Psychological Theories of Personality

CooleyJung

Freud

EriksonHorneyMerton

Charles Cooley - Looking Glass Self

• Our sense of self or identity is developed during a process very close to socialization. Our identity is derived from others.

• The reactions of others act like mirrors that show us who we are. We look to see the reflections of our psychological selves as we see the reflection of our physical selves.

• As a result, develop a set of beliefs about our selves: we say we are smart, funny or clumsy.

• Our parents, friends, teachers and acquaintances all help to shape our self-concept.

Erikson’s Stages of Social Development

• Psychosocial Theory: a theory of development that says that children develop through a series of stages largely through accomplishing tasks that involve them in interaction with their social environment.

• Erickson believed that the development of self does not end with the child or adolescent stage.

• Each stage has different tasks or challenges that are key to forming social relationships.

• Failure to meet the requirements of one stage can prevent an individual from succeeding in the next stage.

Age Period( Years)

Stage of Development0-1 Infancy

ask: To develop basic trust in oneself and others. Risk: Mistrust of others and lack of self-confidence.

1-3 Early ChildhoodTask: To learn self-control and establish autonomy.Risk: Shame and doubt about one’s own capabilities.

3-6 Play AgeTask: To develop initiative in mastering environment.Risk: Feelings of guilt over aggressiveness and daring.

6-12 School AgeTask: To develop industry.Risk: Feelings of inferiority over real or imagined failure to master tasks.

12-20 AdolescenceTask: To achieve sense of identity.Risk: Role confusion over who and what the individual wants to be.

20-30 Young AdulthoodTask: To achieve intimacy with others.Risk: Shaky identity may lead to avoidance of others and isolation.

30-65 AdulthoodTask: To express oneself through generativity.Risk: Inability to create children, ideas, or products may lead to stagnation.

65+ Mature AgeTask: To achieve sense of integrity.Risk: Doubts and unfulfilled desires may lead to despair.

Sigmund Freud• Founder of psychoanalytic theory • Believed our early childhood

experiences, usually involving our relationships with parents and family, are stored in our unconscious mind

• Those that live with a general sense of frustration, our behaviour may become neurotic and connected with anxiety or obsessiveness which can be treated using dream analysis, hypnosis and individual counseling

The Unconscious Mind

The Unconscious mind is dividedinto three parts:1. Id – which encourages us to seek

physical satisfaction 2. Superego – prompts us to do the

moral thing, not the one that feels best

3. Ego – the referee between the two and deals with external reality, this is our most conscious self

Id Ego Super Ego

The Id• Resides in the unconscious mind• Includes our biological instinctual drives E.g. hunger, pleasure

The Ego• Part of the ego is unconscious (tied to the id) and part of the ego is

conscious and preconscious (tied to the external world)• Limits the actions of the id• Starts developing during the first year or so of life to find realistic and

socially-acceptable outlets for the id’s needs

The Superego• Represents one’s conscience and idealized standards of behavior in their

culture• Operates on a morality principle, threatening to overwhelm us with guilt

and shame• The demands of the superego and the id will come into conflict and the ego

will have to resolve this turmoil within the constraints of reality

Freud• Why do you think babies are considered to be

a “pure ID”?• Believed that through interacting with others,

the child – develops a balanced personality that satisfies

needs and wants, – judges and acts on what is right – make decisions appropriate to both the self and

the society

Freud - Psychoanalysis

• Psychoanalysis utilizes several techniques, and relies on them in order to determine an individual's unconscious thoughts, and free them through patient insight.

• One of these techniques is called free association, and is regarded as an essential part of the psychoanalytic therapy process.

Freud – Free Association

• http://www.freudfile.org/psychoanalysis/free_associations.html

• Some psychoanalysis/free association ‘tests’

Carl Jung • Responsible for the identification of

the Extroverted (outward-looking; outgoing; rely on others for sense of well being) and Introverted (inward-looking; emotionally self sufficient; well being comes from within) personality types.

• Worked closely with Freud but split later in their careers

• The other aspect of Jung's work which has been very influential is his approach to the analysis of dreams.

• Jung believed the human mind was made up of two parts – personal unconscious and the collective unconscious

• personal unconscious – unique to the individual

• collective unconscious – common to all people, contained memories from our ancestors– Carl Jung's theory of personal unconscious includes

anything, which is not presently conscious but can be. This includes memories that are easily brought to mind, and memories that have been ignored in our mind

– Collective unconscious is the knowledge that we are born with, but we can never be directly conscious of. The feelings of love at first site, and déjà vu are examples of collective unconscious

• Discover Your Personality – • Jung Typology Test

• This is a personality type test to find out what you want to do in the future; what you are good at and what your best skills are. Please go to the following website and take the Personality Test based on Jung’s Theory.

