Self and Personality Class 12 Notes

Have you ever wondered why are some people calm in tough situations while some are jittery? What makes our thought processes and way of thinking different from others? The answer is simple; we are all different human beings and have our own personalities. However, there are some things in common but always a kind of uniqueness in every human. Chapter – 2 of Psychology in CBSE unravels behaviourism, personality assessment, and more. Read this blog on Self and Personality Class 12 Notes.

Self and Personality

Self and personality refer to the characteristic ways in which human beings define themselves. Self and personality class 12 notes will help us to study and understand the behaviourism of ourselves and others. 

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Concept of Self

• Self refers to the totality of an individual’s conscious experiences, ideas, thoughts, and feelings with regard to herself or himself
• Personal Identity refers to the attributes that make us different from others. For example, I am hardworking, I am Kartikeya
• Social Identity refers to those aspects that link us to a social or cultural unit. For Example, I am a Hindu
• Self as a subject does something. For Example, I am a psychologist
• Self as an object gets observed and comes to be known. For example, I am impacted by his speech
• It can further be classified into two categories –  Personal and Social Self
• The personal Self is primarily concerned with oneself and emphasis is laid on aspects like personal freedom, personal responsibility, etc
• The social self emerges in relation to others and the focus is laid on aspects like cooperation, unity, affiliation, etc

Cognitive and Behavioral Aspects of Self

• Self -Concept is defined as the way we perceive ourselves and the ideas we hold about our competencies and abilities
• Self-esteem is defined as the value judgment about our own worth and value. High self-esteem helps in performing well and low self-esteem leads to depression and anxiety. Positive Parenting is a prerequisite for instilling high self-esteem in children
• Self-efficacy is defined as the belief that we hold about ourselves with respect to controlling and influencing our life outcomes. A strong sense of self-efficacy helps us to select and construct situations in our lives and vice-versa
• Self-regulation is defined as the ability to organize and monitor our own behaviour
• Self-control refers to deferring gratification needs and wants which plays an important role in the fulfillment of long-term goals.
• Various techniques of self-control are explained as follows:
  Self-instruction refers to instructing our own selves in order to perform a particular task
• Observation of our own behaviour provides us with relevant information needed to modify, and change our own Behaviour
• Self-reinforcement refers to rewarding our goal-oriented behaviors

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Concept of Personality

Personality refers to our characteristic ways of responding to individuals and situations in our lives. Some of the main features of personality are as follows

• It has both physical and psychological components
• It is the main features do not change easily with time
• It is the expression In terms of Behaviour that is fairly unique in a given individual

Important Terms Related to Personality

• Temperament refers to the biologically based characteristic way of reacting to people and situations
• Trait refers to the stable and persistent way of behaving
• Disposition is defined as the tendency of a person to react to a given situation in a particular manner
• Character is defined as the overall pattern of a regularly occurring Behaviour
• Habit is a learned way of behaving
• Values refer to the goals and ideas considered important to be followed in life

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Major Approaches to Study Personality

There are different approaches used to study human personality. Every approach has its merits, demerits and limitations. Let us explore major approaches to studying personality:

Trait  Approach

It focuses on specific psychological Attributes along which individuals differ in a consistent and stable way. Its main focus is on dominant traits. Some of the theories based on the trait approach are listed below:

Allport’s Trait Theory

Allport came up with 3 types of traits to understand human personality and those traits are Cardinal Traits, Central Traits, and secondary traits.

• Cardinal Traits are very generalized in nature and a person becomes known for these traits throughout their life for example Mahatma Gandhi was known for his Honesty And Non-violence.
• Central Traits are less generalized in nature, form the foundation of a person’s personality and can be used in the job profile of a person
• Secondary traits appear in certain situations only and are least generalized. For example, Raj likes to watch movies.

