PATEROS TECHNOLOGICAL

GHH COLLEGE Personality Development

The activities and discussions in this academic module will revolve around the following concepts
and ideas:
1. Understand and explain in your own words what is personal development.
2. Understand and explain the psychological basis of personal development:
3. Relate the concept of personal development to your own experiences as an
adolescent
4. Express your spiritual and religious beliefs and how these influences your personal
development
5. Explain that knowing oneself can make a person accept his/her strengths and
limitations, and deal with others better.
6. Share your unique characteristics, habits, and experiences and
7. Maintain a journal.

What is Personal Development?

A process in which persons reflect upon themselves, understand who they are, accept
what they discover about themselves, and learn new sets of values, attitudes, behavior, and
thinking skills to reach their fullest potential as human beings.

Knowing the Self

Knowing more about yourself is the paramount importance. Your self is the total, essential,
or particular being of your person. It also refers to the core qualities that distinguish you from
others. It consists of both conscious and unconscious aspects of a person. Moreover, it
comprises physical, mental or cognitive, emotional or effective, and social aspects. The self
also includes your spiritual dimension.

Psychology classifies developmental stages as prenatal, toddlerhood, childhood (early ,

middle and late), adolescence(puberty, middle and late), adulthood(early, middle, and late)
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and old age or senescence ( Smith 2004)

Your developmental stage is called adolescence.

In this stage you will notice the following general characteristics:

 Experiencing rapid physical changes until their full completion in late adolescence
 Showing ability to comprehend abstract concepts in mathematics, develop moral
philosophies including claims and privileges
 Questioning old values without fear or with a consideration of one’s identity
 Moving gradually toward a more mature sense of identity and purpose
 Starting to establish and maintain satisfying personal relationships by learning to share
intimacy without inhibition or dread.

Adolescence is further subdivided into early adolescence (12 to 14 years old), middle
adolescence ( 15 to 17 years old), and late adolescence (18 to 21 years old) . Puberty during
early adolescence stage is marked with physical changes, including menarche(menstruation)
and nocturnal emissions ( wet dreams) for female and male, respectively.

Defining the “Self”

Before we discuss how to know one’s self, we have to define first the concept of the
SELF in philosophical terms, it is the being, which is the source of a person’s consciousness.
It is the agent responsible for an individual’s thoughts and actions. Based on this
definition, the “SELF” is an intangible entity that directs a person’s thoughts and actions, It is
outside the physical realm of the person.
The” SELF” may be identified in various contexts, such as in psychology, sociology, or
religion. In psychology, the “SELF” is the essence of a person: his thoughts, feelings and
actions, experiences, belief, values, principles, and relationships.
In religion or in the spiritual realm, the “SELF” includes a persons life purpose,
meaning, aspirations, and one’s relationship with a higher being.
In sociology, the “SELF” is said to be defined by the roles we take when relate with
others, such as being your parents child being classmate, a friend or teammate.
When the “SELF” is defined as the cognitive and affective representation of one’s
identity, it is then described in terms of human characteristics such as behavior and thought.

Personal Development in Adolescence

In psychology the term “personality” is referred to as the set of behaviors, feelings, and
thoughts, and motives that identifies an individual. Personality is usually describing in
behavioral terms that are observable and measurable

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While personal development falls within the realm of psychology, it cannot be detached
from the development of the brain and the rest of the physical body.

Adolescence is the transition period between childhood and early adulthood. Although
scientist and psychologist may slightly differ in pegging the exact age of adolescence, it is
widely believed to be between ages 11 or 12 and lasting to about 18 years of age ( Feist &
Roseberg 2012)

In the Philippines context, authors Corpuz, Lucas, Borabo, and Lucido (2010) defined
the three stages of adolescence as:

 Early adolescence – between 10 and 13 years of age

 Middle adolescence – between 14 and 16 years of age
 Late adolescence – between 17 and 20 years of age.

Adolescence starts with the biological changes called puberty. The physical body
undergoes growth sports at this time, for both male and female, leading toward physical
maturity.

Biological changes bring about cognitive (thinking and reasoning) and affective
(feelings and emotional) changes. The child, who has reached adolescence, is now
capable of reasoning about abstract concepts and problems. At this point, the adolescent
becomes more inquisitive about things like philosophy, religion, and politics. This is also
the stage when adolescents begin to ask questions about their identity. Relationships with
family and friends are also affected by puberty during adolescence. Friends become the
center of relationships more than family.

Spirituality and Religious Beliefs and Personal Development

It is also important to consider the spirituality and religious beliefs of a person and how
this influence personal development. Feist and Rosenberg (2012) infer that during
adolescence, young people will start asking about abstract questions, like about politics or
religion, and eventually form their own beliefs . This reflection is left to the student to find out
how his or her religious beliefs influence one’s identity development and understanding of
personal development. Personal development may be approached from different religious
perspective. Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism among others, whose
teachings may serve as the core or basis in developing one’s self.

Explain:

1. How do you understand the “SELF”?

2. How does the “SELF” relate to personality?
3. How is personal development linked to psychology?
4. Give some popular slogans or phrases that are attributable to positive psychology such as
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“Think Positive”.
5. How does the age and stage of development of a person influence his or her personal
development?
6. Relate your spiritual and /or religious beliefs to personal development. How does this
manifest in terms of your day-to-day behavior at home? In school?

Asynchronous Activity
Search on the internet the video “Ted Talks – The Hidden Power of Smiling” by
Ron Gutman. Watch the video and write a Reflection of at least 200 words.

My Reflection Page
Sept 19, 2022

________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

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ACTIVITY 1.1 How much do I know My Development Stage?

