Personality And Career Development (IR 3) Learning Module PDF

PERSONALITY AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT (IR 3) **LEARNING MODULE** **S.Y. 2024--2025** **CAREN J. MACEREN** Week 2 -- Knowing Oneself Learning Outcomes - Conduct self-exploration and simple disclosure; - Explain that knowing oneself can make a person accept his or her strengths and limita...

PERSONALITY AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT (IR 3) **LEARNING MODULE** **S.Y. 2024--2025** **CAREN J. MACEREN** Week 2 -- Knowing Oneself Learning Outcomes - Conduct self-exploration and simple disclosure; - Explain that knowing oneself can make a person accept his or her strengths and limitations, and deal with others better; - Share hir or her unique characteristics, habits, and experience. Concept Digest (Discussion) Have you ever asked yourself this question: Who am I? If you have, you are not alone. Adolescence is the time when young people start to ask questions about themselves, about their future, and even about their religious and political beliefs. During the adolescent stage of development, the young person grapples with his or her identity. This may seem very philosophical to some, but to know oneself is the first step in personal development. It is believed that words "Know Thyself", which were written at the entry of the oracle of Delphi by seven Greek philosophers, statesmen, and lawgivers, became the cornerstone of Western philosophy. Socrates, who came decades after these two words were scripted at Delphi, said that is seems ridiculous for him to investigate other unimportant things when he has not known his self yet. For Socrates, the most important thing to pursue was self-knowledge, and admitting one's ignorance in the beginning of knowledge. For Plato, one of Socrate's students, the beginning of knowledge is self-knowledge. Other ancient philosophers from other cultures saw the wisdom in knowing oneself. The ancient Hindu writings *Upanishads* confirmed, "Enquiry into the truth of the "Self" is knowledge." The Persian poet Rumi ruminated, "Who am I in the midst of all this thought traffic?" and the American poet Walt Whitman celebrated his "Self" as "a simple, separate person." Before we discuss how to know one's self, we have to define first the concept of the "Self". In philosophical terms, it is the *being*, *which is the source of a person's consciousness.* It is the *agent responsible for an individual's thoughts and actions.* Based on this definition, the "Self" is an intangible entity that directs a person's thoughts and actions. It is outside the physical realm of the person. The "Self" is identified in various context, such as in psychology, sociology, or religion. The "Self" is the essence of a person: his thoughts, feelings and actions, experiences, beliefs, values, principles, and relationships. The "Self" includes a person's life purpose, meaning, and aspirations. Since out approach to personal development is holistic, we will integrate the various definitions of "Self" from the philosophical, spiritual, and psychological realms, but we will focus and give mor emphasis on its psychological definition. If the "Self" is defined as the cognitive and affective representation of one's identity, it is then defined in terms of human characteristics such as behavior and thought. In psychology, the term *personality* is referred to as the set of behaviors, feelings, thoughts, and motives that identifies an individual. Personality is the essence of who we are and is the embodiment of one's physical, psychological, cognitive, affective, and spiritual self. Therefore, when we speak of the "Self", we will describe it in personality terms. **Personality** There is an abundant definition of what personality is. In Week 1, we have defined it based on a common definition provided by dictionary. This time, we will define personality in the same way psychologist define it. Personality psychologists have different viewpoint. One definition state, "personality refers to the unique and relatively enduring set of behaviors, feelings, thoughts, and motives that characterize an individual" (Feist & Rosenberg, 2012). Two key components of personality are highlighted in this definition: the *uniqueness* of an individual's thoughts, feelings and behavior; and their being *relatively enduring*, or being consistent, over different situations and over time. For example, a person who is considered as "friendly" would, at any given situation, be outgoing and easily like by others or is someone who is not perceived as threatening or aggressive. This person's uniqueness is manifested in his own brand of showing friendliness: a sunny disposition, a readiness to give advice when needed, and generosity to those in need. The uniqueness is shown by how a person's physical and behavioral traits are combined to depict friendliness. In terms of being consistent, as an adolescent, this friendly individual develops friendships among his peers. Upon entering adulthood, this same friendly individual is perceived by co-workers and peers to still be his old friendly self as when he was in high school. This consistency through time and the unique manner by which