...Introduction to Personality Paper Personality separates individuals in a form far more exclusive than any other form. People may share similar skin, hair, eye color, height and weight, ethnicity, and religious beliefs but no two people possess the same personality traits. Personality, stated by Feist & Feist (2009), has no single definition but is a pattern of permanent traits and unique characteristics offering individuality, and consistency to an individual’s behavior. This research paper explores personality theory, and addresses the definition of personality, examines theoretical approaches, and analyzes factors that may influence an individual’s personality development. Definition of Personality Feist & Feist (2009), explain that personality stems from the Latin word persona, which references a theatrical mask Roman actors in Greek dramas wore. These masks or personas were wore as a projection of a role or replicate a different character. The definition of personality today is quite different than that of Roman and Greek times and is mostly based on observable behavior described by characteristics, and traits. Traits equate from an individual’s behavioral consistencies, and characteristics demonstrate one’s unique attributes such as physical aspects, intellect, temperament, and wit. Traits also offer exclusive characteristics, which provide a person individuality, and stability to his or her behavior. According to Feist & Feist (2009, p. 4), personality is best defined...
Words: 1027 - Pages: 5
...Foundations of Human Development in the Social Environment Introduction Human development is based on biological development, psychological development, and social development, these three aspects of human development interact with each other, because it helps to create an individual’s identity and personality. Our development defines who we are, our interactions and how we view the environment around us. To understand bio-psycho-social dimensions of human development, having culture competency, and comprehending the general systems theory and how these theory systems works are crucial parts of being an effective human service professional Bio-Psycho-Social Dimensions of Human Development Various aspects of human development are combined together to make-up an individual’s growth and development. Human development contains three dimensions which are, biological development, psychological development, . Each theory differs in terms of the weight or importance it assigns to these biological, psychological, or social factors. Nonetheless, they each acknowledge there is an important inter-relationship between nature biology and temperament and nurture the social environment and life experience in the formation of personality experiences in the formation of personality. These aspects of human development or behavior can be developed by an individual’s culture, family, and community. During an individual’s life span, the foundation of human development begins to change, which...
Words: 1082 - Pages: 5
...Foundations of Human Development in the Social Environment Introduction Exploring the dynamics of human behavior prepares a foundation of knowledge that builds practice skills. The primary step in helping a client is assessing, which includes investigating and determining the changes that affects a recognized problem or issue from a wide range of perceptions. There are always reasons why people act in the manner they do and it is the human service professional’s job to verify that reason. A normal development milestone has serious impacts on the client and social workers must understand these milestones to provide information to the clients. Appropriate assessments of client behavior are relevant to the biological, psychological, and social development systems that operate together and affect behavior. Bio-Psycho-Social Dimensions of Development With the realization that people are complex, workers have a primary focus on the vibrant interactions between biological, psychological, and social aspects of development. These interactions ultimately affect the client’s overall health. For example, a medical illness such as anxiety can provide insight on the dimensions of development. According to Zastrow and Kirst-Ashman (2010), if a person is diagnosed with anxiety their psychological state of mind is already affected and the illness is a present problem. The anxiety will cause the person to isolate themselves from others and affect the sociological dimension. Mood...
Words: 934 - Pages: 4
...of apparent behavior that can be the label of certain physiognomies and traits of an individual. The physiognomies give the understanding of an individual, to include intelligence, physical ability, and attitude. According to Theories of Personality, personality involves, “…a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to a person’s behavior” (Feist & Feist, 2006, p. 4). Understanding personality is imminent in this course and this week’s reading to get the complete understanding of personality. This is essential in examining the theoretical approaches in studying of personality. Theoretical Approaches Quantifiable Human Nature. In psychology the research of personality is built on the theory of simple human...
