SELF AND PERSONALITY - NCERT
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SELF AND PERSONALITY
After reading this chapter, you would be able to:
describe the concept of self and learn some ways for self-regulation of behaviour,
explain the concept of personality,
differentiate between various approaches to the study of personality,
develop insight into the development of a healthy personality, and
describe some techniques for personality assessment.
Introduction
Self and Personality
Concept of Self
Cognitive and Behavioural Aspects of Self
Self-esteem, Self-efficacy and Self-regulation
Culture and Self
Concept of Personality
Personality-related Terms (Box 2.1)
Major Approaches to the Study of Personality
Type Approaches
Trait Approaches
CONTENTS Five-Factor Model of Personality (Box 2.2)
Psychodynamic Approach
Behavioural Approach Key Terms
Cultural Approach Summary
Humanistic Approach Review Questions
Who is a Healthy Person? (Box 2.3)
Project Ideas
Assessment of Personality
Weblinks
Self-report Measures
Pedagogical Hints
Projective Techniques
Behavioural Analysis
23
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22
Quite often you must have found yourself engaged in knowing and
evaluating your own behaviour and that of others. You must have noticed
how you react and behave in certain situations in a manner different from
others? You may have also often asked questions about your relationships
with others. To find an answer to some of these questions, psychologists
use the notion of self. Similarly when we ask questions such as why people
are different, how they make different meaning of events, and how they
feel and react differently in similar situations (i.e. questions relating to
Introduction variations in behaviour), the notion of personality comes into play. Both
these concepts, i.e. self and personality are intimately related. Self, in fact,
lies at the core of personality.
The study of self and personality helps us understand not only who we
are, but also our uniqueness as well as our similarities with others. By
understanding self and personality, we can understand our own as well
as others’ behaviour in diverse settings. Several thinkers have analysed
the structure and function of self and personality. As a result, we have
different theoretical perspectives on self and personality today. This chapter
will introduce you to some basic aspects of self and personality. You will
also learn some important theoretical approaches to self and personality,
and certain methods of personality assessment.
SELF AND PERSONALITY CONCEPT OF SELF
Self and personality refer to the From your childhood days, you may have
characteristic ways in which we define our spent considerable time thinking about
existence. They also refer to the ways in who you are, and how you are different
which our experiences are organised and from others. By now, you already may have
show up in our behaviour. From common developed some ideas about yourself,
observation we know that different people although you may not be aware of it. Let
hold different ideas about themselves. us try to have some preliminary notion of
These ideas represent the self of a person. our self (i.e. who are we?) by completing
We also know that different people behave Activity 2.1.
in different ways in a given situation, but How easy was it for you to complete
the behaviour of a particular person from these sentences? How much time did you
one situation to another generally remains take? Perhaps it was not as easy as you
fairly stable. Such a relatively stable may have thought at first. While working
patter n of behaviour represents the on it, you were describing your ‘self ’. You
“personality” of that person. Thus, different are aware of your ‘self’ in the same way as
persons seem to possess dif ferent you are aware of various objects in your
personalities. These personalities are surrounding environment, such as a chair
reflected in the diverse behaviour of or a table in your room. A newly born child
persons. has no idea of its self. As a child grows
24
Psychology
2021–22
older, the idea of self emerges and its disclosing her/his personal identity. Social
for mation begins. Parents, friends, identity refers to those aspects of a person
teachers and other significant persons play that link her/him to a social or cultural
a vital role in shaping a child’s ideas about group or are derived from it. When
self. Our interaction with other people, our someone says that s/he is a Hindu or a
experiences, and the meaning we give to Muslim, a Brahmin or an adivasi or a
them, serve as the basis of our self. The North Indian or a South Indian, or
structure of self is modifiable in the light something like these, s/he is trying to
of our own experiences and the indicate her/his social identity. These
experiences we have of other people. This descriptions characterise the way people
you will notice if you exchange the list you mentally represent themselves as a person.
completed under Activity 2.1 with your Thus, self refers to the totality of an
other friends. individual’s conscious experiences, ideas,
thoughts and feelings with regard to herself
Activity Understanding the Self or himself. These experiences and ideas
2.1 define the existence of an individual both
Please complete the following sentences at the personal and at social levels.
starting with “I am”.
Time Now............. Self as Subject and Self as Object
I am........................................................ If you return to your friends’ descriptions
I am........................................................ in Activity 2.1, you will find that they have
I am........................................................ described themselves either as an entity
I am........................................................
that does something (e.g., I am a dancer)
I am........................................................
I am........................................................ or as an entity on which something is done
I am........................................................ (e.g., I am one who easily gets hurt). In the
I am........................................................ former case, the self is described as a
I am........................................................ ‘subject’ (who does something); in the latter
I am.....................................................
case, the self is described as an ‘object’
Time when you finished..................... (which gets affected).
This means that self can be understood
Notice what they have done. You will as a subject as well as an object. When you
find that they have produced a fairly long say, “I know who I am”, the self is being
list of attributes about how they identify described as a ‘knower’ as well as
themselves. The attributes they have used something that can be ‘known’. As a
for identification tell us about their subject (actor) the self actively engages in
personal as well as social or cultural the process of knowing itself. As an object
identities. Personal identity refers to those (consequence) the self gets observed and
attributes of a person that make her/him comes to be known. This dual status of self
different from others. When a person should always be kept in mind.
describes herself/himself by telling her/his
Kinds of Self
name (e.g., I am Sanjana or Karim), or her/
his qualities or characteristics (e.g., I am There are several kinds of self. They get
honest or hardworking person), or her/his formed as a result of our interactions with
potentialities or capabilities (e.g., I am a our physical and socio-cultural
singer or dancer), or her/his beliefs (e.g., environments. The first elements of self
I am a believer in God or destiny), s/he is may be noticed when a newborn child cries
25
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22
for milk when it is hungry. Although, this more specific level, a person may have a
cry is based on reflex, this later on leads very positive view of her/his athletic
to development of awareness that ‘I am bravery, but a negative view of her/his
hungry’. This biological self in the context academic talents. At an even more specific
of socio-cultural environment modifies level, one may have a positive self-concept
itself. While you may feel hungry for a about one’s reading ability but a negative
chocolate, an Eskimo may not. one about one’s mathematical skills.
