PSYC 1101 Chapter 13

Personality is hot just a list of traits, however. Gordon Allport, one ofthe founders ofthe field, gave a classic scientiflc definition of personality:

"the dynamic organization within the individual of those psychophysical systems that determine [the individual's] characteristic behavior and thought" (1961, p. 28; FIGU R E 13.2). This definition includes many ofthe concepts most important to a contemporary understanding ofpersonality. The notion oforganization indicates that personality is a coherent whole. This organized whole is dynamic in that it is goal seeldng, sensitive to particular contexts, and adaptive to the person's environment. By emphasizingpsychophysical systems, Allport brought together two ideas: He highlighted the mental nature of personality (i.e., the psycho- part ofpsychophysical), and he recognized that personality arises from basic biological processes (i.e., the -physical part). In addition, his deflnition stresses that personality causes people to have characteristic behaviors and thoughts (and feelings). In other words, people do and think and feel things relatively consistently over rime.

Arnold Buss and Robert Plomin (1984) have argued that three basic character istics can be considered temperaments (FIGURE 13.4).

Activity level is the overall amount of energy and of behavior a person exhibits. For example, some children race around the house, others are less vigorous, and still others are slow paced. Emotion ality describes the intensity of emotional reactions. For example, children who cry often or easily become frightened, as well as adults who quickly anger, are likely to be high in emotionality. Finally, sociability refers to the general tendency to aliate with others. People high in sociability prefer to be with others rather than to be alone.

Do temperament diferences exist between girls and boys?

Girls demonstrated stronger abilities to control their attention and resist their impulses. Boys were more physically active and experienced more high-intensity pleasure, such as in rough-and-tumble play. However, there were no temperamental differences in negative emotions, such as being angry or neurotic, during childhood.

There is overwhelming evidence that nearly all personality traits have a genetic component (Plomin, DeFries, Knopik, & Neiderhiser, 2016; Turkheimer, Pettersson, & Horn, 2014). One ofthe earliest studies to document the heritability ofpersonality was conducted by

Jarnes Loehlin and Robert Nichols (1976). The researchers examined similarities in personality in more than 800 pairs of twins. Across a wide variety of traits, identicaltwins proved much more similar than fraternal twins. This pattern relects the actions of genes, since identical twins share nearly the same genes, whereas fraternal twins do not.

AS discussed in Chapter 1, Sigmund Freud was a physician who developed many ideas about personality by observing patients he was treating for psychological disturbances. For example, some of Freud's patients suffered from paralysis that had no apparent physical cause. Freud came to believe their problems were psychogenic-caused by psychological rather than physical factors. From his clinical work, Freud developed his psychodynamic theory of personality

The central premise of this theory is that unconscious forces--such as wishes, desires, and hidden memoriesdetermine behavior. Many of Freud's ideas are controversial and hot well supported by scientific research, but they had an enormous influence over psycholog/cal thinking for much ofthe early history ofthe field.

In another influential social cognitive theory ofpersonality, Albert Bandura (1977) argued that three factors influence how a person acts:

The first factor is the person's environment. The second factor is multiple person factors, which include the person's characteristics, self-confidence, and expectations. The third factor is behavior itself. This approach to personality explains how each ofthese three factors affects the others to determine how personality is expressed through behavior. Because personality is explained by the interaction of all three factors, the model is called reciprocal determinism (FIGURE 13.9).

Eysenck later proposed a third dimension of personality traits. Psychoticism relects

a mix of aggression, poor impulse control, self- centeredness, and a lack of empathy. The term psychoticism implies a level of psychological disorder that Eysenck did not intend. As a result, more- recent conceptions of this trait call it constraint (see Figure 13.13). According to this view of the trait, people range from generally control ling their impulses to generally not controlling them (Watson & Clark, 1997). This dimension is most similar to the Big Five trait of conscientiousness, or how careful and organized someone is.

Each characteristic is a personality trait:

a pattern of thought, emotion, and behavior that is relatively consistent over time and across situations (Funder, 2012). Traits are dispositions to think, act, or feel in predictable ways in certain situations.

