Page 8 - Lesson Note 1

6. VALUES – Goals and ideals that are considered important and worthwhile to
achieve.

Major Approaches to the study of Personality

 A number of approaches and theories have been developed to understand

and explain behavioural differences and constancies among individuals.

 These theories are based on different models of human behaviour.
 Psychologists distinguished –

 TYPE APPROACHES –

1) Attempts to comprehend human personality, by examining certain broad
patterns in the observed behaviour.
2) Each behavioural pattern refers to one type in which individuals are
placed in terms of the similarity of their behavioural characteristics with
that pattern.

 TRAIT APPROACHES –

1) Focuses on the specific psychological attributes along which individuals tend
to differ in stable ways.
2) For example, one person may be less shy, whereas another may be more.

 INTERACTIONAL APPROACH –

1) It holds that situational characteristics play an important role in determining
our behaviour.
2) People may behave as dependent or independent not because of their internal
personality trait, but because of external rewards or threats available in a
particular situations.

Module 4

Type Approaches

I. According to Hippocrates (Greek physician)
a. proposed a typology of personality based on fluid or humour.
b. He classified people into four types :
1) Sanguine
2) Phlegmatic
3) Melancholic
4) Choleric