A distinction is made between ‘personal’ Finding out an individual’s self-concept is
and ‘social’ self. The personal self leads to not easy. The most frequently used method
an orientation in which one feels primarily involves asking the person about herself/
concerned with oneself. We have talked himself.
above how our biological needs lead to the
development of a ‘biological self’. But, soon Self-esteem
a child’s psychological and social needs in Self-esteem is an important aspect of our
the context of her/his environment lead self. As persons we always make some
other components of personal self to judgment about our own value or worth.
emerge. Emphasis comes to be laid on This value judgment of a person about
those aspects of life that relate only to the herself/himself is called self-esteem. Some
concer ned person, such as personal people have high self-esteem, whereas
freedom, personal responsibility, personal others may have low self-esteem. In order
achievement, or personal comforts. The to assess self-esteem we present a variety
social self emerges in relation with others of statements to a person, and ask her/
and emphasises such aspects of life as him to indicate the extent to which those
cooperation, unity, affiliation, sacrifice, statements are true for her or him. For
support or sharing. This self values example, we may ask a child to indicate the
family and social relationships. Hence, it extent to which statements such as “I am
is also referred to as familial or relational good at homework”, or “I am the one
self. usually chosen for the games”, or “I am
highly liked by my peers”, are true of her/
COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIOURAL ASPECTS him. If a child reports these statements to
OF SELF be true for her/him, her/his self-esteem
will be high in comparison to someone who
Psychologists from all parts of the world says “no”.
have shown interest in the study of self. Studies indicate that by the age of 6 to
These studies have brought out many 7 years, children seem to have formed self-
aspects of our behaviour related to self. As esteem at least in four areas: academic
indicated earlier, all of us carry within us competence, social competence, physical/
a sense of who we are and what makes us athletic competence, and physical
different from everyone else. We cling to appearance, which become more refined
our personal and social identities and feel with age. Our capacity to view ourselves in
safe in the knowledge that it remains terms of stable dispositions permits us to
stable in our lifetime. combine separate self-evaluations into a
The way we perceive ourselves and the general psychological image of ourselves.
ideas we hold about our competencies and This is known as an overall sense of self-
attributes is also called self-concept. At a esteem.
very general level, this view of oneself is, Self-esteem shows a strong relationship
overall, either positive or negative. At a with our everyday behaviour. For example,
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Psychology
2021–22
children with high academic self-esteem stop smoking the moment they decide to
perform better in schools than those with do so. Our society, our parents and our
low academic self-esteem, and children own positive experiences can help in the
with high social self-esteem are more liked development of a strong sense of self-
by their peers than those with low social efficacy by presenting positive models
self-esteem. On the other hand, children during the formative years of children.
with low self-esteem in all areas are often
found to display anxiety, depression, and Self-regulation
increasing antisocial behaviour. Studies Self-regulation refers to our ability to
have shown that war m and positive organise and monitor our own behaviour.
parenting helps in the development of high People, who are able to change their
self-esteem among children as it allows behaviour according to the demands of the
them to know that they are accepted as external environment, are high on self-
competent and worthwhile. Children, whose monitoring.
parents help or make decisions for them Many situations of life r equir e
even when they do not need assistance, resistance to situational pressures and
often suffer from low self-esteem. control over ourselves. This becomes
possible thr ough what is commonly
Self-efficacy
known as ‘will power’. As human beings
Self-efficacy is another important aspect we can control our behaviour the way we
of our self. People differ in the extent to want. We often decide to delay or defer the
which they believe they themselves control satisfaction of certain needs. Learning to
their life outcomes or the outcomes are delay or defer the gratification of needs is
controlled by luck or fate or other called self-control. Self-control plays a
situational factors, e.g. passing an key role in the fulfilment of long-term
examination. A person who believes that goals. Indian cultural tradition provides
s/he has the ability or behaviours required us with certain effective mechanisms (e.g.,
by a particular situation demonstrates fasting in vrata or roza and non-
high self-efficacy. attachment with worldly things) for
The notion of self-efficacy is based on developing self-control.
Bandura’s social lear ning theory. A number of psychological techniques
Bandura’s initial studies showed that of self-control have also been suggested.
children and adults learned behaviour by Observation of own behaviour is one of
observing and imitating others. People’s them. This provides us with necessary
expectations of mastery or achievement information that may be used to change,
and their convictions about their own modify, or strengthen certain aspects of
effectiveness also determine the types of self. Self-instruction is another important
behaviour in which they would engage, as technique. We often instruct ourselves to
also the amount of risk they would do something and behave the way we want
undertake. A strong sense of self-efficacy to. Such instructions are quite effective in
allows people to select, influence, and even self-regulation. Self-reinforcement is the
construct the circumstances of their own third technique. This involves rewarding
life. People with a strong sense of self- behaviours that have pleasant outcomes.
