Theories of Personality (SACE Stage 2 Psychology)

What this dot point is asking

You need to define personality, then compare the major theoretical approaches: what each says drives behaviour, its key figures and concepts, and its strengths and weaknesses.

Defining personality

Personality refers to the relatively enduring patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving that make an individual unique and that are reasonably consistent across situations and time. Theories differ in what they emphasise as the source of these patterns.

The psychodynamic approach

Founded by Sigmund Freud, this approach argues that behaviour is largely driven by unconscious conflicts and early childhood experiences. Freud proposed three structures of personality: the id (instinctual drives operating on the pleasure principle), the ego (the realistic mediator operating on the reality principle), and the superego (the internalised moral conscience). Conflict between these structures is managed by defence mechanisms such as repression and denial.

Strengths: it highlighted the unconscious, childhood and internal conflict, and influenced therapy. Weaknesses: concepts are difficult to test scientifically (low falsifiability), it relied heavily on case studies, and it is criticised as deterministic.

The humanistic approach

Associated with Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow, the humanistic approach views people as basically good and motivated toward growth. Maslow proposed a hierarchy of needs, with self-actualisation at the top once lower needs (physiological, safety, belonging, esteem) are met. Rogers stressed the self-concept, the gap between the real and ideal self, and the role of unconditional positive regard in healthy development.

Strengths: optimistic, person-centred, and influential in counselling. Weaknesses: concepts like self-actualisation are vague and hard to measure, and the approach can be seen as overly idealistic.

The trait approach

Trait theorists describe personality using measurable dimensions. The widely accepted model is the Big Five (OCEAN): Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness and Neuroticism. Each person sits somewhere on a continuum for each trait. Earlier work includes Eysenck's dimensions (extraversion-introversion, neuroticism-stability).

Strengths: traits are reliably measured with questionnaires and predict behaviour reasonably well. Weaknesses: trait theory describes personality but does not fully explain why traits develop, and it can underplay the influence of situations.

The social-cognitive approach

This approach, associated with Albert Bandura, argues that personality results from the interaction of behaviour, cognition and the environment, which Bandura called reciprocal determinism. Concepts include self-efficacy (belief in one's ability to succeed) and observational learning. The approach treats people as active processors of information rather than passive products of drives.

Strengths: well supported by research and integrates learning with thinking. Weaknesses: it can underemphasise emotion, biology and unconscious processes.