Personality Theories
First lets define what personality is, in our chapter 12 reading it states that personality is a person's long-term pattern of thinking, emotions, and behaviors(Coon/Mitterer,2015 p 404). Personality refers to the special blend of talents, values, hopes, loves, hates and habits that makes each of us a unique person. (Coon/Mitterer,2015 p 404).
Personality is a system of ideas, concepts, and assumptions, that are used to explain personality.
There are four major perspectives of the personality theories.
1. Trait theories, are the different types of traits that make up personalities and how they relate to behavior.
2. Psychodynamic theories, are views of the conscious and unconscious of behavior, feelings, and emotions.
3. Humanistic theories, focus on methods that allow fulfillment of potential. Human nature as being good is how it is view.
4. Behaviorist and social learning theories, that personality is a learned behavior pattern.
Freud believes personality is developed. Freud also believe there are three mental structures of personality.
1. Id-these are the biological instants and urges of the pleasure principle, that is irrational, impulsive and self-serving.
2. Ego-directs energies that is supplied by the id, because the id can only make images in the brain of what one desires.
3. Super Ego-is the judge or censor of thoughts. There is one part of the super ego that is called conscience. The second part is called the ego ideal, this is where parents approve and reward ones behavior.
Freud also believed that personality is developed from early childhood experiences known as the psychosexual stages. These stages are oral, anal, phallic, and the latency stage. The oral stage is where the focus is on the mouth. The anal stage is what he believes is the bowl and bladder and also is a form of control. Then we have the phallic stage which is pleasure of the gentile area of their bodies. Lastly we have the latency stage...