Theories of Personality

Definition

I. PSYCHOANALYTIC / PSYCHODYNAMIC THEORIES

1. Freudian (Classical Psychoanalysis) - Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

• Id - entirely unconscious; operates on the pleasure principle; source of all instinctual drives (libido and aggression)
• Ego - partly conscious; operates on the reality principle; mediates between id demands and external reality
• Superego - represents internalized moral standards and the ego ideal; source of guilt and self-criticism

• Conscious, Preconscious, Unconscious - with most psychologically significant material being unconscious

2. Adlerian Theory - Alfred Adler (1870-1937)

• Inferiority and Striving for Superiority: The cornerstone of Adler's theory is the concept of moving from a sense of inferiority (felt by all children when compared with adults) to a sense of mastery. This is the most important motivation in life.
• Individual Lifestyle: Each person develops a unique lifestyle - a pattern of behaviors, goals, and self-perceptions that gives direction to their life. Life goals are chosen and subject to change.
• Social Interest (Gemeinschaftsgefühl): The capacity to cooperate and contribute to society is a hallmark of mental health. Neurotic individuals have low social interest.
• Birth Order: Adler was among the first to systematically study birth order - first-borns tend to be conservative, middle children more socially oriented, youngest children most secure.
• Psychopathology: Emotional disorders result from mistaken lifestyles - false self-views, inappropriate goals, and blocked social interest. Neurosis = blocked from life goals while maintaining some social interest; psychosis = complete loss of social interest.
• Therapy (Individual Psychology): Focused on correcting mistaken self-views, modifying life goals, and building social interest rather than uncovering unconscious conflict.

3. Jungian Theory - Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961)

• Ego - mediates conscious life, bridges intrapsychic and external worlds
• Personal Unconscious - contains complexes (clusters of emotionally charged ideas tied to specific experiences)
• Collective Unconscious - unique to Jung; a deeper layer shared across humanity, containing archetypes (universal inherited models of experience - the Great Mother, the Shadow, the Anima/Animus, the Self)

• Complexes - groups of unconscious ideas associated with emotionally toned experiences; they are bipolarity (e.g., good father/bad father), self-perpetuating, and can be projected onto others
• Archetypes - genetically determined intrinsic models such as the Persona (social mask), Shadow (repressed dark side), Anima/Animus (feminine aspect in men, masculine in women), and the Self (the totality of the psyche)
• Psychological Types: Jung classified people by two attitude types (introversion vs. extraversion) and four functions (thinking, feeling, sensing, intuiting), giving 8 psychological types - the foundation for modern personality typology
• Individuation: The lifelong process of integrating all aspects of the personality into a harmonious whole - the primary goal of human development

4. Reichian Theory - Wilhelm Reich (1897-1957)

• Character Armor: Specific behavioral traits that defend against internal and external dangers. These are involuntary, repetitive, ego-syntonic behaviors that prevent emergence of repressed impulses. Character armor also manifests physically in the voluntary musculature as characteristic postures (clenched jaw, rigid back).
• Character Types:
  • Hysterical character - labile, sexually suggestive movements, superficial, highly suggestible
  • Compulsive character - tense, rigid, indecisive, distrusting, blockage between thought and feeling
  • Phallic-narcissistic - cold, provocative, seeks power, good erectile potency but poor intimacy
  • Masochistic character - self-defeating, complaining, provokes others; pleasure itself becomes painful
• Treatment (Vegetotherapy/Bioenergetics): Reich worked face-to-face with patients, physically relaxing character armor before proceeding to analysis of the unconscious - the first systematic attention to nonverbal cues in therapy.

II. BEHAVIORAL / LEARNING THEORIES

5. Radical Behaviorism - B. F. Skinner (1904-1990)

• Skinner rejected the existence of the mind entirely, preferring to study the "empty organism"
• Personality = a repertoire of behavior imparted by an organized set of contingencies: "a self or personality is at best a repertoire of behavior imparted by an organized set of contingencies"
• Individual differences are explained by different reinforcement histories
• Behaviors can be shaped, maintained, or eliminated through reinforcers, punishers, and schedules of reinforcement
• Criticism: Rejected by humanistic psychologists (who emphasize individual choice) and trait psychologists (who see behavioral consistency transcending reinforcement environment)

6. Social Learning Theory - Rotter & Bandura

Julian Rotter (1916-2014):

• Human behavior is guided not only by history of reinforcement but also by plans, goals, and expectations of success
• Locus of Control: Individuals with a history of success develop an internal locus of control (belief they control outcomes); those with failure develop an external locus of control (outcomes depend on luck or powerful others)
• One of the most widely studied variables in personality psychology

