Chapter 8

Motives and the

Dynamics of Personality
Personality Psychology
Needs and Motives Theory Defined
A theory of personality that asserts that
personality is best understood as a reflection of
underlying needs
Key Components
Personality revolves around concept of Needs
Personality is reflected in behavior, which results
from underlying needs/motives/press
Very General
Based on basic aspects of life humans want or desire
for their well-being
Very Individualized
Idiographic
Key People
Henry Murray
Abraham Maslow
Carl Rogers
Henry Murray
Central figure
Developed wide-ranging theory of personality
organized by a pattern of needs, motives, and
press
Idiographically oriented
Manifest needs (observable)
Latent needs (underlying)
Needs
Basic desire for something; states of tension;
internal state that is less than satisfactory (Need
for Food)
Two Types
Three Combinations
Thought to be objective
Motives
Drives to meet needs and reduce dissatisfaction; internal
states that arouse and direct behavior towards goals
(Hunger)
Influenced by needs
Cognitions with affective overtones, organized around
preferred experiences and goals (emotionally-charged
goals)
Appear in thoughts that pertain to either desired or
undesired goals
Subjective overtones
Leads to behavior directly
Press
External events that influence motives (Seeing someone
eat dessert)
Environmental influence on motives as opposed to
biological, internal influences of needs
Can bring on a motivational state simply through
environmental exposure
Both objective and subjective press exists
Alpha Press (objective environment)
Beta Press (perceived environment)
The process of personality in
Needs and Motives Theory
Underlying need and the external press are
combined into motives
Motives influence what behaviors are expressed
Need
Press
Motive
Behavior
Murrays Understanding of
Personality
Water
Hot day
Thirst
Buy a
drink
Murrays Understanding of
Personality
Murrays Hierarchy of Needs
Needs exist at different levels of strength
Each need interacts with other needs, resulting in
interactions, or dynamics within the person
Varies from person to person, resulting in unique
patterning of needs, motives, and behaviors
(individualized)
Measuring Needs
Manifest Needs (aka Motives)
Behavior, self-report
Latent Needs (True definition of Needs)
Murray was most interested in pattern of latent
needs
Indirect methods
Applied the term Apperception to mean the
process of projecting needs onto a stimulus
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
Most Researched Needs
Need For Achievement

Doing Things Better
Research Findings
Gender Differences
Promoting Achievement Motivation

Most Researched Needs
Need For Power

Having Impact
Research Findings
Gender Differences
Health Status and The Need For Power
War and Peaceand Power

Most Researched Needs
Need For Intimacy

Wanting Relationships
Research Findings


Most Researched Needs
Need For Affiliation

Motive to spend time with others; want to
be accepted; actively make social contacts
Couples do best when Need for Affiliation
is similar
Four sub-domains in terms of the function
of this need
Social comparison, Emotional support, Positive
stimulation, Attention from others


The Humanism Paradigm
The Motive to Self-Actualize
The Self is the most important being; the Self is
the center of ones universe, second to no others
Humans determine for themselves what their lives are
to be like: Focus on free-will

Emphasizes the human need for growth and realizing
ones full potential
Believes that humans are intrinsically good and self-
perfecting



The Humanistic Tradition:
Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

Needs are hierarchically organized
Needs must be satisfied at the lower levels
before we proceed to satisfy the higher needs
Lower needs
More powerful and pressing, but more primitive
Deficiency-based
Higher needs
Weaker, or subtle, but more human
Growth-based


Characteristics of Self-Actualizers
According to Maslow

Efficient in perceptions of reality

Accepting of themselves and others

Spontaneous, natural, authentic

Philosophical

Oceanic feelings


The Humanistic Tradition:
Carl Rogers
The Motive to Self-Actualize
Main Beliefs
Actualization
Self-actualization
Fully-functioning person
Positive Regard
Rogers: Positive Regard
Unconditional: Offered without prerequisites
Conditional: Offered only on the basis of certain
requirements
Conditions of Worth
Conditional Self-regard
Rogers as a Self Theorist
Self-Concept: Set of qualities the person views as
being part of himself or herself; made of many
elements
Ideal Self: Image the person wants to be
Actual Self: Image the person understands him
or herself to be
Real Self: Who each person acts like from day
to day
Rogers as a Self Theorist
How perspectives on the Self can interact

Congruence of Self
Incongruence of Self
Congruence vs. Incongruence
Congruence of Self
Occurs when ideal self and actual self are
similar when you are whom you want to be
Occurs when actual self and real self are
similar when you act like the person you
know yourself to be
Both achieved by self-actualization and result
in a fully functioning person
Congruence vs. Incongruence
Incongruence of Self
Caused by a mismatch of ideal/actual selves
or actual/real selves
Caused by conditions of worth
Leads to anxiety
Defenses enacted to protect Self from this
anxiety
Rogerian Defenses
Distortions of experiences
Perceive event from being different than it is
Rationalization
Preventing threats to reach awareness
Denial of experience
Avoidance
Self-handicapping
Rogerian Client-Centered
Therapy

Focus on the clients topics of discussion
Clarify feelings
Restatement of content
Client is responsible for therapys progress
and coming to own conclusions, solving
own problems
Rogers versus Maslow
Rogers began at Maslows social needs level
(3
rd
level)
Maslows Need for Love and Belongingness
is similar to Rogers Need for Positive
Regard
Maslows Esteem Need is a positive need;
Rogers Conditions of Worth are negative
according to him
Both thought the need for acceptance was
stronger than the need for self-actualization