Contemporary neo- Freudians focus on social interactions, especially children's emotional attachments to their parents or primary caregivers. This focus is embodied in object relations theory. According to this theory,

a person's mind and sense of self develop in relation to others in the particular environment. "Objects" are real others in the world, and how the person relates to these others shapes her or his personality.

Psychological scientists have largely abandoned psychodynamic theories. After all, Freud's central premises cannot be examined through

accepted scientiic meth ods. Today, Freud has to be understood in the context of his time and the methods he had at his disposal. He was an astute observer of behavior and a creative theorist. His observations and ideas continue to afect personality psychology and have framed much of the research in personality over the last century (Hines, 2003; Westen, 1998). His terminology appears in many contexts, from literature and pop culture to most people's understanding— and misunderstanding— of psychology.

In fact, current evidence suggests that parenting style has much less impact than has long been assumed (Turkheimer et al., 2014). For instance, studies typically find small correlations in personality between biological siblings or between children and their biological parents. These correlations are still larger than for

adopted children. In other words, the similarities in personality between biological siblings and between children and their biological parents seem to bave some genetic component.

Eysenck proposed that personality traits are based on biological processes that produee behaviors,thoughts, and emotions. For instance, Eysenck believed that differences in arousal produce the behavioral differenees between extraverts and introverts. Arousal, or alertness, is regulated by the reticular activating system (RAS). The RAS affeets

alertness and is also involved in inducing and terminating the different stages of sleep. As diseussed in Chapter 10, each person prefers to operate--and operates best--at some optimal level of arousal. Eysenck proposed that the restinglevels ofthe RAS are higher for introverts than for extraverts (FIGURE 13.14). Extraverts typically are below their optimal levels. In other words, extraverts are chronically underaroused. To operate e fficiently, they have to find arousal, so they impulsively seek out new situations and new emotional experiences. Introverts typically are above their optimallevels ofarousal. Because they do hot want any additional arousal, they prefer quiet solitude with few stimuli. Ifyou are an introvert, a noisy environment will distract you. Ifyou are an extravert, quiet places will bore you. Consistent with Eysenck's theory, research has demonstrated that extraverts perform better in noisy settings (Geen, 1984).

Further evidence for the genetic basis of personality comes from adoption studies. Say that two children who are not biologically related are raised in the same house- hold as adopted siblings. Those two children tend to be no more alike in personality than

any two strangers randomly plucked off the street (Plomin & Caspi, 1999). Moreover, the personalities of adopted children bear no significant relationship to those of the adoptive parents. Together these findings suggest that parenting style may bave relatively little impact on personality.

A number of theorists have offered refinements to Eysenck's initial theory that reflect a more current understanding of how the brain functions. The various theories have some common features. For example, each theory differentiates between

approach learning and avoidance learning. Jeffrey Gray (1982) incorporated this distinction in his approach/ inhibition model ofthe relationships between learning and personality. Gray proposed that personality is rooted in two motivational functions: the behavioral approach system and the behavioral inhibition system. These functions have evolved to help organisms respond efficiently to reinforcement and punishment.

Behavioral psychologists such as B. F. Skinner rejected the idea that personality is the result of internal processes. Instead, behaviorists viewed personality mainly as learned responses to patterns of reinforcement. Over time, however, psychologists

became dissatisied with strict models of learning theory. They began to incorporate cognition into the understanding of personality.

Recent research has documented compelling evidence that early childhood temperaments significantly influence

behavior and personality structure throughout a person's development (Caspi, 2000). As discussed in Chapter 3, researchers investigated the health, development, and personalities of more than 1,000 people born during a one-year period (Caspi et al., 2002). These individuals were examined approximately every two years. Most ofthem (95 percent) remained in the study through their 38th birLhdays (Poulton, MoffitL, & Si]va, 2015). At 3 years of age, they were classified into temperamental types based on examiners' ratings (the classification oftemperament types differed from those identified by Buss and Plomin). The classification at age 3 predicted personality structure and various behaviors in adulthood. For instance, sociany inhibited children were much more likely, as adults, to be anxious, to become depressed, to be unemployed, to have less social support, and to atLempt suicide (Caspi, 2000; FIGURE 13.5). These findings suggest that early childhood temperaments may be good predictors of later behaviors (Slutske, Moffitt, Poulton, & Caspi, 2012)

personality

consists ofpeople's characteristic thoughts, emotional responses, and behaviors. Some personality psychologists are most interested in understanding whole persons. That is, they take one person, such as Justin Bieber, and try to understand as much as possible about him as an individual (FIGU R [ 13.1). Other personality psychologists study how particular characteristics, such as self-esteem or shyness, influence behavior. For instance, they want to know how people with low self-esteem differ from those with high self-esteem. Their interest is in how the particular characteristic influences behavior.