efficacy also feel less fearful. For example, you may go to see a movie
Self-efficacy can be developed. People with friends, if you have done well in an
with high self-efficacy have been found to examination. These techniques have been
27
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22tried out and found quite effective with members of the group maintain their
respect to self-regulation and self-control. individuality. In the Indian culture, the self
is generally not separated from one’s own
group; rather both remain in a state of
CULTURE AND SELF
harmonious co-existence. In the Western
Several aspects of self seem to be linked culture, on the other hand, they often
to the characteristic features of the culture remain at a distance. That is why many
in which an individual lives. Analysis of Western cultures are characterised as
self carried out in the Indian cultural individualistic, whereas many Asian
context reveals a number of important cultures are characterised as collectivistic.
features that are distinct from those found
in the Western cultural context. CONCEPT OF PERSONALITY
The most important distinction between
the Indian and the Western views is the The term ‘personality’ often appears in our
way the boundary is drawn between the day-to-day discussion. The literal meaning
self and the other. In the Western view, this of personality is derived from the Latin
boundary appears to be relatively fixed. word persona, the mask used by actors in
The Indian view of self, on the other hand, the Roman theatre for changing their facial
is characterised by the shifting nature of make-up. After putting on the mask,
this boundary. Thus, our self at one audience expected the person to perform
moment of time expands to fuse with the a role in a particular manner. It did not,
cosmos or include the others. But at the however, mean that the person enacting
next moment, it seems to be completely the given role necessarily possessed those
withdrawn from it and focused fully on qualities.
individual self (e.g., our personal needs or For a layperson, personality generally
goals). The Western view seems to hold refers to the physical or exter nal
clear dichotomies between self and other, appearance of an individual. For example,
man and nature, subjective and objective. when we find someone ‘good-looking’, we
The Indian view does not make such clear often assume that the person also has a
dichotomies. Figure 2.1 illustrates this charming personality. This notion of
relationship. personality is based on super ficial
In the Western culture, the self and the impressions, which may not be correct.
group exist as two different entities with In psychological terms, personality
clearly defined boundaries. Individual refers to our characteristic ways of
Fig.2.1 : Self and Group Boundaries in Western and Indian Cultural Perspectives
28
Psychology
2021–22responding to individuals and situations. or external situational demands. Thus,
People can easily describe the way in which personality is adaptive to situations.
they respond to various situations. Certain Once we are able to characterise
catchwords (e.g., shy, sensitive, quiet, someone’s personality, we can predict
concerned, warm, etc.) are often used to how that person will probably behave
describe personalities. These words refer to
in a variety of circumstances. An
different components of personality. In this
understanding of personality allows us to
sense, personality refers to unique and
deal with people in realistic and acceptable
relatively stable qualities that characterise
ways. For example, if you find a child who
an individual’s behaviour across different
does not like orders, the most effective way
situations over a period of time.
to deal with that child will be not to give
If you watch closely, you will find that
orders, but to present a set of acceptable
people do show variations in their
alternatives from which the child may
behaviour. One is not always cautious or
impulsive, shy or friendly. Personality choose. Similarly, a child who has feelings
characterises individuals as they appear in of inferiority needs to be treated differently
most circumstances. Consistency in from a child who is self-confident.
behaviour, thought and emotion of an Several other terms are used to refer to
individual across situations and across behavioural characteristics of individuals.
time periods characterises her/his Quite often they are used as synonyms of
personality. For example, an honest person personality. Some of these terms are given
is more likely to remain honest irrespective in Box 2.1 along with their defining
of time or situation. However, situational features. You may read them carefully to
variations in behaviour do occur as they appreciate how they are different from the
help individuals in adapting to their notion of personality.
environmental circumstances.
In brief, personality is characterised by MAJOR APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF
the following features: PERSONALITY
1. It has both physical and psychological
components. Psychologists interested in the study of
2. Its expression in terms of behaviour is personality, try to answer certain questions
fairly unique in a given individual. about the nature and origin of individual
3. Its main features do not easily change differences in personality. You may have
with time. observed that two children in the same
4. It is dynamic in the sense that some of family develop dramatically dif ferent
its features may change due to internal personalities. Not only they look physically
Personality-related Terms Box
2.1
Temperament: Biologically based characteristic way of reacting.
Trait: Stable, persistent and specific way of behaving.
Disposition: Tendency of a person to react to a given situation in a particular way.
Character: The overall pattern of regularly occurring behaviour.
Habit: Over learned modes of behaving.
Values: Goals and ideals that are considered important and worthwhile to achieve.
29
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22different, but they also behave differently of external rewards or threats available in
in different situations. These observations a particular situation. The cross-
often generate curiosity and force us to situational consistency of traits is found to
ask: “Why is it that some people react be quite low. The compelling influence of
differently in a given situation than others situations can be noted by observing
do? Why is it that some people enjoy people’s behaviour in places like a market,
adventurous activities, while others like a courtroom, or a place of worship.
reading, watching television or playing
cards? Are these differences stable all Type Approaches
through one’s life, or are they just short- As we explained above, personality types
lived and situation-specific?” are used to represent and communicate a
A number of approaches and theories set of expected behaviours based on
have been developed to understand and similarities. Efforts to categorise people
explain behavioural differences among into personality types have been made
individuals, and behavioural consistencies since ancient times. The Greek physician
within an individual. These theories are Hippocrates had proposed a typology of
based on different models of human personality based on fluid or humour. He
behaviour. Each throws light on some, but classified people into four types (i.e.,
not all, aspects of personality. sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholic and
Psychologists distinguish between type choleric); each characterised by specific
and trait approaches to personality. The behavioural features.