Words: 1209 - Pages: 5
...Dispositional, Biological and Evolutionary Theory Augustine Conteh Bridget Seeley PSY 405 Date: 10/20/2014 Introduction There are many theories which are used to explain personality. Dispositional theories explain the relationship between personality and attributes. The most well known dispositional theories are factor, tract and Allport’s Psychology of individual theory (Paul, 2009). This chapter will discuss the differences between dispositional and evolutionary or biological personality theories, the strengths or both and how the Big Five personality test is used in the study of personality. The differences between dispositional and biological theories The assumptions of dispositional theories vary from those of other theorists because they provide the basis of study for personality. On the other hand, biological or evolutionary theories believe that personality development is mainly governed by biological maturation in an individual. Environmental factors which may also influence an individual personality are viewed as part of evolutionary theories (Peterson, 2013). Biological oriented personality theories argue that specific environmental factors are not necessary for a species development but the factors are viewed as a provider of opportunities for biological development. Environmental factors in biological theories are required for an individual personality functional and adaptive development. Dispositional theories bring together several thoughts...
Words: 1134 - Pages: 5
...HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY Health psychology is defined as the application of psychology to the relevant areas of health, disease and the health care system. Medicine and health psychology have many common themes and interests but they differ in their approaches. The primary focus of medicine is the diagnosis, treatment and cure of illness. The focus of health psychology goes beyond that of medicine to stress the prevention and enhancement of health. It expands the biological framework of medicine to also include psychological and social factors. The scope of health psychology is very broad because many theories and methods of psychology can be applied to health-related issues. Maes & van Elderen (1998) (cited in Gross, 2009) defines health psychology as “…a sub-discipline of psychology which addresses the relationship between psychological processes and behaviour on the one hand and health and illness on the other...”. Health psychology aims to understand, explain, develop and test theories by evaluating the role of psychology and its perspectives as factors affecting illness, predicting unhealthy behaviours and understanding and evaluating the role of psychology in the experience and treatment of illness. It also aims to put theory into practice by promoting healthy behaviour, preventing illness and thereby improving the health care system and health policy. For example, from programmes developed to help people reduce risk factors to their health, such as obesity and...
Words: 4240 - Pages: 17
...Overview of Abnormal Psychology The science of abnormal psychology or known as psychopathology tends to be a controversial science. Within this science, there is no simple or direct answer, nor any precise definitions. As with the origin and still today, identifying normal from abnormal behavior is still challenging. However, to understand this science of mystery, one should look into the origin of abnormal psychology; including the challenges in defining what is abnormal psychology and categorizing normal and abnormal behavior, how abnormal psychology evolved, and analyze the psychosocial, biological, and socio-cultural theoretical models related to the development of abnormal psychology to come to a better understanding of abnormal psychology as a discipline. Origin of Abnormal Psychology Abnormal psychology has been a continuous debate throughout history. Psychologists have development many theories trying to explain psychological instability. Generally, history has place abnormal psychology (psychopathology) into three diverse explanations (Barlow & Durand, 2004).The mystical view regards abnormal behavior as a direct result of supernatural possession. Between 1800 B.C. and 1700 B.C, the Hammurabi’s, in the Mesopotamian region, viewed abnormal behavior as the self-possession of gods, ghosts, and spirits, which caused disease in a person’s body or mind (Hornstein, n.d.).This belief fell back to the prehistoric times where the Paleolithic people had no distinction between...
Words: 1127 - Pages: 5
...Can Animals be used Animal Testing? Name: Institution: CAN ANIMALS BE USED IN ANIMAL TESTING? Thesis statement: This paper discusses research on how animal testing brings more medical advancement and less human-based experiments and sees if there are any alternatives to the use of animals in research since it is a practice of animal cruelty. Introduction Animal Testing refers to strategies done on living creatures for reasons of exploration into fundamental science and ailments, surveying the adequacy of new drugs, and examining the human health. The processes involved in this testing, even those that are seen to have no significant effect, still cause the animals bodily as well as mental pain and suffering. Often these processes cause a great deal of distress. Some animals are re-used in the succeeding experiments while others are killed at the end of the experiment. Approximately 115 million animals are estimated to be used every year in the world for laboratory experiments (Dawkins, 2012). However, only a few countries assemble and publish the data about the use of animal in testing and research. For instance, about 90 percent of the animals are used in laboratories in the United States. This statistics excludes species, for example, mice and birds, fish, reptiles and invertebrates, thus these figures presented by the U.S, Department of Agriculture is considerably underestimated. Countries in Europe such as France, United Kingdom, and Germany are among those using animals...