The "stop" system is known as the behavioral inhibition system (BIS). Because itis sensitive to punishment, the BIS inhibits behavior that might lead to

danger or pain (FIGURE 13.15B). Gray's model has been revised to emphasize that the BIS is related more to anxiety than to fear (Gray & McNaughton, 2000) and to accommodate growing findings in neuroscience (Corr, DeYoung, & McNaughton, 2013).

The second structure, the superego, acts as a brake on the id. Largely unconscious, the superego

develops in childhood and is the internalization of parental and societal standards of conduct. It is a rigid structure of morality, or conscience.

According to Buss and Plomin, these three temperamental styles are the main personality factors inluenced by genes. Indeed, evidence from twin stud ies, adoption studies, and family studies indicates a powerful

efect of heredity on these core temperaments. Researchers have also identiied other temperaments, such as the extent to which children are able to control their behaviors and their emotions (Caspi, 2000).

Lets look at how these three factors affect the expression of someone's personality in a situation. For example, imagine that a new transfer student goes to a party. According to Bandura's model, the party is the

environment. The specific features of the environment affect the transfer student's behavior. To judge the effects, we need to know the specifics. Therefore, let's specify that most ofthe people at the party are people the new student does not know (Figure 13.9a). In addition, the new student will have particular person factors. Let's say she is outgoing and sociable. These characteristics have probably been rewarded by her environment in the past. For example, people may have responded positively to her friendliness (Figure 13.9b). Lastly, the new studenfs behavior in this situation will reflect both the environment and her person factors. Specifically, at this party with many new faces, the new student most likely will be friendly and talkative (Figure 13.9c). In turn, her behavior will affect the environment. Because she is outgoing, the party becomes more fun for everyone.

Moreover, each person experiences diferent circumstances that may cause

epigen etic changes and the selective expression of certain genes. Recall from Chapter 3 that epigenetic processes describe how environment afects genetic expression. Given the complexity of personality, the complexity of personality's underlying genetic basis is hardly surprising. Even though twin studies provide overwhelming evidence that genes account for about half the variance in personality, researchers may never iden tify the speciic genes that produce these efects (Munafò & Flint, 2011). Adding in epigenetic changes that result from interactions with the environment makes it even more dicult to identify the inluence of any speciic gene (Zhang & Meaney, 2010

Why, then, are children raised together in the same household— who are not identi cal twins— so diferent (Plomin & Daniels, 2011)? One explanation is that the lives of siblings diverge as they

establish friendships outside the home (Rowe, Woulbroun, & Gulley, 2013). The types of peers that children have afect how they think, behave, and feel, and thoughts, behaviors, and feelings can all inluence personality devel opment (Harris, 1995; 2011). Even though the siblings are raised in the same house hold, their home environments difer as a function of age and the fact that they have younger or older sisters or brothers and their parents respond to each of them difer ently (Avinun & Knafo, 2014). Siblings' personalities slowly grow apart as their initial diferences become magniied through their interactions with the world.

Over the past few decades, evidence has emerged that biological factors--such as genes, brain structures, and neurochemistry--play an important role in determining personality. Of course, these factors are all affected by

experience. As discussed in Chapter 3, every cell in the body contains the genome, or master recipe, that provides detai]ed instructions for physical processes. Gene expression--whether a gene is turned offor on--underlies ail psychological activity. Ultimately, genes have their effects only ifthey are expressed

According to Kelly, personal constructs develop through

experiences and represent each individual's interpretations and explanations for events in his or her social worlds.

