Personality Theory & Research:

An International Perspective Gordon L. Flett

Prepared by Brenda Baird, University of Ottawa

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Chapter 6 Overview
Henry Murray and Psychological Needs The Assessment of Psychological Needs Alternative Measures of Psychological Needs Specific Psychological Needs Contemporary Theory and Research on Motivation

Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Murray from a Psychoanalytic Perspective Murray used the term personology to describe his study of human lives and individual differences in personality Murray described a habit system as automatic, unconscious behaviors shaped by the id, ego, and superego Murray emphasized positive instincts related to motivation and needs
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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Murray from a Psychoanalytic Perspective Murray believed the study of personality should examine the entire person across the lifespan Murrays multiform method involved gathering information from many observers across various situations

Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

The Importance of the Situation: Press Murray emphasized the impact of the situation on behavior which he referred to as press:
1. Alpha press refers to the actual, objective reality 2. Beta press refers to ones subjective perceived, reality

Murray referred to a single episode involving the interaction of internal and external factors as a thema

Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Interdependence of Personality from a Cultural Perspective Murrays broad definition of environment included the physical, biological, and social dimensions Murray and Kluckhohn (1953) identified four types of determinants in personality development:
1. 2. 3. 4. Constitutional determinants Group membership determinants Life role determinants Situational determinants

Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Murray as a Motivational Theorist: Needs Murray focused on needs, motives and drives as the forces that direct behavior Murray described needs as internal, abstract constructs that can be inferred through behaviour Murray (1938) coined the term regnanacy to emphasize a biological correlate for a psychological need
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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Murray as a Motivational Theorist: Needs For Murray, an action can satisfy more than one need in a process he called fusion of needs Subsidation of needs occurs when several needs are recruited to satisfy a more powerful need Murray (1951) described ordination as a process of schedules implemented to reduce conflict in the face of opposing goals
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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Murray as a Motivational Theorist: Needs Murray distinguished among several types of needs: 1. Focal and diffuse 2. Proactive and active 3. Manifest and. latent 4. Conscious and unconscious Unconscious needs form a dissociated collective in what Murray referred to as the alter ego
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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Types of Needs Murray distinguished between the physical primary and the psychological secondary needs Murray identified 13 viscerogenic (primary) needs which included the need for sex

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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

The Personal Needs of Henry Murray Murray is described as neurotic with a high need for intimacy and uniqueness Snyder and Fromkin (1980) asserted a cultural role for the need for uniqueness Tafarodi, Marshall, and Katsura (2004) found differences in the expression of uniqueness in Japanese and Canadian students that reflected motivational differences
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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Murray and the Unabomber The Unabomber was a Harvard student that participated in Murrays (1959) controversial study Murrays study violated several ethical principles concerning informed consent and associated risks The Unabomber was obsessed with a distrust of technology and authority figures control over people Murrays study has been linked to the Unabomber's subsequent behaviour but cannot be confirmed

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Henry Murray and Psychological Needs

Evaluation of Murrays Theory Murray sparked research in discovering individual differences in motivation Murray emphasized the role of situational factors Murray co-developed the Thematic Apperception Test Critics state his theory is too broad and subjective
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The Assessment of Psychological Needs

The Thematic Apperception Test The TAT is a projective test that is based on the assumption that unconscious internal needs are directed toward an external stimulus The TAT presents respondents with a series of black and white pictures representing various scenes that reflect each of Murray's theoretical needs Respondents generate stories that are believed to reflect their own unconscious needs
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The Assessment of Psychological Needs

The Thematic Apperception Test Concerns with the psychometric properties include low test-retest reliabilities and validity Others note that different instructions across presentations may contribute to the low reliability estimates TAT shows clinical utility in psychopathology, and in assessment of differences in relationship variables as outlined in object relations theory

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Alternative Measures of Psychological Needs

The Edwards Personality Preference Schedule EPPS (Edwards, 1959) is widely used in clinical settings Consists of 135 statements that tap 15 needs Critics argue that the ipsative scoring procedure leads to biased responding and low validity measures
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Alternative Measures of Psychological Needs

The Adjective Check List The ACL (Gough & Heilbrun, 1965) consists of 300 adjectives that respondents select to describe a personality Measures the same needs as the EPPS but unique scales allow for a measure of extreme responding Needs identified by the ACL converge with traits identified by components of the five factor model
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Alternative Measures of Psychological Needs

The Personality Research Form (PRF) The PRF (Jackson, 1974) consists of 20 scales that tap various needs outlined by Murray Two validity scales also assess social desirability and infrequent responses Attention to item selection and test construction reduces the impact of social desirability PRF responses show a six-factor solution that is replicated in French and English
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Specific Psychological Needs

Achievement Motivation McClelland(1961) states the TAT is an implicit measure that does not require a conscious reflection of motives Self-report is an explicit measure that does require a conscious reflection of motives Implicit measures are viewed as better indicators of motives than explicit measures and may reflect different systems as seen in the lack of correlation between the two tests
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Specific Psychological Needs

High versus Low Achievement Motivation: A TAT Illustration Differences in achievement motivation can be observed using the TAT as indicated in the scenario depicting a boy playing a violin (see text p. 230)

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Specific Psychological Needs

Achievement Motivation from a Societal Perspective Differences in achievement motivation are observed between individualistic and collectivist cultures Spence (1985) suggested that mainstream theories of achievement motivation may be limited to individualistic cultures The expression of achievement motivation can also vary across cultures
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Specific Psychological Needs

Affiliation Motivation Byrne, McDonald, and Mikawa (1963) found that level of affiliation was associated with approach and avoidance behaviours Current research centers on the need to be with people referred to as intimacy motivation

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Specific Psychological Needs

Affiliation Motivation Hill (1987) designed the Interpersonal Orientation Scale and determined four motives that direct affiliation: 1. Attention 2. Positive stimulation 3. Social comparison 4. Emotional Support Festinger in his (1954) similarity hypothesis stated that we engage in social comparison for assurance

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Specific Psychological Needs

The Need for Power Winter (1973) defined power as the need to impact on others and the world Efectance is a related term that refers to impacting on people, places, and objects Power is associated with aggression, gambling, and heavy drinking

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Specific Psychological Needs

The Need for Power Research shows no gender differences in the need for power, but power motives may be linked to testosterone levels Winter (2002) found no relation between power and political success based on an analysis of written content (e.g., Presidential speeches)

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Contemporary Theory and Research on Motivation

Personal Strivings Personal striving are units of behavior that are directed toward personal goals and reflect personality traits Emmons and McAdams (1991) investigation of individual differences in personal strivings distinguished three types of people: 1. High in Intimacy motivation 2. High in Power motivation 3. High in Achievement motivation
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Contemporary Theory and Research on Motivation

Personal Projects Little (2005) defined personal projects as a mid-level process-oriented construct that directs our daily tasks toward current goals Personality traits and overall levels of life satisfaction are reflected in our approach to personal projects Cross-sectional research confirms personal projects change with age throughout the lifespan
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Copyright
Copyright 2008 John Wiley & Sons Canada, Ltd. All rights reserved. Reproduction or translation of this work beyond that permitted by Access Copyright (the Canadian copyright licensing agency) is unlawful. Requests for further information should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons Canada, Ltd. The purchaser may make back-up copies for his or her own use only and not for distribution or resale. The author and the publisher assume no responsibility for errors, omissions, or damages caused by the use of these files or programs or from the use of the information contained herein.

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