5-7 page essay

Personality Journal

Assignment #1

Edited Journal Entries

Over the past month, I have kept a record of my reactions to challenging or stressful situations. Profoundly, these stressful situations are relatable to theories of personality. To lay a concrete foundation for this discussion, it is fundamentally important to understand that stress involves both emotional and physiological responses to circumstances. In this line of argument, most of the life experiences will emphasize environmental, cognitions, ecological elements or a combination of any of these factors. Social learning theories examine the personality of individuals in various areas of society. Relating the social learning theories to my own experience, in high school, my math teacher often praised my efforts and performance. Initially, I never thought I was good in math, but after the teacher constantly reminded me by applauding my grades and effort, I somehow developed the interest in math to the extent I was the best performing student in our class. Social theories force people to revert to what other people or society perceives or labels them.

According to Harry Stack Sullivan interpersonal theory, people develop trait based on the current social context (Cervone, & Pervin, 2015). Last weekend my mother and I visited my uncle who was admitted to the hospital. Primarily, I felt as if I lacked sensitivity or the ability to empathize with sick people in hospitals. However, the little time we spent in the hospital made me realize that interpersonal traits can be influenced by social context. Given the context of the situation, I developed empathy toward patients who seemed hopeless and in pain. During my first year in college, it was a bit stressful since I was perplexed by the transition. However, in the idea of the interpersonal theory of being confident and genuine, I reached out to for help from a friend who had been admitted a year earlier.

Fromm theory of personality is founded on the idea that people develop personality traits to deal with the feeling of anxiety. Examining this theory from our personality, over the past month I realized that we portray certain traits not necessary because it’s who we are but precisely because we want to accomplish or avoid something. Toward the end of the semester students, assumes different traits out of fear to fail exams. As a result, they study extremely harder and resume to their normal life immediately after completing exams. Collectively different personality theories precisely apply to one’s life.

Assignment #2

Journal Essay

As one of my personality, I think when I am alone. Literally, I tend to focus on very tiny details about my friends, family, and emerging issues in all spheres. Secondly, I consider myself an extrovert. I am an outgoing person who enjoys participating in a social gathering or just being around people. These two personality traits can be evaluated using different theories. According to Freud's theory personality that depends on the interplay of instinct and environment. For example, caregivers play a significant role during childhood development. I am the last born in a family of five. I, therefore, grew up in a socially aggressive environment which may explain my extrovert nature.

Psychotic Psyche approach can also infer my personality traits of curiosity or concern for others. In this connection, the ego acts as decisions making component of personality. For example, concerning the principle of the psyche, I always perceive myself as in charge and therefore the responsibility of bettering other people’s life rest on my shoulders. Lastly, my personality trait of being social can be inferred by Eysenck’s personality theory. According to this theory, an individual can inherit a type of nervous system that affects their adaptation to their environment (Feist, & Feist, 2009). For instance, some individuals portray behaviors that are strongly linked to their parents’. The three perspectives either directly or indirectly infer about one’s behavior or traits, but in the context of personality development and influences, Freud theory seems the most accurate to me since a grownup person's behaviors or traits can be traced back to when they were five years old.

References

Cervone, D., & Pervin, L. A. (2015). Personality, binder-ready version: theory and research. John Wiley & Sons.

Feist, J., & Feist, G. J. (2009). Theories of personality.