Module 35 – Contemporary Perspectives on Personality: The ...



PERSONALITYHistoric PerspectivesOpening Exercise: “I am…..”Have students number a blank piece of paper 1 through 20 down the left side.Have them list some of their own positive and/or negative personality qualities.While they are doing this, write the following on a chalkboard or have overhead/visual display ready:Introduce yourself & tell your group about your personalityAs a group, identify the 4 descriptive terms used most frequently among you. Why do you think those specific terms were used?Identify any of the self-descriptive terms that do not really qualify as personality characteristics. (words like “tall”, “fat”, “smart”, etc… aren’t personality characteristics.What makes a personal quality part of your personality?After 5 minutes or so, break into groups of 4-5Have the answer the above questions in their groups.Conclude with the definition of personality:“ Personality is the Organization of enduring behavior patterns that often serve to distinguish us from each other.”Distinctiveness – thus psychologists study “differences” & create tests to measure.Enduring patterns – “predictability”Organization of Individuality – mind & body related? Inherited or learned? Free will?Psychoanalytic Perspective – FreudFree Association – method to explore unconsciousnessPsychoanalysis – treating psychological disorders by interpreting unconscious thoughtsUnconscious according to Freud – bad thoughts, wishes, feelings, memoriesId – reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that strives to satisfy basic sexual & aggressive drives. Operates on the “pleasure principal” – immediate gratification.Ego – “executive” part of personality – mediatorSuper ego – internalized ideals & provides standards & future aspirationsFreud’s psychosexual stages – oral, anal, phallic, latency, genitalOedipus Complex – hate rival father – sexually desire mom (phallic stage)Identification process – incorporate parent’s valuesFreudian Slips – occur due to unconscious conflicts – some hidden motive (according to Freud) – has been disproven. What really happens is our subconscious takes over the mundane tasks, and we have active attention lags…..HANDOUT - Defense Mechanisms - & processHUMANISTIC PERSPECTIVEMaslow – Self-ActualizationRogers – person-centered – unconditional positive regardCriticisms – subjective – can lead to self-indulgence, does not take into account human capacity for evilTRAIT PERSPECTIVEAllport / Myers-BriggsEmpirically derived – developed by testing a pool of items & slecting those that discriminate between groupsBig 5 FactorsPerson / situation controversy & change vs. stable controversySOCIAL-COGNITIVE PERSPECTIVEBanduraReciprocal-determinism – interaction of internal factors, environment & behaviorsLocus of Control – external vs. internalLearned HelplessnessCriticism – too much emphasis on situation – not enough on individualCONTEMPORARY PERSPECTIVES:The Self & the Modern UnconsciousExploring the Self – Handout – Self Esteem ScaleReverse score 3, 5, 8, 9 & 10Higher scores reflect greater sense of self-worthMeasures general satisfaction with your lifeFeeling good about oneself seems to cause a rosy glow over one’s specific self-schema.Our sense of self is a pivotal center of personality. From our self-focused perspective we assume that others are noticing and evaluating us – “spotlight effect.” You are your own worst enemy, in most cases Self-esteem – is it good or bad?How do minorities, women, etc…. that have faced discrimination and lower status maintain their self-esteem?They value the things they excel inThe attribute problems to prejudiceThe do like everyone else does – compare themselves to those in their own groupSelf-serving bias – we perceive ourselves favorablyWe accept credit rather than take blameWe see ourselves as better than averageEXERCISE – demonstrates name-letter bias & subconscious awarenessShare with class that although the task may seem silly, you would like them to rate how much they like each letter. Each student should do so rapidly just giving immediate impressions.After doing the exercise – have students write their first and last name at the topExplain what the letters above the columns on the right mean: IYFN “in your first name”. NIYFN “not in your first name”. IYLN “in your last name”. NIYLN “not in your Last name.Fill in the rating for each letter under the appropriate column. For example if the student rated “R” a “5” and it is not in their first name but in their last name – they should put the “5” score in the NIYFN column, and in the IYLN.Calculate the mean for each columnHow many had a higher average for letters in your first name than for letters NOT in your first name? Last name?Illustrates “mere-ownership” effect….. found in over a dozen languages. It is not due to name letters being more frequent, or to you trying to guess the significance of the survey……Individualism vs. Collectivism The modern unconscious mindSchemas that automatically control our perceptions and interpretationsParallel processing of different aspects of vision and thinkingImplicit memories that operate without conscious recallEmotions that activate instantly, before conscious analysisSelf-concept & stereotypes that unconsciously influence how we process info about ourselves and others. ................
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