Humans develop throughout their entire lifespan, essentially from
womb to tomb. Developmental psychologists named this the lifespan perspective
(Wood, Wood, & Boyd, 2011) . Within these developments, one’s personality
is formed. A person’s personality is made up of behaviors that combined
together make an individual unique (Renner, Morrissey, Mae, Feldman, & Majors, 2011). According to Feist
(2006), there are numerous influences in one’s home environment that have
effects on a child. Marilyn Monroe, born Norma Jeane Baker, was born into a
broken home and her family had a history of mental illness. Marilyn longed for
a sense of belonging. Marilyn dreamed of attracting attention and having people
look at her (Monroe & Hecht, 2007). Although Marilyn’s charisma and looks
captivated America, internally she could not escape her feelings of abandonment
and family mental illness history.
Heredity versus Environment
Marilyn Monroe lived in a childhood filled with poverty. According
to Monroe (2007), she lived with approximately nine foster families before she
was sixteen years old. She was treated as nothing more than a servant girl by
these families. In her book, she recounts having been sexually molested by a
boarder of one of these families (Monroe & Hecht, 2007). When young Marilyn
tried to tell others about the abuse, she was silenced. These events affected
Monroe in her early childhood and into adulthood. In her autobiography, Monroe
(2007) spoke of her childhood self, Norma Jeane, by saying “I never lived, I
was never loved” (p. 70).
Monroe very possibly may have inherited mental illness from her
family. Both her grandfather and great-grandmother were institutionalized in,
and died in, mental hospitals. Monroe‘s uncle committed suicide. As a child,
Monroe witnessed her mother have mental episodes and be institutionalized. Even
Monroe suffered from depression and lived her final days as a recluse
(Britannica, 2011) under the care of a psychiatrist.
In regards to the heredity versus environment discussion,
psychologists believe both influences a person’s behavior and personality
(Renner, et al, 2011). In accordance with these beliefs, psychologists could
deduce that Marilyn’s personality was shaped by a combination of heredity as
well as environment.
Family Issues and Support Systems
Marilyn never knew her birth father. Her birth certificate listed
one man while her mother claimed another was the father (Monroe & Hecht,
2007). Marilyn did not know her older siblings until she was eighteen years old
(Johnson, 1994). A young Marilyn was passed around to foster families that
needed the five dollars a week she came with. Marilyn became close to her
mother’s best friend, who she called Aunt Grace. It was Grace that told Marilyn
that she would grow up to be a beautiful girl (Monroe & Hecht, 2007). This
simple compliment made a young Marilyn happy.
When Marilyn was sixteen years old, just two years away from
adulthood, she was to become a ward of the state again. Rather than entering
the foster care system again, Marilyn married a neighborhood boy. In her
autobiography, Monroe called her marriage simply a friendship with marital
privileges. The marriage lasted four years.
In one of Monroe’s relationships, she came to the conclusion that
she was not smart enough for the world. She decided to enroll at the University
of Southern California and take art courses. After a few weeks, she decided to
study Freud and other psychologists (Monroe & Hecht, 2007). Eventually,
school combined with training for her acting career became too much for
Marilyn. She quit college but intended to return at a later time.
In 1954, Marilyn married her second husband, Joe DiMaggio.
Although their marriage lasted barely a year, Marilyn depended on DiMaggio for
some time before her death. DiMaggio, Aunt Grace and former agent Johnny Hyde
were her greatest support systems. Each of the three helped Marilyn the best
they could.
Cognitive Social Theory versus Biological
Theory
Cognitive social theory relies on the environment to explain a
person’s behavior whereas biological theory states personality traits are
inherited. Cognitive social theory ignores the internal processes to explain
behavior. Cognitive social theory focuses on a person’s thoughts, feelings,
expectations, and values as well as their observations of other’s behavior.
Cognitive social theory stresses determinism, or the view that behavior is
directed and caused by factors that one has no control over (Renner, et al,
2011). Marilyn centered her behavior around incidents that happened in her
life. When Marilyn felt unloved as a young child, she decided one day attention
would be on her (Monroe & Hecht, 2007). When she felt intellectually
inferior, she enrolled in college. Marilyn did things to fit the mold of her
environment, not the mold of herself internally.
Alternately, biological theory suggests that a person’s inherited
genes determine personality. Like cognitive social theory, biological theory
also focuses on determinism. Biological theory emphasizes stability in
personality traits whereas cognitive social theory emphasizes flexible
personality traits (Renner, et al, 2011). Both theories ignore the conscious
and unconscious of a person.
Cognitive
Social Theory and Monroe
The cognitive social theory best describes Monroe’s behavior
because it involves environment including thoughts, feelings, expectations,
values and observations. Cognitive social theory involves self – efficacy and
self – esteem. Self – efficacy is the belief in one’s personal capabilities
(Renner, et al, 2011). Monroe found faults in herself; however she believed
that she was capable of being better. Researchers say that those with high self
– efficacy have higher aspirations and persistence than those with low self –
efficacy (Renner, et al, 2011). Self – esteem is how one sees them self. Self –
esteem can be positive or negative. Monroe had both positive and negative self
– esteem. She used this to succeed in her career, in which she had positive
self – esteem. However, in her personal relationships, it seems she had
negative self – esteem.
Conclusion
Personality psychology has several
different theories (Renner, et al, 2011). Each theory brings a different
meaning to one’s personality, such as heredity in the biological perspective
and the response to environment in the cognitive social perspective. Each
theory alone may not explain a person’s personality. However, these theories
together may help in understanding a person. In order to understand lifespan
development, one must examine all components that contribute to the
personality.
Monroe, Marilyn. (2011). Britannica Biographies, 1.
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