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PERSPECTIVES OR DOMAINS OF PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY:Dispositional

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Personality Psychology ­ PSY 405
VU
Lesson 40
PERSPECTIVES OR DOMAINS OF PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY
Let us have a detailed discussion about the different domains of psychology.
Personality can be approached or studied Using the six perspectives or domains.
1- Dispositional
2- Biological
3- Intra-psychic
4- Cognitive / Experiential
5- Social and Cultural
6- Adjustment
Dear students we have covered at least two to three personality theories related to each of the perspectives.
1- Dispositional
2- Biological
3- Intra-psychic
4- Cognitive/ Experiential
5- Social and Cultural
6- Adjustment
An outline of all the perspectives
1- Dispositional
It deals centrally with the ways in which individuals differ from one another.
This domain cuts across all other domains
It tries to explore how individuals differ in their emotions, self concepts, in physiological characteristics
and even in their intra-psychic mechanisms
The ways in which individuals A and B differs from one another.
They differ in their feelings, emotions, and self concepts, in physiological characteristics and even in their
intra-psychic mechanisms (traits, conscious, unconscious, id, ego, super ego)
Example 1
Individual A
Shy, timid, reserved, loves to stay at home; he is calm and less talkative.
Individual B
Bold, outgoing, loves to go to parties,
He is moody, reactive and talkative.
Example 2
Individual A
Hardworking, honest and completes his assignments in time.
Individual B
Lazy, he is rarely honest and never completes his assignments in time.
2-Biological
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Personality Psychology ­ PSY 405
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Humans are first and foremost collections of biological systems and these systems provide the building
blocks for behavior, thought and emotions
The biological approach refers to three areas genetics, psychophysiology and evolution.
Example
Genetics
The genes of individuals A and B differ from one another.
Individual A
Tall, fair and plumb, with straight black hair, blue eyes
Individual B
Medium tall, brown and lean, with curly red hair, green eyes.
physiology
Example
Physiology
The physiology (function) of brain or peripheral nervous system leads to differences in personalities of
individuals A and B.
Individual A
Pushy, aggressive and rude.
Individual B
Calm, polite and pleasant.
The physiology leads to the development of a specific type of personality such as type A person and type B
person.
The message is that if you have heart problem, blood pressure partly you yourself is responsible for it so
modify your style of life (diet, exercise and relaxation or meditation.)
3- The Intra-psychic approach was founded by Freud, who assumes that a human personality is formed
out of conflicts between basic needs and demands of the society. Most of these conflicts are at the
unconscious level and they affect our everyday behavior.
Example 1
The personalities of individuals A and B differ due to different childhood experiences (pleasant or
unpleasant) and the conflicts between basic needs and societal demands (intra-psychic conflict between Id,
Ego, and Superego)
Example 2
The personalities of individuals A and B differ due to different childhood needs that emerged at different
stages of development.
Individual A is a nailbeiter, sucks his thumb,
Usually dirty and messy.
Individual B is an exact opposite of individual A.
Example 3
Individual A
Helps others, does charity work, polite, humble (controlled by instinct of Eros).
Individual B
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Personality Psychology ­ PSY 405
VU
Abusive, aggressive, violent, damages things (controlled by instinct of Thanotos)
4- The Cognitive / Experiential Approach it focuses on the cognition and subjective experiences such as
conscious thoughts feelings, beliefs and desires about one self and others. The psychological mechanisms
involved in subjective experience, however, differ in form and content from one another.
Example 1
Two individuals say A and B living in the same room look out of the same window in the morning, the
images on their retinas is identical
Yet individual A says what a beautiful day,
while individual B says what a dull and boring day.
Example 2
Two students attend the same lecture, individual A thinks it was interesting, novel and pulled his attention.
While individual B thinks it was dull, boring and nothing new to offer.
Example 3
Two individuals are asked to choose a book according to liking to read or select a movie of their choice to
watch.
Individual A chooses a classic tragic novel or a film
Individual B chooses a comic book or a comedy film
5- Social and Cultural
The assumption that personality not merely something that resides within the brain, nervous system and
genes of individuals rather the social and cultural context also has an important role.
At the cultural level it is clear that groups differ from one another
Example 1
1- My personality or your personality has developed as result of genes and culture.
2- The differences in the personalities of males and females are due to social or cultural expectations.
Example 2
The personality of Pakistani student is the result of genes, society and culture.
So parents, teacher's, peer's leaders books media molds the personality of Pakistani student.
Example 3
Personality of a University Teacher or a Student
Now the personality development of a university teacher or a student is the result of interpersonal situations
or events.
6- Adjustment
This refers to the fact that personality plays a key role in how we cope, adapt, and adjust to events in our
every day live
Personality is linked with important health issues such as heart disease, sleep, diet, and the role of exercise
in long live of an individual.
