57.230.01, Spring, 1996
Theories of Personality

Brian T. Yates, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology
323 Asbury Building
The American University
Washington, DC 20016-8062

Voice: 202-885-1727 (& 24-hour voice mail), 301-942-8594 (home & fax: no papers!).

E-mail: BrianYates@aol.com (there's no space between "Brian" and "Yates" in this address).

Office Hours:
appointments: (arrange with me at lecture or call)
Asbury 323 (then first door on left).

Teaching Assistant:
Kelly Bickel, 2nd-Year Clinical Ph.D. student.
Office hours: 1:00 to 2:00 pm on Tuesdays in Asbury 136 & TBA.
Messages: 202-885-1710.
e-mail: KB4149a@American.edu.

Lecture/Discussions:
Tuesdays and Fridays, 11:20 am - 12:35 pm, Beeghly Hall 1.

Required Materials:
Text: Schultz, D. (1990). Theories of personality (5th edition). Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole, ISBN 0-534-16650-4
Readings: Frick, W. B. (Ed.) (1995). Personality: Selected readings in theory. Itasca, IL: F. E. Peacock. ISBN 0-87581-383-6
Lecture Notes. In the Campus Store. (For Windows 3+ users, also available on disk. I can copy these to your blank high density 3.5-inch disk. You can use the self-displaying program, included, to view, print, and edit notes.)

General Education Credit

This course can be your second-level General Education course in Area II (Traditions that Shape the Western World), if you have taken either:
29.100 Historians and the Living Past or 53.105 Individual Freedom vs. Authority.

Several other courses also can meet this requirement.

Psychology Major Credit

If you are a Psychology major, this course counts as one of the two courses required for the The Individual, the Situation, and Psychological Health area (the old "Social Science" area, for majors declared before Fall 1991).

Prerequisites

If you're taking this course as a second-level General Education course, you must have already taken either 29.100 Historians and the Living Past or 53.105 Individual Freedom vs. Authority.

If you are a psychology major, or if you're taking this course to fulfill a requirement for another major or for your own education, you should have taken either:

Course Purpose

In this course you will learn four different ways to understand, describe, and possibly improve your and others' personalities from the perspective of psychology with insights provided by other disciplines (primarily philosophy and history). We explore, in succession, the Trait, Dynamic, Learning, and Holistic families of personality theories and apply concepts garnered from each to understanding one negative and one positive aspect of our own personalities.

Be ready to enhance and incorporate your understanding of philosophy, social events, and history into the understanding of these theories: this course is an integration of these with psychological theories of personality. Through the vehicle of the Self Paper you'll see how major approaches to self-understanding that were developed by European and American philosophers and psychologists can illuminate radically different explanations of and prescriptions for your personality. Via theory synopses provided in the text, augmented by our lecture/discussions, we also explore how these four alternative perspectives on personality were shaped by:

(a) wars (e.g., World Wars I and II),
(b) social movements and discrimination (e.g., feminism in the 20's and 70's, anti-Semitism between the World Wars, the "Age of Aquarius" in the 60's),
(c) familial, financial, and educational circumstances of individual theorists, and
(d) interactions between historical events, social movements, and personal incidents in the theorists' lives.

We begin each family of theories by introducing the basic concepts that guide theories within the family, noting the philosophical theories that presaged the psychological ones. Theories illustrating these original concepts are described, along with newer theories. Brief biographies of the theorists are presented, along with an analysis of how events in the theorists' lives may have shaped their theories. You also read selections from the original writings of several theorists.

Applications of the theories to the assessment and improvement of personality are illustrated. We then discuss a set of personality phenomena about which the family of theories has something particularly interesting to say. An exam follows completion of each theory family. At the end of the course, you hand in a Self Paper that applies the concepts of Trait, Dynamic, Learning, and Holistic theories to understanding one positive and one negative aspect of your own personality.

You are responsible for all material presented in each lecture, including substantive material and revisions of this syllabus, e.g., changes in due dates and dates of examinations.

(Note: In the Readings column of the following schedule, "Ch. __" refers to chapters in the Schultz text. "R's XXX-YYY" indicate the pages to be read in the readings in the Frick collection.)

