thesis about personal development

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• We're Hiring!
• Help Center

Personal growth and personality development: a foreword to the special section

2002, Journal of personality

Related Papers

Anthony Ghelfo (Uploader)

The 2 goals of this study were to develop and validate a performance measure of personal wisdom (PW) and to examine age differences. On the basis of the Berlin wisdom paradigm and growth theories of personality, 5 criteria of PW were developed. A sample of 83 younger adults (ages 20 – 40) and 78 older adults (ages 60 – 80) thought aloud about a PW task. Transcribed answers were rated. Validity was established with regard to indicators of personality growth, subjective wellbeing, intelligence, critical life events, and general wisdom. As expected, no age differences were obtained on the basic criteria, and negative age differences were found on the metacriteria indexing PW. Fluid intelligence and openness to new experience partially mediated these differences. It is argued that on average and for current cohorts age-related changes in psychological functioning may act as hindrances on the road to PW.

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

sanjay srivastava

Journal of Traumatic Stress

Alex Linley

Journal of Happiness Studies

Heidi A Wayment , John Bauer

Wisdom in context

Igor Grossmann

Philosophers and psychological scientists converge on the idea that wisdom involves certain aspects of thinking (e.g., intellectual humility, recognition of uncertainty and change, consideration of the broader context at hand and perspectives of others, integration of these perspectives/compromise) enabling application of knowledge to life challenges. How does wise thinking change across various contexts people encounter in their lives? Empirical evidence indicates that people’s ability to think wisely varies dramatically across experiential contexts they encounter over the lifespan. Moreover, wise thinking varies from one situation to another, with self-focused contexts inhibiting wise thinking. Experiments can show ways to buffer reasoning against bias in cases where self-interests are unavoidable. Specifically, an ego-decentering cognitive mindset enables wise thinking about personally meaningful issues. It appears that experiential, situational and cultural factors are even more powerful in shaping wisdom than previously imagined. Focus on such contextual factors can shed new light on the processes underlying wise thought and its development, helps to integrate different approaches to studying wisdom and have implications for measurement and development of wisdom-enhancing interventions.

Journal of Adult Development

Monika Ardelt

This study examined whether (a) older adults are wiser than college students, (b) college-educated older adults are wiser than current college students, and (c) wise older adults show evidence of personal growth. Using a sample of 477 undergraduate college students and 178 older adults (age 52+), results showed that college students tended to score as high on the self-administered three-dimensional wisdom scale (3D-WS) as older adults. However, college-educated older adults tended to score significantly higher on the reflective and affective dimensions of wisdom and the overall score of the 3D-WS and than did current college students. Qualitative evidence suggests that many older adults, particularly in the top 20% of wisdom scorers, grew wiser with age by learning from life experiences. The results indicate that wisdom might increase with age for individuals with the opportunity and motivation to pursue its development.

Gordon Asmundson

Journal of Personality

Courtney Raspin

RELATED PAPERS

OMER FARUK SIMSEK

Haruna Abdallah Shamsuddeen

Nathan Grant Smith

Pelin Kesebir

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

C. Bergeman

Sherry Beaumont

Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences

Jeff Webster

Jonathan Adler

The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences

Ernst Bohlmeijer

Sharon Dekel

Psychological bulletin

Brent W. Roberts

Universidad de la Felicidad México

Psychology and Aging

Manfred Diehl

Oxford Handbooks Online

Susanne Scheibe

Daniel Alaphilippe , M. Joulain , Yaël Saada

Elizabeth Teklinski, PhD

Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology

Crystal Park

Emanuela Morini

Essential Notes in Psychiatry

Personality and Social Psychology Review

Monisha Pasupathi

Steven Boker

Positive Psychology: Discovering human strengths

Journal of Research in Personality

Lauren Duncan , Cynthia Torges

Nicole Zarrett

Mark Lumley

Bonita Fisher

Kristen Springer

Women & Health

Philippa Kolokotroni

Monica Yolanda

Päivi Fadjukoff

Developmental Review

Klaus Rothermund

Franciska Krings

Terri Faith, PhD

RELATED TOPICS

•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024

Advertisement

Measuring Personal Growth and Development in Context: Evidence of Validity in Educational and Work Settings

• Research Paper
• Published: 13 September 2019
• Volume 21 , pages 2141–2167, ( 2020 )

Cite this article

• Brittney K. Anderson 1   na1 ,
• John P. Meyer 1 , 2   na1 ,
• Chelsea Vaters 1 &
• Jose A. Espinoza 1  

1395 Accesses

6 Citations

3 Altmetric

Explore all metrics

Consistent with the trend toward viewing psychological well-being as more than the absence of illness, we developed an instrument—the personal growth and development scale (PGDS)—that can be used to assess positive change in well-being attributable to context-specific experiences. As part of the validation process, we examined relations between the PGDS and measures of need satisfaction and autonomous motivation in students (N = 241) and employees (N = 468). In the student sample, we also examined relations with engagement and burnout. The findings supported our hypothesis that need satisfaction, autonomous motivation and engagement would relate positively with the PGDS, and that burnout would relate negatively. In a second student sample (N = 377), we collected longitudinal data to investigate how global psychological well-being relates to personal growth and development over the course of an academic term. We found that initial levels of global well-being predicted positive changes in growth and development and replicated earlier findings regarding relations between the PGDS, need satisfaction and autonomous motivation. Future applications of the PGDS for research and practice are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price includes VAT (Russian Federation)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Rent this article via DeepDyve

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

College as a Growth Opportunity: Assessing Personal Growth Initiative and Self-determination Theory

The experience of personal growth in different career stages: An exploratory study

The relationship between academic motivation and basic psychological needs within the freshman year context: a longitudinal person-oriented approach

Allport, G. W. (1961). Pattern and growth in personality . New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.

Google Scholar  

Aristotle. (1985). Nicomachean ethics (T. Irwin, Trans.). Indianapolis, IN: Hackett.

Benedetti, A. A., Diefendorff, J. M., Gabriel, A. S., & Chandler, M. M. (2015). The effects of intrinsic and extrinsic sources of motivation on well-being depend on time of day: The moderating effect of workday accumulation. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 88, 38–46.

Biron, M., & Bamberger, P. (2010). The impact of structural empowerment on individual well-being and performance: Taking agent preferences, self-efficacy and operational constraints into account. Human Relations, 62 (2), 163–191.

Browne, M. W., & Cudeck, R. (1993). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. In K. A. Bollen & J. S. Long (Eds.), Testing structural equation models (pp. 136–162). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Chen, F. F. (2007). Sensitivity of goodness of fit indexes to lack of measurement invariance. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 14 (3), 464–504.

Cronbach, L. J., & Meehl, P. E. (1955). Construct validation in psychological tests. Psychological Bulletin, 52 (4), 281–302.

Deci, E. L., Koestner, R., & Ryan, R. M. (1999). A meta-analytic review of experiments examining the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 125, 627–668.

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior . New York, NY: Plenum.

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The “what” and “why” of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11, 227–268.

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2014). The importance of universal psychological needs for understanding motivation in the workplace. In M. Gagné (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of work engagement, motivation, and self-determination theory (pp. 13–32). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Deci, E. L., Ryan, R. M., Gagné, M., Leone, D. R., Usunov, J., & Kornazheva, B. P. (2001). Need satisfaction, motivation, and well-being in the work organizations of a former Eastern Bloc country: A cross-cultural study of self-determination. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27, 930–942.

Demerouti, E., Bakker, A. B., Nachreiner, F., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2001). The job demands-resources model of burnout. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86 (3), 499–512.

Deng, N., Guyer, R., & Ware, J. E. (2015). Energy, fatigue, or both? A bifactor modeling approach to the conceptualization and measurement of vitality. Quality of Life Research, 24, 81–93.

Diener, E., Emmons, R. A., Larsen, R. J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49 (1), 71–75.

Diener, E., Wirtz, D., Tov, W., Kim-Prieto, C., Choi, D., Oishi, S., et al. (2010). New well-being measures: Short scales to assess flourishing and positive and negative feelings. Social Indicators Research, 97, 143–156.

Espinoza, J. A., Meyer, J. P., Anderson, B. K., Vaters, C., & Politis, C. (2018). Evidence for a bifactor structure of the scales of psychological well-being using exploratory structural equation modeling. Journal of Well-being Assessment, 2 (1), 21–40.

Gagné, M. (2003). The role of autonomy support and autonomy orientation in prosocial behaviour engagement. Motivation and Emotion, 27, 199–223.

Gagné, M., & Deci, E. L. (2005). Self-determination theory and work motivation. Journal of Organizational Behaviour, 26, 331–362.

Gagné, M., Forest, J., Vansteenkiste, M., Crevier-Braud, L., Van den Broeck, A., Aspeli, A. K., et al. (2015). The multidimensional work motivation scale: Validation evidence in seven languages and nine countries. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 24 (2), 178–196.

Gardner, W. L., Cogliser, C. C., Davis, K. M., & Dickens, M. P. (2011). Authentic leadership: A review of the literature and research agenda. The Leadership Quarterly, 22 (6), 1120–1145.

Gignac, G. E. (2016). The higher-order model imposes a proportionality constraint: That is why the bifactor model tends to fit better. Intelligence, 55, 57–68.

Hinkin, T. R. (1998). A brief tutorial on the development of measures for use in survey questionnaires. Organizational Research Methods, 1, 104–121.

Howard, J. L., Gagné, M., & Bureau, J. S. (2017). Testing a continuum structure of self-determined motivation: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 143 (12), 1346–1377.

Howard, J., Gagné, M., Morin, A. J. S., & Van den Broeck, A. (2016). Motivation profiles at work: A self-determination theory approach. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, 95–96, 74–89.

Hu, L. T., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6 (1), 1–55.

Humphrey, S. E., Nahrgang, J. D., & Morgeson, F. P. (2007). Integrating motivational, social and contextual work design features: A meta-analytic summary and theoretical extension of the work design literature. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92 (5), 1332–1356.

Ilardi, B. C., Leone, D., Kasser, R., & Ryan, R. M. (1993). Employee and supervisor ratings of motivation: Main effects and discrepancies associated with job satisfaction and adjustment in a factory setting. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 23, 1789–1805.

Johnston, M. M., & Finney, S. J. (2010). Measuring basic needs satisfaction: Evaluating previous research and conducting new psychometric evaluations of the basic needs satisfaction in general scale. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 35, 280–296.

Kafka, G. J., & Kozma, A. (2002). The construct validity of Ryff’s scales of psychological wellbeing (SPWB) and their relationship to measures of subjective well-being. Social Indicators Research, 57 (2), 171–190.

Kam, C. C. S., & Meyer, J. P. (2015). How careless responding and acquiescence response bias can influence construct dimensionality: The case of job satisfaction. Organizational Research Methods, 18 (3), 512–541.

Karasek, R. A. (1979). Job demands, job decision latitude, and mental strain: Implications for job redesign. Administrative Science Quarterly, 24 (2), 285–308.

Marsh, H. W., Hau, K.-T., & Grayson, D. (2005). Goodness of fit evaluation in structural equation modeling. In A. Maydeu-Olivares & J. McArdle (Eds.), Contemporary psychometrics: A festschrift for roderick P McDonald . Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Maslow, A. H. (1968). Toward a psychology of being . New York, NY: D. Van Nostrand Company.

McDonald, R. P. (1999). Test theory: A unified treatment . Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Meyer, J. P., & Maltin, E. R. (2010). Employee commitment and well-being: A critical review, theoretical framework, and research agenda. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 77, 323–337.

Moran, C. M., Diefendorff, J. M., Kim, T.-Y., & Liu, Z.-Q. (2012). A profile approach to self-determination theory motivations at work. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 81 (3), 354–363.

