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Definition
Self-directedness (self-concept) is one of the three aspects of human character in Cloninger’s biopsychosociospiritual model of personality (Cloninger et al. 1993). This character trait involves a person’s sense of responsibility, hopeful purpose, self-acceptance, self-actualization, and resourcefulness (Cloninger 2004). See Cooperativeness and Self-transcendence for the other two aspects of human character.
Introduction
Self-directedness can be seen as the executive branch of a person’s system of mental self-government. People who are self-directed recognize that their attitudes, behaviors, and problems reflect their own choices. They tend to accept responsibility for their attitudes and behavior and they impress others as reliable and trustworthy persons. As a result, a person’s Self-directedness is an important indicator of reality testing, maturity, and vulnerability to mood disturbance....
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References
Cloninger, C. R. (2004). Feeling good: The science of well-being. New York: Oxford University Press.
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Cloninger, C. R., & Cloninger, K. M. (2011). Development of instruments and evaluative procedures on contributors to illness and health. The International Journal of Person Centered Medicine, 1(3), 446–455.
Cloninger, C. R., Svrakic, D. M., & Przybeck, T. R. (1993). A psychobiological model of temperament and character. Archives of General Psychiatry, 50, 975–990.
Cloninger, C. R., Przybeck, T. R., Svrakic, D. M., & Wetzel, R. D. (1994). The temperament and character inventory (TCI): A guide to its development and use. St. Louis: Washington University Center for Psychobiology of Personality.
Cloninger, C. R., Svrakic, N. M., & Svrakic, D. M. (1997). Role of personality self-organization in development of mental order and disorder. Development and Psychopathology, 9, 881–906.
Josefsson, K., Jokela, M., Cloninger, C. R., Hintsanen, M., Salo, J., Hintsa, T., Pulkki-Råback, L., & Keltikangas-Järvinen, L. (2013). Maturity and change in personality: Developmental trends of temperament and character in adulthood. Development and Psychopathology, 25, 713–727.
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Garcia, D., Cloninger, K.M., Lester, N., Cloninger, C.R. (2017). Self-Directedness. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1163-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1163-1
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