The Trait approach
According to this theory people can be described with the help of the basic ways they behave, such as friendly, moody. Basic ideas are:
- Each person has stable disposition to show certain behaviours, attitudes, emotions.
- These dispositions are general and appear in different situations.
- Each person has a different set of traits.
The Big Five Trait model includes 5 basic dimensions of personality:
- extroversion (outgoing, talkative, sociable);
- agreeableness (cooperative, fair, sympathetic);
- conscientiousness (organized, efficient, reliable);
- emotional stability (even-tempered, good-natured, calm);
- openness to experience (intelligent, artistic, sophisticated).
Humanistic approach
It is an optimistic response to the pessimism of psychodynamic theory. This approach stresses that each person has the capacity for personal growth, positive growth, free will and freedom to choose one’s destiny. It also stresses self-actualization (realization of the human potential). Representatives of this approach are Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow.
Carl Rogers’ person-centered approach stressed that people have the need for self-actualization. According to Rogers, the structure of the personality is based on two elements: the organism and the self. Self-concept is individual’s perceptions of their abilities, behaviour, and personality. There is the real self (the self we form as a result of our experiences) and the ideal self (who we really want to be).
Problems begin when the real self is different from the ideal self. The development of the self-concept depends on self-evaluation and positive evaluation shown by others. We help others develop self-concept by giving them love and understanding. According to Rogers, fully functioning persons are those who live in harmony with their deepest feelings, impulses and intuitions.
A. Maslow studied individuals who were using their abilities to the full. He found that people who self-actualized, were comfortable in life, independent, accurate in perceiving reality, had a good sense of humour. He developed a hierarchy of motives in which each lower need must be satisfied before the next level. They are:
- physiological (air, food, water, stable body temperature);
- safety and security needs;
- love and belongingness (the need to obtain and give love, to be a
contributing member of the society);
- esteem and self-esteem (the need to develop a sense of self-worth
by knowing that the others value you);
- self-actualization (the need to fulfill your potential).
Each level is less biological and more social. Basic needs must be satisfied first. When a person satisfies one level, this satisfaction activates needs at the next level. For example, after the basic physiological needs are satisfied, safety and security become motivating.
This theory is important because it shows how complex the human needs are.
It was Maslow who formally introduced to psychology the model of a healthy, optimally functioning individual.