http://worldcat.org/entity/work/id/142376191

Personality and adjustment

"Both authors realize that many forces in the development of personality are as yet unidentified and unmeasurable. Nevertheless, they believe that a systematic study of growth and the problems of adjustment will contribute to improved understanding of all human behavior, be it complex or profound. The authors have experimented with different teaching approaches in their own university, college, junior college, extension, and adult-education classes. They have also worked closely with individuals as psychological counselors in educational, industrial, and clinical situations. From these experiences this text has grown. The needs and interests of both students and laymen have been foremost in the minds of the authors as they prepared this text. It is especially designed for an introductory course in the psychology of personality which can be given a mental-hygiene slant.It might be used as a second-semester text, following an initial semester of general psychology, or it might be used as a first-semester text in which emphases match the phases of psychology which students typically wish to study first. Parts of this book should serve well as reference material for a variety of other courses in psychology, education, personnel management, family relationships, writing and dramatics, group leadership, etc. Recent researches, clinical data, and illustrations from everyday life have been woven together in a way which the authors hope will be meaningful to diverse readers. Practical application will be encouraged by use of the questions at the end of each chapter. The suggested readings are drawn from many disciplines so that student interests may be guided through further explorations. The general arrangement is in five parts, each introduced by a brief summary-transition designed to assist the reader's feeling of continuity of subject matter. Part One sketches several important but general problems of mental health, outlining international, national, and samples of local programs. Part Two analyzes four of the fundamental aspects of personality, namely, psychosomatics, motivation, culture, and perception. In Part Three these aspects are amalgamated into discussion of the development of personality through the life cycle. Various methods of assessment are examined as they contribute to an understanding of the many facets of personality. In Part Four the process of adjustment is magnified and highlighted as growth in relationship to four sample critical areas, i.e., courtship, the family, handicaps, and delinquency. Part Five discusses some of the techniques available for helping inadequately adjusted personalities toward more healthy growth trends. Emphasis here has been on improving the reader's insight into the processes of adjustment. Based upon the earlier discussions, Part Five in its latter half develops a list of "criteria" which seem in the experience of the authors to suggest viewpoints holding positive relationships to healthy growth of personality"--Preface. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved).

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