Eysenck’s Factor Theory

There are three dimensions under this theory which comprise a number of traits. Here is a detailed description of all three dimensions:

• Neuroticism vs Emotional Stability refers to the degree to which people have control over their feelings. People high on neuroticism are Emotionally unstable and are Moody and anxious. People high on Emotional stability are calm, patient
• Extraversion vs Introversion refers to the degree to which people are socially active or reserved and withdrawn
• Psychoticism vs Sociability refers to the degree to which people are sociable or anti-social. People who score high on psychoticism are antisocial and egoistic whereas people who score on Sociability are cooperative and friendly. Eysenck Personality Questionnaire is used for studying and assessing the above-mentioned dimensions of personality

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Cattell: Personality Factors

Cattell found 16 primary or source traits. Source traits are stable in nature and are defined as building blocks of our personality. Surface traits result from the interaction of source traits. Cattell developed a sixteen personality factor questionnaire (16PF) for the purpose of personality assessment.

Five-Factor Model of Personality

It was given by Paul Costa and Robert McCrae and included 5 factors. Look at the model of personality factors:

• Openness to Experience– Those who score high on this factor are curious, imaginative, and open to new experiences and those who score low on this factor are rigid and inflexible
• Extraversion – Those who score high on this factor are sociable, and those who score low on this factor are reserved and prefer to stay alone
• Agreeableness– Those who score high on this factor are kind, cooperative, and friendly and those who score low on this factor are self-centred and egoistic
• Neuroticism– Those who score high on this factor are emotionally unstable, anxious, and moody and those who score low on this factor are calm, patient, and emotionally stable
• Conscientiousness – Those who score high on this factor are goal-oriented and diligent and those who score low on this factor are carefree and impulsive

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Type Approach

It tries to comprehend the personality by understanding the broad patterns in the Behaviour. It focuses on a broad set of characteristics in a person’s Behaviour. Various theories based on type approach are explained as follows

Sheldon’s Body Type Theory

As per this theory, there exists a strong correlation between the body type of a person and their personality. Sheldon came up with Endomorphic, Mesomorphic and Ectomorphic typology. Endomorphs have around, chubby body types and they are sociable, outgoing, and friendly. Ectomorphs have an athletic body type and they are courageous, strong, and assertive. Mesomorphs have a lean and delicate body type and they are brainy and sensitive.

Carl Jung Theory

Carl Jung is classified into two major categories – Extroverts and Introverts. Here are both the categories :

• Introverts are reserved and prefer to stay alone. They withdraw themselves when they face an emotional problem in their life
• Extroverts are sociable and outgoing. They completely enjoy their social life and prefer those jobs which involve dealing with people directly like teaching, Psychology, etc

Type Theory

It was proposed by Friedman and Rosenman and classified into four categories. To understand it better, here is a detailed description of each type:

• Type A personalities who have a high motivation level and are Workaholics. They lack patience and are prone to hypertension.
• Type B people are the opposite of Type A personalities and are easy-going and chilled out.
• Type C personality people are cooperative and suppress their Emotions. They are prone to Cancer
• Type D personality people are prone to depression and have a pessimistic outlook in their life

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Psychodynamic Approach

The psychodynamic approach was given by Dr. Sigmund Freud in his clinical practice where he used hypnosis to treat his patients. He observed that when patients shared their problems they felt easy and relaxed. From here he came up with a technique called free association in which people used to share their problems in an open and unfiltered manner. He also used dream analysis to understand the functioning of the mind. As per the psychodynamic approach, there are three levels of consciousness

1. Conscious Mind– People are aware of their thoughts, feelings, and mental activity
2. Preconscious Mind–  It includes those thoughts, feelings, actions, and mental activity if attended closely can be brought to the awareness of people
3. Unconscious Mind– It includes those feelings and actions of which people are completely unaware

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Key Takeaways From the Psychodynamic Approach

• People usually suppress their sexual desires, aggression  and they are concealed from people’s conscious awareness to avoid conflicts
• Analysis of jokes, dreams, and mispronunciations, was used by Dr. Sigmund Freud to understand the unconscious mind
• He came up with a therapeutic procedure called psychoanalysis to understand the unconditional mind and as per psychoanalysis, human behaviour is a dynamic manifestation of unconscious desires and conflicts of which we aren’t aware at present

