Psychology of Secrets: the Self: Key Dimensions of Personality and Causes of Individual Differences
Anita E. Kelly
Were you an outgoing, energetic, emotional child? Or were you more shy, passive, and laid back? For the first day of this workshop, we will examine what psychologists consider to be the key dimensions of personality and what may cause these individual differences. Examples of causes include genetic and evolutionary factors, along with birth-order influences. At the end of the day, each of you will be invited to assess your own personality using popular instruments, which will be scored in the group setting. For the second day, we will discuss what the optimal type of personality might be. Related to this line of inquiry, are there dangers to having self-esteem that is too high or too low? Can our adult self-concepts be improved? We will explore the latest research in psychotherapy and address both how and why psychotherapy does in fact help so many people change.
This seminar was thorough, thought-provoking and insightful. My expectations were met in an extremely professional manner. I felt relaxed, comfortable and truly enjoyed this experience.
I have a better sense of how my students have multi-faceted personalities—a home personality, a school personality and a kid personality.
I have a better sense of how my students have multi-faceted personalities—a home personality, a school personality and a kid personality.
Many ideas transfer to my interactions with students and parents. I also found it to be a wonderful experience on my own road to discovery.
 Anita E. Kelly grew up in Rochester, NY. She received her B.S. from Northwestern University and her M.S. and Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Florida in Gainesville. She completed a one-year internship at the University of Maryland and then took her first position as an Assistant Professor at Iowa State University, where she became a licensed psychologist. She moved to the University of Notre Dame in 1994, where she has taught the Psychology of Personality, along with graduate and undergraduate courses on the latest research and theories about psychotherapy. Her research interests lie at the interface between counseling/clinical and social psychology. In particular, she is interested in examining how the self-concept can change in both psychotherapeutic and everyday contexts. She recently published a book called, The Psychology of Secrets. |