Morin, A. J. S., Arens, A., & Marsh, H. (2016). A bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling framework for the identification of distinct sources of construct-relevant psychometric multidimensionality. Structural Equation Modeling, 23, 116–139.

Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (1998–2011). Mplus user’s guide (6th ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Muthén & Muthén.

Parker, S. L., Jimmieson, N. L., & Amiot, C. E. (2010). Self-determination as a moderator of demands and control: Implications for employee strain and engagement. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 76, 53–67.

Peterson, U., Demerouti, E., Bergström, G., Samuelsson, M., Åsberg, M., & Nygren, Å. (2008). Burnout and physical and mental health among Swedish healthcare workers. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 62 (1), 84–95.

Porath, C., Spreitzer, G., Gibson, C., & Garnett, F. G. (2012). Thriving at work: Toward its measurement, construct validation, and theoretical refinement. Journal of Organizational Behaviour, 33, 250–275.

Reeve, J. (2002). Self-determination theory applied to educational settings. In E. L. Deci & R. M. Ryan (Eds.), Handbook of self-determination research (pp. 183–203). Rochester, NY: University of Rochester Press.

Ruini, C., Belaise, C., Brombin, C., Caffo, E., & Fava, G. A. (2006). Well-being therapy in school settings: A pilot study. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 75 (6), 331–336.

Ryan, R. M., Curren, R. R., & Deci, E. L. (2013). What humans need: Flourishing in Aristotelian philosophy and self-determination theory. In A. S. Waterman (Ed.), The best within us: Positive psychology perspectives on eudaimonia (pp. 57–75). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55, 68–78.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52 (1), 141–166.

Ryan, R. M., Huta, V., & Deci, E. L. (2008). Living well: A self-determination theory perspective on eudaimonia. Journal of Happiness Studies, 9, 139–170.

Ryff, C. D. (1989). Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57 (6), 1069–1081.

Ryff, C. D. (2014). Psychological well-being revisited: Advances in the science and practice of eudaimonia. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 83 (1), 10–28.

Ryff, C. D., & Keyes, C. L. M. (1995). The structure of psychological well-being revisited. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69 (4), 719–727.

Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. H. (2006). Best news yet on the six-factor model of well-being. Social Science Research, 35 (4), 1103–1119.

Schat, A. C. H., Kelloway, E. K., & Desmarais, S. (2005). The physical health questionnaire (PHQ): Construct validation of a self-report scale of somatic symptoms. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 10 (4), 363–381.

Schaufeli, W. B., & Bakker, A. B. (2004). Job demands, job resources, and their relationship with burnout and engagement: A multi-sample study. Journal of Organizational Behaviour, 25 (3), 293–315.

Schaufeli, W. B., Martinez, I. M., Marques Pinto, A., Salanova, M., & Bakker, A. B. (2002a). Burnout and engagement in university students: A cross-national study. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 33 (5), 464–481.

Schaufeli, W. B., Salanova, M., González-Romá, V., & Bakker, A. B. (2002b). The measurement of engagement and burnout: A two sample confirmatory factor analytic approach. Journal of Happiness Studies, 3, 71–92.

Schaufeli, W. B., & Taris, T. W. (2014). A critical review of the job demands-resources model: Implications for improving work and health. In G. F. Bauer & O. Hämmig (Eds.), Bridging occupational, organizational and public health: A transdisciplinary approach (pp. 43–68). New York, NY: Springer.

Schleicher, H., Alonso, C., Shirtcliff, E. A., Muller, D., Loevinger, B. L., & Coe, C. L. (2005). In the face of pain: The relationship between psychological well-being and disability in women with fibromyalgia. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 74 (4), 231–239.

Schmitt, N., & Ali, A. A. (2015). The practical importance of measurement invariance. In C. E. Lance & R. J. Vandenberg (Eds.), More statistical and methodological myths and urban legends (pp. 337–346). New York, NY: Routledge.

Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55 (1), 5–14.

Shapiro, A., & Keyes, C. L. M. (2008). Marital status and social well-being: Are the married always better off? Social Indicators Research, 88 (2), 329–346.

Siegrist, J. (1996). Adverse health effects of high-effort/low-reward conditions. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 1 (1), 27–41.

Springer, K. W., & Hauser, R. M. (2006). An assessment of the construct validity of Ryff’s scales of psychological well-being: Method, mode, and measurement effects. Social Science Research, 35 (4), 1080–1102.

Tóth-Király, I., Morin, A. J. S., Bőthe, B., Orosz, G., & Rigó, A. (2018). Investigating the multidimensionality of need fulfillment: A bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling representation. Structural Equation Modeling, 25 (2), 267–286.

van Dierendonck, D. (2004). The construct validity of Ryff’s scales of psychological well-being and its extension with spiritual well-being. Personality and Individual Differences, 36 (3), 629–643.

Vandenberg, R. J., & Lance, C. E. (2000). A review and synthesis of the measurement invariance literature: Suggestions, practices, and recommendations for organizational research. Organizational Research Methods, 3 (1), 4–69.

Vandenberg, R. J., & Morelli, N. A. (2016). A contemporary update on testing for measurement equivalence and invariance. In J. P. Meyer (Ed.), Handbook of employee commitment (pp. 28–42). Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing Limited.

Zinbarg, R. E., Barlow, D. H., & Brown, T. A. (1997). Hierarchical structure and general factor saturation of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index: Evidence and implications. Psychological Assessment, 9 (3), 277–284.

Zinbarg, R. E., Revelle, W., Yovel, I., & Li, W. (2005). Cronbach’s α, Revelle’s β, and Mcdonald’s ω H : Their relations with each other and two alternative conceptualizations of reliability. Psychometrika, 70 (1), 1–11.

Reise, S. P., Scheines, R., Widman, K. F., & Haviland, M. G. (2013). Miltidimensionality and structural coefficient bias in structural equation modeling: A bifactor perspective. Educational and Psychological Measurement , 73 (1), 5–26.

Waterman, A. S. (2013). The humanistic psychology–positive psychology divide: Contrasts in philosophical foundations. American Psychologist , 68 (3), 124–133.

Waterman, A. S., & Schwartz, S. J. (2013). Eudaimonic identity theory. In A. S. Waterman (Ed.), The best within us: Positive psychology perspectives on eudaimonia (pp. 99–118). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Waterman, A. S., Schwartz, S. J., Zamboanga, B. L., Ravert, R. D., Williams, M. K., Agocha, V. B., Kim, S. Y., & Donnellan, M. B. (2010). The questionnaire for eudamonic well-being: Psychometric properties, demographic comparisons, and evidence of validity. The Journal of Positive Psychology , 5 (1), 41–61.

Watson, D., Clark, L. A., & Carey, G. (1988). Positive and negative affectivity and their relation to anxiety and depressive disorders. Journal of Abnormal Psychology , 97 (3), 346–353.

Download references

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by research grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (435-2014-0956) awarded to J. P. Meyer. The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Author information

Brittney K. Anderson and John P. Meyer have contributed equally to this article and both should be considered first authors.

Authors and Affiliations

Department of Psychology, The University of Western Ontario, London, ON, N6A 5C2, Canada

Brittney K. Anderson, John P. Meyer, Chelsea Vaters & Jose A. Espinoza

Curtin Business School, Curtin University, Perth, Australia

John P. Meyer

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brittney K. Anderson .

Additional information

Publisher's note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOCX 33 kb)

Rights and permissions.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Anderson, B.K., Meyer, J.P., Vaters, C. et al. Measuring Personal Growth and Development in Context: Evidence of Validity in Educational and Work Settings. J Happiness Stud 21 , 2141–2167 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-019-00176-w

Download citation

Published : 13 September 2019

Issue Date : August 2020

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-019-00176-w

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Personal growth and development
• Psychological well-being
• Eudaimonic well-being
• Self-determination theory
• Job-demands resources theory
• Find a journal
• Publish with us
• Track your research

•   Home
• University of Bedfordshire e-theses
• PhD e-theses

Students’ representations and experiences of personal development and PDP at one British University

Description

Collections.

The following license files are associated with this item:

entitlement

Export search results

The export option will allow you to export the current search results of the entered query to a file. Different formats are available for download. To export the items, click on the button corresponding with the preferred download format.

By default, clicking on the export buttons will result in a download of the allowed maximum amount of items.

To select a subset of the search results, click "Selective Export" button and make a selection of the items you want to export. The amount of items that can be exported at once is similarly restricted as the full export.

After making a selection, click one of the export format buttons. The amount of items that will be exported is indicated in the bubble next to export format.

Essays About Personal Growth: Top 5 Examples and 8 Prompts

If you’re writing essays about personal growth, our guide’s article examples and prompts will help stimulate your creative thinking.

Personal growth is looking at ways to improve yourself mentally, socially, spiritually, emotionally or physically. It is a process where we envision a better version of ourselves and strive to realize that ideal self. Personal growth demands the setting of personal goals and ensuring routine progress. The work toward personal development involves a great deal of hard work and discipline as we push our existing skills and strengths to a higher boundary while reducing our underlying weaknesses.  

Read our essay examples and prompts below to help you produce a rich and creative essay about personal growth.

5 Essay Examples About Personal Growth

1. is it really too late to learn new skills by margaret talbot, 2. i’ve completed hundreds of 30-day challenges. here’s what i’ve learned by tara nicholle-nelson, 3. i was a self-help guru. here’s why you shouldn’t listen to people like me by michelle goodman, 4. how to craft a personal development plan that inspires meaningful results by scott jeffrey, 5. personal development and the power of feedback by emily marsh, 10 prompts on essays about personal growth, 1. why is personal growth important, 2. take up a personal growth challenge, 3. your personal growth journey, 4. personal growth among successful people, 5. personal growth for leaders , 6. personal growth at work, 7. best personal growth books, 8. strong motivation for achieving personal growth.

“… [H]e decides to throw himself into acquiring five new skills. (That’s his term, though I started to think of these skills as “accomplishments” in the way that marriageable Jane Austen heroines have them, talents that make a long evening pass more agreeably, that can turn a person into more engaging company, for herself as much as for others.)

Learning new things may not be a cup of tea for those in their middle ages. To get out of established expertise, be looked down on as a novice, and push the brain to work double time may even be a dreary and intimidating process. , But Journalist Tom Vanderbilt, award-winning writers, and Nobel Prize recipients prove that satisfaction is worth it for personal growth and fulfillment. 

“I think of Challenges as self-directed projects to change my behavior or spark some personal growth or development I’m clear that I’d like to have. Sometimes I want a mindset shift or want to make (or break) a habit, or I just have a sort of big project I want to sprint to finish…”

Why are we so drawn to self-imposed challenges? For one, it’s a competition only between you and yourself, giving room for flexibility in the rules you set. It provides structure to your goals, chunks your bigger long-term self-growth goals into gradual and doable daily tasks, provokes a sense of self-accountability, and helps you focus your energy on what matters most. 

“Apparently, I learned, gurus are people too, even gurus lining the self-help shelves of friendly neighborhood bookstores. They aren’t infallible, all-knowing oracles above worrying about their generous muffin top or widening backside. They are businesspeople — businesspeople with books, keynotes, and openings in their consulting practice to peddle”

From abhorring gurus to becoming one and then hating the industry much more — this is the story of a self-help book author who realizes it was herself who needed the most advice for personal growth. But, as she creates a facade of a well-balanced life to establish her credibility, things turn dark, almost costing her life. 

“When entertainment, distraction, and workaholism consume our attention, something doesn’t feel right within us… To have a full and meaningful life requires us to open to more dimensions of ourselves. And a Personal Development Plan can help us do just that.”

