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Personality trait theories description
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- Personality is the collection of characteristic thoughts, feelings, and behaviours that make up a person.
- Personality traits are consistent and long lasting, while states are temporary.
- A personality trait is a interrelated system of concepts and principles used to understand and explain personality.
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Q
Gordon All port - individual trait
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unique to a person
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Q
Gordon Allport - common traits
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shared by a culture
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Q
Gordon Allport Hierarchy of three trait levels - cardinal traits
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so powerful that it effects most of a person’s activities
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Q
Gordon Allport Hierarchy of three trait levels - central traits
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These are general characteristics found in varying degrees in every person and are thought to be the building blocks of personality
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Q
Gordon Allport Hierarchy of three trait levels - secondary traits
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are only present under specific circumstances; they include things like preferences and attitudes.
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Q
Allport’s hypothesis
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internal and external forces influence an individual’s behavior and personality, and he referred to these forces as genotypes and phenotypes.
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Q
Genotypes
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internal forces that relate to how a person retains information and uses it to interact with the world.
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Phenotypes
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external forces that relate to the way an individual accepts his or her surroundings and how others influence his or her behavior.
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Q
Positives of Allport’s theory
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strict reliance on objective and statistical data, has no bias, describes everything
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Q
Negatives of Allport’s theory
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Poor predictor of future, does not address development, does not provide a way to change bad traits, measures the trait but explains no way how to change them.
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Q
Hans Esenck trait theory
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- Eysenck believed that everyone sits at one part of his 2D scale.
- Identified three dimensions of personality: extraversion, neuroticism and psychoticism.
- According to Eysenck, the two dimensions of neuroticism (stable vs. unstable) and introversion-extroversion combine to form a variety of personality characteristics.
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Q
Extrovert
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- Outgoing, embraces the world, responsive to social and physical stimulation
- In sensitive to stimulation (stimulus hungry), gets bored easily
- Sociable, outgoing, interactive, expressive, sensation seeking, acts first, thinks later, dislikes being alone
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Q
Introvert
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- Hesitant, reflective, withdraws from social and physical stimulation
- Sensitive to stimulation (stimulus shy)
- Private, reclusive, reserved, quiet, inward, sensitive, thinks before acting, exhausted by groups
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Q
High degree of neuroticism
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- More emotionally reactive
- Moody, tense, anxious
- Irritable
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Q
Low Degree of neuroticism
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- Less emotionally reactive (but still have emotions)
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Q
Big 5 Personality traits or OCEAN
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the most widely accepted structure among trait theorists and in personality psychology today
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Q
OCEAN
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- Openness to experience
- Conscientiousness
- Extraversion
- Agreeableness
- Neuroticism
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Q
OCEAN - Openness
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Trait - imagination, feelings, actions, ideas
Low Score - practical, conventional, prefers routine
High Score - Curious, wide range of interests, independent
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Q
OCEAN - Conscientiousness
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Trait - Competence, self-discipline, thoughtfulness, goal-driven
Low Score - Impulsive, careless, dosorganized
High score - Hard working, dependable, organized
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Q
OCEAN - Extroversion
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Trait - Sociability, assertiveness, emotional expression
Low Score - Quiet, reserved, withdrawn
High Score - Outgoing, warm, seeks adventure
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Q
OCEAN - Agreeableness
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Trait - Cooperative, trustworthy, good - natured
Low score - Critical, uncooperative, suspicious
High Score - Helpful, trusting, empathetic
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Q
OCEAN - Neuroticism
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Trait - Tendency toward unstable emotions
Low Score - Calm, even-tempered, secure
High Score - Anxious, unhappy, prone to negative emotions
24
Q
Negatives of OCEAN
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has limitations as an explanatory or predictive theory and that it does not explain all of human personality, neglects other domains of personality, is not based on any underlying theory; it is merely an empirical finding that certain descriptors cluster together under factor analysis. This means that while these five factors do exist, the underlying causes behind them are unknown
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Psychodynamic theories - description
• Personality is a result of unconscious psychological conflicts and how effectively these are resolved.
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"Iceberg Theory"
Freud believed the mind is like an iceberg with levels; conscious level, preconscious level and unconscious level
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Iceberg theory - Conscious theory
is everything we are thinking, remembering, feeling, sensing or are aware of at this particular moment.
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Iceberg theory - preconscious level
below the surface, information we often say is at the ‘back of our mind’. Can be bought to the conscious mind by thinking about it.
