Personality and Intelligence Theories

Personality and Intelligence Theories

1. Gardner’s Intelligence Theory VS Classical View of Intelligence

Introduction

Multiple intelligence theory was founded by Howard Gardner between 1970 and 1980. In his theory, he claimed that individuals possess eight different traits that guide them on a daily basis (Gardner, 1983-1999). The identified intelligence includes interpersonal, linguistics, intrapersonal,logical-mathematical,spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, as well as naturalistic intelligence(Gardner, 1999).

Of the eight, linguistic and logical-mathematics intelligence is more valuable and testable, observable in schools. The classical view of intelligence, as proposed by Mike Anderson (1904), every person owns a general intelligence factor known as g, implying that every individual is intelligent in whichever test they are exposed to. Unlike Gardner’s approach, the Classical view perceives knowledge composition as a key factor in judging one’s intelligence.

Differences

While Anderson’s theory (classical view) is based on general intelligence, Gardner’s theoryis based on diverse types of intelligence, which he believed are different enough to be classified in isolation. In addition, the classical view of intelligence, as proposed by Sternberg, focuses on cognitive development, whereas Gardner’s is diverse. Unlike Gardner’s, the classical view of intelligence perceives performance and knowledge as a key factor in determining intelligence.

In my opinion, Gardner’s view of intelligence is much appropriate because it reflects the real situation in school where students own different abilities. While one can engage in debating clubs effectively, another student is a good singer.

Intelligence Measurement

In order to measure an individual’s intelligence, I would employ Stanford-Binet as proposed by Lewis Terman (1916). I believe by considering the following; I will attain relevant results:

• Ability to speak formally effectively
• Problem-solving ability
• Creativity
• Ability to remember knowledge acquired
• Academic Performance
• Knowledge of Mathematical

1. B) Culture and Personality Theory

Introduction

Many theorists perceive the relationship between culture and personality to be inseparable. Culture is viewed as a mirror that shades someone’s personality. Consequently, many theories of personality emerged in regards to the mentioned.

Theories of Personality

According to Freud Sigmund, human personality is influenced by interactions of the three components of mind: ego, id, and superego. Freud claims that the human mind is responsible for the conscious and unconscious decisions they make every day.  However, an offshoot of his theory, “Object relation theorists,” opposed him by claiming that human is motivated by the need for contact with others than sexual desires as he claimed.

Erik Erikson, in his social relationship(Eight Ages of Man), claims that personality varied with the stage (Erick, 1902-1994). During adolescence, for example, every individual faces a crisis whereby they are trying to figure out who they really are.

Alfred Adler (1870-1937), in his individual psychology, relates personality to birth order by pointing that personality is an inborn drive. For example, if the eldest child develops a specific characteristic such as being weak, the second born is likely to take on the same (Adler, 1956). In addition, Karren Horney (1885-1952) claims that women felt inferior because of how they were treated by society, not necessarily because of sexualdifferences.

Behaviorist BF Skinners (1904-1990) perceive personality as a behavior associated with genetics, the current setting, as well as history. His view on personality was criticized because it was very limited in describing diverse personalities and only perceived personality as situation related. On the contrary, Social Learning theoryclaims that human behavior is influenced by their social interactions in various settings.

Abraham Maslow(1908-1970), in his humanistic theory, claims that personality is focused on the conscious and not unconscious mind. Motivation theory perceived personality as a motivation driven (Watson and Skinner) that is reinforcement reliant.

Similarly, trait theory by Gordon Allport claims that personality is a composition of broad traits that include neuroticism, extroversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness (Allport, 1938). Relatively, Murray Bowen points out that an individual personality cannot be understood in isolation but rather as a member of a family (Bowen, 1974).

Trait theory by Gordon Allport can be said culturally universal because it views traits as a composition of traits that are true scientifically and psychologically.

References

Dolliver, R. H. (1994). Classifying the personality theories and personalities of Adler, Freud, and Jung with introversion/extraversion. Individual Psychology: Journal of Adlerian Theory, Research & Practice

Alexander, F., Glueck, B. T., & Lewin, B. D. (1935). The psychoanalysis of the total personality: The application of Freud’s theory of the ego to the neuroses.

Ewen, R. B. (2014). An introduction to theories of personality. Psychology Press.

Widick, C., Parker, C. A., & Knefelkamp, L. (1978). Erik Erikson and psychosocial development. New directions for student services, 1978(4), 1-17.

L’Abate, L., & Bryson, C. H. (1994). A theory of personality development (Vol. 193). John Wiley & Sons.

Epstein, S. (1994). Trait theory as personality theory: Can a part be as great as the whole?. Psychological Inquiry, 5(2), 120-122.