Words: 1523 - Pages: 7
...definition of personality entails, “…a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to a person’s behavior” (Feist & Feist, 2006, p. 4). The full breadth and scope of the psychological understanding of personality is forthcoming in the course of an examination of the theoretical approaches to the study of personality and an assessment of the factors that influence the development of individual traits and characteristics. Theoretical Approaches to the Study of Personality Quantifiable Human Nature The study of personality in the field of psychology is largely predicated on the assumption of a basic human nature, which finds its articulation through the perspectives, viewpoints, and world-views of individual researchers. The entirety of the subject-matter on human nature in the area of psychology falls within six dualistic dimensions: 1) determinism versus free choice; 2) pessimism versus optimism; 3) causality versus teleology; 4) conscious versus unconscious determinants of behavior; 5) biological versus social influences; 6) uniqueness versus similarities. Free choice entails the belief...
Words: 1249 - Pages: 5
...Compare and contrast the four main models of health in the Sociology of Health literature, and explain how each of them has influenced our understanding of the concept of health and well-being. Health is a term that is commonly debated and the definition varies from one profession to another and is a controversial term. The World Health Organisation describes health as: “A state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (WHO, 1948) This definition was formulated in 1948 and at the time was a breakthrough in the health care sector and was finally seen as a positive definition of health, rather than negative. Most definition concentrated on disease and illness. There are some criticisms that state that the model describes health as a ‘state’ rather than a process and does not put any certain boundaries on what is considered “health”. In healthcare, models are used to diagnose and explain an individual’s health. There are four main models that dominate the health care profession which are the biomedical model, social model, biopsychosocial model and the holistic model. In this essay I will discuss all four models by looking at their advantages and limitations in health care. The biomedical model is a dominant model of disease in contemporary medicine and was devised by medical scientists for the study of disease. It was created as a scientific model therefor involved a set of scientific assumptions and rules. Biomedicine...
Words: 2054 - Pages: 9
...Human Development in the Social Environment Roshunda Butler BSHS/325 July 28, 2014 Sandra Mathews Foundations of Human Development in the Social Environment Studying the undercurrents of human behavior prepares a foundation of knowledge that builds practice skills. The crucial step in helping a client is assessing, which includes determining and investigating the changes that affects a recognized problem or issue from a wide range of opinions. There are several reasons why people react and act in the manner they do and it is the human service professional’s job to verify that reason. An ordinary development milestone has serious impacts on clients and the social workers must understand these milestones to provide information to the clients. Proper assessments of client behavior are relevant to the biological, psychological, and social development systems that operate together and affect behavior. Biological, Psychological, and Social aspects of development The fundamentals of human development in the social environment must concentrate on the dynamic interactions between biological, psychological, and social aspects of development. The understanding of human development requires the comprehension of the various ranges of issues, people are facing as they continue progressing in life. For instance, a medical illness such as anxiety can provide insight on the dimensions of development. According to Zastrow and Kirst-Ashman (2010), if a person is diagnosed with...
