COURSE SYLLABUS IN PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT

INSTRUCTOR: VISAME ARELLANO

I. Introduction

Course Orientation

I. Introduction to Personality Development

a. What is personality?
b. Why does it matter?
c. How Personality is Developed
d. Reasons for Developing Personality

II. Foundations of Personality

a. Physical
b. Emotional
c. Social
d. Moral
e. Spiritual

III. Physical Attributes of Personality

a. Definition of Social Image
b. The Basic Wardrobe
c. Grooming
d. Health and Personality

MIDTERM

IV. Social Graces

a. Manners
b. Etiquette
c. Eye Contact
d. Family Manners
e. Words to use often

V. Leadership
a. Personal Attributes of a Leader
b. Leadership Styles
c. Team Building

VI. Communication Skills and Customer Service

a. Intrapersonal Communication
b. Communication Process
c. Good Customer Service
d. Public Speaking

VII. Personality Disorder

a. What they are and why understand them
b. Paranoid, schizoid, antisocial, borderline, narcissistic, avoidant, dependent, obsessive
c. Symptoms
d. Causes
e. Treatment

FINAL
NOTES: PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT

Visame Arellano

What is Personality?

• The set of emotional qualities, ways of behaving, etc., that makes a person different from other
people
• The totality that distinguishes an individual’s behavioural and emotional characteristics
• is made up of the characteristic patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that make a person
unique

Personality Defined

• How would you define personality? The following are just a few of the definitions that have been
put forth by some different psychologists:
• "That which permits a prediction of what a person will do in a given situation."  -Raymond B.
Cattell, 1950
• "Although no single definition is acceptable to all personality theorists, we can say that personality
is a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency
and individuality to a person's behavior." -Feist and Feist, 2009

Why Does it Matter?

• Understanding the psychology of personality is much more than simply an academic exercise.
The findings from personality research can have important applications in the world of medicine,
health, business, economics, technology, and other areas. Researchers have found that certain
personality characteristics may be linked to illness and health behaviors. By building a better
understanding of how personality works, we can look for new ways to improve both personal and
public health.

Sigmund Freud's Stages of Development

You have probably heard of Sigmund Freud. If not, you will likely hear his name from here on out. His is
one of the most widely known names in the field of psychology. While he is considered to be a great
contributor to the field, he also is quite controversial. He had many theories that people thought were a
little off or even completely wrong.

All the same, he made contributions to the field of personality psychology, as well as many other areas in
the field, so they are worth learning about. Some of the theories that he lay out were later expanded upon
by other psychologists, while still others set out to prove those theories invalid.

Freud's theory of personality development was that it was a result of a series of stages during childhood.
He believed that the development process involved a pleasure-seeking source that revolved around
psychosexual energy. His stages of development include:

Oral stage. This is the first stage, which begins at birth. Calling it the "oral stage" makes sense because it
is often oral fixation that soothes babies; e.g., bottle, nipple, pacifier. The child seeks oral gratification in
order to gain pleasure. During this stage, if a child does not have its oral needs met, for example, not
being fed when crying, he or she learns to not trust. If children have those needs met, they learn to trust
those around them.

Anal stage. This is the next stage in Freud's theory of child development. It focuses on learning to control
bowel movements and maintain bladder control. When children gain this ability, they feel independent and
a sense of accomplishment. This stage is affected by how parents approach potty training. If they punish
and ridicule or are very strict, the child can go on to be anal-retentive and have such personality traits as
being obsessive, rigid, etc. This stage lasts up until the child is around 3 years old.

Phallic stage. During this stage the focus is on the genitals. This is when males and females realize
there is a difference. Freud believed that the girls suffered from "penis envy" because they were not
males and that boys were in competition with their fathers to get their mothers' attention. This stage lasts
until the child is around 5.
Latent period. This was believed to be an important period in personality development, when children
focus on relationships with their peers, finding hobbies they enjoy, and pursuing interests. This stage
takes place from age 6 to about 12.

Genital stage. This final stage starts when the child is about 12 years old. It is the period that children go
through puberty and start gaining sexual interest. In this stage, the child begins to establish an interest in
other people and, in turn, become well-balanced.

Freud's stages of psychosexual development may seem a little odd at first, but for a while they were all
that people had to go off of. It is largely where some of the first ideas regarding personality development
originated.

Sigmund Freud’s Concept of Personality (Psyche)

The id (or it)

The id is the primitive and instinctive component of personality. It consists of all the inherited (i.e.,
biological) components of personality present at birth, including the sex (life) instinct – Eros (which
contains the libido), and the aggressive (death) instinct - Thanatos.

