Personality Development
What is Personality?
Personality is defined as the characteristics that other people see in you. Personality is shaped by a combination of many factors such as culture, religion, education, environment, individual experiences, as well as biological factors.
Do you think that your personality "matches" the characteristics that you see in yourself? Is this all that makes you, you?
Birth Order
Birth order refers to the position in your family- whether you were first born, middle, last born, or an only child. Research has shown that the order in which you are born plays an important role in personality development, as there are commonalities in each group. The differences in siblings is due to being born into a different environment within the same household. For instance, the first born child is often watched more than the next because parents are still learning. Role models also change as siblings are added to the household. The first born and only-child often models his/her behavior after the parents, while the next children will look to their older siblings as the role models.
Personality is defined as the characteristics that other people see in you. Personality is shaped by a combination of many factors such as culture, religion, education, environment, individual experiences, as well as biological factors.
Do you think that your personality "matches" the characteristics that you see in yourself? Is this all that makes you, you?
Birth Order
Birth order refers to the position in your family- whether you were first born, middle, last born, or an only child. Research has shown that the order in which you are born plays an important role in personality development, as there are commonalities in each group. The differences in siblings is due to being born into a different environment within the same household. For instance, the first born child is often watched more than the next because parents are still learning. Role models also change as siblings are added to the household. The first born and only-child often models his/her behavior after the parents, while the next children will look to their older siblings as the role models.
Erikson's 8 Stages of Life
Erik Erikson's theory of development considers how external factors, parents and society affects personality development from childhood to adulthood. He stated that everyone goes through eight, age-based stages in their lifetime where they should learn a particular task/virtue that gradually increases in complexity. In other words, each person faces a conflict that they can pass or fail. He also believed that because the stages are age-based, that everyone advances even if the task is learned or not; it just makes the next stages more difficult.
Erik Erikson's theory of development considers how external factors, parents and society affects personality development from childhood to adulthood. He stated that everyone goes through eight, age-based stages in their lifetime where they should learn a particular task/virtue that gradually increases in complexity. In other words, each person faces a conflict that they can pass or fail. He also believed that because the stages are age-based, that everyone advances even if the task is learned or not; it just makes the next stages more difficult.
Maslow's Hierachy of Needs
Abraham Maslow, described a theory of motivation (often seen as a hierarchical tier) to explain a person's personality development. Unlike Erikson, Maslow believed that a stage had to be completed before a person could advance up the "ladder". Maslow believed that it was a person's needs and curiosities that created personality. At the top of Maslow's theory is self-actualization; the final step says that a person has reached the top of their capability and they have become all that they can be. Maslow states that only 1-2% of the population ever achieves this stage.
Abraham Maslow, described a theory of motivation (often seen as a hierarchical tier) to explain a person's personality development. Unlike Erikson, Maslow believed that a stage had to be completed before a person could advance up the "ladder". Maslow believed that it was a person's needs and curiosities that created personality. At the top of Maslow's theory is self-actualization; the final step says that a person has reached the top of their capability and they have become all that they can be. Maslow states that only 1-2% of the population ever achieves this stage.
Identity
Personality is what other people see, but identity is how you define yourself; it is essentially "who you are". Identity tends to change as one ages, and after profound experiences. It includes your physical traits, activities, friendships & social connections, as well as your thoughts and feelings. There are four components to your identity: physical, active, social and psychological.
Based on the four groups, how do you think one's identity would differ from childhood to adolescence to adulthood? Which focus would be prominent?
Based on the four groups, how do you think one's identity would differ from childhood to adolescence to adulthood? Which focus would be prominent?
Psychological
Identity:
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Physical Identity:
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Social Identity:
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Active Identity:
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Gender Identity
Gender Identity
Biologically, a person is either male or female. About 1-2% of humans fall into an intersex category where they have an ambiguous biological sex at birth. Gender is a culturally defined term denoting the characteristics that men and women tend to have. Gender identity, however, can be much different than what someone might look like on the outside. Gender identity includes both the biological state of the person and also how that person expresses their biological state.
Gender roles are cultural beliefs and behaviors that tell us what is appropriate for a person depending on their gender. Gender roles vary from country to country and also transform as time progresses. For instance, the idea that women should be the primary caretaker of the children and men should be the "bread winner" is slowly changing and we are seeing more women in the workforce as well as stay-at-home dads. These ideas can come from parents, siblings, and media.
Gender Stereotypes are societal generalizations and assumptions about how males and females look, act and feel. Some examples for males are boys like sports and cars, boys do not wear pink, and boys are strong. Some examples for females are that girls are quiet, girls are well-behaved, and girls are not good at sports.
Gender stereotypes can be both positive and negative, but they are usually inaccurate or not true for everyone.
How people act and what they like is a complex topic that cannot be decided by a vast generalization based on gender.
What is a stereotype that you have encounter about your own gender that you might not align with?
Ethnic Identity
Ethnicity is an individual's identification or connection with a particular cultural or national social group. Ethnicity can be observed through language, traditions, religion, or cultural values. A person's ethnic identity greatly influences overall identity formation.