PSYC207 Course outline 2009-1
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University of Macau
Department of Psychology
PSYC207 PERSONALITY PSYCHOLOGY
COURSE OUTLINE Fall 2009
Compiled by Dr Gertina van Schalkwyk
In this course on Personality Psychology we explore some of the key approaches to
studying personality and understanding and explaining the differences and similarities
between individuals regarding their thoughts, feelings and behaviour in various situations.
The focus is on different questions, units of analysis, assumptions about causes of
behaviour, and approaches to personality change proposed by theories of personality.
Traditional approaches we will explore include the psychoanalytic approach, the trait
approach, humanist approaches, and learning approaches. These approaches will be
complemented with a look at some “limited domain theories” of personality, and an
introduction to more contemporary attempts of the social-cognitive approach and social
constructionism building a unifying theoretical framework for understanding and explaining
personality.
FACILITATOR DETAILS
Name
Dr Gertina van Schalkwyk
Office
Block 1-8B, B803
Tel no.
8397 8481
E-mail
GJVS@umac.mo
Meeting time
Thursday
08:00 – 11:00 Venue: JLG202
Other meetings
Wednesday 11:30 – 12:30 Thursday
11:30 – 12:30
(consultation)
Other times are also available – make an appointment via e-mail
COLLABORATIVE LEARNING APPROACH
In this course we will follow a collaborative learning approach. This implies active
participation by you, the student as well as me, the facilitator in the content and process of
the conversational practice and knowledge construction. We take joint responsibility for
learning. Your responsibility as student involves:
 Preparing for lectures by doing the reading indicated for each lecture
 Participating in discussions during the meeting time
 Active involvement in asking questions and finding answers
 Being courageous and speaking your mind
My responsibility as facilitator is to:
 Guide the collaborative learning process
 Facilitate conversational practices
 Provide inputs where necessary
EXPECTED OUTCOMES
The outcomes for this course are achievements that draw on specific knowledge and skills,
displayed in a particular context, and which can be demonstrated and evaluated as a clearly
PSYC207 Course outline 2009-1
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observable end product of learning. It points to what you should know and be able to do after
completing the reading for this course and participating in discussions during our meetings.
In this course we aim to achieve:
1. Understanding of the structure and functioning (dynamics) of personality as
manifested in everyday behaviour, thought and feelings
2. Knowledge of major assumptions, concepts, units of analysis, underlying
mechanisms and interpretations of different theories of personality
3. Skills for reading and interpreting resources relevant to the study of personality
4. Skills for communicating in both verbally and written mode about our understanding
and interpretation of different theories of personality
5. Strategies for deepening your understanding and exploration of personality
6. A questioning mind and psychological mindfulness regarding individual differences
and similarities that constitutes “personality”
You will accomplish these achievements (outcomes) in a collaborative and interactive way
by acquainting yourself with the basic elements necessary to construct knowledge and
develop skills. Some valuable hints:
 Learning is an active process and you will achieve the best results once you embark on
employing the supportive elements of the SQ3R method:
 Surveying and prepare for specific activities, and get an overview of the material.
 Questioning all information and your personal observations to help you organise
and recall it at later stage when you perform a task or interact with a problem or
assignment, broader environment, and your peer group.
 Reading material attentively and write down answers to your questions as you come
across them in your reading, brining together different segments of your
understanding to map new knowledge.
 Reciting, perform and practice using the information in an integrating manner.
 Reviewing and monitoring your own progress by evaluating, checking, verifying,
rectifying, auditing and commissioning the outcomes with a view to submit
assignments for assessment.
 Writing is a valuable tool for learning. Always bring paper and pen to class so that you
can take notes and write responses to class exercises.
 Writing is also necessary for articulation of your comprehension of the course content,
and designed to help you learn and apply the material and clearly communicate what
you have learned. Therefore, this course will contain various writing components to help
you through the learning process.
 You are also encouraged to read as much as possible (preferably in English) and to
carefully observe and question aspects related to personality in everyday life.
PRESCRIBED READING
 Schultz, D.P. & Schultz, S.E. (2005). Theories of Personality (8th ed.). Singapore:
Wadsworth Thomson Learning. ISBN-10: 0534624022 / ISBN-13: 9780534624026
 Van Schalkwyk, G.J. (2008). Personality Psychology Study Notes. Unpublished papers,
University of Macau posted on UMMoodle for PSYC207
 Various articles posted on UMMoodle – for reading and written project
PSYC207 Course outline 2009-1
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PROJECTS OF LEARNING
Projects of learning refer to the different forms of assessment that is part of the learning
process. Different assessment strategies will be used to assess your achievements on the
specific outcomes. These strategies are aimed at evaluating what you have learnt
(knowledge component), the learning process (skill component), and whether you can
transfer the knowledge and skill to real-life situations (attitude component). Due dates for the
projects of learning are given in the course outline.
PROGRESS MARK
= 60%
The coursework grade for PSYC207 comprises three projects set out below. You can
achieve good results by excelling in the individual assignment and participating in
discussions, as well as studying proactively for the quizzes and exam.
Attendance & participation
= 20%
This is a collaborative teaching and discussion-based course. Your attendance and active
participation in class is therefore of prime importance to your learning experience and to that
of your fellow classmates. Come to class on time and be prepared! Your grade will be based
on your class attendance and participation in class discussions. Arriving late – that is, 10
minutes after the class has started – will imply losing the grades for that class period.
Be prepared by reading the prescribed chapters beforehand (indicated in the course outline
for the next class). I posted Personality Psychology Study Notes on UMMoodle to assist you
on the journey through the landscape of personality theories. You should also read these
Study Notes for the upcoming class.
