Personality Psychology I

Selectable PhD course within the subject of psychology, 7.5 credits

Kursen ges på engelska, därför finns kursplanen endast tillgänglig på engelska.

Course plan

Content and aims

Why do people think, feel and act as they do? What makes people different from each other and what are the fundamental components of an individual’s personality? These questions have guided theory and research in personality psychology and the study of social behavior for many decades. The present course is aimed to provide an introduction to theory and research aiming to answer these questions. By the end of the course, the student is expected to be knowledgeable, critically evaluate, and see the potentials in key theories, methodology, and findings within the field of personality psychology.

Teaching, examination, and grading

The course includes 11 compulsory seminars (approximately 1.5 hours). The exam on the course consists of a research paper written as a research program and formed in line with the specifications provided by the Riksbankens Jubileumsfond (RJ, project, project description, first stage, see). The research program should be closely related to theory and research covered by the present course and this should be reflected by integrating the course literature in the project description. Grading will be based on the paper (research program) and participation in the seminars. The grading system (pass or fail) will be employed.

Literature: (500 pages)

John, O. P., & Robins, R. W. (Eds.). (2021). Handbook of personality: Theory and research (4th ed.). New York: Guilford Press. ISBN 9781462544950

The following chapters are compulsory:

I. Theoretical Perspectives and Conceptual Units

1. The Evolution of Human Personality
2. History, Measurement, and Conceptual Elaboration

II. Biological Foundations

6. Temperament: Theory and Research
8. The Neurobiology of Personality

III. Development

11. Personality Development across the Life Course
15. Personality Development in Adulthood and Later Life

IV. Cognitive and Motivational Processes

17. Cognitive Approaches to Personality
18. Implicit Motives

V. Affective Processes

21. Emotion and Personality: A Social Functionalist Approach
23. The Self-Conscious and Social Emotions

VI. Self- and Social Processes: Relationships, Culture, Environment

26. Naturalizing the Self
31. Persons, Situations, and Person–Situation Interactions

VII. Applications and Implications

35. Personality and Psychopathology
37. Personality and Health: A Lifespan Perspective

VIII. Emerging Issues and New Directions

38. Personality Interventions
40. Putting Personality in Its Place