Lesson 1 introduction to personality
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This document provides an introduction to personality theory, outlining key concepts such as personality, traits, characteristics, and theories. It defines personality as a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give consistency and individuality to a person's behavior. Theories are described as sets of related assumptions that allow scientists to logically deduce testable hypotheses. The document also discusses why theories differ, what makes a theory useful, and how each theorist has an implicit concept of humanity.
Lesson 1 introduction to personality
- 1. Introduction to Personality Theory PSY136 – Personality 1
- 2. Personality • Came from the word persona, a mask worn by Roman actors to project a role. • A pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to a person’s behavior.
- 3. Traits • Contribute to individual differences in behavior, consistency of behavior over time, and stability of behavior across situations. • Pattern is different for each individual.
- 4. Characteristics • Unique qualities of an individual that include attributes such as temperament, physique, and intelligence.
- 5. Theory • A set of related assumptions that allows scientists to use logical deductive reasoning to formulate testable hypothesis.
- 6. Philosophy • Love of wisdom • It deals with what ought to be • Theories deal with if-then statements.
- 7. Speculations • Theories rely on speculations. • Speculation and empirical observation are essential cornerstones of theory building, but must not run rampantly in advance of controlled observation.
- 8. Hypothesis • An educated guess or prediction specific enough for its validity to be tested through the use of the scientific method. • A theory can generate several hypotheses.
- 9. Taxonomy • Classification of things according to their natural relationships. • It is essential to the development of science.
- 10. Why Different Theories? • Varying frames of reference, based on the author’s personal backgrounds, childhood experiences, philosophy, interpersonal relationships, and unique ways of looking at the world.
- 11. What Makes a Theory Useful? • Stimulates and guides • Ability to guide future research. practitioners over • It is falsifiable; precise the rough course of enough to support or daily problems. reject its major tenets. • It must be consistent • It is able to organize with itself. research data that are • It is parsimonious. incompatible with each other.
- 12. Each personality theorist has an explicit or implicit concept of humanity.
- 13. Concept of Humanity • Determinism vs. Free Choice • Pessimism vs. Optimism • Causality vs. Teleology • Conscious vs. Unconscious • Biological vs. Social Forces • Uniqueness vs. Similarity