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Iceberg theory - unconscious level
we are not aware of these thoughts but they influence our conscious thoughts, storage place in our mind
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Model of the mind
ID, Ego, Superego
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Model of the mind - ID
- the primitive and instinctive component of personality
- The id is the impulsive (and unconscious) part of our psyche which responds directly and immediately to the instincts
- Personality of a newborn child is all ID
engages in primary process thinking, which is primitive illogical, irrational, and fantasy oriented.
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Model of the mind - ego
- - 'that part of the id which has been modified by the direct influence of the external world' (Freud 1923)
- works by reason
- works out realistic ways of satisfying IDs demands
- The ego has no concept of right or wrong; something is good simply if it achieves its end of satisfying without causing harm to itself or to the id. It engages in secondary process thinking, which is rational, realistic, and orientated towards problem solving.
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Model of the mind - Super-ego
- incorporates the values and morals of society which are learned from one's parents and others.
- has the function of persuading the ego to turn to moralistic goals rather than simply realistic ones and to strive for perfection.
- Conscience can punish ego through guilt or reward through proud feelings
- The ideal self (or ego-ideal) is an imaginary picture of how you ought to be
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Defense Mechanism
A mental manoeuvre that one consciously or unconsciously chooses to use to distort or falsify the truth of one’s experience in order to protect oneself from feeling painful emotions like shame, guilt, or anxiety.
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Defense Mechanism - Lying
One doesn’t tell the truth for either self-gain or to spare feeling ridicule, rejection, or punishment. Phrases like “I swear I didn’t do it,” or “It doesn’t mean anything” are often used when we know we haven’t lived up to our higher selves.
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Defense Mechanism - Rationalisation
Occurs when we tell an element of the truth, but deny the larger truth of the matter.
For example, “I could have won the race but the track was wet.” The larger truth was that someone was faster.
“I got fired, but the boss was a jerk.” Failures are a threat to the ego rationalisation doesn’t hurt as bad.
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Regression
When adult defence mechanisms stop working for us, we regress to a personality we had at childhood.
For example, when an adult doesn’t take responsibility, he says, “It’s not my fault, it’s her fault.”
Immature patterns of behaviour emerge such as bragging.
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Repression
The person forces the unacceptable or threatening feeling out of awareness to a point where he/she becomes unaware of it.
Examples could be a simple reprimand or as serious as a rape.
A person is asked, “how do you get along with your mother” and he responds, “just fine” as he turns pale. Negative feelings about the mother are so unacceptable that they block his awareness.
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Denial
The person doesn’t acknowledge the validity of the matter but acknowledges its presence. They oppose force with force.
For example, the alcoholic expresses, “I may like to drink, but I’m not an alcoholic.”
Or a smoker concludes that the evidence linking cigarette use to health problems is bogus.
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Suppression
The person is aware of the unacceptable desire and validates it but intentionally tries to keep it from expressing itself.
For example, “I know I’m an alcoholic so I’m going on the wagon.”
A homosexual who intentionally doesn’t date members of the same sex so that the unacceptable does not express itself.
An introvert is conditioned to be an extrovert.
He often suppress anger.
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Projection
The person attributes one’s own perceived negative attributes onto someone else.
For example, Bill blames the instructor for a bad grade when he didn’t study.
Sara says, “You envy me,” when Sara really envies the other person.
Sam cheats on his spouse and blames the spouse for cheating.
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Psychosexual stages of development
- Oral Stage (0-1 year)
- Anal Stage (1-3 years)
- Phallic Stage (3-5 or 6 years)
- Latency Stage (5 or 6 - puberty)
- Genital Stage (puberty - adult)
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Psychosexual stages of development - oral stage (0-1 year)
Center of Pleasure: Mouth
Conflict to Resolve: Weaning
Fixation behaviors
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Talking too much
Overeating
Smoking
Drinking excessively
Using "biting" sarcasm
Gossip
Desperate dependence on others
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Psychosexual stages of development - Anal STage (1-3 years)
Center of Pleasure: Bowel movements
Conflict to Resolve: Toilet training
Fixation behaviors
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Stingy
Extremely organized
Stubborn
Excessively concerned with control, cleanliness, orderliness, or details
Sloppy
Disorganized
Impulsive
The nature of this first conflict with authority can determine the child's future relationship with all forms of authority. Early or harsh potty training can lead to the child becoming an anal-retentive personality who hates mess, is obsessively tidy, punctual and respectful of authority. They can be stubborn and tight-fisted with their cash and possessions.
