Theories of Personality

Dr Owolabi Shakirah
Psychiatry department
AKTH
 Definition of Terms
• Like animals,humans are born with a set of instincts and
motivations which form basic ideals of our personality
• Personality is defined as the distinctive and
characteristic patterns of thought,emotion and
behaviour that define an individual’s personal style of
interacting with the physical and social environment.
• An individual’s personality is an aggregate
conglomeration of decisions that they have made
through out their life and the memory of experiences to
which these decisions led
 Definition of terms contd
• Instinct(drives)- refers to a pattern of species-
specific behaviour that is genetically
derived,hence more or less independent of
learning
• Instincts-libido
ego instincts
aggression
life and death instincts
• Libido refers to the psychic energy from the id
structure of the mind containing our instincts and
drives.
• It may also be referred to as the mental
manifestations of the sexual instinct
• The sexual instinct underwent a complex process of
dvlpt at each phase of which the libido had specific
aims and objectives that diverged from simple aim of
genital union
• Life and death instincts- ego instinct forms
part of the life instinct
• Life and death instincts also known as eros
and thanatos,and they are regarded as forces
underlying the sexual and aggressive instincts
• The death instinct Freud thought is a person’s
tendency to repeat past traumatic behaviour
and is characterized by aggression
• The death instinct allows the human race to
eliminate their enemies
• The life instinct refers to the tendency of
particles to reunite or bind to one another,as
in sexual reproduction
• According to Freud,these two basic drives
motivate all our thoughts and behaviour
THEORETICAL APPROACHES TO PERSONALITY

• PSYCHOANALYTIC
• BEHAVIORISTIC
• PHENOMENOLOGICAL
 PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
• The most comprehensive and influencial
theory of personality
• Created by Sigmund Freud
• Described the human mind like an iceberg-
THE TOPOGRAPHICAL MODEL
 TOPOGRAPHIC MODEL OF THE MIND

• Conscious
• Preconscious
• Unconscious
 TOPOGRAPHIC MODEL OF THE MIND

• The conscious-our current awareness

• The preconscious-all information not currently
on our mind but which we could bring to
consciousness if called upon to do so
• The unconscious-a store house of
impulses,wishes and inaccessible memories
that affect our thoughts and behaviour
 DETERMINISM THEORY
• Psychological determinism is the doctrine that
all thoughts,emotions and actions have causes
• Its basis is obtained from the unconscious part
of the topographical theory-ie all
emotions,thots and action have causes which
might not be obvious to the person
 Structural theory of personality
• Id
• Ego
• Superego
These are known as tripartite personality
according to Freud
The outcome of interaction between these
three components determines our adult
personality
 ID
• Most primitive,present in the newborn
• It allows us meet our basic needs eg the need to
eat,drink,eliminate waste,to avoid pain,to gain sexual
pleasure,aggression
• To achieve immediate gratification without
considering reality. It is based on the pleasure
principle cos it lacks the capacity to delay or modify
the instinctual drives with which an infant is born
• The id is modified as a result of the impact of the
external world on the drives
 EGO
• It is the executive organ of the personality.
• It mediates among the demands of the id,the realities
of the world and the demands of the superego
• It controls motility,perception,contact with reality and
thru the defense mechs avail to it,it delays and
modulates drive expression.
• Operates on the REALITY principle
• Gratification of impulses are delayed until the
situation is appropriate
 SUPEREGO
• The superego-it establishes and maintains an
individual’s moral conscience on the basis of a
complex system of ideals and values
internalized from parents
• Children internalize parental values and
standards about age 5-6yrs
• The superego provides ongoing scrutiny of a
person’s behaviour,thots and feelings
• The ego ideal is regarded as a component of the
superego,it forms an image of the morally ideal
person
• The superego is an agency of moral conscience
that proscribes what a person should not do
• Thruout the latency prd persons continue to build
on early identifications thru their contacts with
admired figures who contribute to d formation of
moral standards,aspirations and ideals
• The superego develops in response to parental
rewards and punishment
• The superego develops during the phallic phase
of psychosexual dvlpt
• It is believed that a strong superego serves to
inhibit the biological instincts of the id(resulting
in a high level of guilt)
• A weak superego allows the id more expression
resulting in a lower level of guilt
 THE RESULT