Generally, introverts appear to be more sensitive to stimuli at all levels of intensity. For example, they experience pain more intensely than

extraverts do (Lynn & Eysenck, 1961). They also experience sourness more intensely: They salivate more when lemon juice is placed on their tongues than extraverts do (Eysenck & Eysenck, 1967). Evidence for baseline differences in arousal has been more difficult to produce. That is, the visible biological difference between introverts and extraverts appears to be their level of arousability, or how much they react to stimuli. As you might have guessed, introverts are more arousable (Geen, 1984).

In the last 30 years or so, many personality psychologists have embraced the five-factor theory. This theory identifies

five basic personality traits (McCrae & Costa, 1999). These traits have emerged from factor analyses performed by personality researchers. The so-called Big Five are openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, andneuroticism (FIGURE 13.12). For each factor, there is a continuum from low to high. In addition, each factor is a higher-order trait that is made up ofinterrelated lower-order traits. For instance, conscientiousness is determined by how careful and organized a person is. Agreeableness refiects the extent to which a person is trusting and helpful. A person high in openness to experience is imaginative and independent, whereas a person low in this basic trait is down-to-earth and conformist.

Genes work by afecting biological processes. Since genes inluence personality, it makes sense that genes help produce biological diferences in personality. These diferences are called temperaments:

general tendencies to feel or act in certain ways. Temperaments are broader than personality traits. Life experiences may alter personality traits, as will be discussed later in this chapter, but temperaments represent the innate biological structures of personality and are more stable (Rothbart, 2011).

the factors uniquely predict certain outcomes. For instance, conscientiousness predicts grades in college but not scores on standardized tests, whereas openness to experience predicts scores on standardized tests but not

grades (Noftle & Robins, 2007). These particular effects may occur because of connections between the traits and the results: Highly conscientious people tend to work very hard, and this characteristic matters for grades. People who are high in openness tend to use words very well, and this characteristic matters for achievement tests. Thus, factors exist at more than a descriptive level. Indeed, traits may reflect people's goals (McCabe & Fleeson, 2016). For instance, people who are extraverted have goals involving having fun and being the center of attention, whereas those high in conscientiousness have goals involving using rime effectively and finishi ng tasks.

Numerous twin studies have subsequently found that genetic inluence accounts for approximately

half the variance (40-60 percent) between individuals for all personality traits, as well as in speciic attitudes that relect personality traits, such as attitudes toward the death penalty, abortion on demand, and how much they enjoy rollercoaster rides (Olson, Vernon, Harris, & Jang, 2001). Further, the genetic basis of the traits has been shown to be the same across cultures (Yamagata et al., 2006). These patterns persist whether the twins rate themselves or whether friends, family, or trained observers rate them (FIGURE 13.3).

Rotter also proposed that people differ in how much they believe their efforts will lead to positive outcomes. Locus of control refers to

how much control people believe they bave over outcomes in their lives. People with an internal locus of control believe they bring about their own rewards. People with an external locus o]:controlbelieve rewards --and the refore their personal fates --result from forces beyond their controL These generalized beliefs affect individuals" psychological adjustment.

The assessment of personality follows two approaches:

idiographic and nomothetic. Idioqraphic approaches are person-centered. They focus on individual lives and how various characteristics are integrated into unique persons. Nomothetic approaches focus on characteristics that are common among aU people but that vary from person to person. In other words, idiographic approaches use a different metric for each person.

The trait approach to personality focuses on how

individuals differ in personality dispositions, such as sociability, cheerfulness, and aggressiveness (Funder, 2001).

In the 1960s, the psychologist Hans Eysenck devel oped the biological trait theory. Eysenck (1967) initially proposed that personality traits had two major dimensions:

introversion/extraversion and emotional stability (FIGURE 13.13). Introversion refers to how shy, reserved, and quiet a person is. Extra- version refers to how sociable, outgoing, and bold a person is. This dimension is simi lar to the extraversion trait in the Big Five theory.

For Freud, unconscious forces that drive behavior could produce conflict. In general, these conflicts are not accessible. Sometimes, however, this information

leaks into consciousness. As discussed in Chapter 4, for example, people may accidentally reveal a hidden motive when uttering a Freudian slip. Think of someone introducing herself or himself to an attractive person by saying, "Excuse me, I don't think we've been properly seduced» instead of«properlyintroduced." For Freud, such slips were hot accidents. Instead, they offered a glimpse into unconscious forces that indicate hidden, unconscious desires.

