Ivan Pavlov's theory of personality

Russian physiologist Ivan Petrovich Pavlov (1849-1936) He is known above all for being the initiator of the paradigm of classical conditioning, also called "Pavlovian". However, Pavlov and his followers made other significant contributions to psychology, such as his personality typology based on the study of the nervous system.

In this article we will describe the 4 types of personality that exist according to Pavlov's theory, as well as the main concepts of this model, the most important of which are related to nervous processes basic (excitation and inhibition) and with their properties, which determine the behavioral differences between beings humans.

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Pavlov's theory of personality

Pavlov developed his theory of personality through the experiments he carried out in his laboratory. Specifically, this author he investigated the learning of reflex responses by conditioning using dogs as experimental subjects; in relation to these animals, Pavlov's studies on salivation are particularly well known.

Unlike other personality models in force at the time, among which the psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud stands out, that of Pavlov does not focus only on the description of psychological differences between individuals, but he tries to explain them through the study of the activity of the nervous system, which gives rise to temperament, the basis of personality.

This is why Pavlov's proposal on personality is part of biological theories, which he uses constructs related to biology to explain individual differences. The somatic typologies of Kretschmer and Sheldon, Gall's phrenology or more current models such as those by Eysenck, Gray or Zuckerman are part of the same category.

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Nervous processes and their properties

Pavlov's personality typology is derived from his hypothesis about the basic properties of the nervous system. In this sense, it is important to consider two physiological processes, excitation and inhibition, as well as its three main properties: strength, balance and mobility.

Excitatory and inhibitory nervous processes occur independently, although they interact giving rise to different states of cortical activity depending on the degree of predominance of each one of them. they. The definition of these concepts is similar to the one we currently use when talking about the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.

Pavlov claimed that interindividual differences in behavior are explained by propertiesof the processes excitatory and inhibitory of each person (or animal). He spoke of "strength" to refer to the general working capacity of neurons, the "balance" between excitation and inhibition, and the "mobility" or speed of these processes.

Strength, balance and mobility would be the most relevant properties, but Pavlov also described the irradiation, or diffusion of the process to other areas of the nervous system, and its concentration in one region determined. Later, his disciple Vladimir Nebylitsyn added a fourth property: the dynamism or speed of reflex formation.

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The 4 types of nervous system

According to Pavlov, the characteristics of the fundamental nervous processes in a specific person determine the type of activity of his nervous system, and therefore his temperament. These biological traits would constitute the basis of personality; when interacting with environmental factors, they would produce differences in behavior between individuals.

The criteria that Pavlov used to classify him were quite arbitrary. First, he divided the dogs into two groups based on whether their nervous systems were strong or weak. Then he separated the strong ones based on whether they were balanced or not; Lastly, he created the categories “strong-balanced-slow” and “strong-balanced-impulsive”.

1. strong and unbalanced

This type of temperament is characterized by lack of balance between excitation and inhibition processes; there is, therefore, a tendency towards the appearance of physiological states in which one of the two predominates in a very marked way.

We can relate the strong and unbalanced (or impetuous) personality with the choleric temperament of the humor typology of Galen, a Greek physician who lived in the 2nd century AD. c. and in which Pavlov was inspired. In it Eysenck's PEN model it would be comparable with high levels of extraversion and low levels of emotional stability.

2. Strong, balanced and slow

In this case, the neurons have a good working capacity and the balance between excitation and inhibition is adequate, but the speed of initiation and termination of these processes is low. The strong-balanced-slow type corresponds to introversion and emotional stability in the Eysenck model, and with the phlegmatic type of Galen.

3. Strong, balanced and impulsive

Unlike the previous type, in the strong-balanced-impulsive type the speed of the excitation and inhibition processes is high. Following Galen's classification, we would talk about the sanguine temperament, and in Eysenck's, these people would have a high degree of extraversion and emotional stability.

4. Weak

The fourth type is equivalent to Galen's phlegmatic temperament and would present introversion and emotional instability in the Eysenck model. Pavlov defines it simply as a low working capacity of nervous system cells.