Agressive Personality Essay -- Psychology

Essay question #1 Cognition is the mental process of gaining knowledge through thinking, judging and solving problems. Cognition functions to provide human beings with the ability to use language, make perceptions, use the imagination and make decisions. These thought processes play a significant role in personality development. Both biological and environmental factors have been linked to cognition. Biological factors include our genetic makeup and hereditary factors. Genetic makeup determines the physical characteristics of eye color, hair color. Hereditary factors are those traits that are transferred from parents and blood relations. These inherited traits determine temperament of human beings. Both the biological traits of genetics and inheritance play a major role in how human beings perceive themselves and how others interact with them. This cognitive perception of self and others is believed to help determine one’s personality. Environmental factors include how a human being i s raised and how outside influences such as school, church, relationships and society shape their cognitive processes. An example of the relationship between cognition and personality would be of a child born of two different races. Physical characteristics are likely to be different with mixed races causing the child to perceive themselves as abnormal, thus leading to antisocial or introverted personality traits. Essay question #2 The aggressive personality is defined as an â€Å"individual’s whose overall style of interacting involves considerable, persistent, maladaptive aggression† (counselingresource.com). Evolutionary, biological and environmental factors are contributing components of the aggressive personality. Human beings ... ...sachusetts: Allyn And Bacon. Cloninger, S. C. (2008). Theories of Personality Understanding Persons.. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. (Original work published 1996). CounsellingResource.com.CounsellingResource.com – Psychology, Therapy & Mental Health Resources. Retrieved December 6, 2011, from http://counsellingresource.com/features/2008/11/03/aggressive-personalities/ Friedman, H. S., & Schustack, M. W. (2006). Personality: classic theories and modern research. Needham Heights: Allyn And Bacon. (Original work published 1999) Simon, PhD, D. G. (2008, November 7). Understanding the Aggressive Personalities | CounsellingResource.com.CounsellingResource.com – Psychology, Therapy & Mental Health Resources. Retrieved December 6, 2011, from http://counsellingresource.com/features/2008/11/03/aggressive-personalities