Compare the phenomenological and trait approaches to psychology, the ways in which the differ in both origin and content, and whether the two approaches make different predictions about the relationship between personality and behaviour.
             Personality places its emphasis on understanding who we are, why we are the way we are, and usually is concerned with the possibility of change anywhere along the spectrum of psychopathology to self fulfilment. There are many approaches to understanding the personality, two of the most predominant being the phenomenological approach and the trait approach, which are both extremely similar and individual in their own ways.
             The phenomenological approach emphasises the uniqueness and validity of each persons subjective experience, the subjective experience being of primary importance. It specifically focuses on the immediate perceived experiences and concepts of the individual and on their strivings towards growth and self actualisation. Phenomenological theorists centred on two main ideas – that people have an intrinsic tendency towards self actualisation and that people evaluate themselves with respect to values held by themselves and others.
             The origins of the phenomenological approach date back to the beginning of the twentieth century. Early theorists included William James, George H.Mead and John Dewey. Their theories were later followed up by Carl Jung, who believed that people strive for self realisation and integration. These were the beginnings of phenomenological theories.
             These theories lead to the theorising of Gordon Allport in 1961, who believed in the uniqueness of the individual, and that everyone has integrated patterns of personality which distinguish them. His main ideas were that all behaviour is motivated by instincts, but that adult motivation is not controlled by past experiences as some other theorists believed. He argued for functional autonomy, that motives beco...