Everyone strives for personal growth. But once we jump at it, some wrong ingredients may spoil the sense of fulfillment we expect. The right process involves navigating your potential, creating a larger vision, selecting areas to focus on, setting your schedule, and monitoring your progress. You might also be interested in these essays about motivation .

“Without feedback, we would learn very little about ourselves, in or out of work. The feedback process is like holding a mirror up to yourself; that’s why it can be uncomfortable at times. You have to be prepared to listen to and acknowledge whatever reveals itself.”

Hearing feedback is critical to personal growth. Negative feedback is constructive in losing our bad habits. However, purely positive feedback is non-progressive and dangerous if we only seek to affirm how we regard ourselves.

We can never be perfect. But we can always progress. In your essay, explain why nurturing a growth mindset in life is essential. What long-term benefits can you reap daily from wanting to be a better person? How does it affect the mind, body, and overall wellness? Answer these while citing studies that outline the essence of personal growth.

Take up any challenge you find exciting and feel up to. Then, write about your experience. If successful, offer tips to your readers on how one can prepare their body, mind, and discipline to stick to the goals. If you did not complete the challenge, don’t worry! Your failure can still be a learning experience that contributes to personal growth and is worth writing about. In addition, you can add what areas of yourself you would like to improve on if you ever take up the challenge again. 

Talk about your goals and your daily efforts to reach this goal. It could relate to acing a test, your sports team winning or professional success. Of course, there will be a handful of challenges in any journey toward a goal. What were the obstacles and distractions that tried to keep you off track? Share these with your readers and how you strived or are striving to conquer them.

When you see people already at the height of their careers, you’ll find some continuing to walk out of their comfort zones and reach for the next higher mountain. For this essay, explain the connection between striving for personal growth and success. Then, provide a list of everyday habits among successful people that others could consider adopting.

Leaders must adapt and address problems efficiently and decisively as they move through a fast-changing landscape. Elaborate on how the pursuit of personal growth helps leaders deliver in their enormous role in organizations, companies, and communities.

If you firmly believe that growth at work translates to personal growth, it would be less hard for you to get by at work. But this gets a bit more complex if your feel that your work is no longer satisfying your self-actualization needs and even limiting you. For this prompt, help your readers determine if it’s time to quit their job and continue their journey for personal growth elsewhere. If you want to address companies, offer recommendations enabling their employees to grow and have a vision for themselves. You may also suggest how managers can keep an open line of communication so that personnel can relay their self-development needs.

We all have that book that has given us a new kind of energy that made us feel and believe we can do anything if we put our heart into it. We keep these books close to our hearts, serving as a reminder of other bigger goals ahead of us when the going gets tough. Create a numbered list of the books that have captivated you and helped you realize your potential. Talk about the best quotes that struck the chord and the thought racing in your mind while reading them.

When you tap onto your inherent and external motivation for a much-needed push, it may be easier to turn bad moments into something that helps advance personal development plans. For your essay, explain how motivation can be a bridge to get you to your growth goals.

If you’re still stuck, check out our general resource of essay writing topics .

For help with this topic, read our guide explaining what is persuasive writing ?

Yna Lim is a communications specialist currently focused on policy advocacy. In her eight years of writing, she has been exposed to a variety of topics, including cryptocurrency, web hosting, agriculture, marketing, intellectual property, data privacy and international trade. A former journalist in one of the top business papers in the Philippines, Yna is currently pursuing her master's degree in economics and business.

View all posts

• Open access
• Published: 10 January 2020

Impact of internship programs on professional and personal development of business students: a case study from Pakistan

• Sadia Anjum   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-3308-0935 1  

Future Business Journal volume  6 , Article number:  2 ( 2020 ) Cite this article

293k Accesses

31 Citations

Metrics details

This study aims to evaluate the impact of internship programs on the professional as well as on personal development and skills of business students in Pakistan. The data of the study consisted of 800 undergraduating business students of 4-year degree programs from 15 universities of Pakistan. The study used structured questionnaire (35 close-ended questions assessed using 5-point Likert scale) comprised of six parts: Part I: Demographic information, Part II: Reasons for participation in internship, and Part III to VI: Assessment of information related to professional and personal growth and skills. The study employed descriptive analysis to evaluate demographic information and central tendencies of the responses. Furthermore, scale measurement analysis is used to check distribution normality of study data and reliability of the questionnaire. The results of the study depict the impact of internship programs on the professional and personal growth and skills of the business students of Pakistan.

Introduction

The change of life stages from a student to a professional is not always very simple. Students have to face many challenges when they enter into professional life. They have to adjust themselves according to the professional environment by implementing their conceptual knowledge in the new world of work. Usually, business students use their skills and theoretical business knowledge in their first jobs [ 2 , 44 ]. By integrating conceptual knowledge and training through academic internship programs, students can be facilitated to better implement their concepts at the workplace [ 62 ]. According to Gault et al. [ 23 ], academic internships are a bridge to link the theory and practice by taking part in supervised and scheduled work. These internship programs not only improve students personal skills but also polish their professional growth and experience. Today, educational institutes, students and business recruiters are well aware of the importance of internship programs [ 28 , 1 , 11 , 30 , 40 ]. Internship programs are the opportunities for educational institutes to upgrade the students enrollment and prepare their curriculum [ 9 , 18 , 32 ]. For students, internships are experience of practical work [ 50 ]. As companies prefer those business graduates who have required skills and practical knowledge [ 42 ], internships supply valuable employees and competent job applicants to the companies [ 15 ]. Internship programs enable students to get training during their course programs and save companies’ supervision and training costs by providing them trained employees [ 31 ].

Now the questions that come into the minds regarding internships are: Why internships are important? and Why business students do internships? The answer to every question related to internship programs is that they are short-term workplace practical experience which provide opportunities to the students to enter the job market during and after their undergraduation course programs [ 47 ]. Internships are excellent source of practical experience [ 19 , 20 , 22 , 33 , 51 ], learning team work [ 53 ], for polishing resumes [ 63 ], for building personal and professional relationships and for earning real money [ 16 ]. Oehlert et al. [ 49 ] stated that more attention should be paid on the internship programs to meet the needs of growing competitive job market. But what is the exact value of an internship program for business students, educational institutes and employers? Unfortunately, to answer this question not much quantitative or qualitative literature work is available.

We are living in the earlier stage of twenty-first century in a global world. In under developing countries like Pakistan, education system is still in improvement process. Here, although teachers are facilitated, they are not directed to enhance practical knowledge of their students with conceptual knowledge during a course program. Inappropriate teaching methodology may be one of the reasons due to which students find it difficult to implement conceptual knowledge in solving their daily lives problems. This problem can be solved with the help of internship programs. In Pakistan, it is supposed the internship programs would be beneficial and helpful to improve the performance of the faculty members and to enhance the workplace experience of the students during the course work of their degrees.

Purpose and objectives of the study

The main purpose of this study is to determine how much internship programs are beneficial for the undergraduating business students for their future career development, professional and personal growth. This study also aims to evaluate the impact of internship programs on the improvement of the professional and personal skills of business students of Pakistan after the completion of their internship period. The following objectives are set by the study in order to reach and achieve the purpose of the study:

To determine the background and rationale of engagement of business students in internship programs.

To determine the impact of internship programs on professional as well as personal growth and skills of the undergraduating business students.

To identify the strengths and weaknesses of internship programs existing in Pakistan.

Need and importance of the study

A large number of educational institutes are coming to the opinion that internship programs are an excellent source for career and professional preparation of the students. They provide work-related experience to the students. On the other hand, they make it easy for the companies to select flexible, experienced and highly qualified job applicants. So internship programs are rewarding to the students, educational institutes and employers [ 29 , 52 , 59 ]. This is the era of innovations and technological development and expansion. So it is necessary to grow such capabilities in the students that will assist them to deal with the modern world of work [ 25 ]. For this, there is a need to reform the educational system of Pakistan by improving teaching methods, curriculum development, involving more research and providing practical training to the students. Internship programs create a link between classroom concepts and real workplace experience. Students are the future of any country. It is the requirement of the time that if Pakistan wants to be a developed country, it should focus more on the practical training of the business students so that they can outperform in the real world of progress.

This detailed examination of internship programs is the prior research within Pakistan to evaluate the impact of internship on career preparation of the business students as well as on their professional and personal growth. This study is important because it supplies valuable recommendations to the companies, educational institutes and students regarding the advancement of internship programs to improve personal skills, professional growth, leadership skills and work-related experience of the Pakistani students.

Theoretical framework

This section deals with the explanation of the theoretical framework, review of the prior literature and conceptual framework of the study.

Social learning theory is related to this study priorly developed by Bandura [ 4 ] and extended by Lave and Wenger [ 39 ]. Social learning theory is a cognitive process that is set on the notion of changes in beliefs, concepts and knowledge and improves professional and personal learning process through participation in real work environment. The motive of the present study is to evaluate the impact of internship programs on the professional and personal growth of the business students of Pakistan.

Review of the literature

Work-related learning and practical training in the form of internship programs are vital for business students for their personal and professional development and to build their strong connections with the leading business organizations. However, most of the research works until recently have focused on the advancement of students knowledge and advantages of an internship program after its completion [ 57 ]. There is limited amount of research work on how internship programs assist in professional and personal growth and skills of business students especially in underdeveloped countries like Pakistan. Much attention is paid on knowledge of facts in formal educational classes. If a student works hard, pays attention in class and learns the classroom material by heart, he will definitely pass the examinations [ 3 ]. In formal classes, the major focus is on what students know, but in an internship program, the major focus is on what students do. Ronnestad and Skovholts ([ 53 ], pp. 20–22) stated that practicality of knowledge depends upon what students already know and how they associate their information with the situations they face in the real world of the work. Raskin ([ 51 ], p. 18) indicated through an empirical research that there is a huge gap between the linkage of classroom knowledge and practical work. Students and academic faculty members pay very little attention on gaining full benefit from internship opportunities. Sometimes, students just observe the internship work environment without applying their classroom knowledge to the situations they encounter there, and sometimes, educational advisors or faculty members do not properly guide their students to get full advantage from the internship opportunities [ 21 ]. Harrison and Kennedy [ 27 ] believed that an internship program can be made successful for students through proper recognition of internship plans and relevant industry participants, picking out motivational student interns, internship program evaluation, monitoring and feedback. They also identified that educational institutes and academic advisors should play a vital role in the implementation of an internship program.

Many previous studies have proved that internship programs improve the academic and professional performance of the business students who follow an internship program during or after the completion of their institutional degree [ 17 , 36 , 58 ]. Internship programs provide the opportunity to the business students to gain fruitful experience by implementing their classroom concepts in the real work settings [ 8 , 26 , 45 ]. Internship experience then has an impact on the professional growth and success of business students and helps them to receive good financial earnings in their first job [ 13 , 24 , 37 ]. Students also learn required skills acquired for their professional success [ 6 , 38 ]. Moreover, internship helps business students to develop good personal qualities and working habits as well as appreciable confidence level [ 1 , 24 , 41 , 55 , 60 ]. Internship opportunities make the students able to receive high-quality job offers sooner [ 38 , 43 , 54 ]. They help them to directly interact with corporate professionals and thus build a strong network for their first job [ 24 , 56 ]. But different studies have shown that to achieve all the above-mentioned advantages related to internship, appropriate feedback is needed from both the corporate supervisor and the institutional supervisor of the student. As feedback is considered as a vital element in upgrading and maintaining the performance, quality of internship programs and professional learning of the business students, a proper feedback should be provided by company and academic supervisor to check the intern’s progress [ 12 , 34 , 46 ].