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes1.htm

Four Artisan Types

• The Promoter (ESTP)– Persuasive, winning, witty, clever, fun– 10 % of population– Make routine events exciting– Enjoy the finer things in life– Socially sophisticated– Not interested in long term commitments– Jobs: entrepreneurs

• The Crafter (ISTP)– Masterful operation of tools, equipment,

machines, and instruments– Spontaneous, insubordinate, escape routine,

fearless, risk takers, soft spoken, – Not easy to get to know or get close to– Jobs: tradespeople, carpenters, mechanics,

jewelry smiths, etc.

• The Performer (ESFP)- High spirited, charming, joy of living, center of

attention- Impulsive, optimistic, individuals, generous,

kind, communal, expressive, affectionate- Love working with people- Jobs: on stage, business, real estate

• The Composer (ISFP)- Fine arts, ability to work with all five senses- Do not express themselves verbally but through

action- Impulsive, absorbed, kind, sensitive, sypathetic- Job: many drop out of school, fine arts,

business, decorative design and purchasing, nursing, forestry/landscaping careers, veternarians

The Four Guardian Types

• The Supervisor (ESTJ)– Follows rules and procedures, do not put up with

other people’s nonsense, social and civil minded– Cooperative with supervisors, have a sense of

duty, good at scheduling, trust authority– Loyal, hardworking, model students, polite– Jobs: law, politics, police work, military, and

business

• The Inspector (ISTJ)– Super dependable, down to earth, conservative in

terms of fashion, traditional– Community servants, value ceremonies and

rituals, responsible, patient, law abiding, do not need praise for work, trustworthy, committed

– Jobs – librarians, dentists, optometrists, legal secretaries, law researchers, high school and college teachers of social sciences/business

• The Protector (ISFJ)- Safety and security, caretaking, shy, warm hearted,

sincere, serious, diligent, thorough, frugal- Aware of status, humble, believe in necessity of

social ranking- Prepare for emergencies, value tradition,

- Jobs – curators, private secretaries, librarians, middle managers, police officers, medical practitioners

The Four Idealist Types

• The Teacher (ENFJ)- educator, group leaders, enthusiastic, creative,

personal concern with others, sincere, empathetic, idealizing

- Gifted with language, articulate, expressive, dramatic, well developed intuition, good insight, affectionate, and nurturing

- Jobs – media, ministry, therapist, educators, lawyers, primary care physicians

• The Counselor (INFJ)- Guide people to reach their human potential, work

intensely with those close to them, private people, reserved, mysterious, sensitive

- Poetic, use metaphor/imagery in everyday language, enjoy solving people-problem, perfectionists

- Small circle of friends, search for soulmate- Jobs – medicine, psychological counseling,

psychology, psychiatry,

• The Champion (ENFP)- Believe people/events are filled with profound meaning,

strong convictions, vivacious, and inspiring, emotionally intense, become bored quickly, individualistic, suspicious of motives of others, intuitive

- Wide range of personal relationships, spontaneous, exuberant, enthusiastic, creative

- Attracted to working with language, like variety, unconventional, free thinking

- Job – teacher, family lawyer, ministers, journalist, orators, novelists, screen writers

• The Healer (INFP)-spiritual, idealistic, ethical, selfless, fantasy-filled, dreamy, follow their heart, optimistic, poetic- adaptable, aware of their feelings, good with

language, respond to a calling to help others, conscience-stricken

- romantic, reserved, soft spoken, devoted- Jobs – ministry, missionary work, social work,

tutoring, child counseling, NOT Business

The Four Rational Types

• The Fieldmarshal (ENTJ)- Natural leaders, ability to command people, order, efficiency, achieve objectives, coordinators, gifted with foresight, pragmatists, single-minded, controlling- Jobs – executives

• The Mastermind (INTJ)- Contingency planners, pragmatists, open

minded, self minded, drive to completion, positive, single minded, efficient, demanding, dedicated, loyal employees, independent, firm, and consistent

• The Inventory (ENTP)- ingenuity, curious, hunger for knowledge,

pragmatists, innovative, non-conformists, lively circle of friends, easy going, good humor, intellectually competitive, hobbyist

- Jobs- teacher, leaders on pilot projects, engineering

• The Architect- 1 per cent of population- Pragmatists, obsessed with analysis, prize

intelligence, precise, complex and technical in speech, shy, loyal, even tempered

Jobs: The logician, mathematician, technologist, scientists

• When you are complete the test, calculate your results and answer the following questions:– What was your personality type? Indicate the

percentage of each type e.g. INFJ– Please describe what your personality type is from

your results? Do you agree with your results?– What other personality types are you compatible

with? Do you have friends these traits? – What career choices are you most suited for based

on your personality type?

Jung – Dream Analysis

• A patient's dreams are looked at on two levels– The manifest content of a dream is the actual

content of the dream, what actually happened during the dream.

– In contrast, the latent content of the dream is the symbolic meaning of the content of the dream. In order for an analyst to get to the latent content, they require the patient to discuss the dream's manifest content and encourage free-association about the dream.

