PERSONALITY

Personality refers to the unique characteristics that account for our enduring patterns of inner experience and outward behavior. Psychological research has historically focused on the divide between nature and nurture explanations of personality development. Increasingly, however, psychologists and biologists have come to acknowledge that environmental experience and biological mechanisms interact to shape personality. Theories For the greater part of the twentieth century, two schools of thought, psychoanalytic theory and humanistic theory, coexisted with little overlap, in part because they offered such contrasting views of what it meant to be human. While, psychoanalytic theory emphasized the notion of unconscious, instinctual, often dark desires that have to be held in check. Humanistic psychological approaches instead emphasized the essential goodness of humankind. Although research has demonstrated flaws in both theories, it is impossible to appreciate modern personality theories without first considering the contributions of psychoanalytic and humanistic thought. Psychoanalytic Theories Sigmund Freud - The psychoanalytic model was formulated by the Viennese neurologist Sigmund Freud (18561939) at the beginning of the twentieth century. In Freuds view, the personality forms as a result of struggles between primal needs and social or moral restraints. Essential to Freuds ideas about how a personality develops are his views of the conscious and unconscious mind. To Freud, the mind is a little like an iceberg, with only the top of the massive entity visible to the outside world. Three levels of consciousness contain the

information stored in our minds, and only a small portion of that information is available to normal awareness.

1. The topmost level is the conscious mind, composed of the thoughts and feelings of which we are aware at any given moment. 2. The second level, just below the surface, is the preconscious, which contains mental content that can be easily brought into the conscious mind if it is attended to. For example, your mothers birthday or your plans for this evening remain in your preconscious until you need to use the information, at which point the information is transferred into your conscious awareness. 3. The deepest level, the unconscious, contains most of the content of our minds. We are unaware of this content and cannot become aware of it except under special circumstances.

Freud identified three central forces in personality development: basic instinctual drives (which he called the id), rational thoughts (the ego), and moral limits (the superego). The id is present at birth and represents basic instinctual needs and desires, such as those related to eating, sleeping, sex, and comfort. These impulses are governed by the pleasure principle; that is, they constantly strive for gratification. Freud believed that most of these basic impulses have sexual overtones and that sexual energy, which he called libido, fuels the id. Due to the simple nature of the ids needs and its urgent demand for satisfaction, it is often described as immature and childlike. The id resides largely in the unconscious; it is not readily available to consciousness. The ego develops as children grow older and begin to learn that their id impulses cannot always be satisfied. The ego works under the reality principlethe awareness that it is not always possible or acceptable to have all wants and desires met. Much like the id, the ego is responsible for satisfying impulses, but instead of demanding immediate and direct gratification, the ego first assesses what is realistically possible. Freud essentially saw the ego as the rational, problem-solving force that constantly strives to keep id-based impulses from bursting forth in a destructive manner. You might conclude that the ego is largely a product of the conscious mind, but Freud believed that it works both consciously and unconsciously. The superego, which also forms during childhood, is in charge of determining which impulses are acceptable to express openly and which are unacceptable. The superego develops as children observe the behaviors of those in their families and their culture. As children, we internalizeor unconsciously adoptthe values and norms embodied in those behaviors and begin to evaluate ourselves with respect to them. The superegos standards of right and wrong comprise our moral code and remain stable over the course of our lives. Our superego might therefore be thought of as our consciencean entity that leads us to feel guilt and sometimes even anxiety. Like the ego, the superego resides in both the conscious and the unconscious mind.

According to Freud, the ego acts as a mediator between the id and superego, balancing the powerful desires of the id with the moral standards of the superego. Freud believed that the three forces are always in conflict to some degree, usually at an unconscious level. Personality problems and even psychological disorders may result if a person is not able to find acceptable compromises. Freud believed that as the id, the ego, and the superego work with and against one another, children move through stages that result in the development of personality. The two drives that influence these stages most strongly are sexuality and aggression. To Freud, these drives are the most likely to cause internal conflict because they are the ones that most often fall under social and moral constraints and the ones that are most likely to be left unsatisfied. Accordingly, the stages of development are termed psychosexual stages and several are named after specific erogenous zones, or pleasure-producing areas of the body.

Internal conflict, often resulting in anxiety, is central to personality development in psychoanalytic theory. Because humans cannot constantly live in an unsettled state of anxiety, they must have some effective methods for handling it. This realization forms the

basis for one of Freuds major contributions to how human beings think about themselves: defense mechanisms. Freud described defense mechanisms as unconscious tactics employed by our egos to protect us from anxiety.

Alfred Adler - Unlike Freud, Alfred Adler (18701937) believed that social needs and conscious thoughts are more important to human behavior than sexual needs and other unconscious motivations. Adler was particularly interested in how feelings of inferiority motivate behavior. In Adlers view, almost everyone has some feelings of inferiority stemming from childhood experiences of helplessness. People often make special efforts to