type approaches attempts to comprehend In India also, Charak Samhita, a
human personality by examining certain famous treatise on Ayurveda, classifies
broad patterns in the observed behavioural people into the categories of vata, pitta and
characteristics of individuals. Each kapha on the basis of three humoural
behavioural pattern refers to one type in elements called tridosha. Each refers to a
which individuals are placed in terms of type of temperament, called prakriti (basic
the similarity of their behavioural nature) of a person. Apart from this, there
characteristics with that pattern. In is also a typology of personality based on
contrast, the trait approach focuses on the trigunas, i.e. sattva, rajas, and tamas.
the specific psychological attributes along Sattva guna includes attributes like
which individuals tend to differ in cleanliness, truthfulness, dutifulness,
consistent and stable ways. For example, detachment, discipline, etc. Rajas guna
one person may be less shy, whereas includes intensive activity, desire for sense
another may be more; or one person may gratification, dissatisfaction, envy for
be less friendly, whereas another may be others, and a materialistic mentality, etc.
more. Here “shyness” and “friendliness” Tamas guna characterises anger,
represent traits along which individuals arrogance, depression, laziness, feeling of
can be rated in terms of the degree of helplessness, etc. All the three gunas are
presence or absence of the concerned present in each and every person in
behavioural quality or a trait. The different degrees. The dominance of one or
interactional approach holds that the other guna may lead to a particular
situational characteristics play an type of behaviour.
important role in deter mining our Within psychology, the personality
behaviour. People may behave as types given by Sheldon are fairly well-
dependent or independent not because of known. Using body build and temperament
their internal personality trait, but because as the main basis, Sheldon proposed the
30
Psychology
2021–22Endomorphic, Mesomorphic, and the absence of Type-A traits. This typology
Ectomorphic typology. The endomorphs has been further extended. Morris has
are fat, soft and round. By temperament suggested a Type-C personality, which is
they are relaxed and sociable. The prone to cancer. Individuals characterised
mesomorphs have strong musculature, are by this personality ar e cooperative,
rectangular with a strong body build. They unassertive and patient. They suppress
ar e energetic and courageous. The their negative emotions (e.g., anger), and
ectomorphs are thin, long and fragile in show compliance to authority. Mor e
body build. They are brainy, artistic and recently, a Type-D personality has been
introvert. suggested, which is characterised by
Let us r emember that these body proneness to depression.
typologies are simple, and have limited use Personality typologies are usually very
in predicting behaviour of individuals. They appealing, but are too simplistic. Human
are more like stereotypes which people behaviour is highly complex and variable.
hold. Assigning people to a particular personality
Jung has proposed another important type is difficult. People do not fit into such
typology by grouping people into introverts simple categorisation schemes so neatly.
and extraverts. This is widely recognised.
According to this typology, introverts are Trait Approaches
people who prefer to be alone, tend to avoid
others, withdraw themselves in the face of These theories are mainly concerned with
emotional conflicts, and are shy. the description or characterisation of basic
Extraverts, on the other hand, are sociable, components of personality. They try to
outgoing, drawn to occupations that allow discover the ‘building blocks’ of
dealing directly with people, and react to personality. Human beings display a wide
stress by trying to lose themselves among range of variations in psychological
people and social activity. attributes, yet it is possible to club them
In r ecent years, Friedman and into smaller number of personality traits.
Rosenman have classified individuals into Trait approach is very similar to our
Type-A and Type-B personalities. The two common experience in everyday life. For
r esearchers were trying to identify example, when we come to know that a
psychosocial risk factors when they person is sociable, we assume that s/he
discovered these types. People will not only be cooperative, friendly and
characterised by Type-A personality seem helping, but also engage in behaviours that
to possess high motivation, lack patience, involve other social components. Thus,
feel short of time, be in a great hurry, and trait approach attempts to identify primary
feel like being always burdened with work. characteristics of people. A trait is
Such people find it difficult to slow down considered as a r elatively enduring
and relax. People with Type-A personality attribute or quality on which one
are more susceptible to problems like individual differs from another. They
hypertension and coronary heart disease include a range of possible behaviours
(CHD). The risk of developing CHD with that ar e activated according to the
Type-A personality is sometimes even demands of the situation.
greater than the risks caused by high blood To summarise, (a) traits are relatively
pr essure, high cholesterol levels, or stable over time, (b) they are generally
smoking. Opposite to this is the Type-B consistent across situations, and (c) their
personality, which can be understood as strengths and combinations vary across
31
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22individuals leading to individual differences situations depends on her/his traits,
in personality. although people sharing the same traits
A number of psychologists have used might express them in different ways.
traits to for mulate their theories of Allport considered traits more like
personality. We will discuss some intervening variables that occur between
important theories. the stimulus situation and response of the
person. This meant that any variation in
Allport’s Trait Theory traits would elicit a different response to
the same situation.
Gordon Allport is considered the pioneer of
trait approach. He proposed that
Cattell: Personality Factors
individuals possess a number of traits,
which are dynamic in nature. They Raymond Cattell believed that there is a
determine behaviour in such a manner common structure on which people differ
that an individual approaches different from each other. This structure could be
situations with similar plans. The traits determined empirically. He tried to identify
integrate stimuli and responses which the primary traits from a huge array of
otherwise look dissimilar. Allport argued descriptive adjectives found in language.
that the words people use to describe He applied a statistical technique, called
themselves and others provide a basis for factor analysis, to discover the common
understanding human personality. He structures. He found 16 primary or source
analysed the words of English language to traits. The source traits are stable, and are
look for traits which describe a person. considered as the building blocks of
Allport, based on this, categorised traits personality. Besides these, there are also
into cardinal, central, and secondary. a number of surface traits that result out
Cardinal traits are highly generalised of the interaction of source traits. Cattell
dispositions. They indicate the goal around described the source traits in terms of
which a person’s entire life seems to opposing tendencies. He developed a test,
revolve. Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violence called Sixteen Personality Factor
and Hitler’s Nazism are examples of Questionnaire (16PF), for the assessment
cardinal traits. Such traits often get of personality. This test is widely used by
associated with the name of the person so psychologists.
