Personality psychology refers to a branch of psychology that deals with the uniqueness or differences in individuals. It is basically meant to show the difference in the way people perceive things. In an article by Jackie Calmes and Peter Baker in the New York Times “Obama Says Same-Sex Marriage Should Be Legal,” personality psychology can be depicted in America.
The fact that Obama is the president of the United States, it is vital to recognize that he has a big influence on the behavior of many Americans. The fact that he is a political leader in America; he is expected to consider the desires of the nation bearing in mind that it is the people who elected him. It does not mean that he can practice gay marriage when he says that same-sex should be legal but tries to avoid discrimination against gays in society.
The issue of same-sex marriage in America is a debate between the people of America as some people advocate for it while others are against it. This definitely shows the presence of personality psychology in the American population (Calmes, J & Baker, 2012). This is because gay people take it to be their right to exercise same-sex marriage hence legal to practice gay marriage. People who are against the practice want to make the practice illegal while Obama comes in as a political leader to support the gay from discrimination by society. It‘s beyond doubt that personality psychology helps me understand the event of the legalization of same-sex marriages by Obama.
This is because the writer of the article portrays Obama as a political leader in his opinion on legalizing gay marriage. He even goes far into making me realize the debate between Americans on the issue. This is where psychology personality helps me understand the unique behavior of gays and the unique leadership of Obama (Robinson et al, 1991). The limitations on personality psychology of the event are brought about freedom versus determinism. This is evident by the fact that Obama has to come in and give his contribution as a leader to avoid conflict between the people. This is to avoid assumptions of personality psychology by determining the right or legal stand about the event.
Uniqueness versus universality is also a limitation to personality psychology because people have different opinions on different issues concerning their lives. In this case, gay practice is unique while the universality of the people against gay behavior is a limitation of personality psychology (Snyder, C. R., & Lopez, S. J, 2009). Heredity versus environment is another limitation to personality psychology because according to the article on Obama’s decision on gay marriage.
This is because the environment (people against same-sex marriage) is against the heredity of gays hence a challenge to personality psychology. The active versus reactive nature of the American people also contributes to limitations of personality psychology as is evident by the American population (Calmes, J & Baker, 2012). If president Obama discouraged same-sex marriage, there would be personality limitations of the occurrence because gays would find themselves discriminated in the society (Snyder, C. R., & Lopez, S. J, 2009).
Gender and ethnicity do not play a role in this situation because the event covers a general topic that affects both men and women in different ethnic groups in America. It is therefore fundamental to note that personality psychology is vital in determining the differences in the lives of individuals in different perspectives of life.
References
Calmes, J & Baker, P. (2012). Obama says same-sex marriage should be legal. The New York Times, p. 1.
Robinson, J. P., Etal (1991). Measures of personality and social psychological attitudes. San Diego: Academic Press.
Snyder, C. R., & Lopez, S. J. (2009). Oxford handbook of positive psychology. Oxford: Oxford University Press.