Abstract
Psychologists have developed a number of different approaches — some conflicting, some complementary — to the study of personality. But before examining these we need to ask whether personality owes anything to heredity or is entirely dependent upon the environment. The answer may give an indication of the influence which teachers have upon the personality development of their children. If personality is in part a consequence of heredity, then the teacher’s influence has clear limits. But if personality is acquired, then those limits may be much broader. To provide an answer, we have to look briefly at the early years of life, and see if research can tell us how and when personality makes its first appearance, and what happens subsequently.
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Additional reading
Aiken, L.R. (1989) Assessment of Personality. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Covers all aspects of personafity measurement.
Aronson, E. (1991) The Social Animal 6th edn. New York: Freeman. Good on all aspects of social influences upon personality, including the formation of attitudes.
Briggs, S.R., Hogan, R. and Jones, W.H. (1993) (Eds) Handbook of Personality Psychology. Orlando, Fl: Academic Press. Perhaps the most wide-ranging of current texts on the psychology of personality.
Eaves, L., Eysenck, H.J. and Martin, N. (1989) Genes, Culture and Personafity: An empirical approach. London: Academic Press. Very much champions the genetic argument, but a good survey of the research eoidence.
Eysenck, HJ. (1985) Rise and Fall of the Freudian Empire. Harmondsworth: Penguin. A sustained critique by a confessed opponent of Freudian theory.
Fisher, S. and Greenberg, R.P. (1985) The Scientific Credibility of Freud’s Theories and Therapy. New York: Columbia University Press. The most fair-minded and comprehensive survey of the scientific status of Freudian theories.
Fontana, D. (1983) Individual differences in personality: State-based versus trait-based approaches. Educational Psychology, 3, 189–200.
Fontana, D. (1986) Teaching and Personality. Oxford: Basil Blackwell. A general introduction to personality and its significance at classroom level. (Also recommended for Chapters 7 and 14.)
Freud, A. (Ed.) (1986) The Essentials of Psychoanalysis. Harmondsworth: Penguin. Freud’s classic work isThe Interpretation of Dreams, also available in Penguin. But this version edited by his daughter of many of his major papers provides the reader with the best introduction to his work.
Hall, G.D. and Iindzey, G. (1985) Introduction to Theories of Personality. New York: Wiley. For the reader with a particular interest in personality who wants an overview of the best-known theories.
Maslow, A.H. (1976) The Farther Reaches of Human Nature. Harmondsworth: Penguin. Maslow was a prolific and highly readable author. This is a particularly comprehensive summary of his main ideas.
Mischel, W. (1993) Introduction to Personality 5th edn. Forth Worth: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. A deservedly popular classic text.
Pervin, L.A. (1993) Personality: Theory and Research. 6th edn. New York: Wiley. One of the best contemporary surveys of the field.
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© 1995 David Fontana
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Fontana, D. (1995). Personality. In: Psychology for Teachers. Psychology for Professional Groups. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24139-2_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24139-2_8
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