strongly that they derive such identities as
the ‘Gandhian’ or ‘Hitlerian’ trait. Less Eysenck’s Theory
pervasive in effect, but still quite H.J. Eysenck proposed that personality
generalised dispositions, are called central could be reduced into two broad
traits. These traits (e.g., warm, sincere, dimensions. These are biologically and
diligent, etc.) are often used in writing a genetically based. Each dimension
testimonial or job recommendation subsumes a number of specific traits.
for a person. The least generalised These dimensions are:
characteristics of a person are called (1) Neuroticism vs. emotional stability : It
secondary traits. Traits such as ‘likes refers to the degree to which people
mangoes’ or ‘prefers ethnic clothes’ are have control over their feelings. At one
examples of secondary traits. extreme of the dimension, we find
While Allport acknowledged the people who are neurotic. They are
influence of situations on behaviour, he anxious, moody, touchy, restless and
held that the way a person reacts to given quickly lose control. At the other
32
Psychology
2021–22Five-Factor Model of Personality Box
2.2
The controversy regarding the number of basic personality traits has taken an interesting
turn in recent years. Paul Costa and Robert McCrae have examined all possible personality
traits. The findings indicate a set of five factors. They are often called Big Five Factors.
These factors include:
1. Openness to experience : Those who score high on this factor are imaginative, curious,
open to new ideas, and interested in cultural pursuits. In contrast, those who score
low are rigid.
2. Extraversion : It characterises people who are socially active, assertive, outgoing,
talkative, and fun loving. On its opposite are people who are shy.
3. Agreeableness : This factor characterises people who are helpful, co-operative, friendly,
caring, and nurturing. On the opposite are people who are hostile and self-centered.
4. Neuroticism : People who score high on this factor are emotionally unstable, anxious,
worried, fearful, distressed, irritable and hypertensive. On the opposite side are people
who are well adjusted.
5. Conscientiousness : Those who score high on this factor are achievement-oriented,
dependable, responsible, prudent, hardworking and self-controlled. On the opposite
are people who are impulsive.
This five factor model represents an important theoretical development in the field of
personality. It has been found useful in understanding the personality profile of people
across cultures. While it is consistent with the analysis of personality traits found in
different languages, it is also supported by the studies of personality carried out through
different methods. Hence, it is now considered to be the most promising empirical approach
to the study of personality.
extreme lie people who are calm, even- with the other two dimensions mentioned
tempered, reliable and remain under above. A person who scores high on
control. psychoticism dimension tends to be
(2) Extraversion vs. introversion : It refers hostile, egocentric, and antisocial.
to the degree to which people are Eysenck Personality Questionnaire is the
socially outgoing or socially withdrawn. test which is used for studying these
At one extreme are those who are dimensions of personality.
active, gregarious, impulsive and thrill- The trait approach is very popular and
seeking. At the other extreme are many advances in this respect are taking
people who are passive, quiet, cautious place. These are beyond the scope of your
and reserved. present studies. A new formulation has
also been advanced that provides a novel
In a later work Eysenck proposed a
scheme of organising traits. This new
third dimension, called Psychoticism vs.
formulation is given in Box 2.2.
Sociability, which is considered to interact
Psychodynamic Approach
Activity If you were asked to change one aspect This is a highly popular approach to
2.2 of your personality, what would you studying personality. This view owes
like to change and why? If not, why? largely to the contributions of Sigmund
Which aspect of your personality would Freud. He was a physician, and developed
you never want to change? Write a this theory in the course of his clinical
paragraph. Discuss with a friend.
practice. Early in his career he used
33
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22hypnosis to treat people with physical and repressed unconscious materials to
emotional problems. He noted that many consciousness, thereby helping people to
of his patients needed to talk about their live in a more self-aware and integrated
problems, and having talked about them, manner.
they often felt better. Freud used free
association (a method in which a person is Structure of Personality
asked to openly share all the thoughts, According to Freud’s theory, the primary
feelings and ideas that come to her/his structural elements of personality are
mind), dream analysis, and analysis of three, i.e. id, ego, and superego. They
errors to understand the inter nal reside in the unconscious as forces, and
functioning of the mind. they can be inferred from the ways people
behave (see Fig. 2.2). Let us remember that
Levels of Consciousness
id, ego and superego are concepts, not real
Freud’s theory considers the sources and physical structures. We will discuss these
consequences of emotional conflicts and terms in some detail.
the way people deal with these. In doing
so, it visualises the human mind in terms
of three levels of consciousness. The first
level is conscious, which includes the
thoughts, feelings and actions of which
people are aware. The second level is
preconscious, which includes mental
activity of which people may become aware
only if they attend to it closely. The third
level is unconscious, which includes
mental activity that people are unaware of.
According to Freud, the unconscious is
a reservoir of instinctive or animal drives.