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Structure of Personality

The relative strength of identity, ego, and superego determines a person’s personality. The conflict between identity and superego leads to a Freudian Slip. The structure of Personality is explained as follows:

1. It is based on the pleasure principle and focuses on the instant gratification of needs
2. The ego is based on the reality principle and Focuses on the satisfaction of needs as per the reality
3. The superego focuses on moral principles and needs are gratified only if they are ethical

Ego Defense Mechanism

The ego defence Mechanism is a way of reducing anxiety by distorting reality and some of the main defence Mechanisms are mentioned below:

1. Repression – Anxiety-provoking thoughts are dismissed by the unconscious and people become unaware of them
2. Projection – People tend to attribute their traits to others
3. Denial – People don’t accept reality and deny it completely
4. Reaction Formation- People defend against anxiety by behaving opposite to their true feelings
5. Rationalization – People try to make unreasonable feelings rational and reasonable.

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Stages of Psychosexual Development

According to Freudian psychology, there are 5 stages of psychological development. Below mentioned are the in-detail various stages of psychosexual development:

• Oral Stage – A newborn’s instincts are focused on the mouth and the mouth is the primary pleasure-seeking center for the baby. Baby achieves oral gratification through the mouth by breastfeeding, thumb sucking, and biting
• Anal Stage– By the age of 2 or 3 children learn to respond to some demands of society and one such demand of Society is to control the bodily function of urination and defecation
• Phallic Stage– The main focus is on the genitals during this stage. Children around 4-5 years of age become aware of sexuality, differences between males and females, and sexual relationships between parents. Male children experience the Oedipus Complex in which the child falls in love with his mother and considers the father as his enemy. Female child experience Electra complex in which girl child falls in love with the father plans to raise the family and becomes hostile towards mother
• Latency Stage– It lasts from 7 years of age to puberty and sexual urges become dormant and latent
• Genital Stage– Maturity is attained in this stage and people deal with opposite-sex members in socially and sexually mature ways

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Demerits of the Psychodynamic Approach

It is majorly based on case studies and lacks a proper scientific basis. Atypical individuals are used as samples for advancing generalizations. Lastly, the Concepts were not properly defined in the psychodynamic approach.

Post-Freudian Approaches

Post psychoanalysis, various psychologists who were earlier disciples of Freud came up with their own theories. Here are all the Post-Freudian approaches you should know of in self and personality class 12 notes:

Carl Jung: Aims and Aspirations

• Carl Jung’s theory also called analytical psychology focused on archetypes 
• Archetypes are inherited images in the collective unconscious that shape our perception of the external world and express themselves when we are distracted(Dreams and Fantasies).For Example- Sun, God, Mother Earth

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Alfred Adler: Lifestyle and Social Interest

• The main assumption of Alfred Adler’s theory is that human behavior is purposeful and goal-oriented
• Every individual does suffer from an inferiority complex at times which can be overcome by striving for superiority and achieving one’s purpose in life and that is crucial for optimal personality development

Erich Fromm: The Human Concerns

• Fromm viewed humans as social creatures and they could be comprehended from their relationships with others
• Thus, psychological attributes arose from a desire for freedom, justice, and truth.

Behavioural Approach

This approach gives importance to the here and now instead of the past or future and all the behaviors can be learned as well as unlearnt. This approach was completely different from the psychodynamic approach. It mainly focused on the interaction between stimulus and the environment. The structural unit of personality is called response and it lays emphasis on stimulus-response reinforcement. Key theories under the Behavioural Approach are mentioned below:

• Ivan Pavlov’s Classical Conditioning Theory
• B.F. Skinner’s Operant Conditioning Theory
• Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory

Humanistic Approach

• Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow viewed human nature in a positive light and according to the human beings had the potential for love, joy, and cooperation
• Abraham Maslow was of the point of view that humans are free to shape their lives, give direction to them, and self-actualize
• Carl Rogers believed that personality development is a continuous process and he spoke of a fully functioning person
• Human beings try to merge their ideal self with their real self and that leads to genuine happiness and vice-versa would leads to unhappiness
• Rogers believed that people have a tendency to maximize self-concept through self-actualization
• Positive social conditions give rise to high self-esteem and high self-concept and vice-versa

