THE GRAND THEORY OF PERSONALITY

Some 17 Theories of Personality

1- Freud 2- Jung
3- Adler 4- Karen Horney
5- Erickson 6- Maslow
7- Rogers 8- Murray
9- Sheldon 10- Sullivan
11- Allport 12- Cattle
13- Dollard and Miller 14- Bandura
15- Skinner 16- Ellis
17- Kelly

There are three forces in Psychology.

1- The first force is Psychoanalysis or Psychodynamic or intra-psychic- it reduces
humans to levels of animals
2- The second force is Behaviorism - it reduces humans to stimulus-response level
3- The third force is Phenomenology or Humanistic Psychology- it restores human
beings to their actual level

There are a number of theories of personality that come under each banner.
1- The first force is Psychoanalysis or Psychodynamic it includes:
• Freud’s theory
• Jung’s theory
• Adler’s theory
• Karen Horney’s theory
• Erikson’s theory

2- The second force is Behaviorism. It includes:

• Dollard and Miller’s theory
• Skinner’s theory
• Bandura’s theory
• Pavlov, Watson, Thorndike work

3- The third force is Phenomenology or Humanistic Psychology. It includes:

• Adler’s theory
• Kelly’s theory
• Murray’s theory
• Maslow’s theory
• Roger’s theory
• Allport’s theory
• Cattle’s theory
• Sullivan’s theory

Freud’s Theory
Freud’s theory includes the following:
• Levels of Consciousness
• Analysis of Mental Structures
• Psychosexual Stages of Development.
• Defense Mechanisms
• Means of Tapping the Unconscious
• Instinct is an Inherited Condition that gives our Behavior Direction

Two kinds of Instincts:

1. Life instinct or Eros: bodily needs, survival, pleasure (libido)
2. Death instinct or Thanatos: aggression, self-destructiveness (Mortido)

Basis of Character Types

Major event is Oedipal Complex
Anxiety = threat
Reality: danger in external world
Neurotic: fear of id out of control
Moral: fear of conscience
Ego defends against anxiety--often unconscious, more and less mature/primitive

Jung’s Theory
The Personal Un-conscious consists of repressed or forgotten or not very vivid or
clear memories. It consists of clusters of emotionally loaded thoughts which Jung
labeled as complexes.
A complex is a cluster of ideas connected together by a common feelings or
emotions.

The Collective Un-conscious It refers to our ancestral experiences, memories from

untold millions of years,so it is fragments of all human history that we inherit from
our forefathers.
Jung labeled these ancestral experiences as archetypes.
• Persona
• Anima
• Animus
• Shadow
• Self
The Psychological Types
Psychological Types refer to orientation or the way an individual interacts with other
people.
Introverts
Extroverts
Stages of Development
• Childhood
• Young Adulthood
• Middle Ages
• Life after Retirement
Individual Psychology
Adler’s theory
The term individual psychology refers to the fact that individuals are unique, they
are characterized by inner harmony and a striving force to cooperate with fellow
humans. It does not mean that human beings are selfish, aggressive and motivated
to satisfy their own biological motives.
1-Adler proposed feelings of inferiority as the driving force behind personality
2-and he developed birth order theory.
Karen Horney’s theory
Horney developed a theory based on two concepts
1- Basic Anxiety
2- Neurotic Personality
In 1937, Karen Horney wrote a book called “The Neurotic Personality of our Time” in
this book, Karen Horney tried to discuss that a child has two basic needs, which are
safety and satisfaction.
In 1945, Karen Horney in her book “Our Inner Conflicts” classified ten neurotic
needs in three categories.
1- Moving Towards People
2- Moving Against People
3- Moving Away from People

Relationship between Real Self and Ideal Self

The real self represents all those things that are true about an individual, the ideal
self reflects what one would like to become.

Erikson’s theory
1- According to Erickson biology or genetics is one strong determinant of personality
but culture is another important determinant.
2- Thus biologically determined differences between the two sexes can be explained
as result of social expectations or cultural expectations.

Ego Psychology
It is Ego’s job to organize one’s life and to assure continuous harmony with one’s
physical and social environment.
Erikson stressed the autonomy and role of ego, we call his theory as Ego
psychology.

Psychosocial Stages of Development

According to Erikson, every individual passes through eight stages of development
and sequence of the eight stages is genetically determined and it is unchangeable.
Each stage of development is characterized by crisis which can have a positive or a
negative resolution.

The Stimulus Response Theory Of Dollard and Miller

1-Habit is the key concept in the theory by Dollard and Miller.
2-A habit is a link or association between a stimulus (cue) and a response.
For learning (desired behavior) to take place within the subject:
1- One must want something (Drive)
2- Notice something (Cue-Stimulus)
3- Do something (Response)
4- Get something (Reward)

Skinner’s Theory of Personality

Skinner’s Radical Behaviorism
He rejected the use of inner states such as anxiety as the explanation of our overt /
observable behavior.

Skinners Use of the Term "Operant."

An operant is a response that operates on the environment and changes it. The
change in the environment affects the occurrence of the response.
When an operant response is conditioned, it is essential that the reinforcement be
presented after the occurrence of the response. Only in this way does the frequency
of the response increase.

Bandura’s Theory
1- Bandura suggests most human behavior is learned by observation. In Modeling
we observe the behavior of others and use this information as a guide for our own
behavior.
2- Bandura and his colleagues have demonstrated that subjects allowed to observe
a set of responses performed by another individual (the model) tend to exhibit
these same responses (observed model) when placed in a similar setting.

Albert Ellis
He is of the view that irrational beliefs are basis of all of our maladjustments.
These irrational beliefs are learned through socialization from Parents, teachers,
peers, friends, religious, political leaders,Books, films, media etc.
1- The Rational Emotive Behavior A-B-C Theory Personality
“A” refers to an activating event.
“B” refers to the belief system of the individual.
“C” refers to the consequence.
Now in this A-B-C model of Personality quite later Ellis’s added D and the E
component as well so it is A-B-C-D-E.
Where
“D” refers to Disputing or debating or challenging the irrational beliefs
“E” refers to the Effect or impact of the debate on minimizing irrationality in one’s
attitude.

There are three forces in Psychology

3- The third force is Phenomenology or Humanistic Psychology.

Maslow’s theory
Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) postulated a hierarchy of needs beginning with
physiological needs at the bottom and self actualization at the top. An individual
must meet the basic needs before trying to meet the higher needs.

Roger’s theory
1- Phenomenological theory of personality is that a person’s behavior is obtained
through observation of his internal frame of reference. why an individual thinks,
feels, and behaves in a given way, it is necessary to know how that person
perceives and interprets the world.
2. He puts the emphasis on positive aspects of life, free choices and personal
growth experiences.
3. Actualizing Tendency : An innate need to survive, grow and enhance one’s self.
4. Fully Functioning Person :It is a term used by Rogers to designate individuals who
are using their capacities and talents, realizing their potentials.

Kelly’s theory
Kelly argued that personality is by its very nature embedded in a person’s
interpersonal relationships.
For Kelly’s an individual’s personality is nothing more or less than his or her
construct system.

Sullivan’s theory
For Sullivan personality is embedded in a person’s interpersonal relationships.
The personality develops as result of interpersonal situations and events.

Cattle’s theory
For Cattell factor analysis is a method used to discover traits which he considers the
building blocks of personality.
An ability discovered in such a cluster is called a factor and in Cattell’s theory, the
term factor is equated with the term trait.

Murray’s theory
Personality reflects novel, unique, recurrent and enduring patterns of behaviors.

Personality functions are to reduce conflicts, satisfy individual needs and to make
plans for attainment of future goals.