Preview

Understanding Personality Paper

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1517 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Understanding Personality Paper
Understanding PersonalityUnderstanding PersonalityWhat is personality? Is it the characteristics an individual displays? Is it the description of a good or bad person? The contents of this paper will provide information for the reader to gain a better understanding of the word personality from a theorist’s viewpoint. The following quote by George H. Mead caught my attention because it describes what I believe personality is. “A multiple personality is in a certain sense normal” (Book of Famous Quotes, 2013). I believe each individual has multiple personalities depending on the environment or individuals involved. Within the contents of this paper, I will …show more content…
In society, one uses the word “personality” to define a person’s characteristics. For example, a person may be defined as not possessing a good personality if he or she cannot communicate with others. Personality psychologist’s use the word “personality” to refer to psychological qualities that contributes to an individual’s enduring and distinctive patterns of feeling, thinking, and behaving (Cervone & Pervin, 2010). One aspect of personality is individuals have certain consistent qualities or characteristic demonstrated through his or her personality with little change through life. Another aspect of personality is recognizing the different characteristics individual’s possess rather than recognizing the basic good or bad personality characteristics. The last aspect of personality is recognizing how an individual’s personality is displayed in specific …show more content…
For example, I could say my motivation to assist individuals in the mental health and drug and alcohol field is motivated by my personal experiences dealing with stigma, prejudice, and the difficulties I have faced pertaining to mental illness and drugs. These experiences have motivated me to help individuals with similar difficulties and so I have developed certain personality characteristics such as compassion, empathy, understanding, and

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    The personality of an individual is perceived as the characteristics that shape and distinguishes one person from another, at least from a general perspective. For instance, John may be described as quiet and decisive in the way he handles different situations. On another hand, we would have Peter who is very irrational. These two distinctive characters would describe the personalities of those two individuals. However, psychologists are more particular and define personality as a dynamic with the inclusion of an organized set of characteristics possessed by an individual that distinctively or uniquely influences his or her motivations,…

    • 1213 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Coon, D., & Mitterer, J. O. (2013). Introduction to psychology: Gateways to mind and behavior (13th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning…

    • 1107 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Most of us know of Johnny Cash as the “Man in Black”. However, do we truly know who he is? Some could say he was a great performer, oblivious of how his music has had a tremendous impact in their lives. Johnny Cash was an exceptionally influential person in American history. His “Man in Black” image helped solidify not only his place as a music writer and performer, but also his ability to overcome the depths of drug addiction.…

    • 1943 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Personality is difficult to describe, but nearly impossible to define in a universally acceptable way. Throughout history many definitions of personality have been proposed but none universally accepted. This is because of the reality that each individual’s definition comes with a unique spin placed upon it by that individual’s life experience, surroundings, and personal viewpoint. Personality can be described as the regular presentation of certain traits and attributes that lend cohesion and uniqueness to behavior and thought (Feist & Feist, 2009). Although there is not a single, universally accepted definition of personality,…

    • 1041 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory is based upon the fact that as the basic needs of people are met, the person’s goal is to reach higher needs. As Chris became homeless his central motivation was to provide food, shelter, and economic stability for his son and himself. After being evicted his experience with finding shelter lead to he and his son sleeping in a public restroom and his struggle to maintain the appearance of being normal as he arrived at his unpaid job at the stock market each day. Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs theory is based upon the act that as the basic needs of people are met, the person’s goal becomes to reach and meet higher needs (Maslow, 2012).…

    • 1043 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Personality is an individual’s unique and relatively consistent patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving. Learning about personality helps us to understand how and why people act the way they do. There are four perspectives of personality: psychoanalytic perspective, humanistic perspective, social cognitive perspective and trait perspective. The psychoanalytic emphasizes the importance of unconscious mental processes and the influence of early childhood experience. The humanistic perspective represents an optimistic look at human nature, emphasizing the self and the fulfillment of the person’s unique potential. The social cognitive perspective…

    • 939 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Best Essays

    personalitytheoryoutline

    • 2193 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Personality theory is a grand subject centered between six foundational tenets. Each tenet will be discussed in detail and be accompanied by factual, scholarly evidence. Each tenet is different from the other but also entwined in the whole of the personality. The tenets each have their own relation to the individual personality; however, they are also relational to one another and work together to make up the whole personality. In order to be psychologically healthy, certain progress needs met under each foundational tenet.…

    • 2193 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    PSY 211 Personality Paper

