PSY 405
September 30, 2012
Lynn Hagan

Personalities have a large impact on our everyday lives. Personalities allow us to interact with our fellow peers, in addition to giving individuals the tools to react to situations they may find themselves in. Our personalities are who we are, plain and simple. They set us apart from every other person. For many years, psychologists, such as Freud and Horney, have produced many theories to explain how personalities are developed. The following paper will reflect upon these Dispositional theories and how they influence personalities and interpersonal relationships. The strengths and limitations of these theories will also be analyzed. In addition, the ways these theories can change personalities, have influence on our lives, and on the ways that we conduct ourselves will be discussed. In the matrix that follows, Allport’s psychology of the individual theory will be outlined, as well as, the trait and factor theory. Both theories express how personalities can change through individual experiences and the different situations that we encounter over time. Dispositional Theories
Dispositional theories are theories based around personality. These theories include the psychology of the individual and the trait and factor. The psychology of the individual focuses on the uniqueness of an individual, and uses more than general traits to describe the individual (Feist & Feist, 2009). Each person has personal dispositions which are characteristics that apply to the individual being studied. There are different levels of the personal dispositions such as cardinal, central, secondary, motivational, and stylistic dispositions. The cardinal disposition is based around the actions that an individual’s life revolves around. The central disposition which all people have and can be described from those dispositions, secondary