Corporates usually favor the job applicants with work experience and practical knowledge. Therefore, they sometimes have an eye on their interns to select them as their future employees [ 5 , 7 , 14 , 24 , 43 ]. In this way, companies also save their hiring and training costs [ 5 ]. Interns provide part-time help and innovative ideas and exchange other knowledge with the business firms [ 5 , 61 , 64 ]. On the other hand, the major disadvantages of internships for the organizations are that they have to provide guidance, extensive support, training and feedback to the interns at every stage in order to make them productive for the organizations [ 10 ].

Furthermore, internship programs help educational institutions to get reputation by strengthening their bonds with business world, availability of research grants, receive positive feedback from corporates on their curriculum and increase job opportunities for their students [ 5 , 14 , 24 , 42 , 43 , 64 ]. Although the existing literature provides a good overview of the benefits of internship programs for the business students, there is a lack of such empirical research in the context of underdeveloped countries like Pakistan. This study will give the overview of internship pros to the business students of Pakistan.

The hypotheses of the study are as follows:

Internship programs have an impact on the professional development of the business students.

Internship programs have an impact on the professional skills of the business students.

Internship programs have an impact on the personal growth of the business students.

Internship programs have an impact on the personal capabilities of the business students.

This section of the study elaborates methods of data collection, population and sampling procedures, analysis of data and the research design. This study was submitted to and approved by Advanced Studies and Research Committee of Government College University.

Collection of data

The study collected primary data from the final year business students of 4-year degree programs who did internships of 2–4 months from 15 prestigious educational institutes of Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, namely Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, Islamabad; Bahria University, Islamabad, National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad; Air University, Islamabad; Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad; University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore; UCP, Lahore; COMSAT, Lahore; Punjab University, Lahore; Lahore University of Management Sciences; Iqra University, Karachi; Karachi Institute of Economics and Technology; Aga Khan University, Karachi; Institute of Business Management, Karachi; and Hamdard University, Karachi. “ Appendix A ” further shows percentage and frequency analysis of these universities. The data were collected in May and June 2019. In total, 800 questionnaires were distributed comprising of Part I: Demographic information, Part II: Reasons for participation in internship, Part III–Part VI: Assessment of information regarding professional and personal growth and skills improvement with 35 close-ended questions. The questionnaires were distributed and collected both physically and electronically. “ Appendix B ” shows sample of questionnaire.

Population and sampling procedures

The fourth-year business students of Pakistani universities were considered as the population of the study. As a large number of students pass out (90,682 business students as per current report of Higher Education Commission of Pakistan), sample of the study consisted of 800 business students from 15 Pakistani universities.

Methodology

This study is a quantitative research, but in order to better comprehend strengths and weaknesses of internship programs in Pakistan, some qualitative research elements were also utilized. The study employed both descriptive and statistical analyses to evaluate the impact of internship programs on the professional and personal growth and skills of Pakistani business students. Descriptive technique of the study consisted of percentage and frequency analysis of demographic characteristics of the participants and central tendency measurement of their responses, whereas statistical technique comprised of scale analysis including normality and reliability tests. Reliability of the questionnaire was tested using Cronbach’s alpha, and normality was evaluated employing univariate and multivariate normality of skewness and kurtosis. Structured questionnaire technique was used, comprising of six parts, i.e., Part I: Demographic information, Part II: Reasons for participation in internship, Part III–Part VI: Assessment of information regarding professional and personal growth and skills improvement with 35 close-ended questions. Each variable of the questionnaire was assessed using 5-point Likert scale, where 1 is strongly disagree, 2 is disagree, 3 is neutral, 4 is agree and 5 is strongly agree.

This section consists of empirical findings and their estimations. This section is divided into two parts, i.e., descriptive analysis and scale analysis.

Descriptive analysis

This section highlights the demographic characteristics of the respondents and central tendency measurement of their responses.

Demographic characteristics

This section of the study elaborates the findings of two parts of the questionnaire, i.e., demographic information and reasons for participation in an internship program. Tables  1 and 2 indicate the findings.

The results show that among 800 respondents, 744 (93%) were 26 or less years of age and 56 (7%) were in between 27 and 30 years of age. 396 (49.5%) were males and 404 (50.5%) were females. 180 (22.5%) were students of accounting and finance program, 244 (30.5%) were from BBA (Hons) degree, 99 (12.4%) were from accounting (Hons) degree, and 277 (34.6%) were B.Com (Hons) students. 177 (22.1%) were working as an intern in finance departments, 189 (23.6%) in marketing departments, 80 (10%) in human resource departments, 144 (18%) in product departments, 190 (23.8%) in customer relationship departments, and 20 (2.5%) in other departments of different business organizations. 492 (61.5%) interns participated in an internship program for 6 or less weeks, 298 (37.3%) worked for 7–16 weeks, and 10 (1.2%) worked for 17–25 weeks.

These results depict that 10 (1.2%) respondents did internship in spring semester, 759 (94.9%) did in summer, 9 (1.1%) participated in an internship program in fall semester, 12 (1.5%) worked as an intern in spring/summer semester, and 10 (1.2%) did internship in summer/fall semester. 710 (88.7%) were interested to work in the field of business, and 90 (11.3%) were not interested at all in business field before their internship. 190 (23.7%) respondents participated in an internship program as it was a departmental course requirement, 44 (5.5%) did internship because advisor recommended it as an elective course, and 566 (70.8%) participated in an internship to gain practical experience. 177 (22.1%) considered that internship is important to complete academic credit, 289 (36.1%) thought that an internship is important as it links classroom concepts with real work environment, 258 (32.3%) believed that it provides direction toward independent life, and 76 (9.5%) considered its importance for purposes other than stated above. 639 (79.9%) participants agreed that their internships helped them in obtaining their current jobs, whereas 161 (20.1%) lacked this belief. 569 (71.1%) agreed that internship programs influence the future job promotion, whereas 231 (28.9%) did not agree. 610 (76.2%) received incentives from companies while being in internship, while 190 (23.7%) did not receive such incentives. 455 (56.9%) received award while being in internship, while 345 (43.1%) did not receive any award.

Measurement of central tendencies

This part deals with the findings of mean and standard deviation for the items of Part III to Part VI of the questionnaire. Table  3 shows the results.

These results show central tendencies of the responses for all the items of Part III to Part VI of the questionnaire by 800 participants of the study. The highest mean and highest standard deviation (SD) for professional development (PD) are 3.3451 and 0.3217, respectively. The lowest mean and lowest SD for PD are 2.9261 and 0.0235, respectively. The range of mean 2.9261–3.3451 depicts that responses of business students are moving from “disagree” to “agree” for all the items of PD. The lowest and highest means for professional skills (PS) are 3.7129 and 4.3127, while the lowest SD and highest SD are 0.0217 and 0.6133, respectively. The mean range 3.7129–4.3127 shows positive responses of business students for all the items of PS. The lowest mean and lowest SD for personal growth (PG) are 4.1209 and 0.4259, whereas the highest mean and highest SD are 4.5129 and 0.7521, respectively. The mean range 4.1209–4.5129 indicates that business students “agreed” with all the items of PG. The lowest and highest means for personal capabilities (PC) are 3.7121 and 4.6713, the while lowest SD and highest SD are 0.2960 and 0.7511, respectively. The mean range 3.7121–4.6713 shows positive responses of business students for all the items of PC.

Scale measurement

This section elaborates normality and reliability tests results, evaluated to check the normality of distribution of the data of the study and reliability of the questionnaire.

Multivariate normality test

The acceptable skewness range is ± 3 with acceptable kurtosis range of ± 10 [ 35 ]. The data of the study will be normally distributed if values of kurtosis and skewness fall within this range. Table  4 shows the results.

These results show that critical values of kurtosis range from − 1.6231 (PD6) to 1.6337 (PS6), whereas critical values of skewness range from − 0.7176 (PG5) to 0.7621 (PC5). The results indicate that all the values of kurtosis and skewness fall in the acceptable range; therefore, the data of the study are normally distributed.

Reliability test

The reliability of the questionnaire is checked using Cronbach’s coefficient alpha. Nunnally and Bernstein [ 48 ] described that if Cronbach’s coefficient alpha is above 0.70, then questionnaire becomes reliable. Table  5 shows the results.

The results represent that values of Cronbach’s coefficient alpha range from 0.7113 to 0.8239. As critical values fall in acceptable range, the questionnaire of the study is reliable.

Strengths and weaknesses of internship programs in Pakistan

Comments of the business respondents suggest the following key points about the strengths of the internship programs in Pakistan: (1) Almost all business schools are focusing to encourage their students to gain practical experience through internships; (2) viva voce of students is conducted after the completion of their internship period in order to evaluate their practical experience; (3) government of Pakistan is offering different internship programs at provincial level to fill the vacant job positions with right job applicants; and (4) as companies prefer their interns as their future employees, this encourages students to participate in internship programs.

The following weaknesses are suggested by the comments of the respondents: (1) There is a lack of coordination between company and academic supervisors; (2) only selected assignments are given to the students by the companies with not much encouraging environment to ask what students want; and (3) proper feedback is not provided by the firms to their interns and their academic supervisors.

Policy implications

Internship programs link classroom knowledge with the workplace realities and provide an experimental experience to the students and enable them to make their place in the dynamic job market of this modern era. The present study will help and encourage the business students of Pakistan to focus more on gaining experimental knowledge from real world of the work so that they can easily get their first job and future job promotions. It will also assist business schools to develop proper strategies and curriculum for the promotion of internship programs so that besides theoretical knowledge, practical knowledge can also be provided to the business students during the graduation. It will also help to the companies to offer effective internship programs, training and learning environment to their interns. In this way, they can reduce their recruitment and training costs to the new employees.

Future recommendations

Future research can be conducted gathering firms and business schools perceptions about the internship programs. Future studies can also be conducted by comparing internship programs of different countries.

The study aimed to evaluate the impact of internship programs on the professional and personal development and skills of the business students of Pakistan. The data of the study comprised of 800 undergraduating business students of 4-year degree programs from 15 Pakistani universities. The study got responses from the participants using structured questionnaire technique consisting of six parts, i.e., Part I: Demographic information; Part II: Reasons for participation in internship; Part III–Part VI: Assessment of information regarding professional and personal growth and skills improvement of the business students. Each item of the questionnaire (35 close-ended questions) was assessed using 5-point Likert scale. The study employed descriptive analysis to evaluate demographic information and measured central tendencies using mean and standard deviation to evaluate the nature of the responses of the participants. Furthermore, scale measurement analysis was made to check the normality of distribution of the study data and reliability of the questionnaire.

The results of central tendency measurement indicate “disagree to agree,” “positive” and “agreed” responses of the participants for all the items of the questionnaire. Normality test results show that critical values of kurtosis range from − 1.6231 to 1.6337, whereas critical values of skewness range from − 0.7176 to 0.7621. As critical values of kurtosis and skewness fall within the acceptable range, the data of the study are normally distributed. Moreover, reliability test results using Cronbach’s coefficient alpha indicate that all critical values of Cronbach’s alpha exceed 0.70, so the questionnaire of the study is reliable. The overall results depict that internship programs have an impact on the professional growth and skills of the business students of Pakistan, affecting their personal development, skills and capabilities. The results are consistent with English and Koeppen [ 17 ], Hall et al. [ 26 ], Gault et al. [ 24 ], Weible [ 64 ], McDonald et al. [ 42 ].

Availability of data and materials

The data will be provided on request.

