Concepts and Constructs Personality Theories Final Paper
Instructions
Identify and synthesize the concepts and constructs of personality theory that you find to be the most accurate and appropriate in explaining personality and development.
For your final paper, you will identify and synthesize the concepts and constructs of personality theory that you find to be the most accurate and appropriate in explaining personality and development.
Throughout the course, you have engaged, probed, picked apart, and evaluated the thinking of a large number of theorists who wrote during different historical periods from different disciplinary, paradigmatic, and ideological perspectives. Based on different realms of human experience, the theorists moved toward a fundamental understanding of a single topic and fundamental question: What is the human personality, and, more generally, what makes us who we are as individuals and what we are as a species?
We have now covered all of the seven major psychological models that serve as frameworks for understanding personality. Each model has several theorists and numerous concepts that describe personality. That is what theories are—collections of related concepts meant to explain development. In this final paper, you will analyze these concepts to determine which you think are most useful and applicable. In this final assignment, you will
Identify one concept from each of the seven models and identify the theorists associated with that concept that you think offer the best explanation for personality development from that model.
Provide the best theoretical explanation for your personal journey of personality development.
Provide the most useful applications for you as a scholar and professional.
Your paper should be organized according to the following scheme, with sections organized under the following APA-formatted headings. Address the following specifications for each heading. (For instructions on writing proper headings and other document elements, review the University Writing Center’s APA Style Elements Links to an external site..)
In your paper:
Introduction
Start your paper with a general, academic introduction to the topic of theories of personality.
Explain what you plan to cover and the direction your paper will take.
Major Concepts
Present a concept from each of the seven models.
Apply a proper APA heading to separate the section.
Describe the concept.
Identify the theorist associated with the concept.
Provide a rationale for why the selected concept is the most applicable from that model.
(Keep in mind that the object of this assignment is to identify and discuss a specific concept from each model and not to focus on just one model or provide overviews of the models per se.)
Personal Applications
In this section of the paper, reflect on your personality and address the following items:
Identify which of the seven models best explains your developmental journey.
Provide at least one specific example of an element or elements of your personality that are explained by your selected model.
Career Applications
In this section, consider how you can use the knowledge from this course as a professional, addressing the following item:
Explain how you can use the knowledge you have gained about personality development to help achieve your career goals.
Conclusion
Provide a brief conclusion, addressing the following:
Summarize the ideas presented in your synthesis of, and reflection on, personality theory.