Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber was born to a young, unwed mother in Ontario, Canada. At two years old, his mother purchased a drum set for him. In addition to learning to play those drums, he also learned piano, guitar and trumpet, and was noted to have natural vocal talent, by the age of 13 (Justin Bieber, n.d.). Following a local talent show in which he placed second, Bieber’s mother began posting videos of him playing and singing, said to have been done in order to simply share with their friends and family. However, the young musician soon began to develop a You-Tube following. Eventually the videos were seen by a talent agent, Scott Braun (Justin Bieber).
Scott Braun contacted Bieber and made arrangements for him to travel to Atlanta. There, recording demos, Braun was able to arrange for an impromptu meeting with Usher, a rhythm and blues musician and successful entertainer and businessman. After an informal audition for Usher, Bieber was able to secure a recording contract in 2008 (Justin Bieber, n.d.). He was 14 years old.
The fan-base which had begun as You-Tube followers of a local Canadian boy grew exponentially. His music video from the first single of the album garnered 500 million views. Bieber was able to strengthen that fan-base with his frequent use of social media where he frequently interacted with his supporters (Justin Bieber, n.d.).
Following the release of his second album in 2010, Bieber also published his autobiography entitled, Justin Bieber: First Step 2 Forever: My Story. This provided fans with the inside information they craved. Bieber followed this in 2011 with a documentary movie entitled Justin Bieber: Never Say Never. The documentary, also autobiographical in nature, included footage from various concerts and was presented in 3-D (Justin Bieber, n.d.) and an album was released that accompanied the movie. Capitalizing on fans’ desperation for more, Bieber released yet another album in 2011 just in time for the Christmas season entitled Under the Mistletoe. Both of these albums went to number one on the Billboard charts as well in both the United States and Canada. However, with all eyes on a very young, very wealthy superstar, trouble in the public eye began.
The same year, 2011, Bieber faced a paternity suit which was later dropped after the child’s paternity was demonstrated not to have been Bieber’s (Justin Bieber biography, n.d.). This would begin the first in a series of public scandals which seemed to escalate along with his stardom. Bieber was accused of spitting on and threatening a neighbor, driving recklessly, urinating in public, vandalism, drag racing and driving under the influence (Justin Bieber biography). In the most noted demonstration of the egoism of immaturity, Bieber signed a guest book at the preserved home of Anne Frank suggesting she would have been one of his fans as well (Justin Bieber biography).
There is no mention of Bieber’s father in most available information other than to note his name. By all indication he was raised solely by his mother, and there seems to be little paternal involvement in his upbringing. It is hard to know what specific affects this has had, but Amato (1994) suggested that a child’s relationship with his father has a significant effect on development and psychological well-being, the absence of which may manifest in early adulthood.
Without assessment tools, one can only judge another’s personality based on observed behaviors and the circumstances in which they occur. In the case of Justin Bieber, the circumstances can be summarized as the explosive leap to world stardom by a very teenager from a small Canadian town. The behavior we observe began with what seemed to be surprise about his own success then gradually became what seemed to convey a sense of entitlement and eventually deviance (Justin Bieber biography, n.d.).
The psychoanalytic theory of Freud and subsequent neoanalytic theories which followed of Adler, Jung and Erikson, attribute an enormous amount of importance to past experiences and the way they are internalized (Weiten, 2005). The first to do so was Freud, and much of his psychoanalytic theory was based on various stages of psychosexual development. While neoanalytics did not place the same emphasis on sex, the idea behind the development of one’s personality was still based on internal processes like ego and the effects of past experience, specifically childhood experiences (Weiten).
An example of a psychosocial theory of personality development can be seen in Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages, the first five of which occur from birth to early adulthood (Weiten, 2005). The first stage, trust versus mistrust, occurs in the first year of life and there is not enough information to hypothesize how this was navigated. However, given that Bieber was seemingly unafraid and open to new experience, one could reasonably assume his needs were properly met.
