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THE GRAND PERFECT THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Genes and Biology

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Personality Psychology ­ PSY 405
VU
Lesson 39
THE GRAND PERFECT THEORY OF PERSONALITY
1- Is there a perfect theory of personality?
2- Can a single theory answer all the relevant questions related to personality domain?
3- All the theories that we have studied which one is the best?
4- Which theory can we trust the most as a student of personality psychology?
We began by defining personality psychology, discussed personality measurement, then briefly we talked
about the approaches or perspectives in personality psychology and we discussed the major theories of
personality related to each and every area or domain or perspective.
After studying some of the most important Personality theories beginning from Freud, Jung, Adler, Karen
Horney, Eric Erikson, Sullivan, Sheldon, All port, Murray, Maslow, Rogers, Dollard and Miller, Albert
Ellis, Bandura and Skinner.
My students ask the following questions.
1- Is there a perfect theory of personality?
No there is no perfect theory of personality.
2- Can a single theory answer all the relevant questions related to personality domain?
No single theory can fully answer all the relevant questions related to personality domain or human nature.
3- All the theories that we have studied which one is the best?
All the theories that we have studied
We can not label one as the best and the others as bad or incomplete. Each theory has emphasis on one or
another important thing related to human nature.
4- Which theory can we trust as the most representative of human nature?
One cannot blindly trust a single theory of personality to be representative of human behavior.
Is there a grand ultimate or a true theory of personality?
NO
Dear students a good theory of personality is one that fulfills three purposes in science
1- Provides a guideline to researchers
2- Organizes the known available findings
3- Makes predictions
1- Provide a Guideline to Researchers
Now as far as the first one is concerned theories serve as guideline or a map for researchers in directing
them to important questions in the area of personality psychology.
2- Organizes the Known Findings
A useful function of a theory is to organize known findings.
In physics the theory of Gravity accounts for the facts such as why objects fall down on the earth and not
remain suspended in the air or when we walk we press the ground and the force of the earth pushes us
forward and in Biology the theory of evolution is the one that accounts for organizing the known facts, but
in Personality we lack a theory which can account for the most of known facts of human nature.
May be Freud's theory or Maslow's theory or Allport's theory
Actually these theories point to different domains or perspectives or schools of psychology.
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Personality Psychology ­ PSY 405
VU
All the theories of personality are quite different, or that they belong to different to a different perspective
but they try to answer questions related to the following areas
i)
Genes
ii)
Stages of Development
iii)
Motivation
iv)
Learning
v)
Perception
vi)
Traits
vii)
Emotions
viii)
Temperament and Body Types
ix)
Neurosis
x)
Disorders and Therapies
xi)
Conscious and Unconscious
xii)
Therapy
xiii)
Defense Mechanisms
1- Genes and Biology
All theories of personality endorse the important role of genes and heredity in personality development. In
the past there was an emphasis on whether its genes which are important or is it environment which is
important the nature ­nurtance controversy is now over today we know that both (genes and environment)
contribute equally in personality development.
2-Stages of Development
Stages of development, as given in the theories of Freud, Jung and Erikson
3-Motivation
Motivation is central to most theories of personality.
First the biological motives need for air, water, food, pain and heat/ cold avoidance.
Second there are the social motives which develop on the biological motives, especially self-esteem that is
based on such approval and self actualization.
4-Learning
Dollard and Miller's Stimulus Response learning theories as well as Skinner, Thorndike, Pavlov's and
Watson who say that individual learns from his environment.
Social learning includes imitation and modeling. This kind of learning is probably significant and vital for
the development of personality as advocated by Bandura.
5- Perception
Kelly, Rogers and Maslow emphasize on the fact that the way an individual perceives reality is the basis of
individual differences or uniqueness of people.
6- Traits
·
Allport (Cardinal Traits, Central Traits) and Cattle (Unique, Common, Surface, Source traits) focus
on the traits that an individual posses
·
A trait is a predisposition or way to respond in a manner to various kinds of stimuli.
·
or Mental Structure.
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Personality Psychology ­ PSY 405
VU
7- Emotions
Emotions or feelings of anxiety, fear, guilt, shame, grief, depression, anger, sadness, aggression, and
hostility are some of the key emotional states that the personality psychologists are concerned with and
they work on these emotions.
Freud was interested in anxiety, hostility, and aggression where as the humanistic are concerned with anger
and hostility management.
The behaviorists focus on learning of faulty and negative emotions and their modification.
8- Temperament and Body Types
(William Sheldon)
Sheldon correlated specific body type with a specific temperament
i. Ectomorphs: Slender, lean and tall with a mean, miserly temperament
ii. Mesomorphs: Muscular well build with an adventurous temperament.
iii. Endomorphs: Fat and plumb people who are happy go lucky type temperament.
9- Neurosis
According Karen Horney a child with loving parents, peers, and teachers may help the child to overcome
abuse, neglect, sickness, parent's death, divorce or to cope with insecurity and basic anxiety.