Arnold MJ, Cannon JA (1998) Student expectations of collegiate internship program in business: a 10-year update. J Educ Bus 73(4):202–205. https://doi.org/10.1080/08832329809601630

Article   Google Scholar  

Arts JA, Gijselaers WH, Boshuizen H (2006) Understanding managerial problem-solving, knowledge use and information processing: investigating stages from school to the workplace. Contemp Educ Psychol 31(4):387–410

Google Scholar  

Baird BN (1999) The internship, practicum and field placement handbook, a guide for the helping professions. Prentice-Hall Inc., Upper Saddle River

Bandura A (1977) Social learning theory. Prentice Hall, New Jersey

Beard DF (1998) The status of internships/cooperative education experiences in accounting education. J Account Educ 16(3/4):507–516

Beard DF (2007) Assessment of internship experiences and accounting core competencies. Account Educ Int J 16(2):207–220. https://doi.org/10.1080/09639280701234625

Beckett H (2006) All good practice. People Manag 12(5):38–40

Beenen G, Mrousseau DM (2010) Getting the most from MBA internships: promoting intern learning and job acceptance. Hum Resour Manag 49(1):3. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.20331

Benton P (1990) The Oxford internship scheme: integration + partnership in initial teacher education. Galouste Gulbenkian Foundation, London

Birch C, Allen J, McDonald J, Tomaszczyk E (2010) Graduate internships: bridging the academic and vocational divide. In: Halley S, Birch C, Trmpelaar DT, McCuddy M, Hernandez Nanclares N, Reeb-Gruber S, Gijselaers WH, Rienties B, Nelissen E (eds) Proceedings of the 17th ENINEB conference: crossing borders in education and work-based learning. FEBA ERD Press, London, pp. 194–195

Bower AM (1989) Getting at the core of the New York State mentor teacher: internship program—relationships. Iowa State University Library, Ames, IA. (ERIC document reproduction service, no. ED303463)

Brooks L, Cornelius A, Greenfield E, Joseph R (1995) The relation of career-related work or internship experience to the career development of college seniors. J Vocat Behav 46(3):332–349

Callanan G, Benzing C (2004) Assessing the role of internships in the career-oriented employment of graduating college students. Educ Train 46(2):82–89

Coco M (2000) Internships: a try before you buy agreement. Adv Manag J 65:41–47

Crumbley DL, Sumners GE (1998) How businesses profit from internships? Intern Audit 55(10):54–55

Dickey EB (1979) Faculty internships are “catching on” at South Carolina. Journal Educ 34(3):20–21

English DM, Koeppen DR (1993) The relationship of accounting internships and subsequent academic performance. Issues Account Educ 22:45–53

Eyler J (1993) Comparing the impact of two internship experiences on student learning. J Coop Educ 29(1):41–52

Farrell AM (1992) What teachers can learn from industry internships? Educ Leadersh 49(6):38–39

Fosdick JA (1979) Post-interns change views of the media, J-Education. Journal Educ 34(2):22–25

Frantzich S (1977) Storming Washington: an intern’s guide to national government. American Political Science Association, Washington, D.C.

Gary LD (1999) My summer intern experience at First Union Capital Markets Group. http://members.tripod.com/-Gary_Dove/weeklO.html

Gault J, Leach E, Duey M (2010) Effects of business internships on job marketability: the employers’ perspective. Educ Train 52(1):76–88

Gault J, Redington J, Schlager T (2000) Undergraduate business internships and career success: are they related? J Mark Educ 22:45–53

Gerasimova IB (1998) Problems of training science-teaching cadres. Russ Educ Soc 40(8):91–95

Hall M, Stiles G, Kuzma J, Elliott K (1998) A comparison of student and employer expectations with regard to business internships. Mark Educ Rev 5(3):41–49

Harrison RW, Kennedy PL (1996) A framework for implementing agribusiness internship programs. Agribusiness 12(6):561–568

Hirst R (1996) The value of faculty internships in technical communication. J Tech Writ Commun 26(1):79–96

Hodgson P (1999) Making internships well worth the work. Techniques 74(6):38–39

Horowitz EM (1996) Chasing the pot of gold: internships on the road to employment. Iowa State University Library, Ames, IA. (ERIC document reproduction service, no. ED401551)

Hurst JL, Good LK (2010) A 20-year evolution of internships: implications for retail interns, employers and educators. Int Rev Retail Distrib Consum Res 20(1):175–186. https://doi.org/10.1080/09593960903498342

Hymon-Parker S (1998) Benefits and limitations of internships as viewed by educators and retailers. J Fam Consum Sci 90(4):76–80

Inkster R (1994) Internships and reflective practice: informing the workplace, informing the academy. Iowa State University Library, Ames, IA. (ERIC document reproduction service, no. ED 234 781

Johari A, Bradshaw AC (2006) Project-based learning in an internship program: a qualitative study of related roles and their motivational attributes. Educ Technol Res Dev 56:329–359

Kline RB (1998) Principles and practice of structural equation modeling. Guilford Press, New York

Knechel WR, Snowball D (1987) Accounting internships and subsequent academic performance: an empirical study. Account Rev 62(4):799–807

Knemeyer AM, Murphy PR (2002) Logistics internships: employer and student perspectives. Int J Phys Distrib Logist Manag 32(2):135–152

Knouse SB, Fontenot G (2008) Benefits of the business college internship: a research review. J Employ Couns 45(2):61–66

Lave J, Wenger E (1991) Situated learning: legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

Mamun M (1998) Social forestry program in the Majalengka forest district, West Java, Indonesia: agro forestry systems and extension services. Unpublished dissertation, Iowa State University, Ames, IA

McCollum JK, Schoening NC (2004) Case study of management internships: Eastern Europeans in America. Int J Public Adm 27(11–12):905–915. https://doi.org/10.1081/LPAD-200037359

McDonald J, Birch C, Hitchman A, Fox P, Lido C (2010) Developing graduates employability through internships: new evidence from a UK university. In: Halley S, Birch C, Tempelaar DT, McCuddy M, Hernandez Nanclares N, Reeb-Gruber S, Gijselaers WH, Rienties B, Nelissen E (eds) Proceedings of the 17th EDINEB conference: crossing borders in education and work-based learning. FEBA ERD Press, London, pp. 349–358

Mello JA (2006) Enhancing the international business curriculum through partnership with the United States department of commerce: the “e” award internship program. J Manag Educ 30(5):690–699

Mintzberg H (2004) Managers not MBAs: a hard look at the soft practice of managing and management development. Berrett-Koehler, San Francisco

Muhamad R, Yahya Y, Shahimi S, Mahzan N (2009) Undergraduate internship attachment in accounting: the intern’s perspective. Int Educ Stud 2(4):49–55

Narayanan VK, Olk PM, Fukami CV (2010) Determinants of internship effectiveness: an exploratory model. Acad Manag Learn Educ 9(1):61–80

Niebauer W (1978) The great equalizer: job experience. Community Coll Journal 7(1):23–24

Nunnally JC, Bernstein IH (1994) Psychometric theory, 3rd edn. McGraw-Hill, New York

Oehlert ME, Sumerall S, Lopez SJ (1998) Internship selection in professional psychology. A comprehensive guide for students, faculty and training directors. Charles C. Thomas Publisher, Ltd., Springfield

Posey LO, Carlisle KE, Smellie DC (1998) An internship study case: how internships can benefit the student, the university and the organization. Train Dev J 42(2):59

Raskin MS (1994) The Delphi study in field instruction revisited: expert consensus on issues and research priorities. J Soc Work Educ 30:75–89

Razzano E (1999) Recommended: the internship support is essential. Engl J 89(1):30–32

Ronnestad MN, Skovholt TM (1993) Supervision of beginning and advanced graduate students of counseling and psychotherapy. J Couns Dev 71:396–405

Rothman M, Lampe M (2009) Business school internships: sources and resources. In: Paper presented at the proceedings of ASBBS 2009, Las Vegas, US

Sapp DA, Zhang Q (2009) Trends in industry supervisors’ feedback on business communication internships. Bus Commun Q 72(3):274–288. https://doi.org/10.1177/1080569909336450

Schambach TP, Driks J (2002) Student perceptions of internship experiences. In: Paper presented at the 17th annual conferences of the International Academy for Information Management, Barcelona, Spain

Schambach TP, Kephart D (1999) Do I/S students value internship experiences? In: Paper presented at the proceeding of the 17th International Academy for Information Management, Barcelona, Spain

Siegel PH, Rigsby JT (1988) The relationship of accounting internships and subsequent professional performance. Issues Account Educ 3(2):423–433

Swift CO, Kent R (1999) Business school internships: legal concerns. J Educ Bus 75(1):23–26

Tylor MS (1988) Effects of college internships on individual participants. J Appl Psychol 73(3):393–401

Tovey J (2001) Building connections between industry and university: implementing an internship program at a regional university. Tech Commun Q 10(2):225–239

Tynjälä P (2008) Perspectives into learning at the workplace. Educ Res Rev 3(2):130–154

Veenendall TL, Freeman AR (1983) Making an internship program successful: the necessary ingredients. Iowa State University Library, Ames, IA. (ERIC document reproduction service, no. ED249542)

Weible R (2010) Are universities reaping the available benefits internship programs offer? J Educ Bus 85:59–63

Download references

Acknowledgements

I verify that this article “Impact of internship programs on professional and personal development of business students: a case study from Pakistan” is my original work, has not received any prior publication and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere.

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Department of Commerce and Finance, Government College University, House# 90, Gillani Street# 4, Sadaqat Park Sanda Khurd, Lahore, 54000, Pakistan

Sadia Anjum

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Contributions

SA is the only author of the manuscript and the sole contributor.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sadia Anjum .

Ethics declarations

Competing interests.

Not applicable.

Additional information

Publisher's note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Frequency and percentage of demographic characteristic: universities

• Source : developed for the study

Part III: professional development

Please indicate your level of agreement with each of the following statements about internship impact. Please check the suitable response.

Part IV: professional skills

Do you believe internship program contributed to your professional skills development? Please check the suitable response.

Part V: personal growth

Questions in this section deal with personal growth related to internship experiences. Please check the suitable response.

Part VI: personal capabilities

Do you believe the following characteristics are positively influenced by internship program? Please check the suitable response.

Thank You Very Much!!!

Rights and permissions

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ .

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article.

Anjum, S. Impact of internship programs on professional and personal development of business students: a case study from Pakistan. Futur Bus J 6 , 2 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s43093-019-0007-3

Download citation

Received : 09 August 2019

Accepted : 18 December 2019

Published : 10 January 2020

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s43093-019-0007-3

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Internship programs
• Business students
• Professional development
• Personal growth

Personal Development: 9 Skills, Tips, and Examples

Why personal development is so important and how to improve yourself..

Posted June 7, 2020 | Reviewed by Gary Drevitch

I am obsessed with personal development because it's helped me completely change my life. Only 10 years ago, I had no connections, no money, and worked a minimum wage retail job. Now, I have a Ph.D. from Berkeley, am the author of a book on how to generate happiness in the technology age , and have created a variety of well-being-boosting programs . And it's all because I worked on developing myself. So how do you make personal development work for you?

Personal development can include any skill that you build to improve yourself—your emotions, thoughts, or behaviors. It doesn't really matter which skills you want to improve; the key to personal development is taking the right steps—steps that help ensure that you reach whatever goal you are pursuing.

Learn more from the video below:

What are the most important personal development skills? It really depends on what you're trying to achieve. But here are 9 that I have found to be important to successful personal development.

1. Start by figuring out which personal development skills you need to build. The first step in any personal development strategy is to figure out how to best use your time. It makes little sense to learn how to code if you don't plan to be a coder or to bench press 400 pounds if you don't plan to be a weight lifter. These can be hobbies, but personal development is more about building skills to reach your personal goals . So it's good to take some time to self-reflect. (If well-being is a goal of yours, take this well-being quiz to see which skills you need to build.)

2. Develop entrepreneurial thinking. Everyone can benefit from learning how to think like an entrepreneur, regardless of whether or not you are one. Why? Because entrepreneurs are innovative, good at planning for all possible outcomes, and skilled at getting others to buy into their vision or dream. And perhaps more importantly for personal development, they tend to be adaptable to all sorts of situations.

