Personality Psychology Lecture Notes

Introduction to Personality Psychology

• Distinction between personality and behavior:
  • Personality: underlying motivations and drives influencing behavior.
  • Behavior: the actions taken as a result of personality.
• Stability of Personality:
  • Personality remains stable in adulthood according to various theories, although development may occur during childhood and adolescence.

Theories of Personality

Freud's Theory of Personality

• Focuses on unconscious processes and developmental stages known as psychosexual stages.
• Components of Personality:
  • Id: Functions on the pleasure principle, seeks immediate gratification.
  • Ego: Mediates reality, delays gratification based on environmental factors.
  • Superego: Conscience and moral compass developed through parental interactions.

Freud's Psychosexual Stages of Development

1. Oral Stage:

   • Focus on oral gratification (e.g., breastfeeding).
   • Fixation leads to behaviors like smoking or nail-biting.

2. Anal Stage:

   • Control over bodily functions; satisfaction from control leads to pride.
   • Fixation may result in being overly neat or controlling.

3. Phallic Stage:

   • Exploration of sexual identity; children direct feelings towards opposite-sex parent.
   • Fixation results in issues with relationships and sexual identity.

4. Latency Stage:

   • Sexual urges become dormant; focus shifts to peer relationships.
   • Development of superego and morality.

5. Genital Stage:

   • Re-emergence of sexual desires directed towards appropriate partners.

Defense Mechanisms in Freud's Theory

• Unconscious strategies to protect the ego from anxiety:
  • Repression: Burying uncomfortable thoughts.
  • Denial: Refusal to accept reality.
  • Sublimation: Channeling impulses into socially acceptable activities.
  • Rationalization: Justifying actions.
  • Regression: Reverting to earlier behaviors.
  • Displacement: Redirecting emotions to safer targets.
  • Projection: Attributing undesirable feelings to others.
  • Reaction Formation: Displaying opposite emotions.

Humanistic Theory

• Emerged as a response to Freudian and behavioral theories.
• Posits that humans are inherently good and motivated to reach their full potential.
• Focus on the present and future rather than past experiences.
• Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow):
  • Basic biological needs must be satisfied before higher-level needs.
  • Self-actualization as the ultimate goal.

Trait Theory of Personality

• Assumes personality consists of stable traits present from birth.
• Gordon Allport's Classification:
  • Identified traits and created clusters.
• Eysenck's Model:
  • Psychoticism, extraversion, neuroticism.
• Big Five Personality Traits (OCEAN):
  • Openness: Creativity and willingness to try new things.
  • Conscientiousness: Work ethic and organizational skills.
  • Extraversion: Sociability and engagement.
  • Agreeableness: Compassion and cooperativeness.
  • Neuroticism: Emotional stability.
• Job Success: Conscientiousness is the strongest predictor of job performance.

Interpersonal Theory of Personality

• Personality is shaped by interactions with others.
• Self-concept vs. Self-esteem:
  • Self-concept: how one views themselves.
  • Self-esteem: how one feels about themselves relative to others.

Personality Assessment Techniques

Johari Window

• A tool for self-discovery and understanding personality through feedback from others.
  • Known Self: Known to self and others.
  • Hidden Self: Known to self but not others.
  • Blind Self: Known to others but not self.
  • Unconscious Self: Not known to self or others.

Personality Tests

• Reliability and Validity:
  • Reliability: Consistency of results over time.
  • Validity: Accuracy of what the test measures.
• Objective Tests: Standardized questionnaires (e.g., MMPI).
• Projective Tests: Ambiguous stimuli to reveal unconscious processes (e.g., Rorschach, TAT).

Conclusion

• Overview of personality theories provides a foundation for understanding human behavior and personality.
• Theories serve to explain individual differences and similarities in personality traits and behaviors.