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Psychosexual stages of development - Phallic Stage (3-5 years)
Center of Pleasure: Genitals
Conflict to Resolve: Physical desire for opposite sex parent
Boys desire their mothers and would like to eliminate their fathers
Hostile fantasies about doing away with their fathers create a fear of retaliation from the father that is called castration anxiety
As a result, the child represses these desires and identifies with the father in order to possess the mother vicariously
The child becomes aware of anatomical sex differences, which sets in motion the conflict between erotic attraction, resentment, rivalry, jealousy and fear which Freud called the Oedipus complex (in boys) and the Electra complex (in girls). This is resolved through the process of identification, which involves the child adopting the characteristics of the same sex parent.
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Psychosexual Stages of development - The latent stage (6 years to puberty)
During this stage, sexual impulses lie dormant and the child focuses on education and matters like social skills and achievement
The purpose of this stage is to consolidate the child's same-sex identity
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Psychosexual stages of development - the genital stage (puberty through adult hood)
Center of Pleasure: Genitals
Conflict to Resolve: To redirect one's sexual urges toward appropriate attachment figures
With the development of sexual maturity, all of the child's previous fixations reemerge.
This is also the stage during which the child detaches him- or herself from the family, develops his or her identity, and must redirect his or her attachments toward peer love interests
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Positives of Freud's theories
- Made the case study method popular in psychology
- Highlighted the importance of childhood
- Views have influences almost every aspect of modern western though, in and out of psychology.
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Negatives of freud's theories
- Case studies – cannot generalise results
- Unscientific
- Too deterministic
- Biased sample
- Ignored meditational processes
- Rejects free will
- Unfalsifiable
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Humanistic theories - description
• At the centre of humanistic theories is the belief that people are born good and that they try to reach their potential throughout their lives
• This approach was popular in the 1960s
• Positive motivation toward higher levels of functioning
-given reasonable life conditions people will develop in desirable directions
• Potential for growth and change
• Today rather than the past
~There is more to human existence than dealing with hidden conflicts (Anti-Freud)
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Rodgers humanistic personality theory
* Personality develops in service to positive goals
* Everyone has innate capacities, capabilities, and potentials
* *Goal of life: become the best version of whatever each of us is capable of
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Rodgers - actualizing tendency
biological push toward fulfillment
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Rodgers - self actualizing tendency
drive of humans to fulfill their self-concepts or images they have formed for themselves. Example: If you think you are intelligent you will strive to live up to that image
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Rodgers - what makes a person fully functioning? - fully functioning
an individual whose self-concept closely resembles his or her inborn capacities or potentials.
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Rodgers - what makes a person fully functioning? - Unconditional positive regard
full acceptance and love of another person regardless of that person’s behavior.
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Rodgers - what makes a person fully functioning? - COnditional positive regard
acceptance and love that are extended only when a person behaves in certain ways and fulfils certain conditions.
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Maslow's humanistic theory
* We all have hierarchy of needs
| * We have to hold all elements of the first level in order to move on to the next.
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Maslow's hierarchy of needs
- self actualization (creativity, spontaneity, problem solving, lack of prejudice)
- esteem (self esteem, sonfidence, achievement, respect of others)
- love/belonging (friendship, family, sexual intimacy)
- safety (security of: body, employments, health, morality)
- physiological (breathing, food, water, sex, sleep)
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Nature
* Due to inherited characteristics and innate drives
* Genes control many physical characteristics such as sex, eye colour and blood type.
* Your genetic make up is called your GENOTYPE
* The observable physical and psychological expression of your genes is called your PHENOTYPE
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Nurture
Due to environmental influences and learning
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Twin studies
* In science we wish to minimize the amount of variables in an experiment.
* To test whether a personality traits are genetic a scientist could study two sets of twins (di and monozygotic) and focus on a certain personality trait. If the monozygotic twins share a trait and the dizygotic don’t it is likely that the trait is genetically based.
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Adoption Studies
* Adopted non-biological siblings share the same home environment but they will have different genes. Therefore researchers assume similarities between adopted siblings are environmental.
* Research has found that growing up in the same house has little influence on many traits. (Think about your siblings)
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Determnism
• A deterministic view is one that describes behaviour as not being under the control of the person. No choice in whether you act or behave in a certain way
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Reductionsim
• The belief that human behaviour can be explained by one cause i.e. Simple explanations
Psychology
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