlight Effect
 Overestimating others noticing &
evaluating our appearance, performance, &
blunders
 Self Esteem
 One’s feelings of high or low self-worth
 Self-Serving Bias
 Readiness to perceive oneself favorably
Individualism vs
Collectivism
Value Contrasts Between Individualism and Collectivism
Concept
Individualism
Self
Independent
(identity from individual traits)
Interdependent
(identity from belonging)
Life task
Discover and express one’s
uniqueness
Me--personal achievement and
fulfillment; rights and liberties
Maintain connections, fit in
What matters
Collectivism
We-group goals and solidarity;
social responsibilities and
relationships
Coping method
Change reality
Accommodate to reality
Morality
Defined by individuals
(self-based)
Defined by social networks
(duty-based)
Relationships
Many, often temporary or casual;
confrontation acceptable
Few, close and enduring;
harmony valued
Attributing
behaviors
Behavior reflects one’s personality
and attitudes
Behavior reflects social
and roles
THE END