Personality psychology

Personality Psychology

Personality psychology is a branch of psychology that studies personality and its variation among individuals. It is a scientific discipline which aims to show how people are individually different due to psychological forces. Its areas of focus include:

Constructing a coherent picture of the individual and their major psychological processes
Investigating individual differences, that is, how people are unique
Investigating human nature, or how people are alike

Pronunciation: /ˌpɜːrsəˈnælɪti saɪˈkɒlədʒi/

Etymology: The term "personality psychology" is derived from the Latin word "persona" meaning "mask", and the Greek word "psyche" meaning "soul" or "mind". The term "psychology" is derived from the Greek words "psyche" meaning "soul" or "mind" and "logia" meaning "study".

Related Terms

Trait theory: This theory postulates that people have certain inherent traits that determine their behavior. Trait theorists are primarily interested in the measurement of traits, which can be defined as habitual patterns of behavior, thought, and emotion.

Behaviorism: This is a theory of learning based on the idea that all behaviors are acquired through conditioning. It is often associated with the theories of B.F. Skinner.

Psychoanalytic theory: This is a theory of personality organization and the dynamics of personality development that guides psychoanalysis, a clinical method for treating psychopathology.

Humanistic psychology: This is a psychological perspective that emphasizes the study of the whole person. Humanistic psychologists look at human behavior not only through the eyes of the observer, but through the eyes of the person doing the behaving.

Social cognitive theory: This is a learning theory based on the idea that people learn by observing others. These learned behaviors can be central to one's personality.

Self-concept: This is a general term used to refer to how someone thinks about, evaluates or perceives themselves.

Identity (social science): In psychology, identity is the qualities, beliefs, personality, looks and/or expressions that make a person (self-identity) or group (particular social category or social group).

Personality psychology