DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY AND PERSONALITY

1. DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY AND PERSONALITY

2. Personality can be defined as an individual’s characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. • Personality comprises the characteristics and behaviours that make each individual unique • The differences in our personalities can be a matter of degree • Ex: If provoked, some people may respond in a violent physical manner, others might respond in a loud oral manner, and others may simply walk away • Our responses are shaped by our personality, which is a combination of both environment and genetics Personality

3. Freud’s Stages of Psychosexual Development • Erickson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development • Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development Personality Development Theories

4. Freud’s Stages of Psychosexual Development

5. Many theories have been proposed to try to explain the development of personality • One of the earliest theories was proposed in the early twentieth century by the Austrian physician Sigmund Freud. • While this theory is well-known in psychology, it is highly controversial Freud’s Stages of Psychosexual Development

6. Freud believed that personality traits (predispositions to behave in a certain way in various situations) were found mainly in the unconscious part of the personality. • He also thought that personality consisted of three distinct by connected parts: • The id – controls our base needs such as hunger and pleasure • The ego – limits the actions of the id • The superego – represents the standards of morality presented by parents or guardians and society Freud’s Stages of Psychosexual Development

7. Freud believed that personality develops through a series of childhood stages in which the pleasure seeking energies of the id become focused on certain erogenous areas. This psychosexual energy, or libido, was described as the driving force behind behaviour • If these stages are completed successfully, the result is a healthy personality. If certain issues are not resolved at the appropriate stage, fixation can occur. Freud’s Stages of Psychosexual Development

8. Fixation: A persistent focus on an earlier psychosexual stage. Until this conflict is resolved, the individual will remain “stuck” in this stage. • Ex: A person who is fixated at the oral stage may be over-dependent on others and may seek oral stimulation through smoking, drinking, or eating Freud’s Stages of Psychosexual Development

9. Age Range: Birth to 1 year • Primary Focus: Rooting and sucking reflex; the mouth is vital for eating, and the infant derives pleasure from oral stimulation through gratifying activities such as tasting and sucking. Because the infant is entirely dependent upon caretakers (who are responsible for feeding the child), the infant also develops a sense of trust and comfort through this oral stimulation. The Oral Stage

10. Conflict: The weaning process – the child must become less dependent upon caretakers. • Risk of Fixation: Issues with dependency or aggression; can result in problems with drinking, eating, smoking, or nail biting. The Oral Stage

11. Age Range: 1 to 3 years • Primary Focus: Bladder control and bowel movements The Anal Stage

12. Conflict: • Toilet training; the child has to learn to control his or her bodily needs. • Developing this control leads to a sense of accomplishment and independence. • Success at this stage is dependent upon the way in which parents approach toilet training. Parents who utilize praise and rewards for using the toilet at the appropriate time encourage positive outcomes and help children feel capable and productive. Freud believed that this would set the stage of people to become independent, productive, and creative. The Anal Stage

13. Risk of Fixation: • Freud believed that the use of punishment, ridicule, or shame during the toilet training process would result in negative outcomes. • If parents take an approach that is too lenient, he suggested that an anal-expulsive personality could develop, in which the individual has a messy, wasteful, or destructive personality. • If parents are too strict or begin training too early, Freud believed that an anal-retentive personality develops, in which the individual is stringent, orderly, rigid, and obessive. The Anal Stage

14. Age Range: 3 to 6 years • Primary Focus: The genitals; children begin to discover the differences between males and females The Phallic Stage

15. Conflict: • Boys begin to view their fathers as a rival for the mother’s affection • The Oedipus Complex - feelings of wanting to possess the mother and replace the father. • Castration Anxiety – fear that he will be punished by the father for these feelings • Freud argued that girls experience penis envy • Eventually, the child begins to identify with the same-sex parent as a means of vicariously possessing the other parent The Phallic Stage

16. Risk of Fixation: • Unresolved sexual competition for the opposite-sex parent might result in a fixation conducive to a girl becoming a woman who continually strives to dominate men, either as an unusually seductive woman (high self-esteem), or as an unusually submissive woman (low self-esteem) • In a boy, a phallic-stage fixation might be conducive to becoming a vain, over-ambitious man The Phallic Stage

17. Age Range: 6 to puberty • Primary Focus: • The libido’s interests are suppressed during this stage, while the ego and the superego contribute to a period of calm. • This stage begins around the time that children being their formal schooling, and become more concerned with peer relationships, hobbies, and other interests • This stage is important in the development of social and communication skills and self-confidence • Risk of Fixation: None, as sexual urges are repressed during this stage The Latent Stage

18. Age Range: Puberty onward • Primary Focus: • During the final stage of psychosexual development, the individual develops a strong sexual interest in the opposite sex • Interest in the welfare of others grows during this stage, whereas the focus in earlier stages was solely on individual needs • If the other stages have been completed successfully, the individual should now be well-balanced, warm, and caring • Risk of Fixation: None, as this is the final stage The Genital Stage

19. Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development

20. Refer to handout Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development

21. Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development

22. Lawrence Kohlberg sought to describe the development of moral reasoning, the thinking that occurs as we consider right and wrong. • In his research, Kohlberg posed moral dilemmas (his most famous being Heinz’s Dilemma) and asked children, adolescents, and adults if the action was right or wrong. He then analyzed their answers for evidence of stages of moral thinking. • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5czp9S4u26M Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development

23. Kohlberg’s findings led him to believe that as we develop intellectually, we pass through three basic levels of moral thinking, each of which consists of two stages Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development

24. Stage 1 - Obedience and Punishment
The earliest stage of moral development is especially common in young children, but adults are also capable of expressing this type of reasoning. At this stage, children see rules as fixed and absolute. Obeying the rules is important because it is a means to avoid punishment. • Stage 2 - Individualism and Exchange
At this stage of moral development, children account for individual points of view and judge actions based on how they serve individual needs. In the Heinz dilemma, children argued that the best course of action was the choice that best-served Heinz’s needs. Reciprocity is possible at this point in moral development, but only if it serves one's own interests. Level 1: Preconventional Morality

25. Stage 3 - Interpersonal Relationships
Often referred to as the "good boy-good girl" orientation, this stage of moral development is focused on living up to social expectations and roles. There is an emphasis on conformity, being "nice," and consideration of how choices influence relationships. • Stage 4 - Maintaining Social Order
At this stage of moral development, people begin to consider society as a whole when making judgments. The focus is on maintaining law and order by following the rules, doing one’s duty and respecting authority. Level 2: Conventional Morality

26. Stage 5 - Social Contract and Individual Rights
At this stage, people begin to account for the differing values, opinions and beliefs of other people. Rules of law are important for maintaining a society, but members of the society should agree upon these standards. • Stage 6 - Universal Principles
Kohlberg’s final level of moral reasoning is based upon universal ethical principles and abstract reasoning. At this stage, people follow these internalized principles of justice, even if they conflict with laws and rules. Level 3: Postconventional Morality

27. Kohlberg claimed that these levels form a moral ladder. • As with the aforementioned stage theories, the sequence is unvarying; we begin on the bottom rung and ascend to varying heights. A MORAL LADDER