Central to Rogers' personality theory is the notion of self or self-concept.

This is defined as
"the organized, consistent set of perceptions and beliefs about oneself".
The self is the humanistic term for who we really are as a person. The self is our inner
personality, and can be likened to the soul, or Freud's psyche. The self is influenced by the
experiences a person has in their life, and out interpretations of those experiences. Two
primary sources that influence our self-concept are childhood experiences and evaluation
by others.
According to Rogers (1959), we want to feel, experience and behave in ways which are
consistent with our self-image and which reflect what we would like to be like, our ideal-self.
The closer our self-image and ideal-self are to each other, the more consistent or congruent
we are and the higher our sense of self-worth. A person is said to be in a state of
incongruence if some of the totality of their experience is unacceptable to them and is
denied or distorted in the self-image.

The humanistic approach states that the self is composed of concepts unique to ourselves. The
self-concept includes three components:
Self worth (or self-esteem) what we think about ourselves. Rogers believed feelings of
self-worth developed in early childhood and were formed from the interaction of the child
with the mother and father.
Self-image How we see ourselves, which is important to good psychological health.
Self-image includes the influence of our body image on inner personality. At a simple
level, we might perceive ourselves as a good or bad person, beautiful or ugly. Self-image
has an affect on how a person thinks feels and behaves in the world.
Ideal self This is the person who we would like to be. It consists of our goals and
ambitions in life, and is dynamic i.e. forever changing. The ideal self in childhood is not
the ideal self in our teens or late twenties etc.

Rogers based his personality development propositions on humanistic (personcentered) psychology and phenomenal field (subjective experience) theory. He
believed that everyone exists in a constantly changing world of experience in which
he/she is the center. A person reacts to changes in his/her phenomenal field in a
holistic fashion . All behavior is motivated by self-actualizing tendencies, which
drives a person to achieve at his/her highest level. As a result of these interactions
with the environment and others, an individual forms a structure of the selfan
organized, fluid, conceptual pattern of concepts and values related to the self.

The Phenomenal Field

The phenomenal field refers to a person's subjective reality that includes external
objects and people as well as internal thoughts and emotions.
In the development of the self-concept, Rogers elevated the importance of positive
regard or feedback. People raised in an environment of unconditional positive
regard, in which no preconceived conditions of worth are present, had the
opportunity to fully actualize. People raised in an environment of conditional
positive regard, in which certain conditions of worth are laid out by others, must
match or achieve those conditions to fully actualize. The extent to which a person is
forced to develop outside of true actualizing tendency determines personality
incongruencethe gap between the real self and the ideal self. Incongruity grows or
diminishes based on the conditionality level of positive regard and self-regard,
leading to either disorganized and bizarre or organized and functional personalities.

The Good Life

Rogers described life in terms of principles rather than stages of development.
These principles existed in fluid processes rather than static states. He claimed that
a fully functioning person would continually aim to fulfill his/her potential at each of
these processes, achieving what he called the good life. These people would allow
personality and self-concept to emanate from experience. He found that fully
functioning individuals had several traits or tendencies in common:

Growing openness to experiences and a lack of defensiveness toward anything new.

Increasingly existential lifestyle in which each moment is appreciated and lived to
its fullest.
Preponderance for organismic trust of their own judgments and choices.
Greater freedom of choice and a lack of personal restrictions or rules.
Higher levels of creativity and adaptability without necessarily conforming.
Extreme reliability and constructiveness in their dealings with others.
Tendency toward rich, full lives with exciting and intense experiences.
The "maladjusted person" is the polar opposite of the fully functioning individual (who was introduced
early in this essay). The maladjusted individual is defensive, maintains rather than enhances his/her
life, lives according to a preconceived plan, feels manipulated rather than free, and is common and
conforming rather than creative (Maddi, 1996). The fully functioning person, in contrast, is completely
defense-free, open to experience, creative and able to live "the good life". Empirical support for the
fully functioning person is somewhat mixed. The openness to experience characteristic has been
supported (Coan, 1972; cited in Maddi, 1996). However, some studies have found that openness to
experience and organismic trusting did not intercorrelate, contrary to expectations (Pearson, 1969,
1974; cited in Maddi, 1996). Ryckmann (1993) otes that some studies have found non-defensive

