Theories of Personality: A Zonal Perspective

“Another strength is that it constantly challenges students to apply theory to their own lives to solve “minor” problems…the text encourages the reader to think critically about all theories of personality, and for that matter, behavior. The text encourages students to evaluate one theory against another and to place it in relevant factor space. This is an exceptional book that I wish I had my hands on NOW.”  --William McCown, University of Louisiana at Monroe

“Real world accessibility is one of the strengths of the book.  The author makes a genuine effort to make theoretical concepts applicable to everyday experiences”.  --Trey Asbury, Campbell University

“The author’s attempt to foster critical thinking by contrasting the theories in terms of their differing levels of analysis is a nice change from ordinary personality psychology texts.  Another major strength here were the supplemental pieces of the chapters–-the boxes summarizing each theory and its parts, learning on the lighter side, and the websites.  I am a big fan of the looking ahead section as well, since I think it serves to excite students about what is to come while at the same time providing focus and direction”.  --Christine Jumpeter, SUNY Albany

“I found the reading of it rich and the of vision and scholarship phenomenal. This work IS, as the author mentions, his gift and he is gifted.  The research is remarkable in its and depth. This is a significant scholarly accomplishment.”  -Robin Lewis, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

“I found the author to be an extremely engaging writer. His use of analogies to common, everyday situations to describe or clarify a theoretical concept is very effectively executed. The author’s writing is very clear and coherent and definitely will facilitate a student’s reading comprehension.”  --Karen L. Horner, Catawba College

"The author does a good job of triggering controversy by means of presentation of biographical and historical information and Freud’s words.  Some are likely to strongly protest against Freud’s view of women and emphasis on sexuality, which can serve as a springboard of discussion.  In short, the style is provocative in nature.”  --Randal S. Jorgensen, Syracuse University

“The use of original source material is EXCELLENT.”  --Kevin B. Hadley, Germanna Community College

Have your students ever been overwhelmed by the encyclopedic volumes of personality theories and research?  Have they struggled to compare and synthesize these theories?

If so, look no further. Instead of using one of the historical, categorical, or research approaches to teaching personality, John M. Berecz s theories and research onto a grid to facilitate comparison and analysis. Students evaluate and compare personality constructs in different zones of interdisciplinary research rather than learning theoretical terms or analyzing research findings related to a particular theory.  The “Big Four” and “Tough Twins” questions are used to each theory to demonstrate the commonalities of theories for students, reinforcing comparison, evaluation, and application to real life.

“Real world accessibility is one of the strengths of the book.  The author makes a genuine effort to make theoretical concepts applicable to everyday experiences.”

 -Trey Asbury, Campbell University

“The author’s attempt to foster critical thinking by contrasting the theories in terms of their differing levels of analysis is a nice change from ordinary personality psychology texts.”

-Christine Jumpeter, SUNY Albany

Pearson’s MySearchLab is the easiest way for students to master a writing or research project.  In a recent student survey, the overwhelming majority of students are assigned writing and research projects, for which they would use research and citation tools if they were available to them.  MySearchLab is a website available at no additional charge in a package with a Pearson textbook and is also available as a standalone product.