Allport: Psychology of the Individual
Allport's Approach to Personality
Allport believed that psychologically healthy humans are motivated by present, mostly conscious
drives and that they not only seek to reduce tensions but to establish new ones. He also believed
that people are capable of proactive behavior, which suggests that they can consciously behave in
new and creative ways that foster their own change and growth. He called his study of the individual
morphogenic science and contrasted it with traditional nomothetic methods.
Personality Defined
Allport defined personality as "the dynamic organization within the individual of those
psychophysical systems that determine his characteristic behavior and thought."
Structure of Personality
According to Allport, the basic units of personality are personal dispositions and the proprium.
A. Personal Dispositions
>Allport distinguished between common traits, which permit inter-individual comparisons,
and personal dispositions, which are peculiar to the individual.
>He recognized three overlapping levels of personal dispositions, the most general of which are
cardinal dispositions that are so obvious and dominating that they can not be hidden from other
people.
>Not everyone has a cardinal disposition, but all people have 5 to 10 central dispositions, or
characteristics around which their lives revolve.
>In addition, everyone has a great number of secondary dispositions, which are less reliable and
less conspicuous than central traits.
>Allport further divided personal dispositions into
(1) motivational dispositions, which are strong enough to initiate action and
(2) stylistic dispositions, which refer to the manner in which an individual behaves and which
guide rather than initiate action.
B. Proprium
>The proprium refers to all those behaviors and characteristics that people regard as warm and
central in their lives.
>Allport preferred the term proprium over self or ego because the latter terms could imply an object
or thing within a person that controls behavior, whereas proprium suggests the core of one's
personhood.
Motivation
Allport insisted that an adequate theory of motivation must consider the notion that motives change
as people mature and also that people are motivated by present drives and wants.
A. Reactive and Proactive Theories of Motivation
>To Allport, people not only react to their environment, but they also shape their environment and
cause it to react to them.
>His proactive approach emphasized the idea that people often seek additional tension and that
they purposefully act on their environment in a way that fosters growth toward psychological health.
B. Functional Autonomy
>Allport's most distinctive and controversial concept is his theory of functional autonomy, which
holds that some (but not all) human motives are functionally independent from the original motive
responsible for a particular behavior.
>Allport recognized two levels of functional autonomy:
(1) perseverative functional autonomy, which is the tendency of certain basic behaviors (such
as addictive behaviors) to continue in the absence of reinforcement, and
(2) propriate functional autonomy, which refers to self-sustaining motives (such as interests)
that are related to the proprium.
C. Conscious and Unconscious Motivation
Although Allport emphasized conscious motivation more than any other personality theorist, he did
not completely overlook the possible influence of unconscious motives on pathological behaviors.
Most people, however, are aware of what they are doing and why they are doing it.
The Psychologically Healthy Personality
>Allport believed that people are motivated by both the need to adjust to their environment and to
grow toward psychological health; that is, people are both reactive and proactive.
>Nevertheless, psychologically healthy persons are more likely to engage in proactive behaviors.
>Allport listed six criteria for psychological health:
(1) an extension of the sense of self,
(2) warm relationships with others,
(3) emotional security or self-acceptance,
(4) a realistic view of the world,
(5) insight and humor, and
(6) a unifying philosophy of life.
The Study of the Individual
Allport strongly felt that psychology should develop and use research methods that study the
individual rather than groups.
A. Morphogenic Science
Traditional psychology relies on nomothetic science, which seeks general laws from a study of
groups of people, but Allport used idiographic or morphogenic procedures that study the single
case. Unlike many psychologists, Allport was willing to accept self-reports at face value.
B. The Diaries of Marion Taylor
In the late 1930's, Allport and his wife became acquainted with diaries written by woman they
called Marion Taylor. These diaries-along with descriptions of Marion Taylor by her mother,
younger sister, favorite teacher, friends, and a neighbor-provided the Allports with a large
quantity of material that could be studied using morphogenic methods. However, the Allports
never published this material.
C. Letters from Jenny
Even though Allport never published data from Marion Taylor's dairies, he did publish a second
case study-that of Jenny Gove Masterson. Jenny had written a series of 301 letters to Gordon
and Ada Allport, whose son had been a roommate of Jenny's son. Two of Gordon Allport's
students, Alfred Baldwin and Jeffrey Paige used a personal structure analysis and factor analysis
respectively, while Allport used a commonsense approach to discern Jenny's personality structure
as revealed by her letters. All three approaches yielded similar results, which suggests that
morphogenic studies can be reliable.
Related Research
Allport believed that a deep religious commitment was a mark of a mature person, but he also
saw that many regular churchgoers did not have a mature religious orientation and were
capable of deep racial and social prejudice. In other words, he saw a curvilinear relationship
between church attendance and prejudice.
