This document discusses personality and defines it as an individual's unique pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that persists over time and across situations. It describes how personalities are often characterized by relatively enduring traits like sociability and dominance. Personality consists of all the stable and distinctive styles of thought, behavior, and emotional responses that shape how a person adapts to their surroundings. The major determinants of personality are said to be biological makeup, early life experiences, and learning, according to Western theorists.

2. Personality
 Some definitions of personality:
 An individual’s unique pattern of thoughts, feelings,
and behaviors that persists over time and across
situations.
 The dynamic and organized set of characteristics
possessed by a person that uniquely influences his or
her cognitions, motivations, and behaviors in various
situations.
 An organized combinations of attitudes, motives,
values and behaviors unique to each individual.

3. Personality
 Personalities are often described in terms of relatively
enduring personality traits such as sociability, independence,
dominance, reserved, etc..
 Personality consists of all the relatively “stable” and
“distinctive” styles of thought, behavior and emotional
response that characterize a person’s adaptations to
surrounding circumstances.
 Trait is a characteristic of an individual, describing a habitual
way of behaving, thinking, and feeling (shy, outgoing,
ambitious, lazy, easy-going, confident, grumpy, happy, friendly,
etc..

4. How would you describe yourself?
• cool, reserved or warm, easy going
• concrete thinking or abstract thinking
• easily upset or calm, stable
• not assertive or dominant
• sober, serious or happy-go-lucky
• expedient or conscientious
• tough-minded or tender-minded
• trusting or suspicious
• practical or imaginative
• self-assured or apprehensive
• conservative or experimenting
• group-oriented or self-sufficient
• undisciplined or self-disciplined
• relaxed or tense-driven

5. Personality
 People have different personalities. But why do these
differences develop?
 Why don’t people react in the same way to the same
situation?
 Major personality determinants:
 biological makeup
 early life experiences
 learning
(opinion of Western theorists)

6. Personality
 Major western personality theories:
Psychoanalytic
Trait
Behavioral
Social cognitive
Humanistic
Evolutionary/Biological