Customer Reviews

Theories of Personality: Understanding Persons (4th Edition)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

A wonderful introduction to the major personality theorists of the past century or so -- from Freud to Kelly -- written with insight, clarity, and a creative educational 'gimmick' that encourages the reader to apply the theories to many well-known personalities. Not only does the reader learn the fundamental ideas of theorists such as Jung, Adler, and Maslow; he applies those concepts to analyze the likes of Shirley MacLaine, Donald Trump, and Martin Luther King.

If a textbook could be self-actualized, this one is it. Excellent!

I was so looking forward to this class about personality theories, and this book is a major disappointment. While some chapters are educating and written in a fairly engaging and flowing manner, others are plain difficult to go through. There is a lot of oversimplification, a lot of mentioning important concepts that only get half a sentence and a reference - am I wrong in thinking that a textbook is aimed at teaching rather than merely referring?

It would have been more acceptable if the book kept a consistent level of addressing the various theories, but that is not the case. Some theorists get the limelight with in-depth discussion, while with others the author hovers quickly at 100 feet and fills pages with disconnected sketchy paragraphs that don't flow and don't really say much. Even the graphic presentation makes this book tiresome to follow, as it's hard to tell a chapter from a sub-chapter.

It's a serious challenge to not let this book ruin this subject, it's a challenge to keep reading and at times it's a challenge to understand what the author is trying to say. I fully agree with the reviewer who wrote "It's almost like it was written by some grad student for extra-credit... It's like a REALLY LONG, REALLY bad term paper...". Some of the chapters make one wonder if they were edited at all, as they are written so offhandedly and with so many repetitions.

I'm SO glad I found a used book of the 4th edition and didn't pay the outrageously high price for the new edition, which - mind you - is almost identical except for a more appealing graphic design and an additional chapter about Buddhism. This is not a book I'd keep.

This author writes herself in circles, jumps around, interjects silly metaphors throughout, and ultimately vomits too much information at the reader that is not properly disseminated (too much information on the irrelevant, not enough on what she is attempting to describe). It takes 110% of your attention just to make down a page to try and follow the train-of thought. You will find yourself day-dreaming......even in the middle of the night!

I had to purchase this text for my "Psychology of Personality" class. While my online shopping experience was great, I don't even know where to start with the short-comings of the text book. Who in their right mind would choose this as a learning tool?! Not only is it VERY poorly written (it doesn't flow at all, it's so choppy and semantic and boring - this coming from a psych. major - that it's incredibly hard to read, let alone retain the information).

Secondly, the theorists in the book are people like Freud and Jung. People who, granted, contributed a great deal to psychology, but who's theories are NOT used in therapeutic practices in current days. To try to apply them as such is ridiculous.

Lastly, each theorist has their own point of view, and contradicts the other (and themself most of the time), yet the author seems to uphold the view of each theorist... Which theory is one to assume is the most true? Of course I don't agree with any, but if one were looking for one to choose, one wouldn't know which one was 'the right one'....

It's almost like it was written by some grad student for extra-credit... It's like a REALLY LONG, REALLY bad term paper...

The textbook was in good shape and it really was an interesting read as far as textbooks go. Considering what the new edition costs, there really is no difference from the new edition that will affect you learning the material.

This product was in good condition and arrived within the specified time frames. It was just what I ordered.

the book is very interesting and I have learned many things that help me out in many situations