Psychological Science ›› 2016, Vol. 39 ›› Issue (2): 497-511.

Previous Articles    

Theories of Personality and Motivation Based on Chinese Culture: Personality Model from China and Theory of Key Needs

Tsingan Li   

  • Received:2015-10-29 Revised:2015-11-24 Online:2016-03-20 Published:2016-03-20
  • Contact: Tsingan Li

基于中国文化的人格与动机理论 ――中国人格模型与关键需要理论

李庆安   

  1. 北京师范大学
  • 通讯作者: 李庆安

Abstract: In the past 2,500 years, there are a huge number of papers and books in connection with the Analects of Confucius. However, most of them belong to the speculative styles of research, and it is difficult to see empirical findings of research. All debates on the Analects of Confucius, therefore, are often based on subjective likes or dislikes, rather than the objective data. On the basis of these understandings, the Coding Manual for Management Competence Based on the Analects of Confucius has been adopted, which has provided an effective coding instrument for empirical researches on the Analects of Confucius. In the last four years, based on the coding instrument, a series of empirical researches were conducted into the structure and development of Confucian psychological assets and liabilities in eminent figures from China and abroad. The series of researches are characterized by the four features as follows: (1) the innovated coding instrument. The Coding Manual for Management Competence Based on the Analects of Confucius developed by the author of the paper is not only an innovation in research methodology for the Analects of Confucius, but also an innovation in the coding instrument for qualitative researches; (2) the innovated concepts of psychology. The author of this paper coined the concepts of the Confucian psychological assets and the Confucian psychological liabilities, which are two new concepts in psychology characterized by Chinese culture. The Confucian psychological assets refer to the equipment(traits) valued by the Confucian culture, while the Confucian psychological liabilities refer to the equipment abandoned by the Confucian culture(Watson, 1919,p.397). (3) the innovated methodology of research on biographies. Two main methods are adopted in previous researches on biographies. The first one is the historical method, which is designed to conduct textual criticism and sort out historical facts. The second one is the literature method, which is intended to investigate the image of the subject of biographies and biographer’s techniques in describing the image of the subjects. In order to extract the psychological equipment in individuals from their biographies, the deep structure coding method is adopted in the series of empirical research. It is not only an innovation of the previous two methods of research on biographies, but also an innovation of the research methods in psychology. (4) The enormous time-consumption. The empirical studies on Confucian psychological assets and liabilities of eminent figures from China and abroad involved 29 research subjects. The coding material of this series of research involves a total number of 32 biographies, or 14,074 pages. It is extremely easy to imagine that enormous time and energy were required for the series of empirical researches. The first important finding of these series of empirical researches is that there are 261 equipment of Confucian psychological assets in eminent figures from China and abroad, and the cumulative frequencies of the equipment range between 1 and 7957. Ranked by the order of frequencies, the top-seven equipment are as follows: insight, speaking, achievement, friendship, hardworking, governing and change. Accordingly, the seven equipment were established as the key equipment for the structure of Confucian psychological assets. The second important finding of these series of empirical researches is that the structure of Confucian psychological liabilities of eminent figures from China and abroad includes 127 equipment, the cumulative frequencies of the equipment range between 1 and 2369. From the perspective of Yogacara Buddhism, the top-13 equipment led by the subjective judgment could be reorganized into the categories of erroneous cognitions, fear, hatred, arrogance, ignorance and desire, namely, the category of six fundamental afflictions. Accordingly, the six equipment led by “the erroneous cognitions” were established as the core equipment for the structure of Confucian psychological liabilities. To the author’s great excitement, the seven key equipment are mysteriously correspondent to the seven virtues of water in chapter eight of Tao Te Ching (Book of Lao-tzu); while the six core equipment such as erroneous cognitions are mysteriously corresponding to the category of six fundamental afflictions in Yogacara Buddhism. In other words, the former one is in correspondence with the wisdom of Lao-tzu, while the latter one is matched with the wisdom of Buddha. Based on the series of empirical researches, the author revised the five-factor theory of personality advanced by the western psychologists, proposed the personality model from China which is a theory of personality characterized with Chinese culture, and presented the theory of key needs which is a theory of motivation characterized with Chinese culture. The empirical researches of Confucian psychological assets and liabilities in eminent figures from China and abroad, which resulted in the personality model from China and the theory of key needs, are expected to have a positive impact on constructing psychology of personality and motivation featured by Chinese culture, on encouraging the equal dialogues between the western psychology and the Chinese culture, on improving the internationalization of Chinese psychology, and on promoting the cultural self-awareness and cultural confidence in Chinese citizens.

Key words: Confucian psychological assets, Confucian psychological liabilities, A five-factor theory of personality, personality model from China, theory of key needs

摘要: 以邓小平等29位中外杰出人物为研究对象,以他们的32本传记为编码材料,以《论语管理素质编码手册》为工具,针对中外杰出人物儒家心理资产和债务的结构与发展,进行了一系列实证研究。结果发现,在中外杰出人物的儒家心理资产结构中,明、语、功、友、劳、政和变的品质为七种关键品质;在中外杰出人物儒家心理债务的结构中,恶见、疑、瞋、慢、痴和贪的品质为六种核心品质。前者与老子的智慧存在神秘的对应关系,后者与佛祖的智慧存在神秘的对应关系。基于该系列研究,修正了西方心理学家提出的人格五因素理论,提出了具有中国文化特色的人格理论――中国人格模型,提出了具有中国文化特色的动机理论――关键需要理论。

关键词: 儒家心理资产, 儒家心理债务, 人格五因素理论, 中国人格模型, 关键需要理论