Personality Development

Dr Ros Weston

Psychology

Definition:

Child (1968)

“More or less stable, internal factors that make one person’s behaviour consistent

from one time to another, and different from the behaviour other people would

manifest in comparable situations”

• Stable• Internal• Consistent• Different

Personality is ‘INTERNAL’

Freud’s theories on Personality Development

Change and development are the key words : internal process + past experiences

The dynamics of behaviour which is what distinguishes this theory from the cognitive

(Glassman, 1995)

Innate drives + early experiences

id ego super ego pleasure principle defence mechanisms

Anna Freud

“defence against instinct”

The child learns

defensive behaviours to

control id

Defence Mechanisms

1 Repression

2 Displacement

3 Projection

4 Denial

5 Intellectualisation

Psycho - sexual Development

Energy - libido&

Eros & Thanatos•Oral•Anal•Phallic (Oedipus & Electra complexes)•Latency •Genital

Other Defence Mechanisms• Fixation

Affective strategies in personality development• Regression

Case studies: Anna O

Little Hans

Myers & Brewin (1994) Childhood Memories

Williams (1994) Sexual Abuse

McGunnies (1949) Perception defence

“things are likely to be ignored if they are unpleasant or

emotionally threatening”

Levinger & Clarke (1961) supported this using emotionally

provoking words. (they recalled the words that had neutral

associations)

(Evaluatory comment on each of these and on Freud’s theory of personality

development)

Neo - Freudians

Erikson (1959)

Conflict

WAR

natural processes expectations of

of maturation society

Parents

friends

teachers

employers

norms & values

Chart of Eight Stages

Evaluatory Comments• Used clinical evidence (therapist case studies using Freud’s clinical method)• theory imprecise & anecdotal• experimental research provides indirect support for Erikson

(Ainsworth & Bell: 1970) (Bowlby, 1952)• Stage 4 has been supported by work of Damon & Hart (1988)

(older children used more internal psychological terms. Younger children focused on concrete & tangible )

• Strengths : - focuses on social process & ego development

- the facing of developmental tension / conflicts

- most of the conflicts lie with the family (Freud also said : When

you are looking at a ‘sick’ (mentally) or disturbed person you often

don’t have to look far for a cause. (that does not mean the parents are to blame. It is the conflict that is problematic)

• Does not give detail of how you move from one stage to another• Dwaretzky (1996) feels there is little convincing evidence for E theory• Hard to test this theory• The evidence is correlational

It gives a very tidy account of development

Social Learning Theory

Key term : Significant others

Social Modelling• Attention• Retention

• Reproduction• Motivation

• Conditioning

• Bandura’s work

• What would help a child learn self - efficacy?

-? -? -? -?

Continue…………

Classical

Operant

Observation & internalisation

Vicarious

reinforcement

Reciprocal determination

Self efficacy (self - image & belief in self

This is exact opposite of learned helplessness

• Evidence - Bobo doll

- Harter & Monsour (1992)

- Bandura & Cervone (1983)

• Evaluatory Comment

- More than one self? (Baars, 1997)

- Not a development theory

Situationalism

• Bandura suggested that personality is not a stable trait of an individual• Mischel & Peake’s theory (1982) suggest a consistency paradox. Research

failed to show consistency• Behavioural specificity (M & P, 1982)• We think it is a stable trait because we see people in similar situations• Individual differences (M & P, 1993)

Person variables• Cognitive & behavioural• Encoding & personal constructs• Expectancy• Subjective stimulus value• self - regulatory systems & plans

Evidence• Context - dependent learning research (Abernety, 1940)• Generalising learning• Lack of fragmentation

What is gender?

(as part of personality)

Sex Gender Sexual identity

Gender identity

Gender role

Gender stereo types

Situation (upbrining & social context)

Behaviour

See : - Debates and all the work we did on real and perceived differences

- Psychoanalytical theory

- Social learning

- Cognitive (Kohlberg)

- Behaviourist

- Humanistic (Carl Rogers : Erikson)

Kohlbergs (1966) Cognitive - developmental theory (1966)“The child actively constructs his own experiences and they are not products of

socialtraining”• Basic - gender identity (2-3½)• Gender stability (3½ - 4½)• Gender consistency (4½ - 7yrs) (fits with Piaget’s notion of conservation)Evidence• Munroe, Shimmin & Munroe (1984) These stages are cross - cultural. Slaby & Frey (1975) - attending to some sex models. Ruble, Balabon & Cooper (1981) Adverts & gender consistency.Evaluatory Comments• Cross cultural• interactivity• gender identity - increases gender role• How they interact in the world requires gender identity• Criticism : gender role behaviour - depends on gender consistency• Contradictions • Individualistic (not social context)

Gender Schema Theory

An organised set of beliefs about the sexes (Martin et al, 1987)• in group, out group schema• our gender schema• children are not passive• gender - schema’s help them pay attention to ………… & interpret the world &

what they remember• gender schemas structure experience

Evidence : (Martin et al, 1987)

(Bradbard et al, 1986)

(Masters et al, (1979)

Evaluatory Comment• seems to explain & fit with other theories of child development specially

cognitive• individualistic• schemas are overaggerated • should be able to change schemas. As Durkin (1995) found: it is easier to

change concepts

Continued……...

Now :

Compare social learning theory yourself using biological; social

biological theory by explaining

• Theory (giving)• evidence (including)• evaluatory comment

Theories of Adolescent Development

Delinquency

Relationship with parents Relationship with peers Cultural differences

What evidence is there that these are important

Marcia’s theory (1966-1980)

-Alternatives to choose from

-Have fun commitment been made

Four possible identity statuses

-Identity diffusion

-Foreclosure

-Moratorium

-Identity achievement

Evidence to support : Meilman (1979)

Evidence against : (Munroe & Adams (1977)

Coleman’s focal theory (1974)

‘Storm & Stress’

Erikson’s theory (1902, 1994)

-Identity diffusion

-Identity crisis

-Counter evidence

-Support evidence

Intimacy Diffusion Diffusion of industry Negative identity

Gender & individual differences alpha & beta bias

The Isle of Wight Study (1976) Rutter’s large scale study.

What factors cause disturbance in young people?

What is the problem of retrospective data?