An important component of Freudian think ing is the idea that early childhood experiences have a major impact on the devel opment of personality. Freud believed that children unconsciously aim to satisfy

libidinal urges to experience pleasure. In their pursuit ofthese satisfactions, children go through developmental stages that correspond to the different urges. These developmental stages are called psychosexual stages.

Various methods have been used to assess personality. Assessment procedures include

measures of unconscious processes; life history data; behavioral data; self- reports; and descriptions from people's friends, relatives, or both. The way researchers choose to measure personality depends to a great extent on their theoretica] orientations. For instance, trait researchers rely on personality descriptions, whereas humanistic psychologists use more holistic approaches.

The first structure, the id, exists at the

most basic level: completely submerged in the unconscious. The id operates according to the pleasure principle, which directs the person to seek pleasure and to avoid pain. Freud called the force that drives the pleasure principle the libido. Although today the term libido has a sexual connotation, Freud used it to refer more generally to the energy that promotes pleasure seeking. In other words, the libido acts on impulses and desires. The id is like an infant, crying to be fed whenever hungry and to be held whenever anxious.

Emotional stability refers to variability in a person's moods and emotions. Stabil ity describes consistency in moods and emotions. This dimension is similar to the Big Five trait of neuroticism. A person who is more emotional may be considered

neurotic. A neurotic person experiences frequent and dramatic mood swings, espe cially toward negative emotions, compared with a person who is more emotionally stable. In addition, a neurotic person often feels anxious, moody, and depressed and generally holds a very low opinion of himself.

The biological evidence suggests that the amygdala--the brain region involved in emotional responses, especially fear -is involved in social anxiety. In one study, adults received brain scans while viewing pictures of familiar faces and of novel faces (Schwartz, Wright, Shin, Kagan, & Rauch, 2003). One group of these adults had been categorized as inhibited before age 2. The other group had been categorized as uninhibited before age 2. Compared with the uninhibited group, the inhibited group showed greater activation of the amygdala— a brain region involved when people are threatened— while viewing the novel faces. That is, after the passage of so many years, the inhibited group still seemed to show a threat response to

novel faces (see "The Methods of Psychology: Inhibition and Social Anxiety"). In Chap ter 14, you will learn that being shy and inhibited as a child may predispose some chil dren to developing psychological disorders involving excessive anxiety in the absence of any real threat.

Initial studies found evidence that genes can be linked with some specificity to personality traits. For instance, a gene that regulates one particular dopamine receptor has been associated with

novelty seeking, the desire to pursue new experiences (Cloninger, Adolfsson, & Svrakic, 1996; Ekelund, Lichtermann, Jaervelin, & Peltonen, 1999). The theory is that people with one form of this gene are deficient in dopamine activity. As a result, these people seek out new experiences to increase the release of dopamine. Research on emotional stability implicates a gene that reg~flates serotonin, although the effect is very small (Jang et al., 2001; Munafb, 2012). In fact, any links between specific genes and specific aspects of personality appear to be extraordinarily small (Turkheimer et al., 2014). Instead, thousands of genes contribute to specific traits. These genes combine to influence a person's overall personality (Chabris, Lee, Cesarini, Benjamin, & Laibson, 2015; Plomin et al., 2016).

One of the most controversial Freudian theories applies to children in the phal lic stage. According to Freud, children desire an exclusive relationship with the

opposite- sex parent. For this reason, children consider the same- sex parent a rival and develop hostility toward that parent. In boys, this phenomenon is known as the Oedipus complex. It is named after the Greek character Oedipus, who unknow ingly killed his father and married his mother. Freud believed that children develop unconscious wishes to kill the one parent in order to claim the other parent. Children resolve this conlict by repressing their desires for the opposite- sex parent and identi fying with the same- sex parent. That is, they take on many of that parent's values and beliefs. This theory was mostly applicable to boys. Freud's theory for girls was more complex and even less convincing. Few data support either theory.