Adler and Rogers considers unconditional positive regard, need for positive regard, love, approval, respect,
attention essential for healthy growth and development otherwise it leaves the child with low self-esteem.
10- Consciousness and the Unconscious
Freud's
He talked about:
1- Conscious
2- Preconscious or Subconscious
3- Unconscious
Jung's
1- Personal Unconscious
2-
Collective Unconscious
Archetypes
11- Therapy
It is somewhat surprising that, for all the variation in theories, there is considerable agreement regarding the
concept of psychotherapy
12- Defense Mechanism
According to Anna Freud all
(1) They operate an on unconscious level and are therefore self-deceptive
(2) They distort one's perception of reality, so as to make anxiety less threatening to the individual
(3) They protect the ego
We can list a large number of defense mechanisms, as given by Freud or Karen Horney to defend the ego
such as projection, displacement, rationalization, regression, blind spots, and cynicism.
An ultimate theory of personality is not possible in personality psychology which is still a developing
science and it is not as scientific as biology, physics or chemistry.
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Table of Contents:
  1. THE NATURE OF PERSONALITY THEORY:Objectives of Personality Psychology
  2. PERSONALITY MEASUREMENT:Observational Procedures, Rating Scales
  3. MAIN PERSPECTIVES:Psychometrics, observation, Behavioral Coding Systems
  4. SIGMUND FREUD: A PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY OF PERSONALITY
  5. INSTINCT: WHAT MOTIVATES HUMAN BEHAVIOR?, The Oral Stage
  6. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY OF SIGMUND FREUD:The Ego, Free association
  7. THEORY OF CARL JUNG:Biographical Sketch, Principles of Opposites, The Persona
  8. THE PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPES:Childhood, Young Adulthood, Middle Ages
  9. ALFRED ADLER:Biographical Sketch, Individual Psychology, Feeling of Inferiority
  10. INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOLOGY:Fictional Finalism, Social Interest, Mistaken Styles of Life
  11. KAREN HORNEY:Adjustment to Basic Anxiety, Adjustment Techniques
  12. ADJUSTMENT TO BASIC ANXIETY:Moving Towards People, Moving Against People
  13. ERIK ERIKSON:Anatomy and Destiny, Ego Psychology, Goal of Psychotherapy
  14. ERIK ERIKSON:Human Development, Goal of Psychotherapy
  15. SULLIVAN’S INTERPERSONAL THEORY:Core Concepts, The Self-System
  16. SULLIVAN’S INTERPERSONAL THEORY:Cognitive Process, Tension
  17. CONSTITUTIONAL PSYCHOLOGY:The Structure of Physique, Evaluation
  18. SHELDON’S SOMATOTYPE THEORY:The Structure of Physique
  19. MASLOW’S THEORY:Self-Actualizers Aren't Angels, Biographical Sketch
  20. MASLOW’S THEORY:Basic Concepts of Humanistic Psychology, Problem Centering
  21. ROGERS PERSON CENTERED APPROACH:Humanistic, Actualizing tendency
  22. ROGERS PERSON CENTERED APPROACH:Fully functioning person
  23. ROGERS PERSON CENTERED APPROACH:Client Centered Therapy,
  24. KELLY’S COGNITIVE THEORY OF PERSONALITY THEORY:Biographical Sketch
  25. CORE CONCEPTS OF GEORGE KELLY’S COGNITIVE THEORY OF PERSONALITY
  26. GORDON ALLPORT: A TRAIT THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Personality as a
  27. GORDON ALLPORT: A TRAIT THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Secondary Traits
  28. FACTOR ANALYTIC TRAIT THEORY:Factor Analysis, The Nature of Personality
  29. FACTOR ANALYTIC TRAIT THEORY:The Specification Equation, Research Methods
  30. HENRY MURRAY’S PERSONOLOGY:Need, Levels of Analysis, Thema
  31. HENRY MURRAY’S PERSONOLOGY (CONTINUED)
  32. ALBERT BANDURA’S SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY:BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
  33. ALBERT BANDURA’S SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY:Reciprocal Determinism
  34. THE STIMULUS RESPONSE THEORY OF DOLLARD AND MILLER:Core Concepts
  35. THE STIMULUS RESPONSE THEORY OF DOLLARD AND MILLER:Innate Equipment
  36. SKINNER’S THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Biographical Sketch, Books
  37. SKINNER’S THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Positive Reinforcement, Generalization
  38. ALBERT ELLIS THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Biographical Sketch, Social Factors
  39. THE GRAND PERFECT THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Genes and Biology
  40. PERSPECTIVES OR DOMAINS OF PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY:Dispositional
  41. PERSPECTIVES OR DOMAINS OF PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY
  42. PERSPECTIVES OR DOMAINS OF PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY:Need
  43. THE GRAND THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Psychosexual Stages of Development
  44. PERSONALITY APPRAISAL:Issues in Personality Assessment
  45. PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY: NEW DIRECTIONS IN THE DISCIPLINE