Conscientiousness in Derek Jeter
Personality Analysis
Author Note
This paper was prepared for Personality Psychology 260, taught by Dr, