Gordon Allport was one of the first trait theorists. Allport and Henry Odbert labored thru two of the most complete dictionaries of the English language accessible and extracted around 18,000 personalities describing words. From this list, they decreased the number of phrases to approximately 4,500 personality-describing adjectives which they viewed to describe observable and exceptionally everlasting character traits. Show
TERMS :Trait: An identifying characteristic, habit, or trend. Gordon Allport described characteristics as “a generalized neuropsychic system (peculiar to an individual), with the potential to render many stimuli functionally equivalent, and to provoke and guide constant (equivalent) types of adaptive and expressive behavior”. Factor analysis: A statistical technique used to describe variability amongst discovered correlated variables in terms of one or extra unobserved variables. ASSUMPTIONS BY ALLPORT:
PERSONALITY TRAITS :To Allport, distinguishing characteristics that guide behavior. Traits are measured on a continuum and are a concern with social, environmental, and cultural influences. IIn 1937, he summarized the characteristics of qualities as follows
Initially, Allport proposed two kinds of traits: individual and common.
Because Allport realized that some confusion may result from calling each of these phenomena traits, he later revised his terminology. He relabeled common traits as traits and individual traits as personal dispositions. PERSONAL DISPOSITIONS :Personal dispositions: Traits that are different to an individual, as opposed to traits shared by a variety of people. They may be cardinal traits, central traits, or secondary traits. Allport organized these traits into a hierarchy of three levels:
HABITS AND ATTITUDES :As Allport developed his system, he argued that traits and personal dispositions are different from other traits, such as habits and attitudes. He agreed, however, that habits and attitudes are also capable of developing and guiding behavior.
It is possible to differentiate the traits and attitudes in two general ways. First, attitudes have some particular object of reference. A person who has an attitude that shows common traits are prone to social, environmental, and cultural influences. MOTIVE AND DRIVE :Allport was one of the first researchers to differentiate between Motive and Drive. He proposed that a drive forms as a reaction to a motive, which may outgrow the motive as the reason for a behavior. The drive then becomes autonomous and different from the motive, whether the motive was instinct or something else. The idea that drives can become independent of the original motives for a particular behavior is known as “functional autonomy.” Allport gives the example of a man who seeks to perfect his task or craft. His original motive may be a sense of inferiority engrained in his childhood, but his diligence in his work and the motive it acquires, later on, is a need to excel in his chosen profession, which becomes the man’s drive. Allport proposed two levels of functional autonomy: perseverative functional autonomy and propriate functional autonomy. Perseverative functional autonomy, the more primary level, is concerned with such behaviors as addictions and repetitive physical actions such as habitual ways of performing some everyday task. The behaviors persist or persevere on their own without any external reward. The actions once served a purpose but no longer do so and are at too low a level to be considered an integral part of personality. Allport referred both animal and human examples as evidence for perseverative functional autonomy. Propriate functional autonomy is more important than perseverative functional autonomy and is important to understand adult motivation. The word propriate derives from proprium, Allport’s term for the ego or self. Propriate motives are distinct to every person. The ego decides which motives will be maintained and which will be discarded. Our propriate functioning is an organizing process that maintains our sense of self. It determines how we perceive the world, what we take into account from our experiences, and how our thoughts are directed. These perceptual and cognitive approaches are selective. This organizing process is governed by using these three principles:
GENOTYPE AND PHENOTYPE :Allport stated that internal and external forces affect a person’s behavior and personality, and referred to them as genotypes and phenotypes.
PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDHOOD: THE UNIQUE SELFAllport described the nature and development of the proprium in seven stages from infancy to adolescence. THE HEALTHY ADULT PERSONALITY :Allport described six criteria for the normal, mature, emotionally healthy, adult personality:
By meeting these six criteria, adults can be distinguished as emotionally healthy and functionally autonomous, independent of childhood motives. As a result, they can cope with the present and plan for the future without being victimized by the experiences of their past years. ASSESSMENT IN ALLPORT’S THEORY:SALIENCE TO ALLPORT’S THEORY:
LIMITATIONS TO ALLPORT’S THEORY :
What is Perseverative functional autonomy?Functional autonomy comes in two flavors: The first is perseverative functional autonomy. This refers essentially to habits -- behaviors that no longer serve their original purpose, but still continue.
Which of the following is an example of the functional autonomy of motives?Which of the following is an example of the functional autonomy of motives? The seed of a tree is not required for its nourishment when the tree is fully grown.
Which of the following is an example of functionally autonomous behavior?Workmanship is a good example of functional autonomy.
Which of the following processes are not functionally autonomous according to Allport's theory?Motives that are not functionally autonomous include those that are responsible for reflex actions, basic drives and needs, and psychopathological behaviors.
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