Stages of Sleep

• Stage One – Light Sleep– Right after falling asleep– Slow rolling of eye movement may be notice– 4%-5% of total sleep

• Stage Two– Accounts for 45%-50% of total sleep– NREM sleep – non rapid eye movement – Muscles relax – heart rate slows– Preparing for deep sleep

Stages of Sleep• Stage Three– Accounts for 4%-6% of total sleep– Eye movement activity is not present

• Stage Four– Deepest sleep of the four stages– Accounts for 12%-15% of total sleep– Sleep terrors and sleep walking may occur at this stage– Rapid Eye Movement (REM)– Most important sleep stage– Increases following stressful experiences or intense

learning

How Much Do We Need?

• Infants require about 16 hours a day.• Teenagers need about 9 hours on average.• Adults need 7-8 hours a night.

Why We Dream

• Some believe that dreaming has no function—that instead, it is simply a phenomenon that occurs during REM sleep.

• Others are determined to find an explanation for these marvels and have put forth many believable theories, like the ones listed below.

Purpose of Dreaming• Dreams may get rid of emotional baggage• We usually dream of events related to daily life• Most dreams are not notably pleasant• Getting rid of unacceptable feelings (Freud)• There are hidden meanings and languages of their

own (Freud)• The expression of secret wishes and ambitions

(Freud)• Information processing, sorting our and fixing a day’s

experiences.• Coping with traumatic stress

Why We Dream

• Dreams Get Rid of Emotions – Emotions that are not expressed during one’s waking

state are expressed in dreams. – For example, if you have a huge argument with

somebody, you probably will not dream about it since you were able to yell and get the anger out.

– If you are annoyed at a friend but do not tell anybody, you are likely to dream about them and your feelings towards them.

– Some believe that this shows that dreams and hypnosis are connected.

Why We Dream• The Physiological Theory – We dream to exercise the synapses (pathways)

between brain cells. – When we are in our waking state, we constantly

receive and transmit external messages. – Dreaming is the form this process takes in the

sleeping state.– Thus, dreams may be used to help someone cope

with traumatic and stressful events by reducing emotional stimulation.

Common Meaning of Dreams

• Airplanes – Airplanes signify change, transitions, and new

aspirations. Crashes, power outages, or other trouble with planes show doubt about reaching these new destinations or goals.

• Falling – Shows lack of emotional support and uncertainty

about the future and things to come.

Common Meaning of Dreams• Journey

– Dreams of preparing for or being on a journey signify long-term goals we hope to achieve. They also symbolize new projects in our lives that we have strong hopes for. In completing a journey, we have reached one of these goals and a period in our life has come to a close.

• Marriage – Dreams concerning marriage signify literal desires to marry,

especially with young men and women. Marriages may symbolize harmony between different aspects of yourself, the desire to be with a person you love in real life, and the desire to join forces with a business partner. Being unprepared for a wedding often are common before one in real life.

Common Meaning of Dreams

• Pregnancy – Pregnancies can either be translated as literal or

metaphorical. It can be seen as the actual desire to have a baby, or the "birth" of a new idea, project, or concept in your life. Pregnancy dreams are more common in women than men

• Rain – Signifies a release of tension, being relieved of stress.

The water represents emotion that has been contained in a cloud, or in this case, your mind. It is a symbol for emotional cleansing or sudden understanding.

Common Meaning of Dreams• Animals

– Animals reflect the personalities of the people we know in reality. Your feelings about these people are usually shown by analyzing the typical temperament of the animal. For example: • Sharks: agressive in business or sex • Horses: children, liveliness • Bears: people with bad tempers • Wolves: threatening people • Large Sea Animals: large emotions

• Cars – Cars are representative of oneself, driving in the direction we feel we are

headed in our lives. Difficulty, like brake failure or running out of gas, is associated with our lives or feelings being out of control. Difficulty seeing the world ahead shows uncertainty about the future, while accidents represent emotional loss of control.

Common Meaning of Dreams

• Underwater – Symbolizes immersion in one's emotions. If you are

swimming through the water without harm or discomfort, you are aware of your subconscious feelings. If you can breathe underwater, it shows that you are comfortable with your own emotions. Being short of breath isn't the opposite of being able to breathe, however--it may be an indication that you are having difficulty breathing in real life or have sleep apnea.

Karen Horney

• According to Horney we are shaped by how we react to a common neurosis: feelings of anxiety and fear.

• Horney suggested that we all have these neurotic needs, or drives that are not healthy.

1. Moving toward people —A Person will put themselves down to achieve affection and approval. They fear being alone.

2. Moving against people —A person will not trust and try to dominate other people. In this way of dealing with anxiety, success is doing better than everyone else. The neurotic needs here include power, exploiting others, social recognition and prestige, and personal achievement.

3. Moving away from people —Here, a person deals with anxiety by abandoning relationships and being self-focused and socially isolated. A person is not interested in forming relationships and is indifferent to what is happening. The neurotic needs include personal admiration, self-sufficiency, and perfection.