Unit 7: Motivation, Emotion, and Personality

Executive Summary

Unit 7 asks why we do what we do (motivation), how we feel (emotion), and who we are (personality).

Motivation

Drive-reduction theory says physiological needs create drives we act to reduce; arousal theory seeks an optimal stimulation level; Maslow's hierarchy orders needs from physiological to self-actualization. Hunger is regulated by the hypothalamus; set point and social factors shape eating.

Emotion

James–Lange: physiological arousal first, then emotion. Cannon–Bard: arousal and emotion simultaneously. Schachter–Singer two-factor: arousal plus cognitive label. Facial feedback and appraisal theories refine the picture. Stress triggers fight-or-flight (sympathetic) and cortisol release; coping can be problem- or emotion-focused.

Personality — psychodynamic

Freud: id (pleasure), ego (reality), superego (morality); defense mechanisms like repression, projection, and rationalization protect the ego. Jung and Adler extended the psychodynamic tradition; critics note poor testability.

Personality — humanistic and trait

Maslow and Rogers emphasized growth and unconditional positive regard. Trait theories distill personality into the Big Five: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism (OCEAN) — stable, heritable, cross-culturally replicated.

Personality — social-cognitive

Bandura's reciprocal determinism: traits, behavior, and environment shape each other. Locus of control (internal vs external) predicts achievement and health.

Exam traps

James–Lange vs Schachter–Singer differ in whether cognition is needed — two-factor adds the label. Projection is attributing YOUR feelings to others, not others' feelings to you. The Big Five are dimensions, not types — people score along each, not inside one box.