Trait Theories of Personality

Trait approach assumes behaviour is determined by relatively stable traits which are fundamental units of one’s personality. These are defined as relatively stable and consistent personal characteristics.

 Trait personality theories approaches are explained by following psychologists:

A)   G.B Allport

B)   Raymond B. Cattell

C)   Hans Eysenck

D)  Guilford

Allport’s Trait approach to Personality:

  G.B Allport was the first personality theorists who adopted Traits are the basic units of our personality. He tried to search basic units of human behaviour.

 

Out of 17,953 words listed for the description of the personality of the human beings, he arrived at 4,541 words classifying these traits inro 3 main types named as

a)    Cardinal traits

b)   Central traits &

c)    Secondary traits under individual traits.

Allport recognized the following into 2 major categories:

a)    Common Traits: These traits include those we share in common with many others in culture.

e.g.:- being quiet, showing respect to seniors, making polite behaviour to others, etc.

ii) Individual Traits: These traits are also known as personal dispositions which are unique to the person concerned.

a)    Cardinal traits: The word ‘cardinal’ means important, primary, central and fundamental. This is the one that dominates and shapes a person’s behaviour.

e.g.:- someone who is obsessed with becoming wealth, another person whose life focus is religion, etc.

b)   Central traits: This is a general characteristic found to some degree in every person.

e.g.:- honesty, kindness, submissiveness, smartness, shy, etc.

c)    Secondary traits: This is a characteristic seen only in certain situations. Preferences, attitudes and situational are all secondary.

e.g.:- uncomfortable in large crowds, likes to drive sports cars, etc.

B)   Cattell’s Trait Approach

 Cattell defined traits as relatively permanent reaction tendencies that are basic structural units of the personality.

He classified traits into several ways:

1)   A common trait is one that is possessed by everyone to some degree. E.g.: Intelligence, Extraversion, Gregariousness, etc

2)   Unique traits are particularly apparent in our interests and attitudes. E.g.: interest in playing cricket, watching Chinese martial arts, etc.

3)   Ability traits determine how efficiently we will be able to work towards a goal. E.g.: Intelligence.

4)   Temperament traits describe the general style and emotional tone of our behaviour. E.g.: easygoing, how assertive, irritable we are, etc.

5)   Dynamic traits are driving forces of behaviour. They define our motivations, interests and ambitions.

6)   Surface traits are personality characteristics that correlate with one another but do not constitute a factor because they are not determined by a single source. E.g.:- several behavioral elements such as anxiety, indecision and irrational fear combine to form the surface trait labelled neuroticism.

7)   Source traits are those individual factors derived from factor analysis that combine to account for surface traits.

8)   Constitutional traits originate in biological conditions but are not necessarily innate. E.g.:- alcohol or drug use can lead to behaviors such as carelessness, talkativeness and slurred speech.

9)   Environment-mold traits derive from influences in our social and physical environments that impose a pattern on the personality.

C)   Eysenck’s Trait Hierarchy

According to Hans Eysenck, personality is determined by genes and that the environment factors have very little role to play in it.

In view of hierarchical taxonomy as given by Eysenck, Personality is hierarchically organized consisting  of Types, Traits and Habits.

Eysenck described the dynamics of personality as involving the relationship of basic 3 types of traits – Extraversion, Introversion, Neuroticism and Psychoticism. These dimensions are assesses using the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Inhibition and Arousal theory are also developed by Eysenck.

Eysenck traced the differences in behavior between introverts and extraverts to various parts of the Ascending Reticular Activating System (ARAS).

The ARAS is a network of fibers traveling upward from the lower brain stem to the thalamus and cortex. Stimulation of the ARAS results in increase in alertness and Arousal of the cortex.

D)  Guilford’s Trait Theory

Guilford (1959) like Allport stresses the integration of traits when he discusses the individual’s pattern of traits. He groups traits into 7 modalities or classes which are Interest, Attitude, Needs, Temperaments, Aptitude, Physiology (basic bodily functions) and morphology (body structure).