    • 813 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Why are some people shy and others are outgoing? Why are some people kind and gentle, while others are hostile and aggressive? The answer to these questions can be found in three of the theories that describe personality. These theories are; psychoanalytic, humanistic, and social cognitive. Founded by Sigmund Freud, psychoanalysis is a theory that “stresses the influence of unconscious mental processes, the importance of sexual and aggressive instincts, and the enduring effects of early childhood experience on personality.” (Hockenbury 2014) This theory states that a person’s behavior and attitude are a result of past experiences, unconscious thoughts, buried memories, as well as a desire for pleasure. The second theory, based upon the potential that all humans have, is called the humanistic perspective. Rather than focusing on negative personality aspects, humanists think of all people as good and completely self-aware. An important concept to be aware of within this area of self-awareness is passed on to children from their parents. This concept is known as conditional positive regard. Hockenbury (2014) describes this as, “the sense that the child is valued and loved only when she behaves in a way that is acceptable to others.” While it is important to feel loved and valued, placing limitations on those feelings can be detrimental to a child, as they may end up in denial and never learn how to express their true feelings. The third theory is the social cognitive perspective. This perspective focuses on how conscious thought affects the beliefs and goals that a person has. Hockenbury (2014) paraphrases a leading theorist, Albert Bandura by saying, “collectively a person’s cognitive skills, abilities and attitudes represent the person’s self-system… it is out self-esteem that guides how we perceive, evaluate, and control our behavior in different situations.” What gives this perspective more credibility is that there is a way to measure its’…

    • 813 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Our personality is our characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling and acting (Psychology David G Myers), it’s the combination of traits that ‘outlines the doctrine of uniqueness’ (Gifts Differing – Understanding Personality Types) that sets us apart from everyone else. Psychologists vary between themselves concerning the meaning of personality. Most would agree that it originated from the Latin word persona’ – meaning a theoretical mask – but they differ on how an individual obtains this ‘unique mask’ (i.e. how they develop their personality) and thus this brings the divers theories of personality. This essay will compare and contrast two popular theories: one being the: Psychoanalytic theory, and the other a Humanistic approach.…

    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Personality is the set of emotional qualities and ways of behaving that makes a person different from other people, (Merriam-Webster, 2014). My personality is something that I have had since birth. It defines who I am and how others view me. Some people have outgoing personalities while others prefer to stay home or in other quiet places. I have always been a person that enjoys seclusion. After taking the Jung Typology Test, I now understand my personality. This test has helped me to define my strengths as well as my weaknesses which will help me in my academic career.…

    • 547 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Obasan Character Analysis

    • 1540 Words
    • 7 Pages

    According to Google, personality is defined as “the combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual’s distinctive character”. Personalities stem from a person’s distinctive preferences, which helps them to develop their identity, which typically differs from the stereotypes that society has assigned to them. According to Barry McGuiness, personality can also be defined as “the human nature we all share [that] manifest in different styles of thinking, feeling, and acting” (McGuinness). Each person on Earth carries a unique personality, which allows them to view the world in different forms. Personalities are driven by how each person interacts with the environment as well as the people in the environment. In his article titled What Is Personality?” McGuinness also states that “somewhere between these two-our common humanity and our unique individuality-lies personality” (McGuinness). This statement emphasizes that the personalities of individuals stem from how they interact with their environment as well as the people in their environment. The personalities each individual carries are unique and often times differ from the stereotypes, or labels that society has created for…

    • 1540 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    A very useful model to assess a person personality and behavior pattern is through the use of the big five test. This test allows an administrator to get an accurate and quick assessment of the patients personality. The big five model is a widely used, modern, validated and replicated methodology for evaluating, understanding, and measuring one’s personality (McAdams, 1992). This test is highly associated with those suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder. And through this test those suffering from OCD will reveal their openness, agreeableness, neuroticism, conscientiousness, and extraversion personality traits. The test consist of 50 statements that come from the international personality item pool along with 15 extra proprietary questions. It should take about six to 10 minutes and you will classify on each scale rating things from very inaccurate to very accurate.…

    • 2008 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Personality Theory Paper

    • 1353 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Cherry (2010), “Erik Erickson’s theory of Psychosocial Development is one of the best-known theories of personality in psychology (Psychosocial Development in Infancy and Early Childhood, para 2). Farzaneh (2008), “Erickson’s Psychosocial Theory focuses on how society shapes and influences a person’s growing sense of ego and the quest for identity. Society is seen as a positive force that fosters the growth and development of the self. Each stage pointed out by Erickson represents a crisis in form of gradually increasing conflicts (The Different Conflicts and Stages of Life, para 8). Each stage represent a time where problems have to be resolved so one may continue to mature. If the crisis’s are dealt with in a satisfactory way their ego can move on to the next stage with competence and self-confidence. If the ego doesn’t develop in a healthy way it can lead to mental illnesses and maladjustments. Psychosocial theory focuses on human development through one’s lifespan from birth to death. This paper will explain how the Psychosocial Development Theory influences my understanding of the personalities and behaviors of people in society and the workplace, as well as, how it influences my role in society and workplace along with my interactions with others.…

    • 1353 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Over the many years, theorists have tried to find the answers on a number of personality questions: What makes a personality so unique to the individual? What are the origins of a personality? Is personality a psychoanalytical phenomenon, a biological process or perhaps slow learning processes developed over the course of your life? These people have developed their own perspectives on personality which each try to describe a person. There are currently…

    • 2224 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    A “Personality”, to me, is the outcome of the behavioral features controlling a person’s mental and physical abilities. Thus, the attributes of a personality are its abilities and its behaviors and attitudes.…

    • 293 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays