NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
Gordon Allport Introduction A major part of modern psychologists consider Gordon Allport the greatest psychologist (the second after Freud) who made valuable contribution into development of the world psychology. Allport rooted in the scientific traditions of American psychology, grounded in the insights of Freud's psychoanalysis, and expressed an organismic vision of each individual's unique adjustment to his or her environment (Moss 27). While most of them agree that he introduced a lot of interesting and effective theories, some psychologists examine his biography together with his works. Some psychologists have argued that because Gordon Allport's life was closely related to his works, and some of them have countered that position by demonstrating that Gordon Allport's theories are influenced by his life experience. Many researchers agree that Allport's psychological positions were gained working as a teacher in colleges at various parts of our world. Some psychologists consider that Gordon Allport liked works of Sigmund Freud and in particular, these works converted him to studying psychology more thoroughly.
Lets examine Gordon Allport's biography more carefully. Biography Gordon Allport was a well-known psychologist. He was born in Montezuma (Indiana) on November 11, 1897. He got education in Harvard University and studied in universities of Berlin, Hamburg and Cambridge. Gordon Allport taught in Roberts College (Constantinople, Turkey), in Harvard and Dortmund College. He is well known as a specialist in the field of theory of personality and social psychology.
Allport invented the theory of functional autonomy, according to which the means can become the aims. This theory became very popular and influenced modern opinions concerning motivation of adults as a result of development of inherited or premature motivation. In 1937 - 1949 Gordon Allport was the editor of Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology. His works include Studies in Expressive Movement (1933), Personality, a Psychological Interpretation (1937), The Nature of Prejudice (1954), Becoming: Basic Considerations for a Psychology of Personality (1955).
He died in Cambridge (Massachusetts) in 1967. Gordon Allport: Genius in Psychology I would like to start from one of the stories, that is always mentioned in his biographies. When he was a 22 year-old young man, he went to Vienna. There he met Sigmund Freud. When he came to Freud's office, Sigmund kept silence. Gordon didnt know what to do and decided to tell one of his stories to break the silence.
He remembered the story about a small boy, who was very upset because he had to sit where an ugly dirty man was sitting before. Gordon Allport thought these feelings were inherited from mother, who was very tidy and a very neat woman. However, Freud proposed his own idea that the boy was Gordon Allport himself. Of course, Freud was right.
This discovery forced Gordon to realize the importance of deep psychoanalysis and the depth of psychology itself. He understood that psychology of behaviorism is often not as deep as Freud's approach. Lets revert to Gordons theories and examine them more thoroughly. Gordon examined the concept of opportunistic functioning. According to it, the necessity to satisfy biological demands is the thing that motivates people. He spoke about opportunistic functioning within the limits of biological and reactive beginning.
On the other hand, he understood that the theory of opportunistic functioning couldnt explain other features and motives of human behavior. He tried to find the answer and examined a lot of psychological works. However he came to conclusion that it is necessary to give another definition, which will be able to satisfy all definitions for the concept. So he came to the concept of the proprio or the self. As far as Gordon focused attention on the concept of proprio, he tried to give the most comprehensive definition to it. First of all, he considered that proprio consisted of several components of experience that you see central, essential and warm.
According to Gordon Allport, the self or proprio has seven functions. They are as follows: sense of body This function of proprio develops during the first two years of life. Gordon gives the following example to demonstrate sense of body as the aspect of proprio. Lets suppose you filling the cup with your saliva and then drinking it. You have the feeling of inappropriate action.
Why? Its the substance from your own body, but you feel that it is foreign to you. This is a good demonstration of the sense of the body. self-identity This aspect of self also develops during the first two years of life. According to Gordon Allport, a man realizes himself as continuing. He realizes the existence as part, present and future.
A man also recognizes himself an individual, who is different from other people. self-esteem This aspect of self develops between two and four years old. Gordon Allport claims that we start to realize our value, as well as value to other individuals. self-extension This aspect develops between four and six years old. Some people associate themselves with belonging to others (they determine themselves in terms of other individuals). The man finds his identity in something (it can be either in activity or in place).