thoughts, feelings, and behavior are expressed, defines personality. However, there will always be exceptions to these two components. Consistency is more likely to mean most of the time but not all the time. A friendly person can get nasty or aggressive when provoked or cornered. Sickness can oftentimes change the consistency of an individual's personality. An example of this is Alzheimer's disease. Studies have shown that Alzheimer's disease changes three of the Big Five dimensions of personality (anxiety, extraversion, and openness) (Costa & McRae, 1992). Gordon Allport defines personality as "a pattern of habits, attitudes, and traits that determine an individual's characteristics, behavior, and traits." (Sanchez, et al, 2012). This definition does not emphasize uniqueness and consistency, but nevertheless still captures aspects of personality. **Nature, Nurture, and Personality** Personality is influenced by both nature (heredity or genetic make-up) and nurture (environment). There is no single gene that creates a trait. It is always a complex combination of genes, environmental exposure and experiences, and cultural backgrounds. There are common personality traits that cross many cultures. Agreeableness and openness to experiences are some examples of these cross-cultural traits. There are, however, other personality traits that are more prominent in one culture than other. For example, Asians exhibit strong "interpersonal relatedness" or how their behavior impacts relationships, compared to Westerners who look at their behavior and its impact on their personal goals. For example, an Asian who is pursuing a career by migrating to another country will always consider how this will affect his family and social ties at home. A westerner, on the other hand, will see working overseas as a career move that will enhance career growth. **Trait Theories** One general point of view explains that personality deals with traits, and that trait or disposition is a major factor in personality. Trait theory is an approach in identifying types of personalities based on certain traits or attributes, which vary from one person to the other. This theory was developed over the past 60 years, started by D.W. Fiske (1949) and later pursued by other researchers including Norman (1967), Smith (1967), Goldberg (1981), and McRae and Costa (1987). Psychologists Costa and McRae (1992) developed a categorized scheme that described personality. Based on their research, they discovered the existence of five universal and widely agreed upon dimensions of personality. They called it the Big Five or Five-Factor Model. These dimensions or tendencies are: Openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. For it to be easily remembered, it uses the acronym OCEAN. These dimensions may be described using its most positive traits: - Openness to experience -- curiosity, interest, imagination, and creativity to new ideas - Conscientiousness -- planning, organizing, hard-working, controlling, persevering, and punctuality. - Extraversion -- sociable, talkative, active, outgoing, and fun-loving. - Agreeableness -- friendly, warm, trusting, generous, and kind-hearted - Neuroticism -- calm, relaxed, and comfortable **Personality Traits** Personality trait is a disposition to behave consistently in a particular way, while personality is a broader term that comprises of traits, motives, thoughts, self-concept, and feelings. An example of personality trait is shyness or social awkwardness. **Measuring Personality** There are different ways to measure personality. One is by observing people's behavior. This is quite limited as other people may not be able to observe all aspects of personality such as loneliness, which is internal and is observed by others very subjectively. Personality can be measured using different kinds of tests like the Rorschach Inkblot Test, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and the Keirsey Temperament Sorter. Many online tests are provided for free, particularly for those who seek to find out their personality to establish their career paths. **The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator** Katherine Briggs and Isabel Briggs Myers developed the Myers-Briggs personality model based on four preferences of individuals. These are: - E or I (Extraversion or Introversion) is how an individual prefers to channel his or her energy when dealing with people, whether it is inward (introversion) or outward (extraversion). - S or N (Sensing or Intuition) is how one prefers to process information, whether through the use of senses such as being able to describe what one sees, or intuitively like dealing with ideas. - T or F (Thinking or Feeling) is how an individual prefers to make decisions, either thinking or using logic and analysis, or feeling which uses the cognitive senses based on values and beliefs. - J or P (Judgement or Perception) is how an individual prefers to manage one's life, whether through judging, which means a planned and organized life, versus perception, which has a more flexible approach to living. The combination of these four preferences produces 16 types combinations of personality types, usually represented by their first letters.