Theories of Personality

Course Overview

This course is designed for students to develop an understanding of the major approaches to personality theory which have been developed in the field of psychology. Emphasis is placed on 1) gaining an understanding of the most influential personality theorists, 2) gaining an understanding of the major schools of thought on personality, and 3) assisting students in developing their own theoretical orientation in regard to personality theory and professional practice. Attainment of these goals requires gaining adequate knowledge of the theories, critically thinking about each theory and how it fits with the student's own values and beliefs, and developing application skills in order to begin utilizing personality theory in the process of case conceptualization.

In this course, we will begin by focus on the four major branches of psychotherapy: 1) Behavioral/Cognitive-Behavioral; 2) Psychodynamic/Psychoanalytic; 3) Phenomenological (Humanistic & Existential); and 4) Traspersonal. From here,