PSYCH/645
Personality Theory – Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones Jr.
University of Phoenix
PSYCH/645: Personality Theories
Meet Henry Jones Jr.
Welcome to Henry Walton Jones Jr., better known as "Indiana" or "Indy" Jones, our
lead character in the Indiana Jones film franchise, brought to you initially by George Lucas. In
understanding personality, we must also understand others' personalities. Understanding a
fictional movie character's personality is just as important as how it is played and portrayed to
the audience. In understanding Indiana Jones, we can view personality theories from Sigmund
Freud that explain various aspects of who he is through the conscious, preconscious, and
unconscious, or the Id, Ego, and Superego. Gordon Allport's views can explain the motivational
behaviors of Indiana Jones, helping to understand levels of satisfaction that can be met to fully
succeed and meet self-actualization. Finally, Maslow's personality theory can explain a large
portion of Indiana Jones's personality, explaining a difference from Freud in how the
experiences come to be and how they manifest into his present-day life situations and missions.
In exploring all three of these theorists and theories, we can understand who Indiana Jones's
character turned out to be because of his experiences and adventures through the views of real-
life psychological information from real influencers of the field. We can interpret the theories of
Freud and Allport and hold them up to others such as Adler, Jung, Cattell, and Ellis, but each
interpretation will show a different insight to the man that is Indiana Jones.
Sigmund Freud and Indiana Jones
Sigmund Freud had a particular view in how he believed the personality developed and
formed. Freud believed that the human personality had multiple aspects, the Id, Ego, and
Superego. These all develop at different stages in our lives, according to Freud, and are
, considered systems, but not physical systems of the body. The Id is the sexual and aggressive
drive, the Ego is the mediator of the Id and the Superego, and the Superego is what we use to
morally make decisions in our daily lives. Freud believed that all three of these equaled to the
unconscious, preconscious, and conscious (McLeod, 2019). Indiana Jones can be described as
someone who reacted based on the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious aspects of his mind
because of the tasks he was working to achieve a positive outcome toward, the places he was
trapped or visiting and became trapped, and the people that he interacted with, past and present
friends and foes that he experienced throughout his lifetime. Indiana Jones is controlled by the
conscious mind of what is happening around him and what he is doing. The preconscious mind is
the thoughts that come to him during his explorations, which makes him resourceful in a matter
of moments in a tight situation. The unconscious is the things that he is unaware of that he
knows or needs to know. They cannot be brought to the preconscious and then to the conscious
but are fully there. At the same time, he is entirely unaware that he has no understanding of the
unknown. The cautionary tale with Freud was that “if a person’s ideal self is too high a standard,
then whatever the person does will represent failure” (McLeod, 2019).
Gordon Allport and Indiana Jones
Gordon Allport developed the trait theory of personality, developing a theory using the
dictionary to note every term that would describe a personality aspect in one form or another
(Cherry, 2020). Allport's theory compiled three categories of traits; cardinal traits, central traits,
and secondary traits. Allport decided that behaviorism did not provide enough detail. Freud
provided detail that dug too profoundly and opened wounds triggering episodes. We know
now, PTSD can be brought up commonly (Cherry, 2020). Indiana Jones was like this theory of
personality. There were cardinal traits or dominant traits regarding him, such as constant
Personality Theory – Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones Jr.
University of Phoenix
PSYCH/645: Personality Theories
Meet Henry Jones Jr.
Welcome to Henry Walton Jones Jr., better known as "Indiana" or "Indy" Jones, our
lead character in the Indiana Jones film franchise, brought to you initially by George Lucas. In
understanding personality, we must also understand others' personalities. Understanding a
fictional movie character's personality is just as important as how it is played and portrayed to
the audience. In understanding Indiana Jones, we can view personality theories from Sigmund
Freud that explain various aspects of who he is through the conscious, preconscious, and
unconscious, or the Id, Ego, and Superego. Gordon Allport's views can explain the motivational
behaviors of Indiana Jones, helping to understand levels of satisfaction that can be met to fully
succeed and meet self-actualization. Finally, Maslow's personality theory can explain a large
portion of Indiana Jones's personality, explaining a difference from Freud in how the
experiences come to be and how they manifest into his present-day life situations and missions.
In exploring all three of these theorists and theories, we can understand who Indiana Jones's
character turned out to be because of his experiences and adventures through the views of real-
life psychological information from real influencers of the field. We can interpret the theories of
Freud and Allport and hold them up to others such as Adler, Jung, Cattell, and Ellis, but each
interpretation will show a different insight to the man that is Indiana Jones.
Sigmund Freud and Indiana Jones
Sigmund Freud had a particular view in how he believed the personality developed and
formed. Freud believed that the human personality had multiple aspects, the Id, Ego, and
Superego. These all develop at different stages in our lives, according to Freud, and are
, considered systems, but not physical systems of the body. The Id is the sexual and aggressive
drive, the Ego is the mediator of the Id and the Superego, and the Superego is what we use to
morally make decisions in our daily lives. Freud believed that all three of these equaled to the
unconscious, preconscious, and conscious (McLeod, 2019). Indiana Jones can be described as
someone who reacted based on the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious aspects of his mind
because of the tasks he was working to achieve a positive outcome toward, the places he was
trapped or visiting and became trapped, and the people that he interacted with, past and present
friends and foes that he experienced throughout his lifetime. Indiana Jones is controlled by the
conscious mind of what is happening around him and what he is doing. The preconscious mind is
the thoughts that come to him during his explorations, which makes him resourceful in a matter
of moments in a tight situation. The unconscious is the things that he is unaware of that he
knows or needs to know. They cannot be brought to the preconscious and then to the conscious
but are fully there. At the same time, he is entirely unaware that he has no understanding of the
unknown. The cautionary tale with Freud was that “if a person’s ideal self is too high a standard,
then whatever the person does will represent failure” (McLeod, 2019).
Gordon Allport and Indiana Jones
Gordon Allport developed the trait theory of personality, developing a theory using the
dictionary to note every term that would describe a personality aspect in one form or another
(Cherry, 2020). Allport's theory compiled three categories of traits; cardinal traits, central traits,
and secondary traits. Allport decided that behaviorism did not provide enough detail. Freud
provided detail that dug too profoundly and opened wounds triggering episodes. We know
now, PTSD can be brought up commonly (Cherry, 2020). Indiana Jones was like this theory of
personality. There were cardinal traits or dominant traits regarding him, such as constant
