HEALTHY PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS & EXPRESSING EMOTIONS IN HEALTHFUL WAYS

Dr. Sonia Tinsley

Northeastern State University

College of Education

Personality

• An individual’s unique pattern of characteristics.

• What makes a person different from others.

• Influences on personality• Heredity • Environment• Attitude• Behavior

Personality

• Specific patterns of behavior and traits that identify and characterize an individual

• Thoughts• Feelings• Behaviors• Motivation• Instinct• Temperament

Personality Characteristics that Promote Good Health?

Personality characteristics that promote good health• Ambition

• Compassion

• Confidence

• Cooperativeness

• Optimism

• Persistence

• Reliability

• Responsibility

• Respectfulness

• Self-determination

• Self-discipline

• Sincerity

• Courage

• Dedication

• Hopefulness

• Loyalty

• Honesty

Personality Behavior Patterns•Type A: characterized by competitive drive, aggressiveness, impatience, time urgency, free-floating hostility, insecurity

•Type B: behavior that exhibits no free-floating hostility or sense of time urgency, opposite of Type A

•Type C: denial and suppression of emotion •Type D: negative emotions and inhibited self-expression

Interesting Research•A study of nurses and teachers shows that Type A’s tend to experience more job stress

•Found to be associated with coronary heart disease

•Exhibited in females as well as males

•Learned behavior, not genetically passed down

Hardiness•People who are hardy have the “3 C’s”

– Commitment– Control– Challenge

•Hardy people are able to better withstand the onslaught of stressors– Become ill less often from stressors– Have less psychological distress, increased happiness and adjustment,

happier marriages

Grit: Perseverance and passion for long-term goals.

Expressing Emotions in Healthful Ways•Communication – the exchange of feelings, thoughts, or information with one or more persons.

•Denial – a condition in which a person refuses to recognize what they are feeling.

Difficulty in Communicating

•Many young people do not learn to recognize and express their feelings as they mature.

•Children who grow up in dysfunctional families often find it difficult to express their feelings.

•Instead they learn to deny their feelings.

Guidelines for Expressing Emotions in Healthful Ways

•Identify the emotion.

•Identify the source of the emotion.

•Decide whether or not there is the need to respond right away.

•Choose a responsible and healthful response.

•Protect your health.

Healthful ways to express feelings

•Active listening – Partner up!•Nonverbal communication – What’s My Style?

I-messages and You-messages• I-messages – focuses on a specific behavior or event, how that

behavior or event affects the speaker, and the emotions the speaker feels as a result.

• You-message – blames or shames another person. Puts down the other person and puts him/her on the defensive.

Develop communication skills to foster improved social relationships

•Verbal communication—be a skilled sender and listener•Nonverbal communication—facial expression, eye contact, personal space, body posture

•Managing conflict• Listen • Focus on what to say and how to say it• Use assertive communication with “I” statements