CONCEPT OF
HUMANITY
Albert Bandura
Social cognitive theory
Determinism vs. Free
Choice Free choice
Explanation People have large control
over their lives. Even though
people are affected both by
their experiences with
reinforcement and their
environment, they can mold
these external conditions by
managing the environmental
conditions or ignoring past
experiences.
Causality vs. Teleology
Both
Explanation People in the purpose of the
goals they have set, but
motivation exists either in
the past or the future
Optimism vs. Pessimism
Optimism
Explanation People are capable of
learning new behaviours
throughout their lives. Most
people have the capacity to
change by imitating the
Eysneck, Mcrae, Costa’s
Trait and factor theory
Neither
The trait and factory theory
were not concerned with
these traditional themes so
they did not lend themselves
to a speculation about these
topics.
Neither
The trait and factory theory
were not concerned with
these traditional themes so
they did not lend themselves
to a speculation about these
topics.
Neither
The trait and factory theory
were not concerned with
these traditional themes so
they did not lend themselves
to a speculation about these
According to
Rotter and Mischel
Cognitive social learning
theory
Determinism
People move in the direction
of the goal they set for
themselves. Free choice is
not limited, however,
because past experiences
limits to personal
competencies, partially
determine behaviour.
Teleological
According to Rotter and
Mischel’s theory, people
place positive value on those
events that move them
closer to their goals and they
place negative value on
those events that prevent
them on reaching their
goals. People are motivated
less by past experiences with
their reinforcement than by
their expectations of future
events.
Either
People can be taught of new
strategies for problem
solving and are capable of
learning throughout their
life, however these theorists
George Kelly
Theory of personal
constructs
Free choice
Kelly believed that within our
personal construct system
we can make a choice. We
can make those choices on
the basis of our anticipation
of events
Teleological
Kelly repeatedly insisted that
childhood experiences dos
not shape current
personality. Our present
construction of past
experiences may have some
influences on behaviour but
these influences are limited.
Optimism
People are capable of
changing their constructs at
any their lives but those
changes are seldom easy.
Kelly also believed that
Klein, Kohut, Bowlby
Object relations theory
Determinism
The theorists emphasize the
importance of mother and
child relationship and view
these relationship as crucial
to the development because
early interpersonal
experience is the basis of
subsequent interpersonal
relations.
Causal
Easryl experiences of the
child especially the quality of
their relationship with their
care givers are the predictors
of a healthy or unhealthy
development of a child.
Either
The theorists can either be
optimistic or pessimistic
depending on the quality of
mother-infant relationship.
 productive behaviours of
others and by using their
own cognitive abilities to
solve problems.
Conscious vs.
Unconscious Conscious
Explanation As Bandura explained
“People do not become
thoughtless during the
learning process. They make
conscious judgments about
how their actions affect the
environment” After all
learnings have been
established, they may
become unconscious.
Biological vs. Social
Social
Explanation Social cognitive theory
emphasizes the importance
of social factors over
biological, even though
biological factors are
recognized as part of the
Triadic causation model.
Since cognition ordinarily
gains more emphasis,
biological factors become
less important
Uniqueness vs.
Similarities Uniqueness
Explanation Because people have
amazing flexibility and
capacity for learning vast
individual differences exits
among them, however it is
topics.
Consciousness
According to these theor,
people are not only
conscious, but people are
also self-conscious. People
are also able to evaluate
their performance and to
render reasonably reliable
reports concerning their
attitudes, temperament,
needs, interests, and
behaviours.
Biology
They believed that traits are
highly inherent and have
huge genetic and biological
components.
Uniqueness
Factor analysis that was
utilized by the theorist is
based on the differences of
the individuals and the
variability of their scores.
do not hold that people have
within themselves an
inherent force that moves
them inevitably in the
direction of psychological
growth.
Conscious
People consciously set goals
for themselves, and
consciously try to solve old
and new problems. However
people are not always aware
of underlying motivations of
their behaviour.
Social
Rotter emphasized the
importance of learning
through the social
environment, while Mischel
also highlighted the
importance of social factors
but not overlooking the
importance of biological
factors.