The activity has two parts. The first part specifies the characteristics of middle adolescence,
while the second part is for late adolescence. Check the characteristics that you have
observed and experienced in each stage.

Part I: Middle Adolescence Stage ( 15- 17 years old) Check

A. Physiological
1. Most girls have completed physical changes during puberty by age 15.
2. Boys continues to mature, become stronger and taller, and are almost
completing the development of sexual traits.
B. Emotional / Affective
1. May be anxious about school and test scores
2. Can be highly involved with high expectations yet struggling in self
concept
3. Seeks to be alone
4. Has tendency to complain about parents preventing him or her from
doing things independently
5. Begins to blend physical and emotional intimacy with relationships
6. Shows tenderness and attachment to peers
7. Shows feelings of love and passion
8. Finds sexual attractiveness important
C. Intellectual
1. Becomes better at setting goals and thinking in terms of the future
2. Has a better understanding of complex interrelationships of problems
and issues
3. Starts to develop moral ideals and select role models
D. Social
1. Is increasingly aware of social behaviors of friends
2. Seeks friends who share similar beliefs, values and interest
3. Starts to consider friends more important
4. Starts to have more intellectual interests
5. May be influenced by peers to try risky behaviors ( alcohol, cigar, sex)
Part II. Late Adolescence Stage ( 18-21 years old)
A. Physical
1. Physical and sexual development determined by genes and
environment
2. Adolescence as a period of sexual excitement and anxiety
3. Most girls are fully developed
4. Boys continue to gain height, weight, muscle mass and body hair
B. Emotional/ Affective
1. Greater emotional stability
2. Firmer identity
3. Ability to delay gratification
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4. More developed sense of humor

5. Stable interests
6. Ability to make independent decisions
7. Ability to compromise
8. Prides in one’s work
9. Self – reliance
10. Capacities for tender and sensual love
C. Intellectual
1. Moving beyond concrete, actual experiences and beginning to think in
logical and abstract terms
2. Higher level concern for future
3. Thoughts about one’s role in life
4. Ability to think ideas through
5. Ability to express ideas in words.
D. Social
1. Greater concern for others
2. Concerned about serious relationships
3. Clear sexual identity
4. Capacities for tender and sensual love

Answer J1.1 and J1.2 in a separate sheet; ( MS word)

Format: A4, Arial, Font 12

Answer the following questions in your journal

J1.1
1. Which parts did you check the most? What do they tell you about your current stage?

2. How do you feel about the things that you have checked about yourself? Are you
comfortable having undergone those changes? Why?

3. Are these things about you that you find confusing, and you want to find more answers
about? Briefly describe these confusions

4. Which of the listed characteristics do you find difficult to deal with and have struggled in
managing?

The adolescence stage is a colorful and vibrant stage. Emotions can be very intense.
The struggle of an adolescent happens mainly because at the onset of physiological
development during puberty, physical changes bring in a lot of discomfort which an
adolescence may find confusing. As these changes happen, turbulent emotions may
also arise. Managing these can be very challenging and thus may entail equipping you
with emotional management skills.
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The Johari Window

The Johari Window is a technique used to help you better understand your
relationship with yourself and others. This was created by American psychologists
Joseph Luft ( 1916- 2014) and Harrington Ingham (1916-1995). It has four regional as
follows.:

Region 1: Open Self – what is known by you and others

Region 2: Blind Self – what is unknown by you, but which others know

Region 3: Hidden Self – what is known by you but which others do not know

Region 4: Unknown Self – What is not known by you and others.

OPEN SELF BLIND AREA

UNKNOWN SELF
HIDDEN SELF

Figure1.2 Johari’s Window Model

Activity 1.2 Self Check on Strengths and Areas for Improvement

Fill out the spaces below with the following

Region 1. Open Self – all the things that you know about yourself. Including both strengths
and weaknesses

Region 2 Blind Self – feedback about your strengths and weaknesses. ( Get a partner/
classmate for this part)

Region 3 Hidden Self- Things about you have kept hidden for fear of possible rejection

Region 4 Unknown Self – all desires, longings, aspirations, images, intense emotional states,
visions, questions about life, etc.that have crossed your mind from time and which can lead to
some clues about the unknown part of your person.

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Region 1. Open self Region 2. Blind Self

_______________________ ______________________
_______________________ _______________________
_______________________ _______________________

Region 3. Hidden Self Region 4. Unknown Self

_______________________
_______________________ _______________________
______________________ _______________________
________________________

Answer the following questions in your journal

J1.2

1. Which of your strengths and weaknesses appear the most in almost if not all of the
four regions?
How do you feel about them? Do they reflect some characteristics of your stage being
an adolescent?

2. Which of the areas give you the most challenge in dealing with or managing yourself?
Why? What particular steps can you do to respond to these challenges?

3. What can you do to enhance your strengths and correct your weakness?

This Johari Window model diagram is an example of the open area by reducing the
blind area, which would normally be achieved through the process of asking for and
then receiving feedback. The open area can also be increased through the process of
self – disclosure, which reduces the hidden area. The unknown area can be reduced by
the observation of others, which reduces the blind area: by self – discovery, which
reduces the hidden area: or by mutual enlightenment via group experiences and
discussion, which increases the open area.

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Furthermore, identifying your strengths and weaknesses will equip you with skills
needed in managing yourself well. Your positive traits will serve as your added force
towards transforming your weaknesses into positive forces within you. The extent of
your capacity to face weaknesses by finding ways to correct them will propel you
towards achieving your life goals.

“To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance”

- Oscar Wilde

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