personality
the characteristic thoughts, emotional responses, and behaviors that are relatively stable
personality trait
a characteristic; a tendency to act in a certain way over time and across circumstances
psychogenic
Freud thought that his paralyzed patients suffered from psychological rather than physical factors
psychodynamic theory
unconscious forces (wishes, desires, hidden memories) determine behavior
conscious level of awareness
thoughts that we are aware of
preconscious level of awareness
consists of content that is not currently in awareness but that could be brought to awareness
unconscious level of awareness
contains material that the mind cannot easily retrieve
id
completely submerged in the unconscious
operates according to the pleasure principle
libido
the force that drives the pleasure principle
superego
internalization of parental and societal standards of conduct
ego
tries to satisfy the wishes of the id while being responsive to the dictates of the superego; operates according to reality principle (rational thought and problem solving)
defense mechanisms
unconscious mental strategies that the mind uses to protect itself from distress
most mental processes are ________
unconscious
denial
refusing to acknowledge source of anxiety
repression
excluding sources of anxiety from awareness
projection
attributing unacceptable qualities of the self to someone else
reaction formation
warding off an uncomfortable thought by overemphasizing its opposite
rationalization
concocting a seemingly logical reason or excuse for behavior that might otherwise be shameful
displacement
shifting the attention of emotion from one object to another
sublimation
channeling socially unacceptable impulses into constructive, even admirable, behavior
oral stage
lasts from birth to about 18 months; pleasure from sucking
anal stage
2-3 yrs old; toilet truing leads to focus on the anus
phallic stage
3-5 yrs old; focus on the genitals
latency stage
children suppress libidinal urges or channel them into doing schoolwork or building friendships
genital stage
adolescents and adults attain mature attitudes about sexuality and adulthood; center their libidinal urges on the capacities to reproduce and to contribute to society
Oedipus complex
children consider the same-sex parent a rival for the attention of the opposite sex parent
neo-Freudians
focus on social interactions, especially children's emotional attachments to their parents or primary caregivers
humanistic approaches
emphasize personal experience, belief systems, the uniqueness of the human condition, and the inherent goodness of each person
self-actualization
we seek to fulfill our potential for personal growth through greater self-understanding
person-centered approach
emphasizes people's subjective understandings of their lives
parents were encouraged to raise their children with _______ so that they might become _________
unconditional positive regard: parents should accept and prize their children no matter how the children behave (kids are reinforced for their positive behaviors); fully functioning person
personal constructs
George Kelly; personal theories of how the world works
expectancy-value approach
Julian Rotter; behavior is a function of our expectancies for reinforcement and the values we ascribe to particular reinforcers
cognitive-social theories of personality
emphasize how personal beliefs, expectancies, and interpretations of social situations shape behavior and personality.
defense pessimism
expect to fail and therefore test situations with dread
self-regulatory capacities
our relative ability to get personal goals, evaluate our progress, and adjust our behavior accordingly
personality types
discrete categories of people based on personality characteristics
implicit personality theories
the study of two tendencies related to personality types: we tend to assume that certain personality characteristics go together, therefore we tend to make predictions about people based on minimal evidence
trait approach
focuses on how individuals differ in personality dispositions, such as sociability, cheerfulness, and aggressiveness
Eysenck's hierarchical model
specific response level: observed behaviors
habitual response level: if the person behaves the same way on many occasions
superordinate traits
introversion/extraversion
emotional stability: how much a person's moods and emotions change
- low in emotional stability = neurotic
psychoticism
psychoticism
mix of aggression, impulse control, and empathy
high psychoticism = more aggressive, impulsive and self-centered
five-factor theory
1. openness to experience: imaginative v. down to earth; likes variety v. likes routine; independent v. conforming
2. neuroticism: worried v. calm, insecure v. secure, self-pitying v. self-satisfied
3. conscientiousness: organized v. disorganized, careful
How is personality assessed?