Albert Bandura (1925-2021):

• Introduced observational learning (modeling) - people learn by watching others, not just through direct reinforcement
• Self-efficacy: The belief in one's capacity to execute behaviors necessary to achieve goals is a central determinant of personality and behavior
• Reciprocal determinism: Behavior, personal factors, and the environment all interact and influence each other - individuals both shape and are shaped by their environments
• Low self-efficacy in social situations leads to avoidance, failure to develop social skills, and perpetuation of maladaptive patterns

III. TRAIT THEORIES

7. Allport's Trait Theory - Gordon Allport (1897-1967)

• Personality is composed of traits - consistent dispositions to behave in particular ways across situations
• Classified traits into: Cardinal traits (dominant, pervasive), Central traits (6-12 major characteristics), Secondary traits (situational, peripheral)
• Emphasized the uniqueness of the individual (idiographic approach)

8. Eysenck's Three-Factor Model - Hans Eysenck (1916-1997)

1. Extraversion-Introversion - degree of social engagement and arousal-seeking
2. Neuroticism-Stability - emotional reactivity and susceptibility to negative emotions
3. Psychoticism - tendency toward antisocial, impulsive, and cold behavior

• Psychopathology Link: Introverts are easily conditioned and prone to depressive, anxious, and obsessive-compulsive disorders. Extreme extraverts resist conditioning and are prone to hysterical and psychopathic disorders.
• His model bridges learning theory and trait psychology

9. The Big Five (Five-Factor Model) - Costa & McCrae

IV. HUMANISTIC / EXISTENTIAL THEORIES

10. Carl Rogers (1902-1987) - Person-Centered Theory

• Self-concept is at the center of personality - the individual's perception of themselves
• Actualizing tendency: Every person has an innate drive toward growth, fulfillment, and self-actualization
• Conditions of Worth: When parents give love conditionally, children internalize external standards ("conditions of worth") that distort their self-concept and block authentic experience
• Congruence vs. Incongruence: Mental health = congruence between the real self and ideal self; psychopathology = incongruence
• Therapy: Client-centered therapy requires the therapist to provide unconditional positive regard, empathy, and genuineness to allow the client to reconnect with their actualizing tendency

11. Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) - Hierarchy of Needs

• Proposed a hierarchical model of motivation - lower needs must be met before higher ones become motivating:
  1. Physiological needs (food, shelter)
  2. Safety and security
  3. Love and belonging
  4. Esteem (self-worth, achievement)
  5. Self-actualization (realizing full potential)
• Healthy personality is characterized by self-actualization - a state of full functioning, creativity, spontaneity, and peak experiences
• Maladjustment = deficiency motivation (preoccupation with unmet lower needs)

12. Viktor Frankl (1905-1997) - Existential/Logotherapy

• Personality is organized around the search for meaning in life
• Human beings have a unique capacity for self-transcendence (placing others' well-being above self-interest) and self-distancing (humor, perspective-taking)
• Existential vacuum: The inability to find meaning leads to existential neurosis and psychopathology
• Logotherapy: Helps patients find meaning even in suffering; therapeutic techniques include paradoxical intention and dereflection

V. NARRATIVE THEORY

13. Dan McAdams (1954-) - Life Narrative Model

1. Level 1 - Traits: Abstract, enduring tendencies (the Big Five)
2. Level 2 - Personal Concerns: Goals, plans, motivations that are time- and place-specific
3. Level 3 - Life Narrative: The story a person tells about themselves to give unity and purpose to life

VI. BIOLOGICAL / TEMPERAMENT THEORIES

• Biological models view personality as rooted in heritable temperament - inborn, stable individual differences in emotional reactivity, activity level, and self-regulation
• Studies of identical twins reared apart show substantial heritability for all Big Five traits (~40-60%)
• Neurobiological correlates: Extraversion linked to dopaminergic reward circuits; Neuroticism linked to amygdala reactivity; Psychoticism linked to serotonergic dysregulation

Summary Comparison Table

Clinical Relevance

1. Psychoanalytic theories underpin psychodynamic psychotherapy and understanding personality disorders
2. Behavioral theories form the basis for CBT, exposure therapy, and behavior modification
3. Trait theories (Big Five) guide personality assessment tools and research into personality disorders
4. Humanistic theories underpin person-centered counseling and motivational interviewing
5. Existential theories are used in palliative care, existential therapy, and meaning-centered interventions
6. Understanding personality theories aids in formulating the doctor-patient relationship and predicting treatment adherence