Running head: Personality Theories Personality Theories PSY/211 Personality Theories The existence of personality theories correspond to how scholars analyze and assess the development of human identity and behavior. Each viewpoint provides a specific understanding of what cultivates personality and the corresponding factors that influence such behavior. One way to analyze personality is through the lens of psychoanalytic theory. The main argument of this theory is that problems or issues pertaining to psychology can be rooted to one’s unconscious (McLeod, 2007). Specifically, the problems are influenced by latent issues surfacing in the conscious mind.
Unconscious urges? Observable behavior? The interpretation of nature and nurture? The sociocultural and cognitive theories emphasize individual conscious organization of experience. Unconscious urges are described by Freud in his psychoanalytic theory.
Having Fun With Operational Definitions Adapted from teachpsychscience.org Directions: Identify and operationally define the independent and dependent variables in each of the following research ideas. Research Idea #1: A social psychologist was interested in whether people are more likely to exhibit conformity when they are in situations that make them feel nervous and unsure of themselves. What is the independent variable? How would you define it operationally? What is the dependent variable?
Myers (2010) provides an example as to how behavior is shaped by social influences making humans social creatures, “We speak and think in words we learned from others (Social psychology, p. 7). At times social environments or situations manipulate behaviors contrary to emotions, overpowering feelings and allowing the situation to guide behaviors. Another ideas of social psychology is that personal attitudes and depositions shape behavior, this describes the belief that inner attitudes and personalities
Modeling Theory is a form of social learning theory that asserts that people learn how to act by observing others. (Schmalleger, 231) 5. Behavior Theory is a psychological perspective that posits that individual behavior that is rewarded will increase in frequency, while that which is punished will decrease. (Schmalleger, 234) 6. Sociological Theories examine institutional arrangements within society and the interaction between and among social institutions, individuals and groups as they affect socialization and have an impact on social behavior.
In psychology people such as Freud, Maslow and Rogers play an important role in understanding the self, whereas society can be explained by sociological figures such as Durkheim in sociology. The psychologist, Freud’s theory of personality suggests that our personality is structured by the interactions of our id, superego and ego. The id being our pleasure principle; it is the selfish part of our self and causes us to desire things such as food and sex. It is an unconscious part of our personality and present from birth. The superego is our morality principle which we develop from three to six years old, it helps us to define the difference between right and wrong and Freud suggested that it is often in conflict with the id.
These perspective viewpoints are known as emic perspective; however, the perspective pertains to specific psychopathologies in reference to culture. On a “cultural relativist perspective on the study of psychopathology may be important for several reasons. First of all, it may help in the development of culture-specific therapies. Second, it may provide valuable information about the psychological problems seen in particular cultures and their development as a function of the particular demands that culture places on individuals. Third, the studies of culture-bound syndromes, which are interesting in and of themselves, may help illuminate more general patterns of cultural values such as individualism or collectivism,” said plebius (2005).
Cognitive development requires an individual to analyze their experiences and properly form concepts. There is a conscious effort and motivation in this theory. Freud describes unconscious urges in his psychoanalytic theory and claims there is a constant battle or obsession with unconscious impulses and sexual impulses. Observable behavior is emphasized in Albert Bandura’s social learning theory. Bandura believed that humans are able to learn through modeling.
The Psychodynamic Perspective The school of psychodynamics focuses on the interplay of the mental forces. It is said that humans have can have unconscious motives that underlie their true intentions. It is also said that the foundations of what was discovered rests on the evidence that people could be aware of their subconscious motivations while processing the things that affect their conscious thoughts that are related to their feelings, behaviors and intentions. Scientific studies show that psychodynamic perspective can reveal as to why a person’s actions are brought on by thoughts and feelings that would cause a reaction or a response in different situations. This school of study ultimately depends on the methods of the case studies that are performed to provide the necessary information that will clearly show them the evidence based on motivations.
Akers (1977) modified the differential association-reinforcement theory and called the new theory “social learning,” emphasizing the synergy between sociology and psychology. The key concepts of the new theory were differential association and definitions (from Suther1and’s 1947 theory), and differential reinforcement and imitation (from behavioral science’s learning theory) (Akers, 1977; Akers, 1998). Social learning theory’s basic assumption is that the same learning process produces both deviant and conforming behavior (Akers, 1998). The learning process operates in a context of social structure, interactions, and situations (Akers, 1998). The probability of criminal (deviant) or conforming behavior occurring is a function of the variables operating at the underlying social learning process (e.g., reinforcement)(Akers, 1977; Akers, 1998).