Date Day Reading Lecture Topic
ORIENTATION TO THEORIES OF PERSONALITY
16 Jan Tu n/a Introduction to personality theories, course structure.
THE TRAIT THEORIES
19 Jan F Syllabus, Ch. 1 (pp. 3-10, 27-32) Trait theories: Philosophy, history, and the influence of Hippocrates on early trait theories. Racism, sexism in trait approaches.
23 Jan Tu Ch. 9, R's 256-266 Contemporary trait theories: the approaches of Cattell vs. Allport.
26 Jan F Ch. 8 Applications of trait theories: Personality assessment.
30 Jan Tu Ch. 1 (pp. 11-26), Ch. 17 (pp. 440-446). write Paper. A critical look at Trait approaches to assessing personality. Trait treatments for personality disorders.
2 Feb F (review) Trait Examination.
THE DYNAMIC THEORIES
6 Feb Tu Ch. 2 Dynamic theories: Philosophy, history, Socrates, Freud I.
9 Feb F R's 5-15 Freud II, Jungian theory.
13 Feb Tu Ch. 3, R's 68-72 Society and the Individual from the Dynamic perspectives of a woman: Karen Horney.
16 Feb F Ch. 5 R's 117-139 Society and the Individual from the Dynamic perspectives of a woman: Fromm
20 Feb Tu Ch. 6 Using dynamic theories for assessment and therapy.
23 Feb F R's 16-27 write Paper Personality phenomena: Defense mechanisms as explanations of why we rarely do as we wish.
27 Feb Tu (review) Dynamic examination.
THE LEARNING THEORIES
1 Mar F Ch. 14 Learning theories: Philosophy, history, and the influence of Hobbes, Pavlov, and Watson.
5 Mar Tu Ch. 16, R's156-165 Radical behaviorism: B. F. Skinner's theory.
8 Mar F Ch. 15, R's 200-208 Contemporary learning theories: Bandura, Mischel.
12 Mar Tu n/a Spring Break!
15 Mar F n/a still Spring Break!
19 Mar Tu Ch. 17 (pp. 446-455) Applications of learning theories to personality assessment and therapy.
22 Mar F R's 218-229 write Paper Personality phenomena: Can we learn self-control? How does Learning theory explain control by self?
26 Mar Tu (review) Learning examination.
THE HOLISTIC THEORIES
29 Mar F Self-Paper outline in syllabus. Self-Paper Workshop and Q&A. Please attend this in-depth and example-laden description of how to write your Self-Paper! Questions entertained throughout.
2 Apr Tu Ch. 13 Holistic theories: Philosophy, history, and the influence of Rousseau, Lewin, and Kelly.
5 Apr F Ch. 11 Contemporary holistic theory: Maslow's basic theory and the potential for self-actualization.
9 Apr Tu write Paper Self-Paper Workshop. Bring a draft of our paper and I'll meet with you briefly to go over it (after answering general questions).
12 Apr F R's 267-314 Wrap up Maslow. Rogers theory of the Self.
16 Apr Tu Ch. 12 Applications of holistic theories to assessment and therapy.
19 Apr F review past assignments Personality phenomena: Constructs, biases, and discrimination.
23 Apr Tu (review) Holistic examination.
25 Apr Th - Turn in Self-paper by 1:30 pm in Asbury 321 in Yates' box for 3 extra big ones.
26 Apr F (write) Self-Paper Due. The Great Debate (with prizes!). Hand in the paper in class, at the start of class. Don't trust it to get to me in my box or under my door!
30 Apr Tu (n/a) Study Day #1 (no classes)
7 May Tu (n/a) Course Closure Meeting. Holistic exam returned, Self-Paper returned, course grade available, in our regular classroom (11:20 am-12:35 pm only). This is the only time to pick up your paper, see your exam, and learn your course grade, so mark it on your calendar now! (It's when our Final Exam is scheduled.) Please come at the start of class: I will leave before 12:35 if all students present have received their papers, scores, and grades. If you cannot attend, please do not call asking for your paper or grade.

Examinations

Each exam has three parts: Multiple Choice, Short Essays, and a Long Essay. You should answer all of the 10 Multiple Choice questions. You'll be able to choose 3 out of 6 or more Short Essay questions, and 1 out of 2 or more Long Essay questions. Each of the Multiple Choice questions is 0 or 2 points, each of the Short Essays is 0 to 10 points, and the Long Essay is 0 to 50 points, for a total of 100 possible points on each exam. Exam questions are drawn from lectures and readings.

(Count the number of Short Essay questions you answer carefully: if you answer only 2, you can't get credit for the unanswered third question! Also, only the first three Short Answer questions will be graded.)

Extra Credit for Research Participation

In recognition of the educational experience often gained from participating as a subject in psychological research, I will add up to 3 points to your lowest exam score if you participate in 3 hours of research. To get credit for research participation, give me your Yellow Card by the last day of classes (Monday 29 April). Visit the Department of Psychology (321 Asbury) to obtain a Yellow Card. You can choose from a variety of research opportunities posted on the bulletin board down the hall from 321 Asbury. Researchers will indicate on your card how much time their study took, and will initial your card. (At the end of the semester they provide me with lists of who participated in their studies.)

Self-Papers

The Self Papers can be exciting vehicles for self-exploration. Their grammar, spelling, neatness, and style, are important--as is their content! Self Papers must be typed, or printed by a computer; handwritten manuscripts will be scored zero. Finally, papers also must be turned in on the day they are due at the start of class or they will be scored zero. There is absolutely no acceptable reason for turning in a paper late. I suggest that you try to turn in the paper early. If you turn it in by 1:30 the day before it's due, in my box, I will add 3 points to your paper score. (For confidentiality, please seal your paper in an envelope before placing it in my box and mark it "CONFIDENTIAL.")

As a safeguard, please retain a copy of your Self Paper.

For the Self Paper use the following outline. Type in these headings to make the structure of your paper explicit. Please double-space, and make sure that the typing or printing is not too light to read. Although the most important thing is to do what the outline asks, keep in mind that between 1.5 and 2 pages often are needed for each section denoted by a capital letter.

