Psychology · Ch 2 — Self and Personality
Key Terms
Key Terms
- Self — The individual’s conscious sense of who they are, including their thoughts, feelings, and identity.
- Personal identity — The unique attributes (e.g., name, traits) that distinguish one person from others.
- Social identity — The part of self-concept derived from membership in groups (e.g., family, nation, religion).
- Self-concept — The organized set of beliefs and perceptions a person holds about themselves.
- Self-esteem — The evaluative and affective component of self; how much one values or approves of oneself.
- Self-efficacy — The belief in one’s own ability to succeed in specific situations or accomplish a task.
- Self-regulation — The ability to control one’s impulses, emotions, and behaviors to achieve long-term goals.
- Personality — The relatively stable and enduring pattern of thoughts, feelings, and actions that characterize an individual.
- Type approach — Classifies people into distinct, discontinuous categories (e.g., introvert vs. extrovert).
- Trait approach — Describes personality along continuous dimensions (e.g., the Big Five: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism).
- Big Five factors — The five broad trait dimensions: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism (OCEAN).
- Psychodynamic approach — Freud’s theory emphasizing unconscious conflicts, childhood experiences, and the structure of id, ego, and superego.
- Id — The primitive, instinctual part of personality operating on the pleasure principle.
- Ego — The rational part that mediates between id and reality, operating on the reality principle.
- Superego — The moral conscience, internalizing societal rules and ideals.
- Defence mechanisms — Unconscious strategies (e.g., repression, projection) the ego uses to reduce anxiety.
- Humanistic approach — Focuses on conscious experience, free will, and the innate drive toward self-actualization (e.g., Maslow, Rogers).
- Self-actualisation — The innate tendency to fulfill one’s potential and become the best version of oneself.
- Unconditional positive regard — Acceptance and love given without conditions, essential for healthy self-concept (Rogers).
- Trait — A stable, enduring characteristic that influences behavior across situations.
- Cardinal trait — A dominant trait that defines a person’s entire life (rare).
- Central trait — Major characteristics that form the core of personality (e.g., honest, shy).
- Secondary trait — Less consistent, situation-specific traits (e.g., likes spicy food).
- Behavioural approach — Views personality as a set of learned responses shaped by reinforcement and punishment (e.g., Skinner, Bandura).
- Observational learning — Learning by watching others’ behavior and its consequences (Bandura).
- Self-system — Bandura’s term for the set of cognitive processes (self-efficacy, self-regulation) that guide behavior.
- Cultural approach — Emphasizes how culture (individualistic vs. collectivistic) shapes self-concept and personality.
- Individualistic culture — Values independence, personal achievement, and a distinct self.
- Collectivistic culture — Values interdependence, group harmony, and a relational self. …