A. The Religious Orientation Scale
This insight led Allport to develop and use the Religious Orientation Scale to assess both an intrinsic
orientation and an extrinsic orientation toward religion. Allport and Ross found that people with an
extrinsic orientation toward religion tend to be quite prejudiced, whereas those with an intrinsic orientation
tend to be low on racial and social prejudice.
B. Religious Orientation and Psychological Health
Research has found that people who score high on the Intrinsic scale of the ROS tend to have overall better
personal functioning than those who score high on the Extrinsic scale. In general, these studies have found
that some highly religious people have strong psychological health whereas others suffer from a variety of
psychological disorders. The principal difference between the two groups is one of intrinsic or extrinsic
religious orientation; that is, people with an intrinsic orientation tend to be psychologically healthy, but
those with an extrinsic orientation suffer from poor psychological health.
Critique of Allport
low on its ability to organize psychological data and to be falsified
average on its ability to generate research and to help the practitioner
high on parsimony and internal consistency
Concept of Humanity
Allport rates higher than any other theorist on conscious influences and on the uniqueness of the
individual. He rates high on free choice, optimism, and teleology, and about average on social
influences
Cattel and Eysenck: Trait and Factor Theories
Basics of Factor Analysis
>Factor analysis is a mathematical procedure for reducing a large number of scores to a few more
general variables or factors.
>Correlations of the original, specific scores with the factors are called factor loadings.
>Traits generated through factor analysis may be either unipolar (scaled from zero to some large
amount) or bipolar (having two opposing poles, such as introversion and extraversion).
>For factors to have psychological meaning, the analyst must rotate the axes on which the scores
are plotted.
>Eysenck used an orthogonal rotation whereas Cattell favored an oblique rotation.
>The oblique rotation procedure ordinarily results in more traits than the orthogonal method.
Raymond Cattell
Introduction to Cattell's Trait Theory
Cattell used an inductive approach to identify traits; that is, he began with a large body of data
that he collected with no preconceived hypothesis or theory.
A. P Technique
>Cattell's P technique is a correlational procedure that uses measures collected from one
person on many different occasions and is his attempt to measure individual or unique,
rather than common, traits.
>Cattell also used the dR (differential R) technique, which correlates the scores of a large
number of people on many variables obtained at two different occasions.
>By combining these two techniques, Cattell has measured both states (temporary conditions
within an individual) and traits (relatively permanent dispositions of an individual).
B. Media of Observation
Cattell used three different sources of data that enter the correlation matrix:
(1) L data, or a person's life record that comes from observations made by others;
(2) Q data, which are based on questionnaires; and
(3) T data, or information obtained from objective tests.
Source Traits
>Source traits refer to the underlying factor or factors responsible for the intercorrelation
among surface traits.
>They can be distinguished from trait indicators, or surface traits.
Personality Traits
Personality traits include both common traits (shared by many people) and unique traits (peculiar to
one individual). Personality traits can also be classified into temperament, motivation (dynamic),
and ability.
A. Temperament Traits
>Temperament traits are concerned with how a person behaves.
>Of the 35 primary or first-order traits Cattell has identified, all but one (intelligence) is
basically a temperament trait.
>Of the 23 normal traits, 16 were obtained through Q media and compose Cattell's famous 16
PF scale.
>The additional seven factors that make up the 23 normal traits were originally identified only
through L data.
>Cattell believed that pathological people have the same 23 normal traits as other people, but,
in addition, they exhibit one or more of 12 abnormal traits.
>Also, a person's pathology may simply be due to a normal trait that is carried to
an extreme.
B. Second-Order Traits
>The 35 primary source traits tend to cluster together, forming eight clearly identifiable
second-order traits.
>The two strongest of the second-order traits might be called extraversion/introversion and
anxiety.
Motivational or Dynamic Traits
A. Attitudes
>An attitude refers to a specific course of action, or desire to act, in response to a given
situation.
>Motivation is usually quite complex, so that a network of motives, or dynamic lattice, is
ordinarily involved with an attitude.
>In addition, a subsidiation chain, or a complex set of subgoals, underlies motivation.
B. Ergs
>Ergs are innate drives or motives, such as sex, hunger, loneliness, pity, fear, curiosity, pride,
sensuousness, anger, and greed that humans share with other primates.
C. Sems
>Sems are learned or acquired dynamic traits that can satisfy several ergs at the same time.
>The self-sentiment is the most important sem in that it integrates the other sems.
D. The Dynamic Lattice
>The dynamic lattice is a complex network of attitudes, ergs, and sems underlying a person's
motivational structure.
Genetic Basis of Traits
>Cattell and his colleagues provided estimates of heritability of the various source traits.
>Heritability is an estimate of the extent to which the variance of a given trait is due to heredity.
