Dr. Gordon Allport: Part 1: Introduction (01:09)

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Dr. Gordon Allport conducted studies on personality theory and social behavior, which have impacted the field of psychology and society in general. The interviewer travels to Allport's office at Harvard where he has written much of his most important work.

Freudian Inspiration (06:44)

The interviewer begins his conversation with Allport by asking about the Freudian influences which can be found peppered throughout his research. Allport tells the story of how he first met Sigmund Freud and goes on to discuss the basic functions of the ego.

Freudian Character Typology (06:04)

Freud seemed fascinated with the early stages of human development and how they affect the development of later personality traits and character types. Allport explains that typology is often too general to explain an entire personality; Carl Jung has expressed frustration when his eight types are misinterpreted.

Measuring Personality (08:03)

Contemporary psychologist Dr. Hans Eysenck has reconsidered typology, and while Allport agrees with his types more than others, he believes they are still too general. Allport describes how sometimes the conscious and the unconscious can agree, making behavioral analysis simple for the psychologist. Allport talks about how he came to develop his theory and the term "trait" in relation to personality psychology.

Predicting and Categorizing Behavior (07:15)

Allport describes the distinction he has developed between the term idiographic and nomothetic and how they relate to biology. He then goes on to discuss how a biographer can predict most of a person's behavior if they are aware of certain aspects of their subject's personality.

Defining Functional Autonomy (12:21)

Allport is asked about his theory of the "functional autonomy of motives" and what is suggested through this controversial, psychological term. He goes on to respond to the theory of secondary reinforcement, which he believes is highly speculative; he also talks through several psychological reinforcement scenarios.

Appropriate Functional Autonomy (08:36)

Allport discusses the friendly arguments, now famous in the history of psychology, he had with philosopher Peter Bertocci on functional autonomy. Allport discusses the importance of motivation in his research.

Credits: Dr. Gordon Allport (00:49)

Credits: Dr. Gordon Allport