Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Designed to familiarize students with major theories and research current in the field of personality psychology. Each chapter begins with an overview followed by a list of questions devised to stimulate interest and aid in relating research to broader issues. A boxed insert features a researcher whose work is covered in the chapter along with a personal statement regarding the development, contemporary significance and future direction of his/her work.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• 1 Introduction: The Scientific Study Of Personality.
• Three Research Traditions
• The Clinical Approach to Personality
• The Clinical Approach: An Illustration
• Strenghts and Limitations of the Clinical Approach
• The Correlational Approach to Personality
• Sir Francis Galton and His Followers
• The Five-Factor Model of Personality
• Two Illustrations of the Correlational Approach: The Development of Measures of Satisfaction with Life and of Optimism
• Strengths and Limitations of the Correlational Approach
• The Experimental Approach to Personality
• Cognitive Approaches
• The Experimental Approach: An Illustration
• Strengths and Limitations of the Experimental Approach
• Strengths and Limitations of the Three Approaches
• Shared Goals, Divergent Paths, and Agreement among Data Sources
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• Part 1 Units Of Personality
• 2 Trait Units Of Personality.
• The Trait Psychology Of Gordon W. Allport
• The Trait Psychology Of Raymond B. Cattell
• The Trait Psychology Of Hans J. Eysenck
• The Five-Factor Model (Ffm)
• Validating Evidence
• Cross-Cultural Agreement on Factors
• Self-Ratings and Ratings by Others
• Connections to Biology: Genetics, Evolution, Neuroscience
• Diagnosis of Personality Disorders
• Predictive Utility
• Early Temperament And Personality Development
• Consistency Of Personality And The Person-Situation Controversy
• Implications for the Prediction of Behavior
• A Critical Overview Of Traits And Factor Analysis
• What Is a Trait?
• How Many Traits? Which Ones? Is That All There Is?
• The Method--Factor Analysis
• Description or Explanation?
• Conclusion
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 3 Cognitive Units Of Personality.
• The Concept Of Cognitive Style
• Two Precognitive Revolution Theorists: Kelly And Rotter
• Kelly's Personal Construct Theory
• Rotter's Social Learning Theory
• Two Postcognitive Revolution Theorists: Mischel And Bandura
• Mischel's Cognitive Social Learning Theory
• Research Illustrating Situational Specificity
• Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory
• Is a Trait-Social Cognitive Rapprochement Possible?
• Additional Cognitive Units: Schema, Attributions, And Beliefs
• Schema
• Attributions-Explanations
• Beliefs
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Cognition And Culture
• Analysis Of Cognitive Units
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 4 Motivational Units Of Personality.
• Pitchfork-Drive Theories Of Motivation
• Freud's Drive Theory
• Stimulus-Response Theory
• Murray's Need-Press Model
• Festinger's Theory of Cognitive Dissonance
• Carrot-Incentive Theories Of Motivation
• Historical Note
• Current Work in Goal Theory
• Cognitive Theories Of Motivation: Kelly's Jackass
• Kelly's Emphasis on Anticipating Events
• Attributional Models
• Weiner's Attributional Model
• Dweck's Model of Implicit Beliefs about the Self and the World
• Growth, Self-Actualization Theories Of Motivation
• Are There Universal Human Needs Or Motives?
• Comments On Motivational Units
• Relationships Among The Units Of Personality: Traits, Cognitions, And Motives
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• Part 2 Personality Development
• 5 The Nature And Nurture Of Personality.
• The Nature Of Personality: Evolution And Genetics
• Three Founders: Darwin, Mendel, and Galton
• Evolutionary, Ultimate Explanations
• Male-Female Mate Preferences
• Male-Female Differences in Causes of Jealousy
• Evolutionary Explanations
• Genetic, Proximate Explanations
• Behavioral Genetics
• The Nature of Nurture: The Effects of Genes on Environments
• The Nurture Of Personality
• Shared and Nonshared Environments
• Does Parenting Matter? The Case for Familial Influence
• The Nature And Nurture Of Personality: Update And Conclusion
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 6 Charting People's Lives Over Time.
• Stage Theories Of Personality
• Freud's Psychosexual Stages of Development
• Erikson's Psychosocial Stages of Development
• Critique of Stage Theories of Development
• Longitudinal Studies Of Development
• Stability and Change in Personality Development
• Illustrative Longitudinal Studies
• Magnusson's Swedish Study of Individual Development and Adjustment (IDA)
• The Longitudinal Research of Jack and Jeanne Block
• The Minnesota Parent-Child Project
• Additional Longitudinal Evidence of Relative Stability and Relative Change
• Stability-Continuity Of Personality: Two Opposing Points Of View
• Some Thoughts On Stability And Change In Personality And The Question Of Process
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• Part 3 Topics In Personality Research
• 7 The Unconscious
• Illustrative Phenomena
• Brief Historical Overview
• The Dynamic Unconscious Of Psychoanalysis
• Evidence for the Mechanisms of Defense
• Explaining the Dynamic Unconscious
• The Cognitive Unconscious
• Unconscious Influences on Memory and Perception
• Unconscious Influences on Feelings, Attitudes, and Behaviors toward Others
• Chronically Accessible Constructs
• Summary
• Comparison Of The Dynamic And Cognitive Views Of The Unconscious
• Implications For The Use Of Self-Report Measures
• Conclusions
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 8 The Concept Of The Self.
