Psychology Essay, Research Paper

Heredity traits that I think have shaped me into the person

I today come mostly from my maternal side. I inherited my

mothers easy-going and outgoing personalty. Both of my

parents are very level headed and very realistic. I am

inherited both of those traits also. My father always went

out of his way to make people feel comfortable, I inherited

some of that trait because I like to make people feel

comfortable in awkward or new environments.

Environmental factors that have influenced my

development as a person have shaped my outlook on life and

my beliefs. I have been brought up in neighborhoods where

strong family structure, family values, and morals are very

important. The reason I want to make sure I marry someone

who I feel will I support and want to spend the rest of my

life with is because of the way I was brought up. The

environment I was brought up in frowned on divorce.

I will use the same methods as my parents used to raise

me to an extent. I will teach and preach the same things

that my parents taught me, for example my parents always

preached the importance and the value of succeeding in

academics and in athletics. They also thought me that I must

respect myself before I can respect others, this had a huge

affect on the person I have become. The things I will change

in the way I raise my children are that I will try not to

raise my voice at my children very often and I will use as

much as positive reinforcement as possible.

Peer pressure and criticism were emotional challenges

which were the hardest for me to cope with throughout my

adolescence. Every adolescent faces peer pressure in

positive or negative ways. Unfortunately most peer pressure

is negative, for example almost every person who smokes

started smoking because of peer pressure. Peer pressure was

hard for me to cope with because I hated watching my close

friends fall victims to negative peer pressure, and it was

also hard for me to be critiqued for not giving into peer

pressure. The strong person who doesn?t fall victim to peer

pressure is the person who people like to make fun of for

being different.

Physical changes that have made the biggest impact in

my life to this date have been positive and negative. I was

always a head taller than everyone in my class when I was

younger. This was positive for me because I would excel and

have a great advantage in athletics. I loved having the

advantage and I liked everyone being scared of playing

against me. This physical change started to get negative

when I was a Sophomore. Everyone started to catch up to me

in height and size. I didn?t like it because everyone wanted

to challenge me so they could say they beat me after years

of me beating them. I didn?t like the constant competition ,

because everyone wanted to say ?Vinnie isn?t that big

anymore?. That had a depressing affect on me.

I don?t think there are any special problems

adolescents face today as opposed to our parents. I think

that adolescents toady just face them allot sooner that our

parents did. Problems having to do with sex and drugs modern

adolescents face when they are in as early as 7th or 8th

grade. Our parents didn?t face these problems until they

were most likely in college. the problems today are very

similar, they only thing that is different is how the media

displays sex and drugs to children at a very young age.

Children are aware of these issues to early. The other

difference form our parents generation is the availability

of drugs and alcohol, it is to easy for modern day teens to

get their hands on drugs. If their wasn?t such easy access

to these drugs children wouldn?t face as much peer pressure

or chances to experiment.

Ego-protecting behaviors which I use the most often are

Sublimation, Procrastination, and rationalization.

I use sublimation when I have allot of negative energy

and I try to find ways to use it positively. For example if

I had a horrible day at school I will go to the gym and work

off all that negative energy by lifting weights. This will

effect my me in a positive way.

I use procrastination when I have to do something and I

am either not sure how to do it or I fear doing it. For

example if I have to write a paper for class I don?t

understand the question or the material I will put off doing

the assignment.

I use rationalization when I make excuses or false

reasons for doing or not doing things so I will feel better

about it. For example if I got an answer wrong on a test I

would make excuses that The teacher never taught that

material, when if I would of studied I would of answered

correctly.

I use these defense mechanisms to make my self feel

better about certain things I go through or to protect

myself from feeling like I failed.

What Abraham Maslow meant when he said that ?The

healthiest of all personality belongs to the

self-actualizing person? he meant that these being people

lead happier and healthier lives because they are in touch

with themselves and the world around them. Self-actualizing

people except reality. They don?t make excuses.

Three characteristics of a self-actualizing person that

are important to me are ones that I most want to be an

example of. ?Find fresh enjoyment in activities that you

have experienced many times before?; this is important to me

because I don?t want to become bored with my everyday life.

I want to enjoy every aspect and every minute of life.

?Identify with humanity in a positive way?; I want to see

the good in a every person and there positive qualities,

this would give people greater respect for me and make me

happier. ?Refuse to bend to the social pressures that rule

most peoples lives?; this characteristic is one that I most

want to demonstrate but at the same time is the hardest for

me to be an example of. It is easy to get caught up in

social pressures but if I didn?t I would be more of my own

person.

Some of my fears and frustrations that occupy my life

most are the fear of not making people who care about me

proud of me and the feeling that I can?t get everything I

want to done in a day. I feel very often that there isn?t

enough time to do thing I need to do. Some of my strengths

are the ability to be who I am no matter what company I am

in. Another strength of mine is my ability to to understand

and listen to people. These behaviors I feel for the most

part are positive I think all of these behaviors keep me on

track and make me strive to be a better person. I think I

acquired these behaviors from the way I was brought up.

These behaviors most likely came to me from example of

people I idolized in my life.

I am more important to me than other people for the

most part, the exception is if it is a matter of life or

death. I put family issues and matters before my own well

being, but for the most part I do what is best for me and

hope I am making the right decision.