It also stores all ideas and wishes that are
concealed from conscious awareness,
perhaps, because they lead to Fig.2.2 : Structure of Personality in Freudian
psychological conflicts. Most of these arise Theory
from sexual desires which cannot be
expressed openly and ther efore are
Id : It is the source of a person’s
repressed. People constantly struggle to
instinctual energy. It deals with immediate
find either some socially acceptable ways
gratification of primitive needs, sexual
to express unconscious impulses, or to
desires and aggressive impulses. It works
keep those impulses away from being
on the pleasure principle, which assumes
expressed. Unsuccessful resolution of
that people seek pleasure and try to avoid
conflicts results in abnormal behaviour.
pain. Freud considered much of a person’s
Analysis of forgetting, mispronunciations,
instinctual energy to be sexual, and the
jokes and dreams provide us with a means
rest as aggressive. Id does not care for
to approach the unconscious. Freud
moral values, society, or other individuals.
developed a therapeutic procedure, called
psychoanalysis. The basic goal of Ego : It grows out of id, and seeks to
psychoanalytic therapy is to bring the satisfy an individual’s instinctual needs in
34
Psychology
2021–22accordance with reality. It works by the Ego Defence Mechanisms
reality principle, and often directs the id
According to Freud, much of human
towar ds more appropriate ways of behaviour reflects an attempt to deal with
behaving. For example, the id of a boy, who or escape from anxiety. Thus, how the ego
wants an ice-cream cone, tells him to grab deals with anxiety largely determines how
the cone and eat it. His ego tells him that people behave. Freud believed that people
if he grabs the cone without asking, he avoid anxiety mainly by developing defence
may be punished. Working on the reality mechanisms that try to defend the ego
principle, the boy knows that the best way against the awareness of the instinctual
to achieve gratification is to ask for needs. Thus, defence mechanism is a way
permission to eat the cone. Thus, while the of reducing anxiety by distorting reality.
id is demanding, unrealistic and works Although some defence against anxiety is
according to pleasure principle, the ego is normal and adaptive, people who use these
patient, reasonable, and works by the mechanisms to such an extent that reality
reality principle. is truly distorted develop various forms of
Superego : The best way to characterise the maladjustment.
superego is to think of it as the moral Freud has described many different
branch of mental functioning. The kinds of defence mechanisms. The most
important is repression, in which anxiety-
superego tells the id and the ego whether
provoking behaviours or thoughts are
gratification in a particular instance is
totally dismissed by the unconscious.
ethical. It helps contr ol the id by
When people repress a feeling or desire,
inter nalising the parental authority
they become totally unaware of that wish
through the process of socialisation. For
or desire. Thus, when a person says, “I do
example, if a boy sees and wants an ice-
not know why I did that”, some repressed
cream cone and asks his mother for it, his
feeling or desire is expressing itself.
superego will indicate that his behaviour
Other major defence mechanisms are
is morally correct. This approach towards projection, denial, reaction formation and
obtaining the ice-cream will not create rationalisation. In projection, people
guilt, fear or anxiety in the boy. attribute their own traits to others. Thus,
Thus, in terms of individual functioning a person who has strong aggressive
Freud thought of the unconscious as being tendencies may see other people as acting
composed of three competing forces. In in an excessively aggressive way towards
some people, the id is stronger than the her/him. In denial, a person totally refuses
superego; in others, it is the superego. The to accept reality. Thus, someone suffering
r elative strength of the id, ego and from HIV/AIDS may altogether deny her/
superego deter mines each person’s his illness. In reaction formation, a
stability. Freud also assumed that id is person defends against anxiety by adopting
energised by two instinctual forces, called behaviours opposite to her/his true
life instinct and death instinct. He paid feelings. A person with strong sexual urges,
less attention to the death instinct and who channels her/his energy into religious
focused mor e on the life (or sexual) fervour, presents a classical example of
instinct. The instinctual life force that reaction formation. In rationalisation, a
energises the id is called libido. It works person tries to make unreasonable feelings
on the pleasure principle, and seeks or behaviour seem r easonable and
immediate gratification. acceptable. For example, when a student
35
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22buys a set of new pens after doing poorly children at this age experience pleasure in
in an examination, s/he may try to moving their bowels. The anal area of the
rationalise her/his behaviour by asserting, body becomes the focus of certain
“I will do much better with these pens”. pleasurable feelings. This stage establishes
People who use defence mechanisms the basis for conflict between the id and
are often unaware of doing so. Each the ego, and between the desire for babyish
defence mechanism is a way for the ego to pleasure and demand for adult, controlled
deal with the uncomfortable feelings behaviour.
produced by anxiety. However, Freud’s
Phallic Stage : This stage focuses on the
ideas about the role of defence
genitals. At around ages four and five
mechanisms have been questioned. For
children begin to realise the differences
example, his claim that projection reduces
between males and females. They become
anxiety and stress has not found support
aware of sexuality and the sexual
in several studies.
relationship between their parents. During
this stage, the male child experiences the
Stages of Personality Development
Oedipus Complex, which involves love for
Freud claims that the core aspects of the mother, hostility towards the father,
personality are established early, remain and the consequent fear of punishment or
stable throughout life, and can be changed castration by the father (Oedipus was a
only with great difficulty. He proposed a Greek king who unknowingly killed his
five-stage theory of personality (also father and then married his mother). A
called psychosexual) development. major developmental achievement of this
Problems encountered at any stage may stage is the resolution of the Oedipus
arrest development, and have long-term complex. This takes place by accepting his
effect on a person’s life. A brief description father’s relationship with his mother, and
of these stages is given here. modelling his own behaviour after his
Oral Stage : A newborn’s instincts are father.
focused on the mouth. This is the infant’s For girls, the Oedipus complex (called
primary pleasure seeking centre. It is the Electra Complex after Electra, a Greek
through the mouth that the baby obtains character, who induced her brother to kill
food that reduces hunger. The infant their mother) follows a slightly different
achieves oral gratification through feeding, course. By attaching her love to the father
thumb sucking, biting and babbling. It is a girl tries to symbolically marry him and
during these early months that people’s raise a family. When she realises that this
basic feelings about the world are is unlikely, she begins to identify with her
mother and copy her behaviour as a means
established. Thus, for Freud, an adult who
of getting (or, sharing in) her father’s
considers the world a bitter place probably
affection. The critical component in
had difficulty during the oral stage of
resolving the Oedipus complex is the
development.
development of identification with the same
Anal Stage : It is found that around ages sex parents. In other words, boys give up
two and three the child learns to respond sexual feelings for their mothers and begin
to some of the demands of the society. One to see their fathers as role models rather
of the principal demands made by parents than as rivals; girls give up their sexual
is that the child learns to control the bodily desires for their father and identify with
functions of urination and defecation. Most their mother.
