This course offers a psychological study of structure, organization and development of the person as a complex and integrated whole. You will undertake analysis of major theories, methods and research, including topics such as emotion, motivation, inner experience, personality change and the self. We will also explore research questions such as stability of personality over time and situations, sociocultural differences in personality and personality measurement.

Learning Objectives

Students will learn about critical developments in the field of personality psychology from evidenced-based findings and principles that will facilitate critical thinking about emotion, motivation, selfhood and personality change. After completion of this course, students will be able to:

  • Synthesize current and seminal research and examine important findings using an understanding of scientific methodologies common to the field;
  • Reconstruct the interaction of situational and individual characteristics on the development of personality;
  • Appraise the role that neuroscience and behavioral genetics play in shaping human personality;
  • Formulate an understanding of personality-related and multicultural processes that underlie individual differences in behavior;
  • Appraise contrasting trends and perspectives based on influential personality theories and constructs;
  • Discover how evidence-based findings in personality psychology can be applied to mental and physical health.

In this course, you will

  • Take an 18-question personality scale derived from evidence-based studies on self-monitoring—the way people monitor and regulate their personality in social contexts. After taking the scale, you will analyze it in the context of your personality and also provide analysis of how the scale has been refined over time;
  • Participate in a peer-to-peer discussion that analyzes the case study of a fictional character from the perspective of two personality models. You will choose a character from pop culture (movies, anime, video games or novels) and offer insights into that character’s personality based upon expressed dialogue, behavior and cognition;
  • Create a project drawing on basic findings in personality research tailored to your specific interests in the field of personality. You can choose from a variety of formats, including interviews, in-depth case studies, self-analysis based on autobiographical details of your life, exploring aspects of a specific personality theory, offering perspectives on behavioral predictions or assessing various approaches to the study of personality.