A CHOICE Magazine Outstanding Academic Title of 2018. A novel approach to understanding personality, based on evidence that we share more than we realize with other mammals. This book presents the wealth of scientific evidence that our personality emerges from evolved primary emotions shared by all mammals. Yes, your dog feels love—and many other things too. These subcortically generated emotions bias our actions, alter our perceptions, guide our learning, provide the basis for our thoughts and memories, and become regulated over the course of our lives. Understanding personality development from the perspective of mammals is a groundbreaking approach, and one that sheds new light on the ways in which we as humans respond to life events, both good and bad. Jaak Panksepp, famous for discovering laughter in rats and for creating the field of affective neuroscience, died in April 2017. This book forms part of his lasting legacy and impact on a wide range of scientific and humanistic disciplines. It will be essential reading for anyone trying to understand how we act in the world, and the world’s impact on us.

Personality Psychology: Foundations and Findings is an evidence-based text with integrated cultural references and excellent coverage of the key building blocks of the subject matter--namely, the "foundations"(traits, genetics, self and identity, neuroscience, intrapsychic aspects, regulations and motivation, and cognition as it applies to the human personality) and the "findings" (the cutting edge research in each of these areas in which personality psychologists are actively engaged every day).

Differences between people are a fascinating and long-standing area of psychological inquiry. However, previous research has largely been confined to studies at the descriptive level. This book tries to explain individual difference, rather than merely describe them. Explanations are derived from two major competing frameworks: the biological and social approaches to individuality. The book is based on the contributions of specialists from Europe and North America invited to represent the biological and social points of view. Thus, a direct confrontation is obtained of two approaches that, hitherto, have proceeded with virtually no reference to each other. Attention is paid to behavior genetics, psychophysiology and temperament, as well as to social learning, behavioral strategies and person-environment interactions. Differences and commonalities between the biological and social approaches are scrutinized and a common framework is outlined to stimulate future research. Due to its innovative character, the book is particularly relevant for investigators in the field. In addition, it may be fruitfully used in advanced graduate level courses in personality psychology.

The first study in more than 30 years to investigate the broad significance of personality traits for mass political behavior.

Abraham Myerson's psychological work "The Foundations of Personality" explores the variables affecting a person's personality development. The renowned American psychiatrist Myerson examines how environment and genes interact to shape a person's character in a 1922 publication. According to Myerson, a person's personality is mostly shaped by their upbringing and inherited characteristics during the formative years of life. He highlights how important it is to comprehend these influences in order to better understand and treat a range of psychiatric problems. The effects of social environment, cultural influences, and family dynamics on personality development are only a few of the subjects covered in the book. Myerson also covers the significance of understanding how heredity plays a part in each individual's particular blend of nature and nurture. In general, "The Foundations of Personality" adds to our knowledge of psychological development in the early 20th century by illuminating the intricate interactions between hereditary and environmental elements that shape human personality.

This classic is one of the most cited and novel approaches to psychology ever written. Hans Eysenck presents a descriptive and causal model of human personality in accord with the major concepts of experimental psychology and the physiological and neurological mechanisms that form the biological basis of behavior patterns. His proposal for an alliance between personality and physiology represented a major innovation in the field of psychology, distinguished his research from his contemporaries, and set the stage for a wealth of research to come. Before this foundational work, Eysenck had initially constructed a model of personality in such works as Dimensions of Personality and The Experimental Study of Personality, but these were primarily descriptive in nature. A second phase of research included his Dynamics of Anxiety and Hysteria and Experiments with Drugs, where he provided causal analysis by reference to concepts then current in experimental psychology. The Biological Basis of Personality represents Eysenck's third phase, when he dug deeper to find biological causes underlying the psychological concepts of emotion, excitation, and inhibition--which had formed the building blocks of his earlier efforts. In this work, the causal links he postulates between personality variables and neurological and physiological discoveries establish a realistic model that takes theory out of the field of mere speculation. As Sybil Eysenck makes clear in her new preface, this book paved the way for a "marriage" of the experimental and individual difference approach in personality psychology. As Sybil Eysenck makes clear in her new preface, this book paved the way for a "marriage" of the experimental and individual difference approach in personality psychology.

The Foundations of Personality is a classic psychology study of personality and character by Abraham Myerson.

Bringing together prominent scholars, this authoritative volume considers the development of personality at multiple levels--from the neuroscience of dispositional traits to the cultural shaping of life stories. Illustrated with case studies and concrete examples, the Handbook integrates areas of research that have often remained disparate. It offers a lifespan perspective on the many factors that influence each individual's psychological makeup and examines the interface of personality development with health, psychopathology, relationships, and the family. Contributors provide broad-based, up-to-date reviews of theories, empirical findings, methodological innovations, and emerging trends. See also the authored volume The Art and Science of Personality Development, by Dan P. McAdams.

The most comprehensive single volume ever published on the subject, the Handbook of Personality Psychology is the end-all, must-have reference work for personality psychologists. This handbook discusses the development and measurement of personality as well as biological and social determinants, dynamic personality processes, the personality's relation to the self, and personality in relation to applied psychology. Authored by the field's most respected researchers, each chapter provides a concise summary of the subject to date. Topics include such areas as individual differences, stability of personality, evolutionary foundations of personality, cross-cultural perspectives, emotion, psychological defenses, and the connection between personality and health. Intended for an advanced audience, the Handbook of Personality Psychology will be your foremost resource in this diverse field.Chapter topics include:* Nature of personality psychology* Conceptual and measurement issues in personality* Developmental issues* Biological determinants of personality* Social determinants of personality* Dynamic personality processes* Personality and the self* The Five Factor Model* Applied psychology

The nature of well-being is one of the most enduring and elusive subjects of human inquiry. Well-Being draws upon the latest scientific research to transform our understanding of this ancient question. With contributions from leading authorities in psychology, social psychology, and neuroscience, this volume presents the definitive account of current scientific efforts to understand human pleasure and pain, contentment and despair. The distinguished contributors to this volume combine a rigorous analysis of human sensations, emotions, and moods with a broad assessment of the many factors, from heredity to nationality, that bear on our well-being. Using the tools of experimental science, the contributors confront the puzzles of human likes and dislikes. Why do we grow accustomed and desensitized to changes in our lives, both good and bad? Does our happiness reflect the circumstances of our lives or is it determined by our temperament and personality? Why do humans acquire tastes for sensations that are initially painful or unpleasant? By examining the roots of our everyday likes and dislikes, the book also sheds light on some of the more extreme examples of attraction and aversion, such as addiction and depression. Among its wide ranging inquiries, Well-Being examines systematic differences in moods and behaviors between genders, explaining why women suffer higher rates of depression and anxiety than men, but are also more inclined to express positive emotions. The book also makes international comparisons, finding that some countries' populations report higher levels of happiness than others. The contributors deploy an array of methods, from the surveys and questionnaires of social science to psychological and physiological experiments, to develop a comprehensive new approach to the study of well-being. They show how the sensory pleasures of the body can tells us something about the higher pleasures of the mind and even how the effectiveness of our immune system can depend upon the health of our social relationships.