P1:JZP 9780521881067pre CUNY1185/Reiss 9780521877312 October30,2007 9:33 This page intentionally left blank ii P1:JZP 9780521881067pre CUNY1185/Reiss 9780521877312 October30,2007 9:33 THE NORMAL PERSONALITY InTheNormalPersonality,StevenReissarguesthathumanbeingsarenat- urallyintolerantofpeoplewhoexpressvaluessignificantlydifferentfrom theirown.Becauseofthisintolerance,psychologistsandpsychiatristssome- timesconfuseindividualitywithabnormalityandthusoverdiagnosedisor- ders.Reissshowshownormalmotives–notanxietyortraumaticchildhood experiences–underliemanypersonalityandrelationshipproblems,suchas divorce,infidelity,combativeness,workaholism,loneliness,authoritarian- ism, weak leadership style, perfectionism, underachievement, arrogance, extravagance, stuffed shirt, disloyalty, disorganization, and overanxiety. Callingforgreaterunderstandingandtoleranceofallkindsofpersonalities, Reissapplieshistheoryofmotivationtoleadership,humandevelopment, relationships,andcounseling. StevenReisswaseducatedatDartmouthCollege,YaleUniversity,Harvard University,andtheMassachusettsGeneralHospital.Hehaspublishedsci- entificandclinicalstudiesontheco-occurrenceofintellectualdisabilities andmentalillness.Hisworkhasbeenrecognizedwithfivenationalawards, twoforscientificresearch,twofornationalimpactonclinicalservices,and onefornationalleadership,andhehasreceivedtwocertificatesofrecogni- tionforvolunteerwork.In1985,ProfessorReissandthen–graduatestudent RichardJ.McNallypublishedtheconstructofanxietysensitivityasanearly riskfactorforPanicDisorder.Theanxietysensitivityindexhasbeentrans- lated into more than thirty-five languages and is used to help diagnose manythousandsofpatientsthroughouttheworld.ProfessorReiss’stheory ofmotivationisanexpansionoftheanxietysensitivityconstructtomotives otherthananxiety. i P1:JZP 9780521881067pre CUNY1185/Reiss 9780521877312 October30,2007 9:33 ii P1:JZP 9780521881067pre CUNY1185/Reiss 9780521877312 October30,2007 9:33 The Normal Personality A NEW WAY OF THINKING ABOUT PEOPLE Steven Reiss Ohio State University iii CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 8RU, UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521881067 © Steven Reiss 2008 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provision of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published in print format 2008 ISBN-13 978-0-511-47874-1 eBook (EBL) ISBN-13 978-0-521-88106-7 hardback ISBN-13 978-0-521-70744-2 paperback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of urls for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. P1:JZP 9780521881067pre CUNY1185/Reiss 9780521877312 October30,2007 9:33 Dedicatedtomyfamily,Maggi,Michael,andBen (andinmemoryofourdog,Rusty) v P1:JZP 9780521881067pre CUNY1185/Reiss 9780521877312 October30,2007 9:33 Icall[a]meaninrelationtousthatwhichisneitherexcessivenor deficient,andthisisnotoneandthesameforall. –Aristotle ThequotationisfromtheDoctrineoftheMean,BookII, NichomacheanEthics. vi P1:JZP 9780521881067pre CUNY1185/Reiss 9780521877312 October30,2007 9:33 Contents Acknowledgments page ix Overview 1 1 My Wife Thinks Something Is Wrong with Me 9 2 The Sixteen Basic Desires 20 3 Intensity of Basic Motivation 37 4 Normal Personality Types 56 5 Overcoming Personal Troubles 72 6 Six Reasons for Adolescent Underachievement 85 7 Self-Hugging and Personal Blind Spots 99 8 Relationships 110 9 Reinterpretation of Myers-Briggs Personality Types 126 10 The Sixteen Principles of Motivation 143 APPENDIXA. Dictionary of Normal Personality Traits 155 APPENDIXB. Reiss Motivation Profile Estimator 171 APPENDIXC. The Sixteen Basic Desires at a Glance 181 Notes 183 References 185 Index 193 vii P1:JZP 9780521881067pre CUNY1185/Reiss 9780521877312 October30,2007 9:33 viii