• Why Study The Concept Of The Self?
• The Waxing And Waning Of Interest In The Self: A Historical Perspective
• Development Of The Self
• The Self as Separate from Other People and Objects: Self-Perception
• The Development of Self-Consciousness
• Summary of the Developmental Perspective
• Three Views Of The Structure Of The Self
• The Phenomenological Theory of Carl Rogers
• The Psychoanalytic Concept of the Self
• Sullivan's Interpersonal School of Psychiatry
• Object Relations Theory
• Social Cognitive View of the Self
• Motivational Processes Relevant to the Self: Self-Verification and Self-Enhancement
• Comparison of the Social Cognitive and Psychoanalytic Views of the Self
• Individual Differences In The Self And Self-Processes
• Bandura's Self-Efficacy Concept
• Carver and Scheier's Control Theory and Private versus Public Self-Consciousness
• Higgin's Theory of Self-Guides
• Self-Esteem
• Neuroscience And The Self
• Culture And The Self
• Final Reflections On The Self
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 9 The Path From Thinking To Action.
• Rational Choice Behavior: Expectancy X Value Theory
• Tolman's Model of Purposive Behavior
• Lewin's Level of Aspiration Research
• Rotter's Expectancy-Value Model
• The Stasis And Flow Of Behavior: Toward A Theory Of Goals
• Goals, Self-Regulation, And Action: Programs Of Research
• Bandura's Model of Goals-Standards and Self-Regulation
• Personal Projects, Personal Strivings, and Life Tasks
• Little's Research on Personal Projects
• Emmons's Research on Personal Strivings
• Cantor's Research on Life Tasks
• Approach-Avoidance Goals and Promotion-Prevention Focus
• Common Elements, Differences, and Unanswered Questions
• Breakdowns In Self-Regulation And The Problem Of Volition
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 10 Emotion, Adaptation, And Health.
• Affect Within The Context Of Traditional Personality Theory
• Psychoanalytic Theory
• Phenomenological Theory: Carl Rogers
• Trait Theory
• Social Cognitive, Information-Processing Theory
• A Central Role for Affect in Personality
• Basic Emotions Theory
• Two Emotion-Motivation Systems
• The Biology Of Emotion
• Culture And Emotion
• Emotion Regulation, Coping With Stress, And Adaptation
• Emotion Regulation
• Stress and Coping
• Coping and the Mechanisms of Defense
• Emotion, Adaptation, And Health
• Optimism and Health: The Power of Positive Thinking
• Neuroticism and Negative Affectivity
• Suppression versus Expression of thoughts and Emotions
• Wegner's Research on the Effects of Thought Suppression
• Pennebaker's Research on the Effects of the Inhibition and Disclosure of Emotion
• Summary
• Conclusion
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 11 Maladaptive Personality Functioning And Processes Of Change.
• Descroption, Explanation, And Prescroption
• Trait Theory
• Eysenck's Trait Theory
• The Five-Factor Model (FFM) and Personality Disorders
• Two Illustrative Applications
• Applications to Problematic Interpersonal Behavior
• Description, Explanation, and Prescription and the Five-Factor Model
• The Trait Model of Personality Disorders: Summary
• Psychoanalytic Theory
• Psychopathology
• Object Relations Theory
• Narcissistic Personality Disorder: Comparison with Trait Theory
• Object Relations, Attachment, and Depression
• Therapeutic Change
• Description, Explanation, and Prescription and the Psychoanalytic Model
• Social Cognitive/Information-Processing Approaches
• Kelly's Personal Construct Theory
• Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory
• Beck's Cognitive Theory and Therapy
• Outcome Research
• Cognitive Therapy: Past, Present, and Future
• Social Cognitive Mechanisms in Psychopathology
• Description, Explanation, and Prescription and the Cognitive Model
• Issues Relevant To The Analysis Of Maladaptive Functioning And Therapeutic Change
• Situation, Domain Specificity
• System Functioning
• Emphasis on Unconscious Influences
• Cognition, Affect, and Behavior
• Changes Produced and Processes of Change
• Comparison Of The Alternative Models
• Biological And Cultural Aspects Of Maladaptive Personality Functioning And Personality Change
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 12 Personality Assessment.
• The Assessment Of Men By The Staff Of The Office Of Strategic Services
• Types Of Personality Data
• A Return To Consideration Of Reliability And Validity
• Some Questions Relevant To Personality Assessment
• Relations between Self and Observer Ratings
• The Potential for Deception
• The Relation of Fantasy to Behavior, of Explicit Measures to Implicit Measures
• Utility for Prediction
• Diversity and Personality Assessment
• The Relationship Between Personality Theory And Personality Assessment
• Conclusion
• Major Concepts
• Summary
• 13 Conclusion: Current Issues And The Prospects For The Science Of Personality.
• A Definition Of Personality
• Research Strategies
• Specificity Versus Generality
• Nature And Nurture, Genes And Culture
• Malleability-Fixity, Stability-Change
• Range Of Convenience And Focus Of Convenience
• Bandwidth And Fidelity
• Social And Political Aspects Of Personality Theory And Research
• Current Areas Of Interest
• Prospects For The Future
• Summary