36
Psychology
2021–22Latency Stage : This stage lasts from about worked with him and then moved on to
seven years until puberty. During this develop their own versions of the
period, the child continues to grow psychoanalytic theory. These theorists
physically, but sexual urges are relatively have been called neo-analytic, or post-
inactive. Much of a child’s energy is Freudian in order to differentiate their
channelled into social or achievement- work from Freud’s. These theories are
related activities. characterised by less prominent roles to
Genital Stage : During this stage, the sexual and aggressive tendencies of the id
person attains maturity in psychosexual and expansion of the concept of ego. The
development. The sexuality, fears and human qualities of creativity, competence,
repressed feelings of earlier stages are once and pr oblem solving abilities ar e
again exhibited. People learn to deal with emphasised. Some of these theories are
members of the opposite sex in a socially briefly described here.
and sexually mature way. However, if the
Carl Jung : Aims and Aspirations
journey towards this stage is marked by
excessive stress or over-indulgence, it may Jung worked with Freud in his early stages
cause fixation to an earlier stage of of career, but later on he broke away from
development. Freud. Jung saw human beings guided as
Freud’s theory also postulates that as much by aims and aspirations as by sex
children proceed from one stage to another and aggression. He developed his own
stage of development, they seem to adjust theory of personality, called analytical
their view of the world. Failure of a child psychology. The basic assumption of his
to pass successfully through a stage leads theory is that personality consists of
to fixation to that stage. In this situation, competing forces and structures within the
the child’s development gets arrested at an individual (that must be balanced) rather
earlier stage. For example, a child who than between the individual and the
does not pass successfully through the demands of society, or between the
phallic stage fails to resolve the Oedipal individual and reality.
complex and may still feel hostile toward Jung claimed that ther e was a
the parent of the same sex. This failure collective unconscious consisting of
may have serious consequences for the archetypes or primordial images. These
child’s life. Such a boy may come to are not individually acquired, but are
consider that men are generally hostile, inherited. The God or the Mother Earth is
and may wish to relate to females in a a good example of archetypes. They are
dependable relationship. Regression is found in myths, dreams and arts of all
also a likely outcome in such situations. mankind. Jung held that the self strives for
It takes a person back to an earlier stage. unity and oneness. It is an archetype that
Regr ession occurs when a person’s is expressed in many ways. He devoted
resolution of problems at any stage of much of his efforts to the study of such
development is less than adequate. In this expressions in various traditions.
situation, people display behaviours typical According to him, for achieving unity and
of a less mature stage of development. wholeness, a person must become
increasingly aware of the wisdom available
Post-Freudian Approaches in one’s personal and collective
A number of theorists further developed unconscious, and must learn to live in
their ideas following Freud. Some had harmony with it.
37
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22Karen Horney : Optimism Erich Fromm : The Human Concerns
Horney was another disciple of Freud who In contrast to Freud’s biological
developed a theory that deviated from basic orientation, Fromm developed his theory
Freudian principles. She adopted a more from a social orientation. He viewed human
optimistic view of human life with beings as basically social beings who
emphasis on human growth and self- could be understood in terms of their
actualisation. relationship with others. He argued that
Horney’s major contribution lies in her psychological qualities such as growth and
challenge to Freud’s treatment of women realisation of potentials resulted from a
as inferior. According to her, each sex has desire for freedom, and striving for
attributes to be admired by the other, and justice and truth.
neither sex can be viewed as superior or Fromm holds that character traits
inferior. She countered that women were (personality) develop from our experiences
more likely to be affected by social and with other individuals. While culture is
cultural factors than by biological factors. shaped by the mode of existence of a given
She argued that psychological disorders society, people’s dominant character traits
were caused by disturbed interpersonal in a given society work as forces in shaping
relationship during childhood. When the social processes and the culture itself.
parents’ behaviour toward a child is His work recognises the value of positive
qualities, such as tenderness and love in
indifferent, discouraging, and erratic, the
personality development.
child feels insecure and a feeling called
basic anxiety results. Deep resentment
Erik Erikson : Search for Identity
toward parents or basic hostility occurs
due to this anxiety. By showing excessive Erikson’s theory lays stress on rational,
dominance or indifference, or by providing conscious ego processes in personality
too much or too little approval, parents can development. In his theory, development is
generate among children feelings of viewed as a lifelong process, and ego
isolation and helplessness which interfere identity is granted a central place in this
with their healthy development. process. His concept of identity crisis of
adolescent age has drawn considerable
Alfred Adler : Lifestyle and Social Interest attention. Erikson argues that young
people must generate for themselves a
Adler’s theory is known as individual central perspective and a direction that can
psychology. His basic assumption is that give them a meaningful sense of unity and
human behaviour is purposeful and goal- purpose.
directed. Each one of us has the capacity Psychodynamic theories face strong
to choose and create. Our personal goals criticisms from many quarters. The major
are the sources of our motivation. The criticisms are as follows:
goals that provide us with security and (1) The theories are largely based on case
help us in overcoming the feelings of studies; they lack a rigorous scientific
inadequacy are important in our basis.
personality development. In Adler’s view, (2) They use small and atypical individuals
every individual suffers from the feelings as samples for advancing generali-
of inadequacy and guilt, i.e. inferiority sations.
complex, which arise from childhood. (3) The concepts are not properly defined,
Overcoming this complex is essential for and it is difficult to submit them to
optimal personality development. scientific testing.