By developing entrepreneurial thinking, you better adapt to whatever your circumstances are so you can more easily achieve your goals, whether those goals are to start a business that makes a positive impact in the world , to set yourself up for an early retirement , or climb Mount Everest.

3. Develop a growth mindset . If we have a “fixed mindset,” we may shy away from challenges that could help us grow. But this can be problematic because our fear of making mistakes can lead us to avoid challenges and new experiences—experiences which would help us grow, improve ourselves in important ways, and create the life we desire.

If we have a “ growth mindset ” we seek out challenges because we value learning and growth more than we value feeling smart or knowing what we’re doing. That's why those with a growth mindset often build new skills more easily: They believe they can and so they really work at it.

4. Develop your self-soothing mechanism. High levels of stress are not only bad for our health and well-being, they can prevent us from effectively pursuing and achieving our self-development goals. By learning effective, long-lasting relaxation techniques , your body and mind will be more equipped to handle the inevitable challenges that arise when you're trying to develop yourself.

5. Develop resilience . Resilience is that super-important skill that helps you bounce back quickly after being knocked down. This is one of the most important skills for success because none of us will achieve anything if we don't keep trying when we fail. We can build resilience by improving skills like emotion-regulation , mindfulness , and positivity.

6. Develop your value compass. It's not always easy to live by our core values . But when we go through life without following our personal values, we can easily get lost. We may suddenly "wake up" and realize that we are not who we want to be or where we want to be. This is why it's so important to stay in alignment with our personal values.

What are your values? Perhaps: kindness, curiosity, creativity , hard work, or personal relationships. Define your personal values so you know which actions are in alignment with those values.

7. Create a personal development plan. A good personal development plan takes all these factors into consideration—the WHAT, the HOW, the WHY, and the WHEN. And it focuses on long-term goals . So ask yourself:

• What skills will you build?
• How will you build them?
• Why will you build them?
• And when will you build them?

It can be helpful to create a 10-year plan to map out how you'll reach these goals.

8. Record your progress towards personal development. Keeping track of our progress as we move toward our personal development goals is key to making sure we're on the right track. Then we can pause and take a different direction if we've gone off course. By maintaining self-awareness and frequently checking in with ourselves, we can identify things that we need to devote more attention to. As a result, we can make better progress toward our personal development.

9. Keep developing yourself in new ways. The science is clear: The more ways we develop ourselves, the broader our skillset, and the more success we tend to have. So try learning some new emotional skills or do some activities to build new skills. You just might learn something that changes your life.

Facebook /LinkedIn images: GaudiLab/Shutterstock

Tchiki Davis, Ph.D. , is a consultant, writer, and expert on well-being technology.

• Find a Therapist
• Find a Treatment Center
• Find a Psychiatrist
• Find a Support Group
• Find Online Therapy
• United States
• Brooklyn, NY
• Chicago, IL
• Houston, TX
• Los Angeles, CA
• New York, NY
• Portland, OR
• San Diego, CA
• San Francisco, CA
• Seattle, WA
• Washington, DC
• Asperger's
• Bipolar Disorder
• Chronic Pain
• Eating Disorders
• Passive Aggression
• Personality
• Goal Setting
• Positive Psychology
• Stopping Smoking
• Low Sexual Desire
• Relationships
• Child Development
• Self Tests NEW
• Therapy Center
• Diagnosis Dictionary
• Types of Therapy

At any moment, someone’s aggravating behavior or our own bad luck can set us off on an emotional spiral that threatens to derail our entire day. Here’s how we can face our triggers with less reactivity so that we can get on with our lives.

• Emotional Intelligence
• Gaslighting
• Affective Forecasting
• Neuroscience

While Sandel argues that pursuing perfection through genetic engineering would decrease our sense of humility, he claims that the sense of solidarity we would lose is also important.

This thesis summarizes several points in Sandel’s argument, but it does not make a claim about how we should understand his argument. A reader who read Sandel’s argument would not also need to read an essay based on this descriptive thesis.  

Broad thesis (arguable, but difficult to support with evidence) 

Michael Sandel’s arguments about genetic engineering do not take into consideration all the relevant issues.

This is an arguable claim because it would be possible to argue against it by saying that Michael Sandel’s arguments do take all of the relevant issues into consideration. But the claim is too broad. Because the thesis does not specify which “issues” it is focused on—or why it matters if they are considered—readers won’t know what the rest of the essay will argue, and the writer won’t know what to focus on. If there is a particular issue that Sandel does not address, then a more specific version of the thesis would include that issue—hand an explanation of why it is important.  

Arguable thesis with analytical claim 

While Sandel argues persuasively that our instinct to “remake” (54) ourselves into something ever more perfect is a problem, his belief that we can always draw a line between what is medically necessary and what makes us simply “better than well” (51) is less convincing.

This is an arguable analytical claim. To argue for this claim, the essay writer will need to show how evidence from the article itself points to this interpretation. It’s also a reasonable scope for a thesis because it can be supported with evidence available in the text and is neither too broad nor too narrow.  

Arguable thesis with normative claim 

Given Sandel’s argument against genetic enhancement, we should not allow parents to decide on using Human Growth Hormone for their children.

This thesis tells us what we should do about a particular issue discussed in Sandel’s article, but it does not tell us how we should understand Sandel’s argument.  

Questions to ask about your thesis 

• Is the thesis truly arguable? Does it speak to a genuine dilemma in the source, or would most readers automatically agree with it?  
• Is the thesis too obvious? Again, would most or all readers agree with it without needing to see your argument?  
• Is the thesis complex enough to require a whole essay's worth of argument?  
• Is the thesis supportable with evidence from the text rather than with generalizations or outside research?  
• Would anyone want to read a paper in which this thesis was developed? That is, can you explain what this paper is adding to our understanding of a problem, question, or topic?
• picture_as_pdf Thesis

How to Create a Personal Development Plan: 3 Examples

For successful change, it is vital that the client remains engaged, recognizing and identifying with the goals captured inside and outside sessions. A personal development plan (PDP) creates a focus for development while offering a guide for life and future success (Starr, 2021).

This article introduces and explores the value of personal development plans, offering tools, worksheets, and approaches to boost self-reflection and self-improvement.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients create actionable goals and master techniques to create lasting behavior change.

This Article Contains

What is personal development 7 theories, coaching in personal development and growth, how to create a personal development plan, 3 examples of personal development plans, defining goals and objectives: 10 tips and tools, fostering personal development skills, 3 inspiring books to read on the topic, resources from positivepsychology.com, a take-home message, frequently asked questions.

Personal development is a fundamental concept in psychology and encompasses the lifelong process of self-improvement, self-awareness, and personal growth. Crucial to coaching and counseling, it aims to enhance various aspects of clients’ lives, including their emotional wellbeing, relationships, careers, and overall happiness (Cox, 2018; Starr, 2021).

Several psychological models underpin and support transformation. Together, they help us understand personal development in our clients and the mechanisms and approaches available to make positive life changes (Cox, 2018; Passmore, 2021).

The following psychological theories and frameworks underpin and influence the approach a mental health professional adopts.

1. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

As a proponent of the humanistic or person-centered approach to helping people, Abraham Maslow (1970) suggested that individuals have a hierarchy of needs. Simply put, they begin with basic physiological and safety needs and progress through psychological and self-fulfillment needs.

Personal development is often found in or recognized by the pursuit of higher-level needs, such as self-esteem and self-actualization (Cox, 2018).

2. Erikson’s psychosocial development

Erik Erikson (1963) mapped out a series of eight psychosocial development stages that individuals go through across their lifespan.

Each one involves challenges and crises that once successfully navigated, contribute to personal growth and identity development.

3. Piaget’s cognitive development

The biologist and epistemologist Jean Piaget (1959) focused on cognitive development in children and how they construct their understanding of the world.

We can draw on insights from Piaget’s stages of cognitive development, including intellectual growth and adaptability, to inform our own and others’ personal development (Illeris, 2018).

4. Bandura’s social cognitive theory

Albert Bandura’s (1977) theory highlights the role of social learning and self-efficacy in personal development. It emphasizes that individuals can learn and grow through observation, imitation, and belief in their ability to effect change.

5. Self-determination theory

Ryan and Deci’s (2018) motivational self-determination theory recognizes the importance of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in personal development.

Their approach suggests that individuals are more likely to experience growth and wellbeing when such basic psychological needs are met.

6. Positive psychology

Positive psychology , developed by Martin Seligman (2011) and others, focuses on strengths, wellbeing, and the pursuit of happiness.

Seligman’s PERMA model offers a framework for personal development that emphasizes identifying and using our strengths while cultivating positive emotions and experiences (Lomas et al., 2014).

7. Cognitive-Behavioral Theory (CBT)

Developed by Aaron Beck (Beck & Haigh, 2014) and Albert Ellis (2000), CBT explores the relationship between thoughts, emotions, and behavior.

As such, the theory provides practical techniques for personal development, helping individuals identify and challenge negative thought patterns and behaviors (Beck, 2011).

Theories like the seven mentioned above offer valuable insights into many of the psychological processes underlying personal development. They provide a sound foundation for coaches and counselors to support their clients and help them better understand themselves, their motivations, and the paths they can take to foster positive change in their lives (Cox, 2018).

The client–coach relationship is significant to successful growth and goal achievement.

Typically, the coach will focus on the following (Cox, 2018):

• Actualizing tendency This supports a “universal human motivation resulting in growth, development and autonomy of the individual” (Cox, 2018, p. 53).
• Building a relationship facilitating change Trust clients to find their own way while displaying empathy, congruence, and unconditional positive regard . The coach’s “outward responses consistently match their inner feelings towards a client,” and they display a warm acceptance that they are being how they need to be (Passmore, 2021, p. 162).
• Adopting a positive psychological stance Recognize that the client has the potential and wish to become fully functioning (Cox, 2018).

Effective coaching for personal growth involves adopting and committing to a series of beliefs that remind the coach that the “coachee is responsible for the results they create” (Starr, 2021, p. 18) and help them recognize when they may be avoiding this idea.

The following principles are, therefore, helpful for coaching personal development and growth (Starr, 2021).

• Stay committed to supporting the client. While initially strong, you may experience factors that reduce your sense of support for the individual’s challenges.
• Coach nonjudgmentally. Our job is not to adopt a stance based on personal beliefs or judgment of others, but to help our clients form connections between behavior and results.
• Maintain integrity, openness, and trust. The client must feel safe in your company and freely able to express themselves.
• Responsibility does not equal blame. Clients who take on blame rather than responsibility will likely feel worse about something without acknowledging their influence on the situation.
• The client can achieve better results. The client is always capable of doing and achieving more, especially in relation to their goals.
• Focus on clients’ thoughts and experiences. Collaborative coaching is about supporting the growth and development of the client, getting them to where they want to go.
• Clients can arrive at perfect solutions. “As a coach, you win when someone else does” (Starr, 2021, p. 34). The solution needs to be the client’s, not yours.
• Coach as an equal partnership. Explore the way forward together collaboratively rather than from a parental or advisory perspective.

Creating a supportive and nonjudgmental environment helps clients explore their thoughts, feelings, and goals, creating an environment for personal development and flourishing (Passmore, 2021).

Download 3 Free Goals Exercises (PDF)

These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients create actionable goals and master techniques for lasting behavior change.

Download 3 Free Goals Pack (PDF)

By filling out your name and email address below.

• Email Address *
• Your Expertise * Your expertise Therapy Coaching Education Counseling Business Healthcare Other
• Email This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

A personal development plan is a powerful document “to create mutual clarity of the aims and focus of a coaching assignment” (Starr, 2021, p. 291). While it is valuable during coaching, it can also capture a client’s way forward once sessions have ended.