Quizzes
= 50%
There will be 3 in-class quizzes for this course replacing the mid-term exam. The quizzes will
take place at the beginning of a lecture lasting approximately 40-50 minutes. Each quiz will
consist of multiple choice questions (MCQ) and/or short essay-type questions and will
assess command of the assigned reading.
 Note: If you are absent or late on a quiz day, you will receive a zero for that quiz. Missed
quizzes cannot be made up! The average for all quizzes will serve as grade for the one
you have missed.
Written assignment
= 30%
You have to submit a written paper of maximum four (4) pages. The assignment entails a
review of two scientific journal articles that relates to the personality theories/approaches
covered in this course. I will post relevant journal articles on the UMMoodle website. You can
choose any TWO of these articles for your review and evaluate how the theory (personality
theory) is applied to define and explain key concepts in the reported research.
NOTE on written assignment
 The review should not exceed 4 pages including the references and title page.
 The paper should be stapled in the top left corner, paginated, and 1.5 line spacing, with
10 or 12-point font Arial and 2.5 cm margins.
 Papers will be graded on their clarity of thought, quality of expression, and command of
the course material (see the attached title page and criteria).
PSYC207 Course outline 2009-1
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Papers not turned in at the beginning of class on the due date (see course outline), must be
e-mailed to me as a WORD attachment, and 5 points will be deducted for each day that the
paper is late. Papers may be submitted early but late assignments will be subject to
substantial markdown.
FINAL EXAM
= 40%
You will write a comprehensive final exam in January 2010. The final exam paper comprises
ALL the chapters studied for this course as well as the relevant sections in the Personality
Psychology Study Notes, and will include multiple choice questions as well as short essay
questions.
Grades for both the progress mark and the final exam are rounded to the nearest whole
number. For example, 89.4 rounds down to 89, while 89.6 rounds up to 90.
FINAL COMMENT
I do hope you will enjoy this course and will learn much by participating and interacting with
classmates and significant others. Please feel free to contact me at any stage if you have a
query or are uncertain about how to proceed or even when you have difficulties with your
coursework.
Try to schedule at least one meeting with me during the semester and come individually or
as a small group – your learning can only benefit from engaging in conversational practice
on the topics for this course.
Enjoy the journey of discovery and learning about personality!
PSYC207 Course outline 2009-1
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COURSE OUTLINE for PSYC207
The table below provides an overview of the course content as well as the reading required
for every week of this semester. Quizzes and exams will cover both lecture material and
readings (textbook and Personality Psychology Study Notes).
Week
Date
Topic
Reading
1
10/09
Introduction and overview
 Course overview
 Invitation to the journey
Introduction (Chapter
1, pp.3-41)
Study Notes 1
2
17/09
Reflective inquiry
 Studying personality psychology
 Analysing scholarly journal articles
 Introducing “Psychodynamic City”
Freud (Chapter 2,
pp.43-91
Study Notes 2
3
24/09
“Psychodynamic City” – the psychoanalytic
approaches
 Unconscious processes as source of human
striving & motivating behaviour
 Instincts, archetypes
Jung (Chapter 3,
pp.95-122)
Study Notes 3
4
01/10
PRC day holiday
5
08/10
“Psychodynamic City” – the psychosocial
approach
 Psychosocial processes motivating
behaviour
Erikson (Chapter 8,
pp.219-248)
Study Notes 3
6
15/10
Application of three theories
 Quiz 1: Psychoanalytic & psychosocial
approaches (50 min)
Collaborative practice
 Sharing what you have learnt
Reading for quiz 1:
Chapters 1, 2, 3 & 8
Study Notes 3
7
22/10
“Trait City” – trait approaches
 Introduction to Trait City
 Hereditary factors & traits as motivation
 Five-factor model
Collaborative practice
 Sharing what you learnt in Trait City
 Application & case analysis
Eysenck (Chapter 10,
pp.288-289)
McCrae & Costa
(Chapter 10, pp.292298)
Study Notes 4
8
29/10
FSH Reading week
Continue with written assignment – theme paper
9
05/11
“Humanistic City” – actualisation as key
motivation
 Introduction to Humanistic City
 Actualisation of human potential
 Need for positive regard
Maslow (Chapter 11,
pp.305-330)
Rogers (Chapter 12,
pp.332-351)
Study Notes 5
PSYC207 Course outline 2009-1
Topic
6
Week
Date
10
12/11
“Humanistic City” – personal constructs
 Experience & subjective knowing
 The self and self-concept
 Personal construct system
Kelly (Chapter 13,
pp.355-376)
Submit written
assignment
11
19/11
Application & collaborative practice
Quiz 2: Trait theories & humanistic theories (50
min)
Collaborative practice
 Presentation (psychodrama) of humanist
theories
Reading for Quiz 2:
Chapters 10, 11, 12 &
13
Study Notes 4 & 5
12
26/11
“Social-Cognitive City” – social learning
 Introduction to Social-Cognitive City
 Learning processes of motivation
 Observational learning
Bandura (Chapter 15,
pp.403-432)
Study Notes 6
13
03/12
“Social-Cognitive City” – social learning
 Personal variables
 Processes of
Collaborative practice
 Case study analysis
Walter Mischel (article)
Study Notes 6
14
10/12
Application & collaborative practice
Quiz 3: Learning theories & social-cognitive
approach (50 min)
Contemporary approaches to personality
 Social Constructionism and the Dialogical
Self Theory
Reading for quiz 3:
Chapter 15 & 16
Study Notes 6
15
17/12
Bringing it all together
 Comparison and summary of major principles
 What is personality?
 Why study personality?
Study Notes 7 & 8
Reading for exam January 2010
All prescribed chapters in the textbook
Study Notes 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8
Reading