Personality is defined in the textbook as, “the long-standing traits and patterns that propel individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave” (Spielman p. 366). So when I took the Five Factor Personality Test, I discovered more about my own personality; things I did not even know about myself. I was surprised to find out that I scored a 45% on Openness to Experience. On the contrary, I scored a 94% on Agreeableness. Openness to Experience people are people who are open-minded about life and appreciate other’s ideas, while people who score high on Agreeableness are considerate and helpful to others. From this, I can conclude that I am more close-minded in my ways, and only enjoy certain things; and I do not particularly like changing my ways. I can also say that I want to be a likable person, but I also want to help others out whenever possible.
“Abraham Maslow studied people who he considered to be healthy, creative, and productive, and found that such people share similar characteristics, such as being open, creative, loving, spontaneous, compassionate, concerned for others, and accepting of themselves” (Spielman p. 385). His Hierarchy of Needs starts from the bottom and goes up‒physiological, safety, love, esteem, and self-actualization. I feel that most people reach the third level, the love level. Most people end up finding the love of their life and have a house with a job. I feel that this is usually the highest reached level on the hierarchy because esteem and self-actualization can be different for people. And even if a person thinks they are appreciated one day, their beliefs could change. I think it is possible for some people to reach their full potential, but I think it depends on their childhood. As the textbook states, “As persons are accepted and prized, they tend to develop a more caring attitude towards themselves” (Spielman p. 385). On the other hand, “when there is a great discrepancy between our ideal and actual selves, we experience maladjustment” (Spielman p. 385). So some people may see themselves at their full potential, while others may not, and when children grow up in a harder environment, they may have difficulties reaching their full potential. But I believe that everybody can achieve the third level‒love/friendship‒no matter what kind of upbringing they had.