Crucially, it should have the following characteristics (Starr, 2021):

• Short and succinct
• Providing a quick reference or point of discussion
• Current and fresh, regularly revised and updated

Key elements of a personal development plan include the following (Starr, 2021):

• Area of development This is the general skill or competence to be worked on.
• Development objectives or goals What does the client want to do? Examples might include reducing stress levels, improving diet, or managing work–life balance .
• Behaviors to develop These comprise what the client will probably do more of when meeting their objectives, for example, practicing better coping mechanisms, eating more healthily, and better managing their day.
• Actions to create progress What must the client do to action their objectives? For example, arrange a date to meet with their manager, sign up for a fitness class, or meet with a nutritionist.
• Date to complete or review the objective Capture the dates for completing actions, meeting objectives, and checking progress.

Check out Lindsey Cooper’s excellent video for helpful guidance on action planning within personal development.

We can write and complete personal development plans in many ways. Ultimately, they should meet the needs of the client and leave them with a sense of connection to and ownership of their journey ahead (Starr, 2021).

• Personal Development Plan – Areas of Development In this PDP , we draw on guidance from Starr (2021) to capture development opportunities and the behaviors and actions needed to achieve them.
• Personal Development Plan – Opportunities for Development This template combines short- and long-term goal setting with a self-assessment of strengths, weaknesses, and development opportunities.
• Personal Development Plan – Ideal Self In this PDP template , we focus on our vision of how our ideal self looks and setting goals to get there.

“The setting of a goal becomes the catalyst that drives the remainder of the coaching conversation.”

Passmore, 2021, p. 80

Defining goals and objectives is crucial to many coaching conversations and is usually seen as essential for personal development.

Check out this video on how you can design your life with your personal goals in mind.

The following coaching templates are helpful, containing a series of questions to complete Whitmore’s (2009) GROW model :

• G stands for Goal : Where do you want to be?
• R stands for Reality : Where are you right now with this goal?
• O stands for Options : What are some options for reaching your goal?
• W stands for Way forward : What is your first step forward?

Goal setting creates both direction and motivation for clients to work toward achieving something and meeting their objectives (Passmore, 2021).

The SMART goal-setting framework is another popular tool inside coaching and elsewhere.

S = Specific M = Measurable A = Attainable/ or Agreed upon R = Realistic T = Timely – allowing enough time for achievement

The SMART+ Goals Worksheet contains a series of prompts and spaces for answers to define goals and capture the steps toward achieving them.

We can summarize the five principles of goal setting (Passmore, 2021) as follows:

• Goals must be clear and not open to interpretation.
• Goals should be stretching yet achievable.
• Clients must buy in to the goal from the outset.
• Feedback is essential to keep the client on track.
• Goals should be relatively straightforward. We can break down complex ones into manageable subgoals.

The following insightful articles are also helpful for setting and working toward goals.

• What Is Goal Setting and How to Do it Well
• The Science & Psychology of Goal-Setting 101

1. People skills

Improving how we work with others benefits confidence, and with other’s support, we are more likely to achieve our objectives and goals. The following people skills can all be improved upon:

• Developing rapport
• Assertiveness and negotiation
• Giving and receiving constructive criticism

2. Managing tasks and problem-solving

Inevitably, we encounter challenges on our path to development and growth. Managing our activities and time and solving issues as they surface are paramount.

Here are a few guidelines to help you manage:

• Organize time and tasks effectively.
• Learn fundamental problem-solving strategies.
• Select and apply problem-solving strategies to tackle more complex tasks and challenges.
• Develop planning skills, including identifying priorities, setting achievable targets, and finding practical solutions.
• Acquire skills relevant to project management.
• Familiarize yourself with concepts such as performance indicators and benchmarking.
• Conduct self-audits to assess and enhance your personal competitiveness.

3. Cultivate confidence in your creative abilities

Confidence energizes our performance. Knowing we can perform creatively encourages us to develop novel solutions and be motivated to transform.

Consider the following:

• Understand the fundamentals of how the mind works to enhance your thinking skills.
• Explore a variety of activities to sharpen your creative thinking.
• Embrace the belief that creativity is not limited to artists and performers but is crucial for problem-solving and task completion.
• Learn to ignite the spark of creativity that helps generate innovative ideas when needed.
• Apply creative thinking techniques to enhance your problem-solving and task completion abilities.
• Recognize the role of creative thinking in finding the right ideas at the right time.

To aid you in building your confidence, we have a whole category of articles focused on Optimism and Mindset . Be sure to browse it for confidence-building inspiration.

With new techniques and technology, our understanding of the human brain continues to evolve. Identifying the vital elements involved in learning and connecting with others offers deep insights into how we function and develop as social beings. We handpicked a small but unique selection of books we believe you will enjoy.

1. The Coaching Manual: The Definitive Guide to the Process, Principles and Skills of Personal Coaching – Julie Starr

This insightful book explores and explains the coaching journey from start to finish.

Starr’s book offers a range of free resources and gives clear guidance to support new and existing coaches in providing practical help to their clients.

Find the book on Amazon .

2. The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level – Gay Hendricks

Delving into the “zone of genius” and the “zone of excellence,” Hendricks examines personal growth and our path to personal success.

This valuable book explores how we eliminate the barriers to reaching our goals that arise from false beliefs and fears.

3. The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You’re Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are – Brené Brown

Brown, a leading expert on shame, vulnerability, and authenticity, examines how we can engage with the world from a place of worthiness.

Use this book to learn how to build courage and compassion and realize the behaviors, skills, and mindset that lead to personal development.

We have many resources available for fostering personal development and supporting client transformation and growth.

Our free resources include:

• Goal Planning and Achievement Tracker This is a valuable worksheet for capturing and reflecting on weekly goals while tracking emotions that surface.
• Adopt a Growth Mindset Successful change is often accompanied by replacing a fixed mindset with a growth one .
• FIRST Framework Questions Understanding a client’s developmental stage can help offer the most appropriate support for a career change.

More extensive versions of the following tools are available with a subscription to the Positive Psychology Toolkit© , but they are described briefly below:

• Backward Goal Planning

Setting goals can build confidence and the skills for ongoing personal development.

Backward goal planning helps focus on the end goal, prevent procrastination, and decrease stress by ensuring we have enough time to complete each task.

Try out the following four simple steps:

• Step one – Identify and visualize your end goal.
• Step two – Reflect on and capture the steps required to reach the goal.
• Step three – Focus on each step one by one.
• Step four – Take action and record progress.
• Boosting Motivation by Celebrating Micro Successes

Celebrating the small successes on our journey toward our goals is motivating and confidence building.

Practice the following:

• Step one – Reflect momentarily on the goal you are working toward.
• Step two – Consider each action being taken to reach that goal.
• Step three – Record the completion of each action as a success.
• Step four – Choose how to celebrate each success.

If you’re looking for more science-based ways to help others reach their goals, check out this collection of 17 validated motivation & goal achievement tools for practitioners. Use them to help others turn their dreams into reality by applying the latest science-based behavioral change techniques.

17 Tools To Increase Motivation and Goal Achievement

These 17 Motivation & Goal Achievement Exercises [PDF] contain all you need to help others set meaningful goals, increase self-drive, and experience greater accomplishment and life satisfaction.

Created by Experts. 100% Science-based.

Personal development has a rich and long history. It is underpinned by various psychological theories and remains a vital aspect of creating fulfilling lives inside and outside coaching and counseling.

For many of us, self-improvement, self-awareness, and personal growth are vital aspects of who we are. Coaching can provide a vehicle to help clients along their journey, supporting their sense of autonomy and confidence and highlighting their potential (Cox, 2018).

Working with clients, therefore, requires an open, honest, and supportive relationship. The coach or counselor must believe the client can achieve better results and view them nonjudgmentally as equal partners.

Personal development plans become essential to that relationship and the overall coaching process. They capture areas for development, skills and behaviors required, and goals and objectives to work toward.

Use this article to recognize theoretical elements from psychology that underpin the process and use the skills, guidance, and worksheets to support personal development in clients, helping them remove obstacles along the way.

Ultimately, personal development is a lifelong process that boosts wellbeing and flourishing and creates a richer, more engaging environment for the individual and those around them.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free .

Personal development is vital, as it enables individuals to enhance various aspects of their lives, including emotional wellbeing, relationships, careers, and overall happiness.

It promotes self-awareness, self-improvement, and personal growth, helping individuals reach their full potential and lead fulfilling lives (Passmore, 2021; Starr, 2021).

Personal development is the journey we take to improve ourselves through conscious habits and activities and focusing on the goals that are important to us.

Personal development goals are specific objectives individuals set to improve themselves and their lives. Goals can encompass various areas, such as emotional intelligence, skill development, health, and career advancement, providing direction and motivation for personal growth (Cox, 2018; Starr, 2021).

A personal development plan typically comprises defining the area of development, setting development objectives, identifying behaviors to develop, planning actions for progress, and establishing completion dates. These five stages help individuals clarify their goals and track their progress (Starr, 2021).

• Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory . Prentice-Hall.
• Beck, A. T., & Haigh, E. P. (2014). Advances in cognitive therapy and therapy: The generic cognitive model. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology , 10 , 1–24.
• Beck, J. S. (2011). Cognitive behavior therapy: Basics and beyond . Guilford Press.
• Cottrell, S. (2015). Skills for success: Personal development and employability . Bloomsbury Academic.
• Cox, E. (2018). The complete handbook of coaching . SAGE.
• Ellis, A. (2000). Can rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) be effectively used with people who have devout beliefs in God and religion? Professional Psychology-Research and Practice , 31 (1), 29–33.
• Erikson, E. H. (1963). Youth: Change and challenge . Basic Books.
• Illeris, K. (2018). An overview of the history of learning theory. European Journal of Education , 53 (1), 86–101.
• Lomas, T., Hefferon, K., & Ivtzan, I. (2014). Applied positive psychology: Integrated positive practice . SAGE.
• Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and personalit y (2nd ed.). Harper & Row.
• Passmore, J. (Ed.). (2021). The coaches’ handbook: The complete practitioner guide for professional coaches . Routledge.
• Piaget, J. (1959): The Psychology of intelligence . Routledge.
• Rose, C. (2018). The personal development group: The students’ guide . Routledge.
• Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2018). Self-determination theory: Basic psychological needs in motivation, development, and wellness . Guilford Press.
• Seligman, M. E. (2011). Authentic happiness using the new positive psychology to realize your potential for lasting fulfillment . Nicholas Brealey.
• Starr, J. (2021). The coaching manual: The definitive guide to the process, principles and skills of personal coaching . Harlow: Pearson Education.
• Whitmore, J. (2009). Coaching for performance . Nicholas Brealey.

Share this article:

Article feedback

Let us know your thoughts cancel reply.

Your email address will not be published.

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Related articles

How to Become an ADHD Coach: 5 Coaching Organizations

The latest figures suggest that around 1 in 20 people globally has ADHD, although far fewer are actively diagnosed (Asherson et al., 2022). Attention-deficit hyperactivity [...]

Personal Development Goals: Helping Your Clients Succeed

In the realm of personal development, individuals often seek to enhance various aspects of their lives, striving for growth, fulfillment, and self-improvement. As coaches and [...]

How to Perform Somatic Coaching: 9 Best Exercises

Our bodies are truly amazing and hold a wellspring of wisdom which, when tapped into, can provide tremendous benefits. Somatic coaching acknowledges the intricate connection [...]

