Giving Birth to Ourselves: Reflections on Personaltiy

At first glance, personality appears deceptively easy to define. We frequently make observations about friends, family and even strangers that amount to short commentaries about their distinctive personalities. In "Giving Birth to Ourselves: Reflections on Personality," psychologist and educator Dann Hazel takes a closer look at the complexities of personality. First, he examines the role of internal conflicts in the shaping of personality. Next, the interplay of mind, environment, determination and freedom is shown to play large roles in cultivating personal resiliency. The third chapter of the book focuses on the "trait theory" of personality, the most widely accepted and perhaps most easily understood approach to studying personality. The book concludes with an unbridled look at the personality of hate in an attempt to understand prejudice and racism.