38
Psychology
2021–22(4) Freud has used males as the prototype learning principles that involve the use of
of all human personality development. stimuli, responses, and reinforcement in
He overlooked female experiences and different ways. The theories of classical
perspectives. conditioning (Pavlov), instrumental
conditioning (Skinner), and observational
Behavioural Approach learning (Bandura) are well-known to you.
This approach does not give importance to These theories view lear ning and
the internal dynamics of behaviour. The maintenance of behaviour from different
angles. The principles of these theories
behaviourists believe in data, which they
have been widely used in developing
feel ar e definable, observable, and
personality theories. For example,
measurable. Thus, they focus on learning
observational learning theory considers
of stimulus-response connections and their
thought processes extremely important in
r einforcement. According to them,
learning, but these find almost no place in
personality can be best understood as the
classical or instrumental conditioning
r esponse of an individual to the
theories. Observational learning theory
environment. They see the development
also emphasises social learning (based on
simply as a change in response
observation and imitation of others) and
characteristics, i.e. a person learns new
self-regulation, which again is missed out
behaviours in r esponse to new
in other theories.
environments and stimuli.
For most behaviourists, the structural
unit of personality is the response. Each Observe and note your behaviour Activity
characteristics and those of your 2.3
response is a behaviour, which is emitted
friends that have been imbibed from
to satisfy a specific need. As you know, all popular youth icons.
of us eat because of hunger, but we are
also very choosy about foods. For example,
children do not like eating many of the
vegetables (e.g., spinach, pumpkin, gourds, Cultural Approach
etc.), but gradually they learn to eat them. This approach attempts to understand
Why do they do so? According to the personality in relation to the features of
behavioural appr oach, children may ecological and cultural environment. It
initially learn to eat such vegetables in pr oposes that a group’s ‘economic
anticipation of appreciation (reinforcement) maintenance system’ plays a vital role in
from their parents. Later on they may the origin of cultural and behavioural
eventually learn to eat vegetables not only variations. The climatic conditions, the
because their parents are pleased with this nature of terrain of the habitat and the
behaviour, but also because they acquire availability of food (flora and fauna) in it
the taste of those vegetables, and find them determine not only people’s economic
good. Thus, the core tendency that activities, but also their settlement
organises behaviour is the reduction of patterns, social structures, division of
biological or social needs that energise labour, and other features such as child-
behaviour. This is accomplished rearing practices. Taken together these
through responses (behaviours) that are elements constitute a child’s overall
reinforced. lear ning environment. People’s skills,
From your study in Class XI, you may abilities, behavioural styles, and value
recall that there are several different priorities are viewed as strongly linked to
39
Chapter 2 • Self and Personality
2021–22these features. Rituals, ceremonies, cultural demands, children in hunting-
religious practices, arts, recreational gathering and agricultural societies
activities, games and play are the means develop and display different personality
through which people’s personality gets patterns.
projected in a culture. People develop
various personality (behavioural) qualities Humanistic Approach
in an attempt to adapt to the ecological and The humanistic theories are mainly
cultural features of a group’s life. Thus, the developed in response to Freud’s theory.
cultural approach considers personality as Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow have
an adaptation of individuals or groups to particularly contributed to the development
the demands of their ecology and culture. of humanistic perspective on personality.
Let us try to understand these aspects We will briefly examine their theories.
with a concrete example. As you know, a The most important idea proposed by
good proportion of the world’s population, Rogers is that of a fully functioning
even today, lives in forests and person. He believes that fulfilment is the
mountainous regions with hunting and motivating force for personality
gathering (economic activities) as their development. People try to express their
primary means of livelihood. The Birhor (a capabilities, potentials and talents to the
tribal group) of Jharkhand represent such fullest extent possible. There is an inborn
a population. Most of them live a nomadic tendency among persons that directs them
life, which requires constant movement in to actualise their inherited nature.
small bands from one forest to another in Rogers makes two basic assumptions
search of games and other forest products about human behaviour. One is that
(e.g., fruits, roots, mushrooms, honey, behaviour is goal-directed and worthwhile.
etc.). In the Birhor society, children from The second is that people (who are innately
an early age are allowed enormous freedom good) will almost always choose adaptive,
to move into forests and learn hunting and self-actualising behaviour.
gathering skills. Their child socialisation Rogers’ theory grew out of his
practices are also aimed at making experiences of listening to patients in his
children independent (do many things clinic. He noted that self was an important
without help from elders), autonomous element in the experience of his clients.
(take several decisions for themselves), and Thus, his theory is structured around the
achievement-oriented (accept risks and concept of self. The theory assumes that
challenges such as those involved in people are constantly engaged in the
hunting) from an early age of life. process of actualising their true self.
In agricultural societies, children are Rogers suggests that each person also
socialised to be obedient to elders, has a concept of ideal self. An ideal self is
nurturant to youngsters, and responsible the self that a person would like to be.
to their duties. Since these behavioural When there is a correspondence between
qualities make people more functional in the real self and ideal self, a person is
agricultural societies, they become generally happy. Discrepancy between the
dominant features of people’s personality real self and ideal self often results in
in contrast to independence, autonomy unhappiness and dissatisfaction. Rogers’
and achievement, which are more basic principle is that people have a
functional (and thus highly valued) in tendency to maximise self-concept through
hunting-gathering societies. Because of self-actualisation. In this process, the self
different economic pursuits and grows, expands and becomes more social.
40
Psychology
2021–22You can also read