IN A WELL INTEGRATED PERSON,THE EGO

REMAINS IN FIRM BUT FLEXIBLE
CONTROL;THE REALITY PRINCIPLE GOVERNS
 THE LINK BTW TOPOGRAPHIC MODEL AND
STRUCTURAL MODEL
• ALL OF THE ID,MOST OF THE EGO AND
SUPEREGO ARE SUBMERGED IN THE
UNCONSCIOUS
• ONLY LITTLE PARTS OF THE EGO AND
SUPEREGO ARE IN THE CONSCIOUS OR
PRECONSCIOUS
 CONSERVATION OF ENERGY PRINCIPLE

• Humans are closed energy system

• There is a constant amount of psychic energy
called the libido
• If a forbidden act or impulse is suppressed,its
energy will seek an outlet somewhere
else,possibly appearing in disguised form eg
aggressive impulse displaced to racing
sports,dreams,neurotic symptoms
 Personality theories
• Freud’s psychosexual stages of development
• Erikson’s psychosocial stages
• Piaget’s stages of cognitive development
• Kohlberg’s stages of moral development
• Eysenck’s Big Three trait based model
 Freud’s psychosexual theory
• He believed that at particular points of the
child’s dvlpt,a single part of the body is
particularly sensitive to sexual stimulation
• These erogenous zones are the mouth,anus
and genital region
• At any given time the child’s libido is focused
on the erogenous zone for that age,which are
related to certain demands
• Frustration occurs if the child’s demands are
not met but overindulgence could also occur
leading to a fixation at that stage
• If a child is fixated at a stage,the mthd of
obtaining satisfaction that xterized that stage
will dominate their adult personality
 Oral stage
• This is the earliest stage of dvlpt in which the infant’s
needs,perceptions and modes of expression are primarily
centred in the mouth,lips,tongue and other organs related
to the oral zone.
• The libido is focused around the mouth as feeding
becomes the primary source of pleasure
• Spans from birth to abt 1year of life
• Objective;to establish a trusting dependence on nursing,to
establish comfortable expression and gratification of oral;
libidinal needs without excessive conflict or ambivalence
• Pathological traits:Two types of personality
can develop as a result of over indulgence(oral
receptive) or under indulgence(oral
aggressive)
• Oral receptive(optimist) have the fwing
xteristics-
extraversion,ambition,sociability,excessive
optimism, narcissism,demandingness
• Oral aggressive(pessimist)-
passive,withdrawn,verbally aggressive
• Oral xters are often excessively dependent and
require others to to give to them and to look
after them.They are xtremely dependent on
objects for the maintenance of their self
esteem
• Associated envy and jealousy
• Xter traits:successful resolution provides a
basis in xter structure for capacities to give to
and receive from others without excessive
dependence or envy and a capacity to rely on
others with a sense of trust as well as with a
sense of self reliance and self trust
 Anal stage
• This stage is prompted by maturation of
neuromuscular control over sphincters,thus
permitting more voluntary control over retention
or expulsion of faeces
• Extends from 1-3yrs of age
• There is a marked intensifications of aggressive
drives
• Acquisition of voluntary sphincter control is ass
with an increasing shift from passivity to activity
• The conflicts over anal control and the
struggle with the parent over retaining or
expelling faeces in toilet training gives rise to
increased ambivalence together with a
struggle over individuation and independence
• Objectives- a prd of striving for independence
and separation from the dependence on and
control by the parent
• The obj of spincter control without
overcontrol(fecal retentn) or loss of control
(messing) are matched by the child’s attempts
to achieve autonomy and independence
without excessive shame or self doubt
• Pathological traits:
-Anal retentive personality-
orderliness,obstinacy,stubborness,
willfulness,frugality,miserly over their possession.
-Anal expulsive personality-When defenses against anal
traits are less effective there is heightened
ambivalence,extravagance,lack of
tidiness,messiness,defiance,rage
Anal xters and defenses are often seen in Obsessive
compulsive neuroses
• Xter traits:successful resolution provides the
basis for dvlpt of personal
autonomy,independence,personal initiative
without guilt,a capacity for self determining
behaviour without a sense of shame,a
capacity for willing cooperation without a
sense of self diminution or defeat
 Phallic stage
• Begins abt the third year of life and continues until about the
sixth year
• It is xterized by a primary focus of sexual
interests,stimulation and excitement in the genital area
• The penis becomes an organ of principal interest to children
