Colegio De Dagupan Free Elective 1 Social

Orientation
School of IT Education Module 2: Personality
Development

Personality Traits

Before you can define who you are, you have to first understand your
personality. Ask yourself questions, such as what do I love to do?, "how would my
perfect day look?", "what brought me joy as a child?" or "what scares me?". When
you can answer those question, you can use the information to discover what your
personality is.
Broadly there are five parameters which describe an individuals personality.
These five dimensions are also called as Big Five Factors, and the model is
referred to as Five Factor Model also abbreviated as FFM.
The Five Factor Model was initially proposed by Paul T. Costa Jr. & Robert R.
McCrae in the year 1992 and often describes the relation between an individuals
personality and various behaviors.
Personality traits imply consistency and stability someone who scores high
on a specific trait; it reflect peoples characteristics patterns of thoughts, feelings,
and behaviours.
Following are five personality traits of an individual:
1. Openness to experience. Individuals with openness to experience are
generally very active, have a tremendous inclination towards creativity and
aesthetics and listen to their heart i.e. follow their inner feelings. Such individuals
are generally open to new learnings, skill sets and experiences. People who score
high on openness are quite broadminded and modern in their outlook as compared

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Orientation
School of IT Education Module 2: Personality
Development

to individuals who score low on the same parameter. Such individuals are
conservative, reluctant to changes and have a traditional approach in life.
2. Conscientiousness. As the name suggests, individuals with a
Conscientiousness personality trait listen to their conscience and act accordingly.
Such individuals are extremely cautious and self-disciplined. They never perform
any task in haste but think twice before acting. People with this personality trait are
generally methodical and tend to become perfectionists in the long run. People who
score high on conscientiousness are proactive, goal oriented and self-disciplined.
They strive hard to accomplish goals and objectives within the stipulated time
frame. Individuals who scoreless are little laid back and are not much goal oriented.
3. Extraversion and Introversion. Carl Jung popularized both the terms -
Extraversion and Introversion.
Extraversion: Extraversion refers to a state where individuals show more
concern towards what is happening outside. Such individuals love interacting with
people around and are generally talkative. They do not like spending time alone but
love being the center of attraction of parties and social gatherings. Such individuals
love going out, partying, meeting people and often get bored when they are all by
themselves. They admire the company of others and hate staying alone.
Introversion: Introversion, on the other hand refers to a state when an
individual is concerned only with his own life and nothing else. Such individuals do
not bother about others and are seldom interested in what is happening around.
They prefer staying back at home rather than going out and spending time with
friends. Such individuals speak less and enjoy their own company. You would never
find them in meetings, clubs, parties or social get-togethers. They generally do not
have many friends and tend to rely on few trusted ones.
4. Agreeableness. Agreeableness is a personality trait which teaches individuals
to be adjusting in almost all situations. Such individuals do not crib and face
changes with a smile. They accommodate themselves to all situations and are
friendly and kind hearted. People who score high on agreeableness are ready to
help others and flash their trillion dollar smile whenever a problem arises.
Individuals who score low on agreeableness on the other hand find difficulties in
adjusting with others and are little unfriendly.
5. Neuroticism. Neuroticism is a trait where individuals are prone to negative
thoughts such as anxiety, anger, envy, guilt and so on. Such individuals are often in
a state of depression and do not know how to enjoy life. They always look at the
negative sides of life and find extremely difficult to cope up with stress.
Table 1.1 summarizes the five personality traits with example behaviors for
high and low scorers.
Individual Task

Listen and watch the following video on personality traits

and get ready with a quiz by next meeting.
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Colegio De Dagupan Free Elective 1 Social
Orientation
School of IT Education Module 2: Personality
Development

Table 1.1 Personality Traits with examples

Developing Positive Personality

Your personality is your pattern of thinking, feeling and behavior that
determines who you really are as an individual. You are born with certain personality
traits, but other parts of your personality are things you might want to actively
cultivate. Here are 7 different tools that will help you develop a positive personality.
1. Learn the True Meaning of Macarism
Most people do not even know the meaning of the word macarism, because it is a
value we are not necessarily taught. Macarism is taking joy from someone elses
success and accomplishments. While practicing macarism for our children, close
friends and family may be easy, doing it towards people we feel competitive with is
not so easy. You may have to learn to forgive yourself and others in order to attain
this feeling, but it is worth it. So practice learning to genuinely feel happy for
someone who is achieving success in life, because lust or frustration at someone
elses success will just bring you down in the end.