According to Freud, progression through these psychosexual stages profoundly afects personality. For example, some people become ixated at a stage during which they receive excessive parental restriction or indulgence. For instance, those ixated at the oral stage develop

oral personalities. They continue to seek pleasure through the mouth, such as by smoking. They are also excessively needy. Those ixated at the anal phase may have anal-retentive personalities. They are stubborn and highly regulat ing. Anal ixation may arise from overly strict toilet training or excessively rule- based childrearing. Again, evidence to support Freud's ideas is lacking.

The cognitive theorist George Kelly (1955) emphasized how individuals view and understand their circumstances. He referred to such views and understandings as

personal constructs: personal theories of how the world works. Kelly believed that people view the world as if they are scientists--constantly testing their theories by observing ongoing events, then revising those theories based on what they observe.

Freud (1923) also proposed a model of how personality is organized (see Figure 13.6). In this model,

personality consists ofthree interacting structures, and these structures vary in their access to conscious ness. The relative strengths ofthese structures are primarily responsible for an individual's personality.

As with many areas of psychology, the recent advances in neuroimaging are starting to provide new insights into

personality. In this area, specifically, the advances concern the biological basis of personality traits (DeYoung et al., 2010; Abram & DeYoung, 2017). However, much like the studies demonstrating thousands of small effects of genes on personality, it is likely that multiple brain areas inluence how personality develops and is expressed. For example, extraversion is associated with many brain areas involved in reward, whereas neuroticism involves brain regions involved in threat and negative afect (DeYoung et al., 2010; Eisenberger, Lieberman, & Satpute, 2005). Patterns such as these demonstrate that the Big Five factors can be reliably distinguished based on patterns of brain activity. Let's consider two prominent bio logical theories of personality that have guided research within the ield.

Research has revealed genetic components for particular behaviors, such as television viewing habits or getting divorced, and even for speciic attitudes, such as feelings about capital punishment or appreciation of jazz (Tesser, 1993). These indings do not mean, of course, that genes lurking in our DNA determine the amount or types of television we watch. Instead, genes

predispose us to have certain personality traits. Those personality traits are associated with behavioral, cognitive, or emotional tendencies, referred to as dispositions. In most cases, researchers note the inluence of multiple genes that interact independently with the individual's environment to produce general disposi tions. For example, genes and environment together might result in a person's prefer ring indoor activities to outdoor pursuits.

The BAS is linked to extraversion. Extraverts are more inluenced by

rewards than by punishments and tend to act impulsively in the face of strong rewards, even following punishment (Patterson & Newman, 1993). The BIS is linked to neuroti cism. People high in neuroticism become anxious in social situations in which they anticipate possible negative outcomes. Diferent brain regions involved in emotion and reward underlie BIS/BAS systems (DeYoung & Gray, 2009). Gray's model has been particularly useful for understanding personality diferences in impulsivity and risk taking, such as when people act impulsively or take risks while drinking or using drugs (Franken, Muris, & Georgieva, 2006).

The third structure, the ego, mediates between the id and the superego. That is, the ego tries to

satisfy the wishes of the id while being responsive to the dictates of the superego. The ego operates according to the reality principle, which involves rational thought and problem solving. Some aspects of the ego's operations are open to conscious awareness. For example, the ego allows the person to delay gratiica tion so that the wishes of the id can be realized while accommodating the rules of the superego. According to psychodynamic theory, unique interactions of the id, ego, and superego produce individual diferences in personality.

How many traits are there? Early in his career, Gordon Anport, along with his coUeague Henry Odbert, counted the dictionary words that could be used as personality traits (Anport & Odbert, 1936). They found nearly 18,000. Later, the researcher Raymond Cattell (1943) set out to ascertain the basic elements of personality. Cattell believed that

statistical procedures would enable him to take the scientific study of personality to a higher level and perhaps uncover the basic structure of personality. He asked participants to fill out personality questionnaires that presented a number of trait items, which he had reduced from the larger set produced by Allport and Odbert. Cattell then performed factor analysis, grouping items according to their similarities. For instance, he grouped aU the terms that referred to friendliness: nice, pleasant, cooperative, and so on. Through factor ana]ysis, Cattell (1965) ultimately identified 16 basic dimensions of personality. These dimensions included intelligence, sensitivity, dominance, and self-reliance. CatteU gave many ofthe dimensions unusual narnes to avoid confusion with everyday language, but most personality psychologists no longer use these terms.