of both sexes,with the lack of penis in the female being
considered evidence of castration
• During this phase the oedipal involvement and conflict are
established and consolidated
• Resolution of the oedipal conflict marks the end of the
phallic stage
• In oedipal conflict typically,a boy of 5-6years
develops sexual impulses towards his mother
and sees his father as a rival.
• At the same time,he fears his father might
castrate him-castration anxiety
 Objectives
• The obj of this phase is to focus erotic interest
in the genital area and genital fxns
• This focusing lays the foundation for gender
identity and serves to integrate the residues of
previous stages of psychosexual dvlpt
• Pathological traits; The influence of penis envy
and castration anxiety,the defenses against
both and the patterns of identification that
emerge from the phallic phase are the primary
determinants of the dvlpt of human xter.
• They also subsume and integrate the residues
of previous psychosexual stages,so that
fixations or conflicts that derive from any of
the preceding stages can modify the oedipal
resolution
• Character traits-this phase provides a foundation for a
sense of curiosity without embarrassment,initiative
without guilt and a sense of mastery over
objects,persons and internal processes and impulses
• The resolution of the oedipal conflict gives rise to
powerful internal resources for regulation of drive
impulses and their direction to constructive ends
• Inadequate resolution of oedipal conflict leads to weak
sense of morality and difficulty with authority figures
 Latency stage
• This is the stage of relative quiescence or
inactivity of the sexual drive during the prd
from the resolution of oedipus complex until
pubescence(from 5-6yrs until abt 11-13yrs)
• There is further maturation of the ego and
greater control of instinctual drives
• This is a prd of primarily homosexual
affiliations for both boys and girls
• There is also sublimation of aggressive
energies into energetic learning and play
activities,exploring the environment and
becoming more proficient in dealing with the
world of things and persons around them
• It is a prd for the dvlpt of important skills
• Pathological traits can arise from either a lack
of dvlpt of inner control or an excess of them
• The lack of control can lead to a failure of the
child to sufficiently put energy into learning
and dvlpt of skills
• An excess of inner control can lead to
premature closure of personality dvlpt and
elaboration of obsessive xter traits
• Character traits-it is a prd of consolidating
previous attainments in psychosexual dvlpts
and establishing decisive patterns of adaptive
functioning
• These imp attainments need to be further
integrated,as the essential basis for a mature
adult life of satisfaction in work and love
 Genital stage
• Begins >12years of age
• It is the mature phase of adult sexuality and
functioning
 BEHAVIORISTIC APPROACH
• It emphasizes the importance of environmental
or situational determinants of behavior
• Bidirectional relationship btw a person and the
environment
• It states that behavior is the result of a
continuous interaction between personal and
environmental variables(BANDURA)
• Also known as Social Learning OR Social Cognitive
Approach
 Social learning and conditioning
• We learn thro direct experience or
observational learning
• Eg Operant conditioning(BF Skinner)- The
effect of other pple(rewards and punishments)
is an imp influence on an individual’s people
• Classical conditioning(Freud)-
CS(certain beh)+UCS(egpunishment)
CR(anxiety/guilt)
• Social cognitive theory(Albert Bandura)
• Emphasizes reciprocal determinism in which
external determinants of
behavior(reward,punishment) and internal
determinants(beliefs,thots and expectations)
are part of a system of interacting influences
that affect behavior
 Phenomenological approach
• Also known as Humanistic psychology
• Focus on how the individual perceives and
interpretes event in his/her current
environment
• Concepts include,
- Carl Rogers personality theory of the SELF
- Abraham Maslow HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
 THE SELF CONCEPT
• The self consists of all ideas,perceptions and
values that xterize “I” or me.
• It includes the awareness of what I am and
what I can do
• The perceived self in turn influences both the
person’s perception of the world and his/her
behavior
 Maslow Hierarchy of needs
• There is a hierarchy of needs ascending from
the basic biological needs to the more
complex motivations that become important
only after the basic needs have been satisfied