Good example, given by Gordon explains the feelings of mother, feeling guilty for her child (Boeree n. p. ). self-image This aspect of proprio also develops between four and six years old. Gordon Allport compares the concept of self-image with a looking-glass self. He explains it as the way others see you or the impression you make on other individuals.
rational coping This aspect of self develops between six and twelve years old. Erikson has almost the same concept under the name of industry. This is the period in childs life when a child starts to realize himself as a rational individual and starts to think rationally and logically. Rational coping embraces the period of life when the child develops his abilities to cope with life problems with the help of reason. propriety striving Propriate striving develops after the person reaches twelve years old.
It embraces realizing the self as some plans, vocations, ideals, aims and goals. According to Allport, the culmination point of propriety striving is realization of idea that a man is the owner of his own life. Individual in the process of development also develops his personal dispositions or personal traits. According to Gordon Allport, personal disposition is a generalized neuro psychic structure (peculiar to the individual), with the capacity to render many stimuli functionally equivalent, and to initiate and guide consistent (equivalent) forms of adaptive and stylistic behavior (Allport 72) The traits or dispositions are the features, which are easy to understand and recognize in our behavior. Allport prefers to use word dispositions and explains it as follows: people merely doubled the use of the word "trait" and heard me to be suggesting traits again. Recently I've tried to change the terminology so that common traits would still be a valid field for research, but personal dispositions would focus on the morphogenic study of the individual in order to find out how he is organized (Evans 24) Allport is firmly convinced that personal dispositions are unique.
He disagrees with idea that there are dispositions or personal traits, which are common for the whole culture. Besides, he considers that there are personal dispositions or traits that are more closely related to individuals, whereas there are other dispositions that are not so closely tied. Allport claims that there are several general types of dispositions: central traits According to Allport, central traits build the individual. Some people describe the others and attach them peculiar characteristics, such as smart, shy, tiny, etc. secondary traits These traits are not so evident. They are mostly related to situational traits / dispositions and to personal preferences.
cardinal traits Cardinal traits determine the fate of individual. For example, some people are so influenced by certain traits that they become a ruling power in their lives. Some people spend their life seeking for fame or recognition, love or sex, fortune, etc. Gordon Allport even provides such people with names of historical people, known for certain traits: Mother Teresa (religion), Scrooge (greed) or Marquis de Sade (sadism), to mention a few (Polansky 9).
Conclusion Few would disagree that the creation of the theory of personality and Allport's works on psychology was a revolution in psychology that brought with it enormous benefits. Millions found the hidden sides of personality, basic social psychological theories, and other brilliant ideas for the first time. The health of psychological science improved, and numerous conflicts concerning new theories became largely a thing of the past. Gordon Allport's theories were successes of the first order. They provided with explanations they were aimed to do. And they had the publics respect and recognition.
Allport was born psychologist and his contribution to the psychology is great. His acumen had been a key to his success. Gordon Allport was without doubt a great scientist at a time when it was needed. In conclusion, we have to admit that Gordon Allport is a considerable person in the history of psychology.
Although his theories were often untimely, he has made great contribution into psychology. According to majority of researchers, his main successes were in the theory of personality and social psychology. Bibliography: Allport, G. (1950). The Nature of Personality: Selected Papers.
Perseus Publishing: Cambridge, MA Boeree, G. (1998). Gordon Allport. Retrieved December 23, 2005. < web > Evans, R. (1970). Gordon Allport: The Man and His Ideas. New York Moss, D. (1999). Humanistic and Transpersonal Psychology: A Historical and Biographical Sourcebook.
Greenwood Press: Westport, CT Polansky, N. A. (1991). Integrated Ego Psychology. Aldine De Gruyter: New York
Free research essays on topics related to: sigmund freud, twelve years, closely related, years of life, personality and social psychology
Research essay sample on Personality And Social Psychology Years Of Life