Uniqueness
Rotter is in the middle
position for concluding that
people have individual
histories but these are also
enough similarities of people
therapeutic experiences can
help people live more
productive lives.
Conscious
Kelly emphasized more of
the conscious process rather
than the conscious
motivation places no part in
personal construct theory.
Kelly speaks more of levels
of conscious awareness
wherein, high level of
awareness are easily
expressed in words and
actions and low levels are
difficult to communicate.
Social
Kelly assumed that our
interpretation of construct
systems are important other
people, may influence once
future constructions.
Uniqueness
Kelly held that our individual
interpretations of events are
crucial and that no two
persons ever have precisely
the same personal
Unconscious
Most theorists trace the
prime determinants of
behaviour to very early
infancy, a time of before
verbal language. Thus,
people acquire many
personal traits and attitudes
on a preverbal level and
remain unaware of the
complete nature of these
traits and attitudes.
Social
Intimacy and nurturing that
infants receive from their
mother are environmental
experiences.
Similarities
Object relations theorists are
more concerned with the
distinctions between healthy
and pathological
personalities and were little
 moderated by biological and
social influences; both
contribute to the similarities
among people.
Concept of Humanity
Sigmund Freud
Psychoanalysis
Determinism vs Free
Choice Determinism
Explanation Freud believed that humans
have little control over their
present actions because
many of their behaviours are
rooted in unconscious
striving that lie beyond
present awareness.
Causality vs. Teleology
Causality
Explanation Freud believed that most of
our behaviours are molded
by past events rather than
molded by future.
Optimism vs. Pessimism
Pessimism
Explanation Freud believed that every
one of us have a natural
Carl Jung
Analytical Psychology
Neither
Carl Jung commended that
although humans have no
complete control over their
lives; people are not
completely dominated by
forces they cannot control.
Both
Carl Jung commented that
motivation comes from both
past experiences and future
goals.
Neither
Jung contended that the
complex makeup of humans
that would permit reliable
and accurate prediction of
behaviour, while Mischel
emphasized the differences
among people due to
individual’s behavioural
signature and to unique
patterns of variation of one’s
behaviour.
According to
Erik Erikson
Post-Freudian theory
Both
Erikson believed that
although personality is
molded partly by culture and
history, people retain some
limited control over their
destiny.
Causality
Erikson believed that
although people can set
goals and strive to achieve
these goals, we cannot
escape the powerful causal
forces of history, anatomy
and culture.
Optimistic
Erikson believed that even
though core pathologies may
constructs.
Abraham Maslow
Holistic Dynamic theory
Both
According to Maslow, the
behaviour of people who are
motivated by physiological
and safety needs are
determined by outside forces
while self-actualizing people
are at least partially shaped
by free choice.
Teleological
As people evolve, they
become motivated by meta-
motivations and B-values,
and strive to self-
actualization.
Optimistic
Every person has the
potential to be self-
concerned with differences
among psychologically
healthy personalities.
Burrhus Frederick Skinner
Behavioural analysis
Deterministic
People are not free but are
controlled by environmental
forces. Skinner believed that
his concept of self-control
depends ultimately on
environmental forces and
some inner strength. For
skinner, Freedom, free will or
choice are only reinforcing
concepts that people use to
be satisfied.
Causality
Behaviour is caused by
person’s history of
reinforcement as well as
person’s contingencies for
survival and evolution of
cultures.
Optimistic
The evolution of the species
is in the direction of greater
tendency to exploit others
for sexual and destructive
satisfaction. He also believed
that we are not conscious of
our hatred for our friends,
family, and lovers.
invalidates any simple or
one-sided description, that
each person is a composition
of opposing forces.
dominate early stages of actualized, but the growth is control over environmental
development, humans are slow and painful. Maslow variables, which results in
inevitably doomed to also recognized the ability of repeating of behaviours
continue pathological people for great evil and beyond those essential for
existence, and people may destruction. mere survival.
be capable of changing at
any stage in life.