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Theory of Personality Chapter-1

This document provides an overview of personality theory and research. It defines personality and theory, discusses why different theories exist and what makes a theory useful. It also outlines dimensions to consider in a concept of humanity and criteria for evaluating personality research.

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497 views13 pages

Theory of Personality Chapter-1

This document provides an overview of personality theory and research. It defines personality and theory, discusses why different theories exist and what makes a theory useful. It also outlines dimensions to consider in a concept of humanity and criteria for evaluating personality research.

Uploaded by

chat gaza
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Theories of Personality

Seventh Edition

By Jess Feist and Gregory J. Feist


© McGraw-Hill
© 2009 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved
Introduction to
Personality Theory
Chapter 1

© McGraw-Hill
© 2009 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved
Outline
• What Is Personality?
• What Is Theory?
– Theory Defined
• Why Different Theories?
• What Makes a Theory Useful?
• Dimensions for a Concept of Humanity
• Research in Personality Theory
© McGraw-Hill
What Is Personality?
• Word stems from “persona”
– Latin for “mask”
• Personality Defined:
– A pattern of relatively permanent traits and
unique characteristics that give both
consistency and individuality to a person’s
behavior

© McGraw-Hill
What Is Personality?
• Traits
– Consistency over time
– Individual differences in behavior
– Stability across situations
• Characteristics
– Unique qualities (e.g., temperament, physique,
and intelligence)

© McGraw-Hill
What Is a Theory?
• Theory Defined
– A set of related assumptions that allows
scientists to use logical deductive reasoning to
formulate testable hypotheses

© McGraw-Hill
Theory and Its Relatives
• Philosophy
– Broader than theory
• Speculation
– Must be tied to empirical data and science
• Hypothesis
– Specific guess that can be tested using scientific
method
• Taxonomy
– Classification according to natural relationships
© McGraw-Hill
Why Different Theories?
• Different Personal Backgrounds
– Childhood experiences
– Interpersonal relationships
• Different Philosophical Orientations
• Unique Ways of Looking at the World
• Data Chosen to Observe is Different

© McGraw-Hill
Theorists’ Personalities & Their
Theories of Personality
• Psychology of Science
– The empirical study of scientific thought and
behavior (including theory construction) of the
scientist
• The personalities and psychology of
different theorists influence the kinds of
theories that they develop

© McGraw-Hill
What Makes a Theory Useful:
Criteria for Evaluating a Theory
• Generates Research
• Is Falsifiable (Verifiable)
• Organizes Known Data
• Guides Action (Practical)
• Is Internally Consistent
• Is Parsimonious

© McGraw-Hill
Dimensions for a
Concept of Humanity
• Determinism v. Free Choice
• Pessimism v. Optimism
• Causality v. Teleology
• Conscious v. Unconscious Determinants of
Behavior
• Biological v. Social Influences on
Personality
• Uniqueness v. Similarities
© McGraw-Hill
Research in Personality Theory
• Must Generate Research
– Theory gives meaning to data
– Data comes from experimental research
designed to test hypothesis generated by the
theory
• Systematic observations
– Predictions are consistent and accurate

© McGraw-Hill
Research in Personality Theory
• Two Empirical Criteria for Instruments
– Reliability
• Consistency of Measurement
– Validity:
• Construct Validity
– Convergent
– Divergent
– Discriminant
• Predictive Validity

© McGraw-Hill

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