Personality problems can be studied in relation to personality disorders
Example 1
We have got two individuals say
Individual A and individual B
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Personality Psychology ­ PSY 405
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Individual A's style of life includes healthy diet no junk food regular exercise and relaxation or
meditation.)
Individual B`s style of life includes unhealthy diet, no exercise and no relaxation or mediation.
Example 2
We have got two individuals say
Individual A (pessimistic) and individual B (optimistic)
Are told by their doctor that they have high blood pressure and diabetes
Individual A (pessimistic) will be depressed and sad and label himself as a patient.
Individual B (optimistic) will make a diet chart, will be particular about his medicines, and take regular
exercise.
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Table of Contents:
  1. THE NATURE OF PERSONALITY THEORY:Objectives of Personality Psychology
  2. PERSONALITY MEASUREMENT:Observational Procedures, Rating Scales
  3. MAIN PERSPECTIVES:Psychometrics, observation, Behavioral Coding Systems
  4. SIGMUND FREUD: A PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY OF PERSONALITY
  5. INSTINCT: WHAT MOTIVATES HUMAN BEHAVIOR?, The Oral Stage
  6. PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY OF SIGMUND FREUD:The Ego, Free association
  7. THEORY OF CARL JUNG:Biographical Sketch, Principles of Opposites, The Persona
  8. THE PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPES:Childhood, Young Adulthood, Middle Ages
  9. ALFRED ADLER:Biographical Sketch, Individual Psychology, Feeling of Inferiority
  10. INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOLOGY:Fictional Finalism, Social Interest, Mistaken Styles of Life
  11. KAREN HORNEY:Adjustment to Basic Anxiety, Adjustment Techniques
  12. ADJUSTMENT TO BASIC ANXIETY:Moving Towards People, Moving Against People
  13. ERIK ERIKSON:Anatomy and Destiny, Ego Psychology, Goal of Psychotherapy
  14. ERIK ERIKSON:Human Development, Goal of Psychotherapy
  15. SULLIVAN’S INTERPERSONAL THEORY:Core Concepts, The Self-System
  16. SULLIVAN’S INTERPERSONAL THEORY:Cognitive Process, Tension
  17. CONSTITUTIONAL PSYCHOLOGY:The Structure of Physique, Evaluation
  18. SHELDON’S SOMATOTYPE THEORY:The Structure of Physique
  19. MASLOW’S THEORY:Self-Actualizers Aren't Angels, Biographical Sketch
  20. MASLOW’S THEORY:Basic Concepts of Humanistic Psychology, Problem Centering
  21. ROGERS PERSON CENTERED APPROACH:Humanistic, Actualizing tendency
  22. ROGERS PERSON CENTERED APPROACH:Fully functioning person
  23. ROGERS PERSON CENTERED APPROACH:Client Centered Therapy,
  24. KELLY’S COGNITIVE THEORY OF PERSONALITY THEORY:Biographical Sketch
  25. CORE CONCEPTS OF GEORGE KELLY’S COGNITIVE THEORY OF PERSONALITY
  26. GORDON ALLPORT: A TRAIT THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Personality as a
  27. GORDON ALLPORT: A TRAIT THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Secondary Traits
  28. FACTOR ANALYTIC TRAIT THEORY:Factor Analysis, The Nature of Personality
  29. FACTOR ANALYTIC TRAIT THEORY:The Specification Equation, Research Methods
  30. HENRY MURRAY’S PERSONOLOGY:Need, Levels of Analysis, Thema
  31. HENRY MURRAY’S PERSONOLOGY (CONTINUED)
  32. ALBERT BANDURA’S SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY:BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
  33. ALBERT BANDURA’S SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY:Reciprocal Determinism
  34. THE STIMULUS RESPONSE THEORY OF DOLLARD AND MILLER:Core Concepts
  35. THE STIMULUS RESPONSE THEORY OF DOLLARD AND MILLER:Innate Equipment
  36. SKINNER’S THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Biographical Sketch, Books
  37. SKINNER’S THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Positive Reinforcement, Generalization
  38. ALBERT ELLIS THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Biographical Sketch, Social Factors
  39. THE GRAND PERFECT THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Genes and Biology
  40. PERSPECTIVES OR DOMAINS OF PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY:Dispositional
  41. PERSPECTIVES OR DOMAINS OF PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY
  42. PERSPECTIVES OR DOMAINS OF PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY:Need
  43. THE GRAND THEORY OF PERSONALITY:Psychosexual Stages of Development
  44. PERSONALITY APPRAISAL:Issues in Personality Assessment
  45. PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY: NEW DIRECTIONS IN THE DISCIPLINE