compensate for or mask those painful feelings. Adler focused, in particular, on how feelings of inferiority are channeled into a quest for superiority. Although Adlers school of individual psychology has not had a major impact on personality theory, his ideas about how the need for power shapes human behavior have gained momentum in contemporary research. Carl Jung - Carl G. Jung (18751961), unlike Adler, agreed with Freuds views on the importance of the unconscious. However, he added a new dimension: the collective unconscious. In Jungs system, the unconscious has two parts. The personal unconscious, formed from individual experiences, is similar to the unconscious as seen by Freud. The collective unconscious, though, is not a private entity like the personal unconscious. Instead, it is a cumulative storehouse of inherited memories shared by all humankind. Jung called these shared memories archetypes. According to Jung, archetypes are reflected in symbols and images that appear in the art, literature, and religions of all cultures. The archetype of the hero, for example, can be found in the stories of almost any cultural tradition. Jungs analytical psychology also differed from psychoanalytic theory in the emphasis placed on sexuality and aggression. Jung acknowledged the importance of these forces but argued that the unconscious also includes drives toward joy, creativity, and internal harmony. Indeed, the search for harmony is a central theme of Jungs theory. He believed that each of us seeks to integrate the minds various conscious and unconscious elements into a coherent whole, which he termed the self. Karen Horney - Karen Horney (18851952), another neo-Freudian, accepted many of the basic principles of psychoanalysis but went on to develop her own orientation and school of psychoanalytic training.Horney agreed with Freud that anxiety-provoking experiences in childhood can lead to lasting psychological problems, but she was particularly interested in what she called basic anxiety, which develops in children who experience extreme feelings of isolation and helplessness. Basic anxiety, in Horneys view, sets the stage for later neuroses.

Perhaps Horneys greatest disagreement with Freud related to the role of cultural influences on behavior. To Freud, the basic conflicts that shape development are universal, but Horney observed distinct differences in personality structure between patients from Europe and those from the United States. She came to believe that cultural differences play a more important role in development than traditional psychoanalytic theory acknowledged. Horney rejected Freuds theories about penis envy, suggesting that what Freud was really detecting was womens envy of mens powerpower that came from cultural norms, not inherent differences. Humanistic Theories Psychodynamic theorists, particularly Freud, generally believed that personality development is driven by forces beyond our control. Humanistic psychologists offered a different view: one that emphasized the potential of individuals and highlighted each persons consciousness, free will, and other special human qualities. Abraham Maslow - Abraham Maslow believed that humans are basically good and that there is in each individual an urge to grow and fulfill his or her potential. Maslow proposed that personality arises from peoples striving to meet their needs (Leontiev, 2008). He suggested that psychologists had become overly focused on biological drives and needs, overlooking the role of high-level processes and the need for more complex forms of fulfillment. Unlike Freud, Maslow believed that more could be learned from individuals who were healthy and well adjusted than from those who were experiencing psychological problems. In fact, he based his notion of self-actualized individuals on notable historical figures who appeared to lead rich and healthy lives: Albert Einstein and Eleanor Roosevelt, for example. The characteristics that define self-actualized people are the ability to recognize the needs and desires of others, the willingness to respond to the uniqueness of people and situations rather than responding in mechanical or fixed ways, an emotionally deep

connection with a few people, spontaneity and creativity, and the ability to resist the urge to conform while still responding to reality. Carl Rogers - Carl Rogers, like Maslow, believed that human nature is fundamentally positive and that people strive for self-actualization (Rogers, 2008, 1963). However, Rogers based his theory of personality around the concept of the self rather around a hierarchy of needs. For Rogers, self-concept is a pattern of perception that remains consistent over time and can be used to characterize an individual. Our self-concept is related both to how we see ourselves and to how others see us. Because self-concept develops in part based on how we are perceived by others, as children we need unconditional positive regardacceptance without terms or conditionsfrom parents or other adults to develop healthy self-concepts. The idea of unconditional positive regard became a central part of Rogerss therapeutic practice. He believed that, over the course of development, many children form conditions of worth, a perception that they must meet certain standards in order to gain the love of their parents or other important figures. These conditions of worth, often rigid or harsh in nature, can hold over into adulthood and act as a negative force that prevents a person from reaching his or her full potential. Not surprisingly, in Rogers client-centered therapy, he worked with clients to create an atmosphere of openness, honesty, and absence of judgment, regardless of the specific type of psychological problems the persons were experiencing. He believed that only in such an atmosphere can individuals begin to put aside the conditions of worth that lie at the root of their personal maladaptive functioning. Modern Theories Trait theory It believes that personality and behavior are controlled by a wide variety of relatively stable personality traits e.g., dependency, aggressiveness, gentleness, thoughtfulness. Trait theory is really seen an expression of an empirical methodology. Trait theory in its purest form does not provide a mechanism for explaining behaviour, only a set of descriptions of behaviour. It is largely based on factor analytic studies, a statistical

technique for determining inter-correlations amongst item (trait) variables. Different statistical criteria for establishing trait factors can lead to different numbers of personality factors being identified. Cattell for example identified 16 personality factors and Gall 37. Hans Eysenck - Eysenck was a Trait theorist who extended Trait theory beyond being simply an empirical description of personality. He believed personality traits based primarily on learning (classical and operant conditioning) and to a lesser extent on genetic factors. Eysenck used factor analysis to identify traits that cluster together to form fundamental dimensions of personality, which he called superfactors. He eventually identified three basic superfactors: Extraversionthe degree to which a person is outgoing and enjoys interacting with others. An extravert has personality traits such as impulsiveness, sociability, and assertiveness. At the other end of the spectrum, an introvert displays traits such as thoughtfulness, reliability, and passivity. Neuroticismthe degree to which a person tends to experience negative emotions, also known as mental instability. Psychoticismthe degree to which a person is vulnerable to developing the serious disorders known as psychoses, in which contact with reality is lost in key ways. Five Factor Model - The five-factor model identifies five major trait categories, popularly known as the Big Five - agreeableness (versus disagreeableness); extraversion (versus introversion); neuroticism or emotional instability (versus stability); conscientiousness or dependability (versus irresponsibility); and openness to experience or imaginativeness (versus unimaginativeness). A helpful way to memorize these five factors is with the acronym OCEAN (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism).