The unique pattern of psychological and behavioral characteristics by

which each person can be distinguished from other people.

Personality is fundamental to the study of psychology. The major
systems evolved by psychiatrists and psychologists since Sigmund
Freud to explain human mental and behavioral processes can be
considered theories of personality. These theories generally provide
ways of describing personal characteristics and behavior, establish an
overall framework for organizing a wide range of information, and
address such issues as individual differences, personality
development from birth through adulthood, and the causes, nature,
and treatment of psychological disorders.
Type theory of personality
Perhaps the earliest known theory of personality is that of the reek
physician !ippocrates "c. #$$ %.&.', who characterized human behavior
in terms of four temperaments, each associated with a different bodily
fluid, or (humor.( The sanguine, or optimistic, type was associated with
blood) the phlegmatic type "slow and lethargic' with phlegm) the
melancholic type "sad, depressed' with black bile) and the choleric
"angry' type with yellow bile. *ndividual personality was determined by
the amount of each of the four humors. !ippocrates+ system remained
influential in ,estern -urope throughout the medieval and .enaissance
periods. /bundant references to the four humors can be found in the
plays of 0hakespeare, and the terms with which !ippocrates labeled the
four personality types are still in common use today. The theory of
temperaments is among a variety of systems that deal with human
personality by dividing it into types. / widely popularized "but
scientifically dubious' modern typology of personality was developed in
the 12#$s by William Sheldon, an /merican psychologist. 0heldon
classified personality into three categories based on body types3 the
endomorph "heavy and easy4going', mesomorph "muscular and
aggressive', and ectomorph "thin and intellectual or artistic'.
Trait theory of personality
/ major weakness of 0heldon+s morphological classification system and
other type theories in general is the element of oversimplification
inherent in placing individuals into a single category, which ignores the
fact that every personality represents a unique combination of qualities.
0ystems that address personality as a combination of qualities or
dimensions are called trait theories. ,ell4known trait theorist Gordon
Allport "152641276' extensively investigated the ways in
which traits combine to form normal personalities, cataloguing over
15,$$$ separate traits over a period of 8$ years. !e proposed that each
person has about seven central traits that dominate his or her behavior.
/llport+s attempt to make trait analysis more manageable and useful by
simplifying it was expanded by subsequent researchers, who found ways
to group traits into clusters through a process known as factor analysis.
.aymond %. &attell reduced /llport+s extensive list to 17 fundamental
groups of inter4related characteristics, and Hans Eysenck claimed that
personality could be described based on three fundamental factors3
psychoticism "such antisocial traits as cruelty and rejection of social
customs', introversion4extroversion, and emotionality4stability "also
called neuroticism'. -ysenck also formulated a quadrant based on
intersecting emotional4stable and introverted4extroverted axes.
Psychodynamic theory of personality
Twentieth4century views on personality have been heavily influenced by
the psychodynamic approach of 0igmund 9reud. 9reud proposed a
three4part personality structure consisting of the id "concerned with the
gratification of basic instincts', the ego "which mediates between the
demands of the id and the constraints of society', and
the superego "through which parental and social values are
internalized'. *n contrast to type or trait theories of personality, the
dynamic model proposed by 9reud involved an ongoing element of
conflict, and it was these conflicts that 9reud saw as the primary
determinant of personality. !is psychoanalytic method was designed to
help patients resolve their conflicts by
exploring unconscious thoughts, motivations, and conflicts through
the use of free association and other techniques. /nother distinctive
feature of 9reudian psychoanalysis is its emphasis on the importance
of childhood experiences in personality formation. :ther
psychodynamic models were later developed by colleagues and followers
of 9reud, including Carl Jung, Alfred Adler, and tto !ank "155#4
1282', as well as other neo49reudians such as Erich Fromm, "aren
Horney, !arry 0tack 0ullivan "152;412#2', and Erik Erikson.
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Phenomenological theory of personality
/nother major view of personality developed during the twentieth
century is the phenomenological approach, which emphasizes people+s
self4perceptions and their drive for self-actuali.ation as determinants
of personality. This optimistic orientation holds that people are innately
inclined toward goodness, love, and creativity and that the primary
natural motivation is the drive to fulfill one+s potential. Carl !ogers,
the figure whose name is most closely associated with phenomenological
theories of personality, viewed authentic experience of one+s self as the
basic component of growth and wellbeing. This experience together with
one+s self-concept can become distorted when other people make the
positive regard we need dependent on conditions that require the
suppression of our true feelings. The client-centered
therapydeveloped by .ogers relies on the therapist+s continuous
demonstration of empathy and unconditional positive regard to give
clients the self4confidence to express and act on their true feelings and
beliefs. /nother prominent exponent of the phenomenological approach
was Abraham /aslo), who placed self4actualization at the top of his
hierarchy of human needs. Baslow focused on the need to replace a
deficiency orientation, which consists of focusing on what one does not
have, with a growth orientation based on satisfaction with one+s identity
and capabilities.
Behavioral theory of personality
The behaviorist approach views personality as a pattern of learned
behaviors acquired through either classical "Pavlovian' or operant
"0kinnerian' conditioning and shaped by reinforcement in the form
of rewards or punishment. / relatively recent extension
of behaviorism, the cognitive4behavioral approach emphasizes the
role cognition plays in the learning process. &ognitive and social
learning theorists focus not only on the outward behaviors people
demonstrate but also on their expectations and their thoughts about
others, themselves, and their own behavior. 9or example, one variable
in the general theory of personality developed by social learning theorist
?ulian %. .otter is internal4external orientation. (*nternals( think of
themselves as controlling events, while (externals( view events as largely
outside their control. <ike phenomenological theorists, those who take a
social learning approach also emphasize people+s perceptions of
themselves and their abilities "a concept called (self4efficacy( by Albert
0andura'. /nother characteristic that sets the cognitive4behavioral
approach apart from traditional forms of behaviorism is its focus on
learning that takes place in social situations through observation and
reinforcement, which contrasts with the dependence of classical
and operant conditioning models on laboratory research.
/side from theories about personality structure and dynamics, a major
area of investigation in the study of personality is how it develops in the
course of a person+s lifetime. The 9reudian approach includes an
extensive description of psychosexual development from birth up to
adulthood. -rik -rikson outlined eight stages of development spanning
the entire human lifetime, from birth to death. *n contrast, various other
approaches, such as those of ?ung, /dler, and .ogers, have rejected the
notion of separate developmental stages.
/n area of increasing interest is the study of how personality varies
across cultures. *n order to know whether observations about
personality structure and formation reflect universal truths or merely
cultural influences, it is necessary to study and compare personality
characteristics in different societies. 9or example, significant differences
have been found between personality development in the individualistic
cultures of the ,est and in collectivist societies such as ?apan, where
children are taught from a young age that fitting in with the group takes
precedence over the recognition of individual achievement. &ross4
cultural differences may also be observed within a given society by
studying the contrasts between its dominant culture and its subcultures
"usually ethnic, racial, or religious groups'.