Read other articles by their category

• Body & Brain (49)
• Coaching & Application (58)
• Compassion (25)
• Counseling (51)
• Emotional Intelligence (23)
• Gratitude (18)
• Grief & Bereavement (21)
• Happiness & SWB (40)
• Meaning & Values (26)
• Meditation (20)
• Mindfulness (44)
• Motivation & Goals (45)
• Optimism & Mindset (34)
• Positive CBT (30)
• Positive Communication (21)
• Positive Education (47)
• Positive Emotions (32)
• Positive Leadership (19)
• Positive Parenting (15)
• Positive Psychology (34)
• Positive Workplace (37)
• Productivity (17)
• Relationships (44)
• Resilience & Coping (38)
• Self Awareness (21)
• Self Esteem (38)
• Strengths & Virtues (32)
• Stress & Burnout Prevention (34)
• Theory & Books (46)
• Therapy Exercises (37)
• Types of Therapy (64)

Home — Essay Samples — Sociology — Self Identity — Self-Analysis: Shaping Identity and Personal Development

Self-analysis: Shaping Identity and Personal Development

• Categories: Childhood Development Self Identity

About this sample

Words: 462 |

Published: Jan 31, 2024

Words: 462 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Table of contents

Personal background and experiences, strengths and weaknesses, values and beliefs, emotional intelligence, goals and aspirations.

Cite this Essay

Let us write you an essay from scratch

• 450+ experts on 30 subjects ready to help
• Custom essay delivered in as few as 3 hours

Get high-quality help

Verified writer

• Expert in: Psychology Sociology

+ 120 experts online

By clicking “Check Writers’ Offers”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy . We’ll occasionally send you promo and account related email

No need to pay just yet!

Related Essays

1 pages / 1206 words

2 pages / 1039 words

4 pages / 1827 words

6 pages / 2713 words

Remember! This is just a sample.

You can get your custom paper by one of our expert writers.

121 writers online

Still can’t find what you need?

Browse our vast selection of original essay samples, each expertly formatted and styled

Related Essays on Self Identity

When contemplating the intricate nature of human existence, the question of "What is your social identity?" unveils a multifaceted journey through the intricacies of how we perceive and define ourselves within the larger [...]

The ability for one to identify self in the immediate environment is an essential component. My identity can be explained in my personality and the continuous interaction in the environments I have been since I was young. [...]

In the contemporary society, personal identity and self-expression are subjects of great significance. People constantly search for ways to define themselves and establish their individuality. This quest for self-expression is [...]

Social goals and personal goals are two distinct but interconnected aspects of an individual's life. While social goals pertain to the collective well-being of society, personal goals are specific to an individual's aspirations, [...]

How do you present yourself to the world online and offline? Are you the same person Online and Offline? Which version of you is most true? These questions have made me think about the difference between our online self vs [...]

?From the point of view of a reader, it is clear that Jamaica Kincaid is not satisfied with the way Antigua is now. By comparing pre-colonial Antigua with colonial and post-colonial Antigua, Kincaid creates a novel that is [...]

Related Topics

By clicking “Send”, you agree to our Terms of service and Privacy statement . We will occasionally send you account related emails.

Where do you want us to send this sample?

By clicking “Continue”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy.

Be careful. This essay is not unique

This essay was donated by a student and is likely to have been used and submitted before

Download this Sample

Free samples may contain mistakes and not unique parts

Sorry, we could not paraphrase this essay. Our professional writers can rewrite it and get you a unique paper.

Please check your inbox.

We can write you a custom essay that will follow your exact instructions and meet the deadlines. Let's fix your grades together!

Get Your Personalized Essay in 3 Hours or Less!

We use cookies to personalyze your web-site experience. By continuing we’ll assume you board with our cookie policy .

• Instructions Followed To The Letter
• Deadlines Met At Every Stage
• Unique And Plagiarism Free

Essay on Personality Development

Students are often asked to write an essay on Personality Development in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Personality Development

Introduction.

Personality Development refers to enhancing one’s traits for a holistic growth. It’s about improving communication, leadership skills, and maintaining a positive attitude.

Importance of Personality Development

A strong personality helps in better interaction and boosts confidence. It helps us to face challenges and achieve success.

Factors Influencing Personality Development

Various factors like environment, education, and relationships shape our personality. These elements help us grow and evolve as individuals.

Personality Development is a continuous process. It helps us to be better versions of ourselves, making us more adaptable and successful in life.

Also check:

• Speech on Personality Development

250 Words Essay on Personality Development

Personality development is a comprehensive term that encapsulates the improvement of an individual’s traits and attributes, which contribute to their overall character and image. It is an ongoing process that involves the growth and maturation of one’s personality, leading to self-awareness and personal enhancement.

Significance of Personality Development

Personality development is crucial as it enables individuals to enhance their interpersonal skills, which are vital in today’s highly competitive world. It aids in the development of traits such as confidence, optimism, and resilience, which are key to overcoming life’s challenges. Furthermore, it promotes effective communication skills, leadership qualities, and emotional intelligence, which are integral to personal and professional success.

Several factors influence personality development. The environment, including family, school, and community, plays a significant role in shaping one’s personality. The experiences, both positive and negative, that an individual encounters throughout their life also contribute to their personality development. Genetic factors, although not entirely controllable, also play a part in defining an individual’s temperament and behavior.

In conclusion, personality development is a lifelong process that involves the continuous growth and enhancement of an individual’s character and attributes. It is a critical aspect of human development that can significantly influence one’s personal, academic, and professional success. Therefore, it is essential for individuals to focus on their personality development and strive for continuous self-improvement.

500 Words Essay on Personality Development

Personality development is an enduring process of cultivating behaviors, attitudes, and communication patterns that make an individual distinctive. It involves both the improvement of personal traits and the development of a holistic persona that plays a crucial role in achieving success in life.

The Essence of Personality Development

Personality development is not confined to the improvement of a single aspect of an individual; instead, it is about improving an amalgamation of factors that would include the ability to communicate effectively, confidence building, and the overall personality. It can be considered as a tool that helps in enhancing one’s self-esteem and confidence, thereby making an individual more presentable and acceptable in the social context.

Several factors contribute to personality development, including genetic predisposition, upbringing, education, environment, and experiences. Genetic factors contribute to the fundamental aspects of personality, such as temperament. Upbringing and education, on the other hand, shape our values, beliefs, and attitudes.

Environment and experiences play a significant role in shaping our personality. The environment we are exposed to, the people we interact with, and the experiences we have all contribute to the development of our personality. Positive experiences contribute to a confident, well-adjusted personality, while negative experiences may lead to a lack of confidence and low self-esteem.

Role of Personality Development in Success

Personality development plays a vital role in our success, both personally and professionally. A well-developed personality is a key to success as it enhances our ability to communicate effectively, improves our confidence, and helps us in building relationships. It allows us to present ourselves effectively in various situations, thereby opening up opportunities for growth and success.

The Process of Personality Development

Personality development is a continuous process that starts from the time we are born and continues throughout our life. It involves a constant interaction between our innate characteristics and the environment. This process can be influenced by consciously deciding to improve ourselves by learning new skills, adopting healthy habits, and developing positive attitudes.

In conclusion, personality development is an essential aspect of our lives that influences our success and happiness. It is a continuous process that requires conscious effort and commitment. By understanding the factors that influence our personality and taking steps to develop our personality, we can enhance our potential, improve our relationships, and achieve success in life.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

• Essay on My Favourite Personality
• Essay on Himachal Pradesh
• Essay on Success and Hard Work

Apart from these, you can look at all the essays by clicking here .

Happy studying!

One Comment

Personal development

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

48 Personal Growth Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best personal growth topic ideas & essay examples, 📝 most interesting personal growth topics to write about, 👍 simple & easy personal growth essay titles.

• Personal Growth and Development From a personal perspective, the strategy I intend to use to address the issue of diversity in the workplace is to be open-minded and willing to listen to others before making judgments.
• My Greatest Passion and How It Has Contributed to My Personal Growth Within no time I realized that I needed to pursue the career of a social worker to fulfil my passion for the poor and downtrodden section of the society.
• Effective Leadership: Character and Personal Growth In turn, this will ensure that the leader has an open mind and is accommodating to the different personalities of the followers.
• The Role of Music in Personal Growth I believed that someday I would graduate from school, then I would do my best to have a degree in the field that interests me the most and pursue the career that will make me […]
• Multispecies Ethnography and Personality Growth Politics became the determinant element to the determination of biodiversity protection, but the majority of the leaders focused on the essence of power.
• Stress Impact on Self-Esteam and Personal Growth The causes of stress in Jennifer’s life and its possible effect on her health number of factors can be regarded as causing stress in Jennifer’s life.
• Growth and Motivation Theories: Application in Personal Behavior, Professional Goal Setting, Social Policy Formulation Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory of Growth Maslow’s hierarchy of needs growth theory states that, an individual has needs that need to be fulfilled at various levels for the individual to achieve personal and professional […]
• Achieving Personal and Professional Development
• Relations Between Accept and Personal Growth
• Personal Growth in the Book “Great Expectations”
• Importance of Personal Development and Self-Assessment Exercises
• Blueprint for Professional and Personal Growth
• The Usefulness of Self-Assessment Tools for Personal Growth
• Coping With Childbirth: Brain Structural Associations of Personal Growth Initiative
• Grief After Suicide: A Health Perspective on Needs, Effective Help, and Personal Growth
• The Relationships Between Emotional Intelligence and Personal Growth
• Personal Growth and Happiness: Positive Psychology
• Five-Year Personal Growth Plan Overview
• From Childhood to Adulthood: Emotional and Physical Changes
• The Attributes That Complement Professional and Personal Growth
• Human Services Theory: Guidance for Personal Growth
• The Relationships Between Journeys Involve New Experiences and Personal Growth
• Learning and Personal Growth for Students of Poverty
• Volunteering and Sacrificing as a Pathway to Personal Growth
• Differences Between Nursing, Creativity, Self Care, and Personal Growth
• Importance of the Personal Growth in Career Development of Managers and Employees
• Personal Growth and Development: Behavioral Therapy
• Achieving Personal Growth From Teaching Practice
• Overview of Personal Growth and Preparation for Future Goals
• Personal Growth Development and Multiple Intelligences Analysis
• Importance of the Personal Growth for Women
• Personal Growth Initiative and Social Support Overview
• Analysis of the Plan for Professional and Personal Growth
• Promoting Personal Growth Through Experiential Learning
• What Children Can Teach Us About Risk, Failure, and Personal Growth
• Achieving Human Potential Through Self-Actualization
• Personal Growth, Self-Care, and Creativity in the Nursing Profession
• Revisiting the Organismic Valuing Process Theory of Personal Growth
• The Ladder of Sustainable Personal Growth and Its Steps
• Personal and Professional Growth Requirements in Relation to the NMC Regulation
• Supporting Personal Growth and Skill Development
• What Can Time Management Bring to Your Personal Growth
• Personal Growth Through Learning Overview
• Working for Personal Growth and Development
• The Importance of Personal Growth Within the Group
• How Young People Use New Media for Community Action and Personal Growth
• The Relationships Between Personal Growth and Development of Romanticism
• Self Esteem Research Ideas
• Positive Psychology Titles
• Cognitive Psychology Topics
• Emotional Development Questions
• Psychology Questions
• Talent Management Questions
• Leadership Development Essay Titles
• Leadership Qualities Research Ideas
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2023, September 27). 48 Personal Growth Essay Topic Ideas & Examples. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/personal-growth-essay-topics/

"48 Personal Growth Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." IvyPanda , 27 Sept. 2023, ivypanda.com/essays/topic/personal-growth-essay-topics/.

IvyPanda . (2023) '48 Personal Growth Essay Topic Ideas & Examples'. 27 September.

IvyPanda . 2023. "48 Personal Growth Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." September 27, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/personal-growth-essay-topics/.

1. IvyPanda . "48 Personal Growth Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." September 27, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/personal-growth-essay-topics/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "48 Personal Growth Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." September 27, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/personal-growth-essay-topics/.