self-reports, asking people's friends or relatives to describe them, or by watching how people behave
idiographic approaches
person-centered approaches to studying personality. Focus is on individual lives and how various characteristics are integrated into unique persons
nomothetic approaches
study of personality that focuses on how common characteristics vary from person to person
projective measures v. objective measures
personality tests that examine unconscious processes by having people interpret ambiguous stimuli
objective measures
relatively direct assessments of personality, usually based on information gathered through self-report questionnaires or observer ratings
NEO Personality Inventory
consists of 240 items, which are designed to assess the Big Five personality factors
California Q-Sort
participants are given 100 cards with statements printed on them. They then sort the cards into nine piles according to how accurately the statements describe them
situationism
the theory that behavior is determined more by situations than by personality traits
person/situation debate
personality researchers argued that how much a trait predicts behavior depends on three factors: the centrality of the trait, the aggregation of behaviors over time, and the type of trait being evaluated
interactionists
theorists who believe that behavior is determined jointly by situations and underlying dispositions
what are the biological bases of personality?
genes, brain structures, and neurochemistry
_____ predispose use to have certain personality traits associated with behavioral tendencies
genes
temperaments
biologically based tendencies to feel or act in certain ways; activity level, emotionality, sociability
activity level
overall amount of energy and of behavior a person exhibits
emotionality
describes the intensity of emotional reactions
sociability
the general tendency to affiliate with others
Ascending reticular activating system (ARAS)
regulates alertness (cortical arousal) and this produces the behavioral differences between extraverts and introverts; resting levels of the ARAS are higher for introverts than for extraverts, so introverts are more arousable
behavioral approach system (BAS)
consists of the brain structures that lead organisms to approach stimuli in pursuit of rewards; this is the "go" system
behavioral inhibition system (BIS)
because it is sensitive to punishment, the BIS inhibits behavior that might lead to danger or pain; this is the "stop" system
personality is adaptive
- being competitive has enabled individuals to obtain great rewards or to enjoy increased value in their social groups
- traits provide important information about desirable and undesirable qualities in mates
- diverse skills
basic tendencies
dispositional traits determined largely by biological processes
characteristic adaptations
adjustments to situational demands
self
- mental representations of personal experiences (memories and perceptions)
- a sense of one's physical body
- a conscious awareness of being separate from others and unique
self-concept
everything you know about yourself; the sense of self as the object of attention
objective self
what psychologists now call the self that is known
theory of objective self-awareness
self-awareness leads people to act in accordance with the values and beliefs they hold
self-discrepancy theory
an individual's awareness of differences between personal standards and goals leads to strong emotions
self awareness is highly dependent on what part of the brain?
frontal lobes
self-schema
cognitive aspect of the self-concept; a network of interconnected knowledge about the self
working self-concept
immediate experience of the self
self esteem
the evaluative aspect of the self-concept
reflected appraisal
self-esteem is based on how we believe others perceive us
sociometer theory
self-esteem is a mechanism for monitoring the likelihood of social exclusion
sociometer
internal monitor of social acceptance or rejection; self-esteem
terror management theory
self-esteem gives meaning to people's lives and protects people from the horror associated with knowing they eventually will die
self-esteem and life outcomes
having high self-esteem seems to make people happier, but it does not necessarily lead to successful social relationships or life success
downside to having very high self-esteem
criminals and bullies have high self-esteem; act violently if they feel that they are not being treated well
narcissism
self-centered people view themselves in grandiose terms, feel entitled to special treatment, and are manipulative
self-evaluative maintenance
self-esteem can be affected by how people perform, how relevant their performances are to their self-concepts, and how their performances compare with those of significant people around them
theory of self-evaluative maintenance
people can feel threatened when someone close to them outperforms them on a task that is personally relevant; self-evaluative maintenance causes people to exaggerate or publicize their connections to winners and to minimize or hide their relations to lose
social comparison
occurs when people evaluate their own actions, abilities, and beliefs by contrasting them with other people's
self-serving bias
tendency for people to take personal credit for success but blame failure on external factors
interdependent construals
collectivist cultures; people's self-concepts are determined to a large extent by their social roles and personal relationships
independent construals
individualist cultures; focus on self-reliance and personal success, even at the expense of interpersonal relationships