During the second and third stages occurring in early childhood and preschool years, children should develop a sense of, first, autonomy by being allowed to make choices and beginning to have some control over limited aspects of their lives (Weiten); and second, initiative, to develop a sense of purpose. Bieber was given his first set of drums at age 2, and is noted have said he spent his childhood “banging on everything” (Justin Bieber biography, n.d., n.p.), it would appear he was allowed a degree of freedom in which to explore his environment. According to Erikson, by developing autonomy (as opposed to shame and doubt) children would be able to function with intention and will, but within reason and limits. It is clear he operated with intention, although the reason and limits were questionable throughout his teen years. It is reported that Bieber taught himself to play the instruments he learned (Justin Bieber biography) indicating his ability to self-direct. This should have provided Bieber with a sense of purpose. It would appear that this applies given his drive and success. Ironically, Bieber’s most recent album in 2015 is entitled Purpose (Justin Bieber biography).
Stage four from ages 5 to 11 years was clearly a success for Bieber, the goal of this stage to develop a sense of pride in their own accomplishments or abilities. This was obviously nurtured as evidenced by performances in talent shows and videos online. This may have been overdeveloped which would explain his ongoing self-absorption past the point of most of his cohorts. It is in the fifth stage, identity versus confusion, when we begin to see Bieber struggle. Although clearly Bieber was independent as he was wealthy long before he could drive a car or was even in high school, it is not clear he had a sense of self. There was undoubtedly an enormous amount of pressure on this very young person to be a certain way, say certain things. Publicists and agents surely guided and directed him constantly, limiting his ability or opportunity to self-explore. According to Erikson it is by successfully navigating this stage of development that a person learns to function within the expectation and standards their culture or society has established. This is clearly an area where Bieber struggled for some time.
Trait, evolutionary and biological approaches are strictly limited to the genetic influences of personality development (Weiten, 2005). It would be impossible to know how his genetic contributors affected his personality as there is little information in that regard. However, working in reverse it can be predicted that one or both of his parents had one or more similar personality characteristics (Weiten).
Cognitive, behavioral and social learning theories are based on how we cognitively process our behaviors and others’ reactions to it; these are based on learning theories (Weiten, 2005). If we apply these theories to what we know about Bieber, a clearer picture of Bieber’s behavior begins to emerge. From a behavioral perspective, Bieber was rewarded by performing for the public. The earliest instances of this were probably praise from his mother. His experience taught him that the larger the audience, the greater the positive feedback. That eventually turned into more than simply praise and adoration, but eventually brought monetary reward as well. Conversely, Bieber’s bad behavior was dealt with lightly. Although there was occasionally bad press, his fandom remained resolute and his earnings were largely unaffected. In fact, in some cases, his deviancy increased his notoriety which subsequently increased his revenue. There were limited consequences for his unwanted behavior and it was rewarded in some cases. Whether from a cognitive or behavioral approach, the result would be the same: Bieber learned that he could behave poorly and be rewarded for it. Social learning offers generally the same insight into his personality. He was insulated from the reality of his behavior and undoubtedly surrounded by people who both modeled poor choices for him and socially reinforced the poor choices he made for himself. The deviant behavior in Bieber’s late teen/early adulthood seems a textbook outcome from these perspectives (Weiten).
Humanistic theory of personality development can be seen in the work of Rogers and Maslow (Weiten, 2005). The premise of humanistic theory is that people will constantly try to improve themselves and their situations in an effort to ultimately meet their full potential. Given this theory, Bieber remains a work in progress. He continues his efforts to improve, he is no longer constant fodder for tabloid press, and has curbed his outrageous behavior. This indicates some effort to make more appropriate choices on his part, which is the very foundation of humanistic theory (Weiten). Based on these theories, Bieber will strive to improve himself with the goal of reaching his highest possible potential and be the best person he can be. The only question, as is true for all people, is how does Bieber define best. Will that be someone who sells the most records, has the most fans, and lives insulated from the damage he does and disrespect he has historically demonstrated? Or will the best person he can be become a man who can touch people with the musical and vocal gifts he has, and use them for his own and other’s benefit?
References
Amato, P. (1994). Father-child relations, mother-child relations, and offspring psychological well-being in early adulthood. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 56, 1031-1042.
Justin Bieber: Canadian singer. (n.d.). In Encyclopaedia Britannica online. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/biography/Justin-Bieber
Justin Bieber biography. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.biography.com/people/justin-bieber-522504
Weiten, W. (2005). Psychology: Themes and variations. Belmont: Thomson Wadsworth.