people are more accepting of others and Maddi (1996) cites numerous studies that indicate selfaccepting people also appear to be more accepting of others.
It is somewhat puzzling given his humanistic emphasis on individuality, that Rogers describes only two
extremes of people. Maddi (1996) suggests these extreme characterizations of only two types may be
due to this personality theory being secondary to a theory of therapy. It is appropriate for a theory of
psychotherapy to concern itself with the two extremes of fullest functioning and maladjustment.
However, when theorizing about all people, two types are insufficient.
Carl Rogers was most interested in improving the human condition and applying his ideas. His personcentered therapy may well be his most influential contribution to psychology. Rogers' pervasive
interest in therapy is what clearly differentiates him from Maslow, despite some similarities in their
ideas. The person-centered approach has had impact on domains outside of therapy such as family
life, education, leadership, conflict resolution, politics and community health (Krebs & Blackman,
1988). In my opinion, Rogers greatest contribution may lie in his encouraging a humane and ethical
treatment of persons, approaching psychology as a human science rather than a natural science.

Although the behavioural consequence of conditioning may appear to be merely the development of an
anticipatory reflex, the underlying process is fundamental to learning about the relationship among
environmental events. Sensory preconditioning tells us that when neutral stimuli co-occur, an association
forms between them. Presumably, the informal equivalent of sensory preconditioning will be occurring all
the time as an animal goes about its normal everyday business. Simply moving through the environment
will expose the animal to sequences of events that go together, and the associations that form among
them will constitute an important piece of knowledge a map of its world.
2. As a laboratory procedure, classical conditioning is important because it allows exploration of the
nature of associative learning. The observed CR (salivation, pecking, or whatever) may not be of much
interest in itself, but it provides a useful index of the otherwise unobservable formation of an association.
Researchers have made extensive use of simple classical conditioning procedures as a sort of test bed
for developing theories of associative learning. Some of these will be described in a later section of this
chapter.
3. As a mechanism of behavioural adaptation, classical conditioning is an important process in its own
right. Although the CRs (such as salivation) studied in the laboratory may be trivial, their counterparts in
the real world produce effects of major psychological significance. Here are two examples from the
behaviour of our own species.

The implications of classical conditioning in the classroom are less important than those
ofoperant conditioning, but there is a still need for teachers to try to make sure that students
associate positive emotional experiences with learning.
If a student associates negative emotional experiences with school then this can obviously
have bad results, such as creating a school phobia