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2. Always Practice Integrity

You know what they say, Actions speak louder than words. Most of us want to be
honest people, but if we do not keep to our word then our intentions amount to
nothing. Always try to keep your promises to other people, but also keep the
promises you make to yourself. Eventually you will become that person that people
can always count on, and who doesnt want to be that person?
3. Communicate that You Care
People often do not express their emotions and enthusiasm towards other people
and projects. Make sure to spend the time to verbally tell someone how much you
care about them and be more caring in general, or even let your boss know how
excited you are about working on the latest project. No one can read your mind, so
sometimes you have to take the time to actually say aloud what we are
thinking/feeling to the world.
4. Give Compliments Daily
Who doesnt love a compliment? Everyday make it a goal to compliment at least
one person. Whether it be on their appearance or a job well done, you will make
their day. When you give people compliments they form a positive association with
your personality.
5. Develop Healthy Habits
Our bodies and brain feels a lot better when we take care of it through proper
hygiene, diet and exercise. Dont look at fitness and health goals just as ways to
improve your body, but understand that they will transform the way you feel and
act for the better. Learn to enjoy healthy foods, and exercise, it as all in the mind
and if we can change our thoughts we can change the way we feel about having a
healthy body.
6. Use Positive Affirmations
Using positive affirmations re-programs the brain to think more positive things.
Think about what aspects of your personality you would like to make more positive
than create a positive affirmation to go along with that. For example, if you are
often negative towards yourself, make an affirmation that states you have already
broken this habit. I love myself, so I am always positive and loving towards me. In
order to achieve anything, we first have to believe it.
7. Make Your Self-Fulfilling Prophecies Good Ones
When you set your expectation to be low, the chances are that you arent going to
achieve much. To shoot for the stars we cant be aiming at the ground, so make sure
to expect a lot of yourself. This will help inspire you each and every day to do a little
better than yesterday! Your higher self expects you to achieve great things, make
sure and fulfil your true potential.

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Development

Psychodynamic Approach to Understanding Personality

One of the most important psychological approaches to understanding
personality is based on the theorizing of the Austrian physician and psychologist
Sigmund Freud (18561939), who founded what today is known as the
psychodynamic approach to understanding personality. Many people know about
Freud because his work has had a huge impact on our everyday thinking about
psychology, and the psychodynamic approach is one of the most important
approaches to psychological therapy.

Freud proposed that the mind is divided into three components: id, ego, and
superego, and that the interactions and conflicts among the components create
personality. According to Freudian theory, the id is the component of personality
that forms the basis of our most primitive impulses. The id is entirely unconscious,
and it drives our most important motivations, including the sexual drive (libido) and
the aggressive or destructive drive (Thanatos).
In stark contrast to the id, the superego represents our sense of morality and
oughts. The superego tells us all the things that we shouldnt do, or the duties and
obligations of society. The superego strives for perfection, and when we fail to live
up to its demands we feel guilty.
In contrast to the id, which is about the pleasure principle, the function of the
ego is based on the reality principlethe idea that we must delay gratification of
our basic motivations until the appropriate time with the appropriate outlet. The ego
is the largely conscious controller or decision-maker of personality. The ego serves
as the intermediary between the desires of the id and the constraints of society
contained in the superego. We may wish to scream, yell, or hit, and yet our ego
normally tells us to wait, reflect, and choose a more appropriate response.

What Are Ego Defense Mechanisms?

When you accidentally injure yourself your body automatically begins several
healing processes with the aim of restoring your body to its original healthy state.
But what if you were emotionally hurt? What if you faced a sudden shock or a
tremendous amount of stress? What if your anxiety becomes more than you can
handle? What if you lost a close person?
Just like your body has defenses against physical wounds and injuries it also
has its defenses against emotional shocks and wounds. These mechanisms are
called "Ego Defense Mechanisms" or "Unconscious Defense Mechanisms".

There are a large number of defense mechanisms; the main ones are summarized
below.

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School of IT Education Module 2: Personality
Development

Table 1.2 example of defense mechanism

References:
http://www.managementstudyguide.com/personality-traits.htm
https://www.guidedmind.com/blog/7-tips-to-develop-a-positive-personality
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Jjyc-htz50
https://www.2knowmyself.com/Subconscious_mind/ego_defense_mechanisms
https://www.simplypsychology.org/defense-mechanisms.html
https://oli.cmu.edu/jcourse/workbook/activity/page?
context=df3e743b0a0001dc468af8a63dfef337

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