• For social learning theorists, learning occurs by watching others. Observational learning means that our parents and teachers can play significant roles in shaping our personalities, because we acquire both good and bad habits by watching and imitating them.

In observational learning, parents, teachers, and other adults play significant roles in shaping children’s personalities: Children learn good and bad habits by watching and

later emulating adults. This child may learn early that charitable giving is a worthy endeavor.

• They emphasized individuals’ sense of control over life events. Rotter introduced the term of locus of control to describe the extent to which we believe that reinforcers and punishers lie inside or outside of our control.

• People with an internal locus of control believe that life events are due to their own efforts and personal characteristics. People with an external locus of control believe that life events are a product of chance and fate.

• Almost all forms of psychological distress are associated with an external locus of control.

Evaluated Scientifically

• Placed psychology on strong scientific base.

Critics:• However…

– Radical behaviorists’ ignoring of cognition is not supported by research.

– Social learning’s emphasis on shared environment is non supported.

How much of the daughter’s personality and mannerisms are due to social learning from her mother? The scientific verdict is still out.

• Definition of Personality• Causes of Personality • Psychoanalytic theory• Behavioral and social learning theories

• HUMANISTIC MODELS OF PERSONALITY: THE THIRD FORCE

Carl Rogers• In the 1950s and 1960s humanistic

model merged as a “third force”• Rejected notion of determinism of

psychonalysts and behaviorists. Supported free will. We’re free to choose our way in life.

• Proposed self-actualization as core motive in personality. It is the drive to develop our innate potential to the fullest possible extent.

Roger’s Model• Three major components of personality:

1. The organism (innate, genetic design)

2. The self (set of beliefs about who we are)

3. Conditions of worth= expectations we place on ourselves for appropriate and inappropriate behavior. We accept ourselves only if we act in certain ways. Individual differences in personality originate from differences in the conditions of worth. It result in incongruence between self and organism. Incongruence=Inconsistency between our personalities and innate dispositions.

Self-Actualization

• Maslow: self-actualized people tend to be creative, spontaneous, and accepting of themselves and others. They are self-confident but not self-centered.

• They prone to peak experiences, transcendent moments.

Mahatma Gandhi is one of the historical figures whom Abraham Maslow considered

to be self-actualized.

Evaluated Scientifically

• Comparative psychology challenges Rogers’ claim that our nature is entirely positive.

• Rogers’ and Maslow’s research was filled with methodological difficulties.

• Many non-falsifiable assumptions.

• TRAIT MODELS OF PERSONALITY

Trait Models of Personality

• Interested in describing and understanding the structure of personality.

• Allport used factor analysis to reduce diversity of personality descriptors to underlying traits.

• factor analysis=statistical technique that analyzes the correlations among responses on scales to identify the underlying “factors.

• Five traits have repeatedly appeared in the studies.

Big Five Model (Costa, McCrae, et al)

• Openness to Experience• Conscientiousness• Extraversion• Agreeableness• Neuroticism

Big Five and Behavior

• Predict many important real-world behaviors– Job performance and grades in school

• Conscientiousness is positively associated with physical health and life span.

• Relatively similar traits seen across cultures, but different prevalence rates– Individualist vs collectivistic societies

• People from individualistic cultures usually report higher self-esteem than those from collectivist cultures.

Tendencies vs Adaptations

• Basic tendencies are underlying personality traits; characteristic adaptations are their behavioral manifestations.

• Same trait can manifest in very different ways.

• Sensation seeking is the tendency to seek out new and exciting stimuli, the sensation seeking scores are identical in firefighters and criminals.

Can Personality Change?

• Some variability prior to age 30, but little thereafter. Openness, extraversion, and neuroticism tend to decline a bit from the late 10s to early 30s, whereas conscientiousness and agreeableness tend to increase a bit.

• Cosmetic psychopharmacology is the use of medications to produce long-term changes in personality.

• Some evidence for changing of personality psychopharmacologically, but should we?

Evaluated Scientifically

• Mischel’s argument concerning behavioral inconsistency. Mischel found low correlations among different behaviors presumed to reflect the same trait. Mischel concluded that measures of personality aren’t especially helpful for predicting behavior.

• Response was that traits are predictors of aggregate, not isolated behaviors.

• Primarily describe individual differences rather than what causes them.

• Personality Assessment

Personality Assessment

• In the history of personality assessment, there were a lot of doubtful methods such as:

– Phrenology (head shape)– Physiognomy (facial characteristics)– Sheldon’s body types

Sheldon’s Body Types. Three major body types are associated with different personality traits. Yet research hasn’t proved

Sheldon’s claims. Because Sheldon wasn’t blind to body type when rating people’s personality traits, his findings may have been

due to bias.

• All lacked two key criteria – reliability and validity.

• structured and projective techniques.

Structured Personality Tests

• Paper-and-pencil tests consisting of questions you respond to in one of a few fixed ways (T/F or Y/N or Likert formats).

• The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) is most researched test.– 567 true-false questions– 10 basic scales

MMPI

• Developed using empirical method of test construction.

• Contains three validity scales designed to detect various types of distorted responses.– L (Lie) detects impression management– F (Frequency) detects malingering– K (Correction) measures defensive responding

MMPI Evaluated Scientifically

• Most scales are both reliable as well as valid for differentiating among mental disorders.

• Problematic in several ways– Unnecessary scales– Not used for formal diagnosis– Scales can be misused

Rational/Theoretical Method

• Requires test developers to begin with a clear-cut conceptualization of a trait and then write items to assess that conceptualization.

• Some have strong reliability and validity (NEO PI-R) but others do not (Myers-Briggs).

Projective Tests

• Ask examinees to interpret or make sense of ambiguous stimuli.

• Based on projective hypothesis. – When interpreting ambiguous stimuli, people

project aspects of their personality onto them.

• Reliability and validity are in controversial.

Rorschach Inkblot Test: WHAT MIGHT THIS BE?

• Consists of ten symmetrical inkblots, five in black-and-white and five containing color.

• Examiners ask respondents to look at each inkblot and say what it resembles.

• This supposedly tells you about personality traits of the respondent.

photo from zehfernando's Flickr photostream

Rorschach Evaluated Scientifically

• Unknown test-retest and problematic interrater reliability scores.

• Little evidence that it detects features of mental disorders.

• Lack of incremental validity.

Thematic Apperception Test:Tell a Tale

• Requires subject to construct a story based on pictures.

• Little evidence for adequate reliability or validity for most applications.

Other Projective Tests

• Human figure drawings require you to draw a person(s) in any way you wish.

• Graphology – analysis of handwriting – is another projective test.

• Neither has scientific support for its use and claims.

Handwriting SampleThese graphologists analyzed the handwriting of the major candidates in the 2008 presidential election, and concluded, for example, that John McCain’s “slashing comma” reveals a possible temper problem and

that Barack Obama’s “smooth” writing style reflects an ability to handle situations well.

Dangers in Personality Assessment

• The PT Barnum effect is the tendency to accept high base rate descriptors as accurate– Astrology and tarot readings

• Each reading contained general statements that apply to everyone, clients who heard only one reading found it believable.

The popularity of tarot card reading, crystal ball reading, palmistry, and many similar techniques probably

originates from the P.T. Barnum effect.

• Overall, personality assessment can be useful, but only if using valid, reliable instruments.