Although shyness has a biological component, it has a social component as well. Approximately one- quarter of behaviorally inhibited children are not shy later in childhood (Kagan, 2011). This development typically occurs when parents create

supportive and calm environments in which children can deal with stress and novelty at their own paces. But these parents do not completely shelter their children from stress, so the children gradually learn to deal with their negative feelings in novel situations. This result points to the importance of gene-environment interactions.

The extent to which people are socially anxious in adolescence and adulthood has been linked to early differences in

temperament. Research has shown that children as young as 6 weeks of age can be identified as likely to be shy (Kagan & Snidman, 1991). Appro=dmately 15-20 percent of newborns react to new situations or strange objects by becoming startled and distressed, crying, and vigorously moving their arms and legs. The developmental psychologist Jerome Kagan refers to these chi]dren as inhibited, and he views this characteristic as biologicaUy determined. Showing signs of inhibition at 2 months of age predicts later parental reports that the children are socially anxious at 4 years of age, and such children are likely to be shy well into their teenage years.

Freud believed that conscious awareness was only a small fraction of mental activity. That is, conscious awareness represented the proverbial tip of the iceberg, with most mental processes buried under the surface (FIGURE 13.6). According to this model, the conscious level consists of the thoughts

that people are aware of. The prsconscious level consists of content that is hot currently in awareness but that could be brought to awareness. This level is roughly analogous to long-term memory. The unconscious level contains material that the mind cannot easily retrieve, including hidden memories, wishes, desires, and motives.

In Gray's model, the behavioral approach system (BAS) consists of

the brain structures that lead organisms to approach stimuli in pursuit of rewards. This is the "go" system (F.GURE 13.1mA)

In each psychosexual stage, libido is focused on one of the erogenous zones:

the mouth, the anus, or the genitals. The oral stage lasts from birth to approximately 18 months. During this rime, infants seek pleasure through the mouth. Because hungry infants experience relief when they breast-feed, they come to associate pleasure with sucking. When chfldren are 2 to 3 years old, they enter the anal stage. During this rime, toilet training--learning to control the bowels--leads them to focus on the anus. From age 3 to 5, children are in the phallic stage. That is, they direct their libidinal energies toward the genitals. Children offen discover the pleasure ofrubbing their genitals during this rime, although they bave no sexual intent per se. The phallic stage is followed by a brieflatency stage. During this rime, children suppress libidinal urges or channel them into doing schoolwork or building friendships. Finally, in the genital stage, adolescents and adults attain mature attitudes about sexuality and adulthood. They center their libidinal urges on the capacities to reproduce and to contribute to society.

Julian Rotter (1954) introduced the idea that behavior is a function of two things:

the person's expectancies for reinforcement and the values the person ascribes to particular reinforcers. Sup pose you are deciding whether to study for an exam or go to a party. You will probably consider the likelihood that studying will lead to a good grade. You will consider how much that grade matters. Then you will weigh those two considerations against two others: the likelihood that the party will be fun and the extent to which you value hav ing fun (FIGURE 13.8).

In terms ofpersonality, genetic makeup may predis pose certain traits or characteristics, but whether these genes are expressed depends on

the unique circumstances that each person faces in lit'e. For instance, as noted in Chapter 3, children with a certain gene variation were found to be more likely to become violent criminals as adults if they were abused during chi]dhood. An important theme throughout this book is that nature and nurture work together to produce individuals, and this theme holds particularly true for personality.

Much ofthe theoretical work on defense mechanisms can be credited to Freud's daughter, Anna Freud (1936; FIGURE 13.7). Over the past 40 years, psychological research has provided considerable support for the existence of many ofthe defense mechanisms (Baumeister, Dale, & Sommers, 1998). According to contemporary researchers, however,

these mechanisms do not relieve unconscious conflict over libidinal desires. Instead, defense mechanisms protect self-esteem.

Psychodynamic and humanistic approaches seek to explain the mental processes that shape personality. According to these theories, the same underlying processes occur in everyone, but individuals differ because

they experience different conflicts, are treated differently bytheir parents, and so on. Other approaches to personality focus more on description than explanation. For example, in describing a friend, you probably would hot delve into unconscious conflicts. Instead, you would describe your friend as a certain type. You might say, "Jessica is such an introvert" or "Jorge is a free spirit".

