Personality Theory / Edition 2

by Douglas P. Crowne

Overview

Personality Theory is a lively and accessible introduction to the major theoretical perspectives that inform contemporary research on personality. Tracing the work of individual theorists within the context of the eight overarching paradigms used to explain the origins and organization of human behavior, author Douglas Crowne provides an even-handed overview of each theorist's contributions to the field.
Students are encouraged to think critically by assessing the theorists' strengths and weaknesses, while pointing to what remains valuable and groundbreaking in their work. This second edition has been thoroughly updated and boasts new pedagogy, a new chapter on personality disorders, and new part divisions reflecting the basic paradigms. Engaging with a lucid narrative, Personality Theory is an exceptionally fascinating and readable text.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780195430202
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	08/10/2009
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	648
Product dimensions:	8.20(w) x 10.10(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Douglas P. Crowne is Professor Emeritus from the University of Waterloo and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association.

Table of Contents

1. The Scientific Study of Personality
Part 1: The Psychodynamic Paradigm
2. The Beginnings of Personality Theory
3. Psychoanalysis: Sigmund Freud
4. Analytic Psychology: Carl Jung
5. Ego Psychology: Anna Freud, Heinz Hartmann, and Erik Erikson
Part 2: Family, Society, and Culture
6. The Neo-Freudians: Alfred Adler
7. Three Eminent Neo-Freudians: Harry Stack Sullivan, Karen Horney, and Erich Fromm
Part 3: The Psychiatric Paradigm
8. Disorders of Personality
Part 4: Trait Theory
9. Gordon Allport, Raymond Cattell, Hans Eysenck, and the Big Five
Part 5: Existentialism
10. The Existentialism of R.D. Laing
Part 6: Phenomenology and Humanism
11. Carl Rogers' Theory of the Person, George Kelly's Personal Construct Theory
Part 7: Learning and Theories of Personality
12. The S-R Theory of John Dollard and Neal Miller
13. The Radical Behaviourism of B.F. Skinner
14. The Social Learning Theory of Julian Rotter
15. The Social Cognitive Learning Theories of Albert Bandura and Walter Mischel
Part 8: The Inheritance of Behaviour
16. Genes, Behaviour, and Personality
17. Personality Theory in Perspective
Appendix
Glossary
References
Index

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Gary B Kaniuk, PsyD (Cermak Health Services)
Description: Based on his 30 years of teaching personality theory and the influence of notable theorists such as Julian Rotter, George Kelly, and Harry Stack Sullivan, the author provides this basic book for undergraduate psychology students. The first edition was published in 2006.
Purpose: The author's aim with this second edition "has been to make the book a more complete account of the many theories that make up the story of personality, to make its organization more accessible, and to make it more readable and (my earnest hope) more enjoyable."
Audience: Undergraduate psychology students are the intended audience. The author, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Psychology at the University of Waterloo, was a colleague of Julian Rotter and George Kelly.
Features: An overview of personality theory begins the book. It then introduces the various theories within eight major traditions, including psychodynamic, trait, existential, humanistic, learning theory, and behavioral genetics. All of the chapters are uniformly organized with these sections: Five Points to Keep in Mind; Introduction; Description (including how biographical events influenced the concepts); Research; In Perspective; Summary; To Test Your Understanding; and Suggestions for Further Reading. Other nice features that provide clarity and make the book come alive include numerous pictures, illustrations, figures/tables, and boxes on Theory in Perspective/Theory in the Making. The inside front cover contains a color-coded Personality Theory by Paradigm chart, an appendix describes heritability from monozygotic and dizygotic twin correlations, and a glossary defines terms.
Assessment: The author has been teaching undergraduate students for over 30 years, so it is not surprising that this book is so good. Students will get a good foundation in personality theory with it. It compares favorably to Beneath the Mask: An Introduction to Theories of Personality, 8th edition, Sollod et al. (Guilford, 2009). The second edition is justified because of the additional information and reorganization of the book for better clarity.

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