Classical Conditioning

The Pavlovian experiment. While studying digestive reflexes in dogs, Russian

scientist, Pavlov, made the discovery that led to the real beginnings of behavioral
theory. He could reliably predict that dogs would salivate when food was placed in the
mouth through a reflex called the "salivary reflex" in digestion. Yet he soon realized
that, after time, the salivary reflex occurred even before the food was offered. Because
the sound of the door and the sight of the attendant carrying the food "had repeatedly
and reliably preceded the delivery of food to the mouth in the past," the dogs had
transferred the reflex to these events (Schwartz & Lacy, 1982, p. 21). Thus, the dogs
began salivating simply at the door's sound and the attendant's presence. Pavlov
continued experimenting with the dogs using a tone to signal for food. He found that
the results matched and the dogs had begun to salivate with the tone and without food
(Schwartz & Lacy, 1982, pp. 20-24).
What Pavlov discovered was first order conditioning. In this process, a neutral
stimulus that causes no natural response in an organism is associated with an
unconditioned stimulus, an event that automatically or naturally causes a response.
This usually temporal association causes the response to the unconditioned stimulus,
the unconditioned response, to transfer to the neutral stimulus. The unconditioned
stimulus no longer needs to be there for the response to occur in the presence of the
formerly neutral stimulus. Given that this response is not natural and has to be
learned, the response is now a conditioned response and the neutral stimulus is now a
conditioned stimulus.
Second order conditioning. When another neutral stimulus is introduced and
associated with the conditioned stimulus, even further conditioning takes place. The
conditioned response trained to occur only after the conditioned stimulus now
transfers to the neutral stimulus making it another conditioned stimulus. Now the
second conditioned stimulus can cause the response without both the first conditioned
stimulus and the unconditioned stimulus. Thus, many new conditioned responses can
be learned.
Modern classical conditioning. Whereas Pavlov and most of his contemporaries saw
classical conditioning as learning that comes from exposing an organism to
associations of environmental events, modern classical conditioning theorists, like R.
A. Rescorla, prefer to define it in more specific terms. Rescorla emphasizes the fact
that contiguity or a temporal relationship between the unconditioned stimulus and the
conditioned stimulus is not enough for Pavlovian conditioning to occur. Instead, the
conditioned stimulus must relate some information about the unconditioned stimulus
(Rescorla, 1988, pp. 151-153).

The importance of this distinction can be seen in the experimental work done by
Kamin (1969) and his blocking effect. In his experiment, rats were exposed to a tone
followed by a shock. Following Pavlovian conditioning principles, the tone became a
conditioned response. Yet, when the same rats were exposed to a tone and a light
followed by a shock, no conditioning occurred with the light. This was because the
tone had already related the information of the shock's arrival.

Critical Evaluation
Classical conditioning emphasizes the importance of learning from the environment, and
supports nurture over nature. However, it is limiting to describe behavior solely in terms of
either nature or nurture, and attempts to do this underestimate the complexity of human
behavior. It is more likely that behavior is due to an interaction between nature (biology) and
nurture (environment).
A strength of classical conditioning theory is that it is scientific. This is because it's based on
empirical evidence carried out by controlled experiments. For example, Pavlov (1902)
showed how classical conditioning can be used to make dog salivate to the sound of a bell.
Classical conditioning is also a reductionist explanation of behavior. This is because
complex behavior is broken down into smaller stimulus - response units of behavior.
Supporters of a reductionist approach say that it is scientific. Breaking complicated
behaviors down to small parts means that they can be scientifically tested. However, some
would argue that the reductionist view lacks validity. Thus, whilst reductionism is useful, it
can lead to incomplete explanations.

Allports 4,000 traits

Gordon Allport was one of the pioneers of formal personality psychology, and is
considered a trait theorist. Allport in 1936 went through a dictionary and picked out
more than 4,000 words that describe the human personality. While these would make
up the greater toolbox of Allports trait theory, he was able to group them into three
main categories, and believed that only a few traits really define who we are.
He called these defining traits, Central Traits, a small number of traits that together
dominate a persons behavior. The traits share the makeup of a personality, and can be

descriptions like shy, intelligent or honest. Coming in at a less influential level are
Secondary Traits. These are aspects of a personality that may be situational, or of
limited importance, such as disliking being in closed spaces or crowds.
Finally, Allport theorized that occasionally but notably, one central trait will emerge as a
dominant force in a personality. He called this a Cardinal Trait, which becomes a
persons defining personality trait that overshadows all others.

Strengths
One strength of the trait perspective is its ability to categorize observable
behaviors. Researchers have found that examining the aggregate behaviors of
individuals provides a strong correlation with traits. In other words, observing the
behaviors of an individual over time and in various circumstances provides evidence
for the personality traits categorized in trait theories.

Another strength is that trait theory uses objective criteria for categorizing and
measuring behavior. Along with this strength is the strength that trait theories were
developed often independently of each other and using factor analysis to derive at a
specific set of traits. Trait theorists, while developing their theories independent of
each other, often arrived at a similar set of traits through factor analysis.

