Psychology of Personality and Individual Differences: Theory and Applications

By Prof. Dilwar Hussain | IIT Guwahati

Learners enrolled: 1605 | Exam registration: 68

ABOUT THE COURSE:

Personality occupies a central and foundational role in the field of psychology. Studying personality psychology can provide valuable insights into understanding human behavior, motivations, and individual differences. This course provides an in-depth exploration of personality psychology concepts, theories and their practical applications in various domains. Students will gain a comprehensive understanding of different personality theories and how they explain behavior, cognition, and interpersonal dynamics. The course will also discuss development of personality across different stages of life and various theories explaining personality development. The course will also focus on applying personality psychology knowledge in real-world contexts, including work, relationships, and health.

INTENDED AUDIENCE: UG and PG students of Humanities and Social Sciences, Sciences and Engineering

INDUSTRY SUPPORT: HR section of companies

Summary

Course Status :	Upcoming
Course Type :	Elective
Language for course content :	English
Duration :	12 weeks
Category :	Humanities and Social Sciences Psychology
Credit Points :	3
Level :	Undergraduate/Postgraduate
Start Date :	20 Jan 2025
End Date :	11 Apr 2025
Enrollment Ends :	27 Jan 2025
Exam Registration Ends :	14 Feb 2025
Exam Date :	03 May 2025 IST

Note: This exam date is subject to change based on seat availability. You can check final exam date on your hall ticket.

Page Visits

Course layout

Week 1: Introduction to personality psychology

Personality: Definition, concepts and overview
Research methods in personality psychology

Week 2: Personality Assessment

Personality assessment: Introduction and measurement issues
Methods of personality assessment

Week 3: Bio-psychological perspective

Genetics, physiology and personality
Evolutionary psychology and personality

Week 4: The trait perspective

The concept of traits and the person-situation debate
Factor analytical theories: Cattell’s Sixteen Personality Factor and Big five model
Beyond the Big Five model of personality

Week 5: Sigmund Freud and Psychoanalytic perspective

Psychoanalysis 1
Psychoanalysis 2

Week 6: Behaviorism and learning perspective

Behaviorism and personality 1
Behaviorism and personality 2

Week 7: Motives and personality: Humanistic perspectives

Abraham Maslow’s need hierarchy theory
Carl Rogers theory

Week 8: Cognitive and Social-Cognitive Perspective

Kelly’s personal construct theory
Cognitive-social learning theory of Bandura and Mischel
Mini cognitive theories: Locus of control, sensation seeking, learned helplessness and optimism-pessimism

Week 9: Social and cultural aspects to personality

Gender and personality
Culture and personality

Week 10: Personality development and change

Stability and change of personality
Personality development 1
Personality development 2

Week 11: Developing positive personality traits

Positive personality trait: Character strengths
Positive personality trait: Resilience
Positive personality trait: Empathy
Positive personality trait: Kindness

Week 12: Specific applications of personality psychology

Personality, Stress, and physical health
Personality, well-being and mental health
Personality, career and workplace
Personality and interpersonal relationships

Books and references

1. D. C. Funder, Personality Puzzle (7^th Edition), W.W Norton and Company, 2016.
2. D. Cervone & L. A. Pervin, Personality: Theory and Research, Wiley, 2013
3. D. P. Schultz & S. E. Schultz, Theories of Personality, Wadsworth, 2013
4. J. Specht (Ed.), Personality development across the life span, Academic press, 2017.
5. H. S. Friedman & M. W. Schustack, Personality: Classic theories and modern research, Pearson, 2016
6. D. R. Shaffer, Social and personality development, Wadsworth, 2009

Instructor bio

Prof. Dilwar Hussain

IIT Guwahati

Dr. Dilwar Hussain is a professor of psychology in the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati. His research interests are psychology of stress and trauma, positive psychology and well-being.

Course certificate

The course is free to enroll and learn from. But if you want a certificate, you have to register and write the proctored exam conducted by us in person at any of the designated exam centres.

The exam is optional for a fee of Rs 1000/- (Rupees one thousand only).

Date and Time of Exams: May 3, 2025 Morning session 9am to 12 noon; Afternoon Session 2pm to 5pm.

Registration url: Announcements will be made when the registration form is open for registrations.

The online registration form has to be filled and the certification exam fee needs to be paid. More details will be made available when the exam registration form is published. If there are any changes, it will be mentioned then.

Please check the form for more details on the cities where the exams will be held, the conditions you agree to when you fill the form etc.

CRITERIA TO GET A CERTIFICATE

Average assignment score = 25% of average of best 8 assignments out of the total 12 assignments given in the course.
Exam score = 75% of the proctored certification exam score out of 100

Final score = Average assignment score + Exam score

Please note that assignments encompass all types (including quizzes, programming tasks, and essay submissions) available in the specific week.

YOU WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR A CERTIFICATE ONLY IF AVERAGE ASSIGNMENT SCORE >=10/25 AND EXAM SCORE >= 30/75. If one of the 2 criteria is not met, you will not get the certificate even if the Final score >= 40/100.

Certificate will have your name, photograph and the score in the final exam with the breakup.It will have the logos of NPTEL and IIT Guwahati .It will be e-verifiable at nptel.ac.in/noc.

Only the e-certificate will be made available. Hard copies will not be dispatched.

Once again, thanks for your interest in our online courses and certification. Happy learning.

- NPTEL team