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Cultural Approach

• It tries to comprehend personality in relation to features of the ecological and cultural environment
• Climatic Conditions, the nature of the terrain, availability of food determine economic conditions, lifestyle, social structures, settlement patterns
• The cultural approach considers personality as an adaptation of individuals and groups to the demands of their ecology and culture
• People modify their personalities and develop various qualities in order to adapt to their culture

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Personality Assessment

Personality Assessment is a formal attempt aimed at understanding the personality of the individual. There are various techniques used for personality assessment. Some of them are mentioned below:

Self-report Measures- It is the method in which the person provides factual information about oneself and the beliefs and opinions they hold. Various self-report measures used for personality assessment are :

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory(MMPI) – It was developed by Hathaway and McKinley for psychiatric diagnosis. It consists of 567 statements and the subject has to judge each statement as true or false. The test is divided into ten subscales

• Hypochondriasis
• Depression
• Hysteria
• Psychopathic Deviate
• Masculinity-Femininity
• Paranoia
• Psychasthenia
• Schizophrenia
• Mania
• Social Introversion

Eysenck Personality Questionnaire(EPQ) – It assesses two dimensions of personality termed Introversion-Extraversion and Emotionalstable and emotionally unstable. Later on, a third dimension called Psychoticism vs Sociability was added and the ones who scored high on Psychoticism were egoistic and antisocial, and on the other hand, the ones who scored high on sociability were cooperative and friendly. This test is widely used.

Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire(16 PF) – It was developed by Raymond Cattell and his colleagues. The technique of factor analysis was used to discover and measure the fundamental personality traits. The test provides declarative statements, and the subject responds to a specific situation by choosing from a set of given alternatives it is used with high school students and for purposes like career counselling, occupational testing, etc. 

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Limitations of Self-Report Measures

Social Desirability is the tendency of the respondent to respond to the test items in a socially desirable manner. Acquiescence is the tendency to agree with the questions irrespective of what is being asked.

Projective Techniques

The next topic of self and personality class 12 notes is Projective techniques. These techniques were developed to assess unconscious motives and feelings and the main assumption behind these techniques is that less structured or unstructured stimuli will allow the individual to project one’s feelings and desires on the situation. Several projective techniques were as follows:

Thematic Apperception Test(TAT) – It is a projective technique that aims to evaluate a person’s patterns of thought, attitudes, and emotional responses to ambiguous test materials. These ambiguous materials comprise a set of cards that portray human beings in various kinds of situations. The subject is asked to tell the therapist the story they can frame about each card.

• Sentence Completion Test – The test comprises a number of incomplete sentences and the subject is asked to provide an appropriate ending to the sentence. The ending which the subject makes reveals their attitude and motivation.
• Draw a person Test – The subject is asked to draw a person on a sheet of paper and then he/she is asked to draw the drawing of an opposite-sex person. Then the subject is asked to frame the story involving the sketches of people drawn

Limitations of Projective Techniques

• Interpretation and understanding of responses require sophisticated skills and specialized training
• Reliability, validity, and scoring of projective tests are a bit problematic in nature

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Behavioural Analysis

The last topic of Self and Personality Class 12 Notes is behavioural analysis. A person’s Behaviour in a variety of circumstances provides us with meaningful and substantial information about their personality. Here is the list of a few Behavioural analysis techniques mentioned in the self and personality class 12 notes:

• Interview – It involves talking to the person being assessed and asking specific questions about the problem the client wants to discuss. Interviews can be structured or unstructured and in a structured interview a specific set of questions are asked whereas in an unstructured interview, open-ended questions are asked.
• Observation – It is a powerful and effective method of analyzing Behaviour as it helps in understanding phenomena in real time. Some of its limitations are that it is time-consuming and professional training and skills are required for observation to happen in a proper and systematic manner.
• Nomination – Each person is asked to select one or two persons in a group with whom they would like to work or for any other activity. The choice of subject and the reasons for the same reveal a lot about their personality.

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