Do not review theories or principles in the paper. Apply them as indicated. Use terminology appropriate to the theoretical approach.

Self Paper Outline

  1. Introduction.
    1. Define and give examples of a current negative aspect of your personality. (5 points; these examples should be from your current, everyday life)
    2. Define and give examples of a current positive aspect of your personality. (5 points; these examples should be from your current, everyday life)
  2. For the negative aspect of your personality, explain how each of the four families of theories would answer the following questions.
    1. Trait approach (10 points):
      1. What caused the aspect to develop in the first place?
      2. What maintains the aspect in its present form?
      3. How might this negative aspect be mitigated or eliminated?
    2. Dynamic approach (10 points):
      1. What caused the aspect to develop in the first place?
      2. What maintains the aspect in its present form?
      3. How might this negative aspect be mitigated or eliminated?
    3. Learning approach (10 points):
      1. What caused the aspect to develop in the first place?
      2. What maintains the aspect in its present form?
      3. How might this negative aspect be mitigated or eliminated?
    4. Holistic approach (10 points):
      1. What caused the aspect to develop in the first place?
      2. What maintains the aspect in its present form?
      3. How might this negative aspect be mitigated or eliminated?
  3. For the positive aspect of your personality, explain how each family of theories would answer the following questions.
    1. Trait approach (10 points):
      1. What caused the aspect to develop in the first place?
      2. How might this positive aspect deteriorate in the future?
      3. How could you best prevent this possible deterioration?
    2. Dynamic approach (10 points):
      1. What caused the aspect to develop in the first place?
      2. How might this positive aspect deteriorate in the future?
      3. How could you best prevent this possible deterioration?
    3. Learning approach (10 points):
      1. What caused the aspect to develop in the first place?
      2. How might this positive aspect deteriorate in the future?
      3. How could you best prevent this possible deterioration?
    4. Holistic approach (10 points):
      1. What caused the aspect to develop in the first place?
      2. How might this positive aspect deteriorate in the future?
      3. How could you best prevent this possible deterioration?
  4. Summarize your personal reactions to the interpretations and prescriptions offered by this family of theories for:
    1. Your negative aspect. (5 points)
    2. Your positive aspect. (5 points)

Plagiarism

What an unpleasant topic! Unfortunately, in the past a very few of my students have needed the following made explicit, so I must burden you with it as well.

Papers must be completely original: they must be your own writing, done for the first time for this course. All material drawn from other sources, whether a direct quote or a close paraphrasing (a "putting in your own words") must be placed within quotation marks and must be followed immediately by a reference citation (a footnote or APA-style citation with a References section at the end of your paper). To do otherwise is plagiarism, which is a violation of the Academic Integrity Code of The American University.

All suspected plagiarism, including paraphrasing without quotation marks and without reference citation, will be reported to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences with a recommendation for disciplinary action. This is a University regulation.

Academic Integrity

Standards of academic conduct are set forth in the University's Academic Integrity Code, which can be found in the University Catalog. By registering for classes at A.U., you are acknowledging your awareness of the Code and obligating yourself to become familiar with your rights and responsibilities as defined by the Code. Violations of the Code will not be treated lightly, and disciplinary actions will be taken should such violations occur. Please see me if you have any questions about the academic violations described in the Code in general, or as they relate to the requirements of this course in particular.

Grading

Your course grade score is the simple average of five numbers: the 4 examination scores and the Self Paper. Grades are A (92-100), A- (90 to 91.9), B+ (88 to 89.9), B (82 to 87.9), B- (80-81.9), C+ (78 to 79.9), C (72 to 77.9), C- (70 to 71.9), D (60 to 69.9), and F (below 60). I will consider improvement in examination performance during the course when your course average is close to the next grade range.

Make-Up Exams, Illness

Make-up examinations are permitted only if you are severely ill at the time of the examination (like, in the hospital). Colds don't count. Others' illnesses don't count. Oversleeping does not count. Nothing else counts.

All illnesses must be certified by a health professional (ideally, a physician) in writing within one week of the missed exam. I reserve the right to contact the health professional personally, and to reject any certification. The Student Health Center does not appear to issue such certifications; you should be sick enough to require the care of a physician off campus.

Missed exams not qualifying as "make-ups" will receive a zero score. Also, no "early" exams can be given. Students who have been acknowledged to have a valid reason to take the make-up examination will take a different exam covering the same material that the missed exam would have covered. Because of difficulties in proctoring "make-up" exams, this make-up exam will be given during the time scheduled for the course final exam, in the regular class meeting room. See me for details.

If you have a learning disability, please provide documentation of it from the Office of Student Life within the first two weeks of the semester. Please also discuss your disability with me during the first two weeks of the semester.

I look forward to teaching you Theories of Personality!

CAS|Psychology| Student Info.| Syllabi| 57.230.01

Created by: Dr. Brian Yates (byates@american.edu)
Psychology Web Page Information: cl1779a@american.edu
Psychology Department Information: psychology@american.edu
Last rev.: 1/25/96