Personality Psychology

Catalog description

In what ways do you differ from other people, and in what ways are you similar? How did you come to be that way? The psychology of personality examines how individual differences in tendencies toward attitudes, behavior, and cognition cohere into stable constellations that people recognize as personality. Topics will include personality assessment, personality development, personality stability and change, biological and contextual influences on personality, emotion and motivation, and psychological adjustment. Although we will explore the major historical perspectives in personality research, the course will focus primarily on current empirical research and modern theories of personality.