The id is the impulsive (and unconscious) part of our psyche which responds directly and immediately to
the instincts.

The personality of the newborn child is all id and only later does it develop an ego and super-ego.

The id remains infantile in its function throughout a persons life and does not change with time or
experience, as it is not in touch with the external world. The id is not affected by reality, logic or the
everyday world, as it operates within the unconscious part of the mind.

The id operates on the pleasure principle (Freud, 1920) which is the idea that every wishful impulse
should be satisfied immediately, regardless of the consequences. When the id achieves its demands, we
experience pleasure when it is denied we experience ‘unpleasure’ or tension.

The id engages in primary process thinking, which is primitive, illogical, irrational, and fantasy oriented.
This form of process thinking has no comprehension of objective reality, and is selfish and wishful in
nature.

The Ego (or I)

The ego is 'that part of the id which has been modified by the direct influence of the external world.'

(Freud [1923], 1961, p. 25)

The ego develops to mediate between the unrealistic id and the external real world. It is the decision-
making component of personality. Ideally, the ego works by reason, whereas the id is chaotic and
unreasonable.

The ego operates according to the reality principle, working out realistic ways of satisfying the id’s
demands, often compromising or postponing satisfaction to avoid negative consequences of society. The
ego considers social realities and norms, etiquette and rules in deciding how to behave.

Like the id, the ego seeks pleasure (i.e., tension reduction) and avoids pain, but unlike the id, the ego is
concerned with devising a realistic strategy to obtain pleasure. The ego has no concept of right or wrong;
something is good simply if it achieves its end of satisfying without causing harm to itself or the id.

Often the ego is weak relative to the headstrong id, and the best the ego can do is stay on, pointing the id
in the right direction and claiming some credit at the end as if the action were its own.

Freud made the analogy of the id being a horse while the ego is the rider. The ego is 'like a man on
horseback, who has to hold in check the superior strength of the horse.'

(Freud, 1923, p.15)

If the ego fails in its attempt to use the reality principle, and anxiety is experienced, unconscious defense
mechanisms are employed, to help ward off unpleasant feelings (i.e., anxiety) or make good things feel
better for the individual.

The ego engages in secondary process thinking, which is rational, realistic, and orientated towards
problem-solving. If a plan of action does not work, then it is thought through again until a solution is found.
This is known as reality testing and enables the person to control their impulses and demonstrate self-
control, via mastery of the ego.

An important feature of clinical and social work is to enhance ego functioning and help the client test
reality through assisting the client to think through their options.

The Superego (or above I)

The superego incorporates the values and morals of society which are learned from one's parents and
others. It develops around the age of 3 – 5 during the phallic stage of psychosexual development.

The superego's function is to control the id's impulses, especially those which society forbids, such as sex
and aggression. It also has the function of persuading the ego to turn to moralistic goals rather than
simply realistic ones and to strive for perfection.

The superego consists of two systems: The conscience and the ideal self. The conscience can punish the
ego through causing feelings of guilt. For example, if the ego gives in to the id's demands, the superego
may make the person feel bad through guilt. The ideal self (or ego-ideal) is an imaginary picture of how
you ought to be, and represents career aspirations, how to treat other people, and how to behave as a
member of society.

Reasons for Developing Personality

The development of our personality is our great responsibility. Some reasons why there is a need for
developing personality are:

1. For social acceptance

Filipinos strongly react to social acceptance. It is the desire to be treated in accordance
with one’s status. It is one of an individual’s most important values. The better the
personality of a person, the more friends he acquires.

2. For self-satisfaction
We feel not only comfortable but also happy when we have a good personality. A happy
person meets the bad temper and unkind dispositions of others with understanding and
good humor. When people reject us because we are careless with our personality, we
become dysphoric and the condition hinders our growth.

3. For self-confidence
When we are aware that we have a pleasing personality, we have the confidence to face
anybody. Self-confidence elicits positive feelings which are necessary for mental health.
We develop negative feelings like feelings of inferiority when we are aware that our
personality is not as good as that of others.

4. To keep ourselves on the job

Personality has a great deal to do with holding a job. In the business field, for example, a
salesman has to deal with people and influence them favorably toward the product the he
is selling. The salesman should have a good appearance and he should show his motive,
his ideals, and his good ways of approaching and motivating the people to buy his
products.

Assignment:

Choose any situational topic that further explains your understanding of Freud’s Concept of Personality
(Id, Ego, Superego).