Limitations
One criticism of the trait perspective lies in their predictive value. Critics argue that
traits do a poor job of predicting behavior in every situation. Some psychologists
argue that the situational variables (i.e., environmental factors) determine behavior,
not traits; other psychologists argue that a combination of traits and situational
variables influence behavior.

Another limitation of trait theory is that it requires personal observations or selfreport to measure. Self-report measures require that an individual be introspective
enough to understand his or her own behavior. Personal observations requires that
an individual spend enough time observing someone else in a number of situations
in order to be able to provide an accurate assessment of behaviors. Both of these
measures are subject to observer bias and other forms of inaccuracy.

Another limitation, and criticism, of trait theory is that is does not explain why an
individual behaves as he or she does. Trait theories provide information about
people, and about which traits cause which behaviors, but there is no indication as
to why these traits interact in the way that they do. For example, an extroverted
individual is energized by social interactions and seeks out social situations, but

trait theory does not offer any explanation for why this might occur or why the
introvert would avoid such situations.

Personality can be defined as consistency in a persons way of being that is,

long-term consistency in their particular ways of perceiving, thinking, acting and
reacting as a person. Organised patterns of thought and feeling and behaviour.

It is this general predictability in individuals thought patterns, behaviour

patterns and emotional patterns which defines personality

Five Factors?
When we describe someones personality, we use words which characterise
whatever makes that person distinctive and perhaps even unique. This is partly
because we tend to notice peoples most outstanding characteristics (as
opposed to ways in which they are just average)

The Big Five

These are known as the Big Five. We could simply call them Factor 1, Factor 2
and so on, but they have been labelled as follows:

EXTROVERSION the tendency to be outgoing, energetic and sociable

OPENNESS the tendency to enjoy variety, novelty, challenge and

intellectual stimulation

NEUROTICISM the tendency to experience unpleasant emotions

AGREEABLENESS the tendency to be friendly, compassionate and

cooperative

CONSCIENTIOUSNESS the tendency to show self-discipline and selfcontrol

The H Factor
The five factors are not etched in stone, however. Many studies show that we
can include a sixth factor, called Honesty/Humility (or the H factor). This is
essentially a dimension of character maturity, ranging from high selfishness to
high integrity.

Facets
We could, however, be very strict with the numbers and look for tight clusters
between words which are strongly connected. When researchers do this, they
can identify 20-30 factors, or facets.

Nature + Nurture
Beyond all those one-sided psychological theories lies the general consensus:
that our personality is built on a combination of conscious (voluntary) and
unconscious (involuntary) factors.
It depends upon your perspective on human nature.
If you believe in a mechanical universe in which people are merely puppets
driven by their genes, their brains, and their environments, then the personality

is simply temperament: its a set of hard-wired behavioural tendencies forged

by all those genetic, biological, and environmental factors.
If you believe that people can forge themselves to some extent, then
personality is more to do with character: a set of strengths and virtues, as well
as weaknesses and vices, that each individual develops through life, and
sometimes struggles to get to grips with.
If you believe that the universe is a self-creating consciousness, exploring and
expressing itself through the myriad forms of humanity and other creatures,
then personality is an individually-tailored vehicle for such exploration.

A schedule of reinforcement is a tactic used in operant conditioning that

influences how an operant response is learned and maintained. Each type
of schedule imposes a rule or program that attempts to determine how
and when a desired behavior occurs. Behaviors are encouraged through
the use of reinforcers, discouraged through the use of punishments, and
rendered extinct by the removal of a stimulus altogether. Schedules vary
from simple ratio and interval-based schedules to more complicated
compound schedules that combine one or more simple strategies to
manipulate behavior.