Words: 947 - Pages: 4
...Biological and Humanistic Approaches to Personality Sophia Williams-Ivey PSY/250 December 21, 2015 Anne Snyder Biological and Humanistic Approaches to Personality Throughout the movement of human psychology over the years, going back to the early 20th century we learned about the dominant theories then, such as psychoanalysis of Sigmund Freud, which suggest that sexual urges and aggression drive human beings. Secondly, the behaviorism that was done by J. Watson and B. F. Skinner, this study put human beings as programmed lab rats that only do or behave how they are told. There were a lot of controversy regarding these theories as the people argue that these were not credible because these theories portray human beings as faulty machines. . (Friedman & Schustak, 2011, para. Chapter 5, 9). The theories of psychoanalysis and behaviorism, over the years, had dehumanized our understanding of ourselves and what it means to be human. However here arose Abraham Maslow with a new outlook on human psychology called humanistic psychology. Maslow knew that there was more to the human mind and developed a drive to discover positive mental health and happiness, and not just mental illness and misery. So to enhance his theory he placed his main focus on what people can do as opposed to their limitations. His hierarchy of needs has played a major stand in human behavior and achievements. (Nettle, 2008). Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs The hierarchy of need was developed by Maslow...
Words: 1108 - Pages: 5
...having a multitude of causations and contributing factors. No single specific component or model can accurately predict a person’s substance use behavior (Clinton & Scalise, 2013). Substance use disorders are a reflection of the impact of person-specific biological, psychological, and social influences. Understanding an individual’s spiritual beliefs and the role spirituality plays in a person’s susceptibility to addiction is also necessary. If a spirituality component is absent in a person's life, addiction could fill that void (Doweiko, 2015). Substance abusers can use chemicals to cope with psychological anguish, social pressure, be biologically susceptible or to create an illusion of purpose. Biology The biological model consists of the physical, fundamental, and atomic mechanisms. These elements affect the natural functioning of the individual. Substance use disorders are believed to be the result of a physiological abnormality (Doweiko, 2015). Normal biological processes are altered within the body such as the reward system. Typically the reward system is designed to help people. However, numerous substances inundate the natural neurotransmitter system giving false signals to the brain’s reward system (Doweiko, 2015). Unfortunately, a natural process that evolved to assist in human existence has been disrupted by the reward potential of synthetic compounds. Genetic, biological differences render individuals either more or less susceptible to substance abuse. While it...
Words: 988 - Pages: 4
...Psychological perspective is a view or an approach to studying human behaviour. Smoking today kills around 4 million people every year; it is the main cause of lung cancer and disease in humans. To understand smoking behaviour we can look at the main psychological perspectives to better understand the reasons behind smoking, and maybe come up with effective solutions to reduce this behaviour and promote healthier lifestyles. Biological Perspective Charles Darwin (1859) first demonstrated the idea that genetics and evolution played a major role in affecting human behaviour through natural selection. Biological Psychologists also agree with this theory that all human behaviour has been evolved over millions of years to adapt behaviour to the environment that we live in. Biological Psychologists also believe that because the mind resides in the brain, that factors such as chromosomes and hormones have a significant influence on our behaviour for example, gender personality development. Using the biological approach there is scientific evidence to say that smoking behaviour is linked to effect that nicotine has on the brain. There are over 300 chemicals in cigarettes but nicotine is the one that is linked with addiction. Nicotine causes a physical addiction and can increase levels of dopamine (the hormone found in the reward part of the brain). For example a study done by (Jain & Mukhergee, 2003 the biological basis of nicotine addiction) says that when a tobacco is smoked...
Words: 1223 - Pages: 5
...Personality is defined as, “…a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to a person’s behavior” (Feist & Feist, 2006, p. 4). Analyzing Personality Much of my own understanding of personality comes from what I was told as I was raised, that it is what makes one person different from the next, good or bad. However, I also accept that there are other sources, more defined than my own. The understanding of personality comes from the collected views of many theorists; all of which have cleverly divided personality into six: pessimism versus optimism; uniqueness versus similarities; determinism versus free choice; conscious versus unconscious determinants of behavior; biological versus social influences; causality versus teleology. Free choice entails the belief that behavior is ruled by forces that are within the capabilities of...
Words: 1008 - Pages: 5