Most contemporary personality psychologists are concerned with traits. As discussed earlier, traits are patterns of

thought, emotion, and behavior that are relatively consistent over time and across situations. Traits exist on a continuum, so that most people falltoward the middle and relatively few people fall at the extremes (FIGURE 13.11). Thus, for example, people range from being very introverted to very extraverted, but most are somewhere in the middle.

Although Freud is the thinker most closely identiied with psychodynamic theory, a number of inluential scholars have modiied his ideas in their own psychodynamic theories. While rejecting aspects of Freudian thinking, they have embraced the notion of

unconscious conlict. These neo- Freudians include Carl Jung, Alfred Adler, and Karen Horney. For instance, Adler and Horney strongly criticized Freud's view of women, inding many of his ideas misogy nistic. Consider that the phallic stage of development is named for the male sex organ, although Freud used this label for both female and male development. Many neo- Freudians rejected Freud's emphasis on sexual forces. Adler viewed the primary con lict as based on fears of inadequacy, which he called the inferiority complex. Horney focused on a fear of abandonment (i.e., basic insecurity). In her view, this fear resulted from the child's relationship with the mother.

Conlicts between the id and the superego lead to anxiety. The ego then copes with anxiety through various defense mechanisms:

unconscious mental strategies that the mind uses to protect itself from distress. (Several common defense mechanisms are listed in TABLE 13.1.) For instance, people often rationalize their behavior by blam ing situational factors over which they have little control. Perhaps you have told your parents or friends that you did not call them because you were too busy studying for an exam. Finding excuses like these keeps people from feeling bad and can also prevent others from feeling angry toward them.

According to David Lykken and colleagues (1992), it may be that each chance aggregation of genes produces a

unique individual. These researchers provide the analogy of a poker hand received by a child. Say that the child's mother has dealt the 10 and king of hearts and the child's father has dealt the jack, queen, and ace of hearts. Although neither parent alone has dealt a meaningful hand, together they have passed on a royal lush. Of course, some people receive winning hands and others receive dicult hands to play. The point is that each person's personality relects the genetic hand dealt jointly by both parents.

These temperaments have been linked to people's propensities to move to new locations. A study of migration patterns in Finland found that people who scored high on sociability were more likely to migrate to

urban areas and were more likely to migrate to places that were quite distant from their hometowns. Those people who had high activity levels were more likely, in general, to migrate to a new loca tion, regardless of that location. Finally, those who were high in emotionality were likely to migrate to places that were close to their hometowns (Jokela, Elovainio, Kivimaki, & Keltikangas-Jarvinen, 2008).

The small correlations in personality among siblings might imply that parenting style has little efect, but (as discussed in Chapter 9) parents play important roles in their children's development. Parents inluence many aspects of their children's lives, such as by selecting

where the family lives. The chosen neighborhood can have a major impact on the child's peer groups and other experiences that shape personality. By selecting neighborhoods with good schools and low crime rates, parents inluence the likelihood that their children will fall in with good rather than bad crowds. By nurturing athletic or artistic talents, parents can increase the likelihood that their children will meet like- minded children or have experiences that foster future interests. Thus, parents help determine the environments that shape their children's personalities.

The Big Five emerge across cultures, among adults and children, even when vastly different questionnaires assess the factors. The same five factors appear

whether people rate themselves or are rated by others. Furthermore, people's "scores" on the Big Five traits have been shown to predict a wide variety of different behaviors (Paunonen & Ashton, 2001). Their scores have also been shown to predict people's satisfaction with their jobs, their marriages, and life generally (Heller, Watson, & Ilies, 2004). Some cross-cultural differences emerge, however. For example, interpersonal relatedness, or harmony, is hot an important trait in Western cultures,but personality studies conducted in China have shown that interpersonal relatedness is an important trait there (Cheung et al., 2001; Cheung, Cheung, & Leung, 2008). One possible explanation for this difference is that many Chinese live in densely populated areas. Therefore, getting along with others may be more essential in China than in societies where people live farther apart.