Certain schedules of reinforcement may be more effective in specific situations. There

are two types of reinforcement schedules:

1. Continuous Reinforcement
In continuous reinforcement, the desired behavior is reinforced every single time it
occurs. Generally, this schedule is best used during the initial stages of learning in order
to create a strong association between the behavior and the response. Once the
response if firmly attached, reinforcement is usually switched to a partial reinforcement
schedule.

2. Partial Reinforcement

In partial reinforcement, the response is reinforced only part of the time. Learned
behaviors are acquired more slowly with partial reinforcement, but the response is more
resistant to extinction.
There are four schedules of partial reinforcement:
1.

Fixed-ratio schedules are those where a response is reinforced only after a specified
number of responses. This schedule produces a high, steady rate of responding with only a
brief pause after the delivery of the reinforcer.

2.

Variable-ratio schedules occur when a response is reinforced after an unpredictable

number of responses. This schedule creates a high steady rate of responding. Gambling and
lottery games are good examples of a reward based on a variable ratio schedule. In a lab
setting, this might involved delivering food pellets to a rat after one bar press, again after four
bar presses, and a third pellet after two bar presses.

3.

Fixed-interval schedules are those where the first response is rewarded only after a
specified amount of time has elapsed. This schedule causes high amounts of responding
near the end of the interval, but much slower responding immediately after the delivery of the
reinforcer.

4.

Variable-interval schedules occur when a response is rewarded after an unpredictable

amount of time has passed. This schedule produces a slow, steady rate of response. An
example of this would be delivering a food pellet to a rat after the first bar press following a
one minute interval, another pellet for the first response following a five minute interval, and a
third food pellet for the first response following a three minute interval.

Choosing a Schedule
Deciding when to reinforce a behavior can depend upon a number of factors. In cases
where you are specifically trying to teach a new behavior, a continuous schedule is often
a good choice. Once the behavior has been learned, switching to a partial schedule is
often preferable.

w behaviors.

There are three core concepts at the heart of social learning theory. First is the idea that
people can learn through observation. Next is the notion that internal mental states are
an essential part of this process. Finally, this theory recognizes that just because
something has been learned, it does not mean that it will result in a change in behavior.

People can learn through observation.

Observational Learning
Bandura identified three basic models of observational learning:
1.

A live model, which involves an actual individual demonstrating or acting out a

behavior.

2.

A verbal instructional model, which involves descriptions and explanations of a

behavior.

3.

A symbolic model, which involves real or fictional characters displaying behaviors

in books, films, television programs, or online media.

2. Mental states are important to learning.

Intrinsic Reinforcement
Bandura noted that external, environmental reinforcement was not the only factor to
influence learning and behavior. He described intrinsic reinforcement as a form of
internal reward, such as pride, satisfaction, and a sense of accomplishment. This
emphasis on internal thoughts and cognitions helps connect learning theories to
cognitive developmental theories. While many textbooks place social learning theory
with behavioral theories, Bandura himself describes his approach as a 'social cognitive
theory.'

3. Learning does not necessarily lead to a change in behavior.

.

The Modeling Process

Not all observed behaviors are effectively learned. Factors involving both the model and
the learner can play a role in whether social learning is successful. Certain requirements
and steps must also be followed. The following steps are involved in the observational
learning and modeling process:

Attention:
In order to learn, you need to be paying attention. Anything that distracts your
attention is going to have a negative effect on observational learning. If the model
interesting or there is a novel aspect to the situation, you are far more likely to
dedicate your full attention to learning.

Retention:
The ability to store information is also an important part of the learning process.
Retention can be affected by a number of factors, but the ability to pull up information
later and act on it is vital to observational learning.

Reproduction:
Once you have paid attention to the model and retained the information, it is time to
actually perform the behavior you observed. Further practice of the learned behavior
leads to improvement and skill advancement.