>Cattell has found relatively high heritability values for both fluid intelligence (the ability to adapt to
new material) and crystallized intelligence (which depends on prior learning), suggesting that
intelligence is due more to heredity than to environment.
Hans Eysenck
Introduction to Eysenck's Factor Theory
Compared to Cattell, Eysenck
(1) was more likely to theorize before collecting and factor analyzing data;
(2) extracted fewer factors; and
(3) used a wider variety of approaches to gather data.
Measuring Personality
Eysenck believed that genetic factors were far more important than environmental ones in shaping
personality and that personal traits could be measured by standardized personality inventories.
A. Criteria for Identifying Factors
Eysenck insisted that personality factors must
(1) be based on strong psychometric evidence,
(2) must possess heritability and fit an acceptable genetic model,
(3) make sense theoretically, and
(4) possess social relevance.
B. Hierarchy of Measures
Eysenck recognized a four-level hierarchy of behavior organization:
(1) specific acts or cognitions;
(2) habitual acts or cognitions;
(3) traits, or personal dispositions; and
(4) types or superfactors.
Dimensions of Personality
Eysenck's methods of measuring personality limited the number of personality types to a relatively
small number. Although many traits exist, Eysenck identified only three major types.
A. What Are the Major Personality Factors?
Eysenck's theory revolves around only three general bipolar types:
>extraversion/introversion,
neuroticism/stability, and
psychoticism/superego function.
>All three have a strong genetic component.
>Extraverts are characterized by sociability, impulsiveness, jocularity, liveliness, optimism, and
quick-wittedness, whereas introverts are quiet, passive, unsociable, careful, reserved,
thoughtful, pessimistic, peaceful, sober, and controlled.
>Eysenck, however, believes that the principal differences between extraverts and introverts is one
of cortical arousal level.
>Neurotic traits include anxiety, hysteria, and obsessive compulsive disorders.
>Both normal and abnormal individuals may score high on the neuroticism scale of the Eysenck's
various personality inventories.
>People who score high on the psychoticism scale are egocentric, cold, nonconforming, aggressive,
impulsive, hostile, suspicious, and antisocial. Men tend to score higher than women on
psychoticism.
B. Measuring Superfactors
Eysenck and his colleagues developed four personality inventories to measure superfactors, or
types. The two most frequently used by current researchers are the Eysenck Personality Inventory
(which measures only E and N) and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (which also measures P).
C. Biological Bases of Personality
Eysenck believed that P, E, and N all have a powerful biological component, and he cited as evidence
the existence of these three types in a wide variety of nations and languages.
D. Personality and Behavior
Eysenck argued that different combinations of P, E and N relate to a large number of behaviors and
processes, such as academic performance, creativity, and antisocial behavior. He cautioned that
psychologists can be misled if they do not consider the various combinations of personality
dimensions.
E. Personality and Disease
For many years, Eysenck researched the relationship between personality factors and disease. He
teamed with Ronald Grossarth-Maticek to study the connection between characteristics and both
cancer and cardiovascular disease and found that people with a helpless/hopeless attitude were
more likely to die from cancer, whereas people who reacted to frustration with anger and emotional
arousal were much more likely to die from cardiovascular disease.
Related Research
A. Personalities of Creative Scientists and Artists
Early research using the 16 PF found that creative scientists, compared with either the general
population or less creative scientists, were more intelligent, outgoing, adventurous, sensitive,
self-sufficient, dominant, and driven. Other research found that female scientists, compared to
other women, were more dominant, confident, intelligent, radical, and adventurous. Research on
the personality of artists found that writers and artists were more intelligent, dominant,
adventurous, emotionally sensitive, radical, and self-sufficient than other people. Later research
found that creative artists scored high on Eysenck's neuroticism and psychoticism scales, indicating
that they were more anxious, sensitive, obsessive, impulsive, hostile, and willing to take risks than
other people.
B. Biology and Personality
If personality has a strong biological foundation, then researchers should find very similar
personality types in various cultures around the world. Studies in 24 countries found a high degree
of similarity among these different cultures. Eysenck's later work investigated personality factors
across 35 European, Asian, African, and American cultures and found that personality factors are
quite universal, thus supporting the biological nature of personality.
Critique of Trait and Factor Theories
Cattell and Eysenck's theories rates
high on parsimony, on their ability to generate research, and on their usefulness in organizing data;
they are about average on falsifiability, usefulness to the practitioner, and internal consistency.
Concept of Humanity
Cattell and Eysenck believe that human personality is largely the product of genetics and not the
environment. Thus, both are rated very high on biological influences and very low on social factors.
In addition, both rate about average on conscious versus unconscious influences and high on the
uniqueness of individuals. The concepts of free choice, optimism versus pessimism, and causality
versus teleology do not apply to Cattell and Eysenck.
McCrae and Costa