Motivation:
Finally, in order for observational learning to be successful, you have to be motivated
to imitate the behavior that has been modeled. Reinforcement and punishment play
an important role in motivation. While experiencing these motivators can be highly
effective, so can observing other experience some type of reinforcement or
punishment. For example, if you see another student rewarded with extra credit for
being to class on time, you might start to show up a few minutes early each day.

According to Horney, basic anxiety (and therefore neurosis) could result from a variety of
things including, " . . . direct or indirect domination, indifference, erratic behavior, lack of
respect for the child's individual needs, lack of real guidance, disparaging attitudes, too

much admiration or the absence of it, lack of reliable warmth, having to take sides in
parental disagreements, too much or too little responsibility, over-protection, isolatiofrom
other children, injustice, discrimination, unkept promises, hostile atmosphere, and so on
and so on" (Horney, 1945).
These 10 neurotic needs can be classed into three broad categories:
1.

Needs that move you towards others.

These neurotic needs cause individuals to seek affirmation and acceptance from others and
are often described as needy or clingy as they seek out approval and love.

2.

Needs that move you away from others.

These neurotic needs create hostility and antisocial behavior. These individuals are often
described as cold, indifferent, and aloof.

3.

Needs that move you against others.

These neurotic needs result in hostility and a need to control other people. These individuals

are often described as difficult, domineering, and unkind.

Well-adjusted individuals utilize all three of these strategies, shifting focus depending on internal
and external factors. So what is it that makes these coping strategies neurotic? According to
Horney, it is the overuse of one or more of these interpersonal styles.Neurotic people tend to
utilize two or more of these ways of coping, creating conflict, turmoil, and confusion.
In her book Self-Analysis (1942), Horney outlined the 10 neurotic needs she had identified:

1. The Neurotic Need for Affection and Approval

This needs include the desires to be liked, to please other people, and meet the expectations of
others. People with this type of need are extremely sensitive to rejection and criticism and fear
the anger or hostility of others.

2. The Neurotic Need for a Partner Who Will Take Over Ones Life
These involve the need to be centered on a partner. People with this need suffer extreme fear of
being abandoned by their partner. Oftentimes, these individuals place an exaggerated
importance on love and believe that having a partner will resolve all of lifes troubles.

3. The Neurotic Need to Restrict Ones Life Within Narrow Borders

Individuals with this need prefer to remain inconspicuous and unnoticed. They are undemanding
and content with little. They avoid wishing for material things, often making their own needs
secondary and undervaluing their own talents and abilities.

4. The Neurotic Need for Power

Individuals with this need seek power for its own sake. They usually praise strength, despise
weakness, and will exploit or dominate other people. These people fear personal limitations,
helplessness, and uncontrollable situations.

5. The Neurotic Need to Exploit Others

These individuals view others in terms of what can be gained through association with them.
People with this need generally pride themselves in their ability to exploit other people and are
often focused on manipulating others to obtain desired objectives, including such things as
ideas, power, money, or sex.

6. The Neurotic Need for Prestige

Individuals with a need for prestige value themselves in terms of public recognition and acclaim.
Material possessions, personality characteristics, professional accomplishments, and loved
ones are evaluated based upon prestige value. These individuals often fear public
embarrassment and loss of social status.

7. The Neurotic Need for Personal Admiration

Individuals with a neurotic need for personal admiration are narcissistic and have an
exaggerated self-perception. They want to be admired based on this imagined self-view, not
upon how they really are.

8. The Neurotic Need for Personal Achievement

According to Horney, people push themselves to achieve greater and greater things as a result
of basic insecurity. These individuals fear failure and feel a constant need to accomplish more
than other people and to top even their own earlier successes.

9. The Neurotic Need for Self-Sufficiency and Independence

These individuals exhibit a loner mentality, distancing themselves from others in order to avoid
being tied down or dependent upon other people.

10. The Neurotic Need for Perfection and Unassailability

These individuals constantly strive for complete infallibility. A common feature of this
neurotic need is searching for personal flaws in order to quickly change or cover up
these perceived imperfections.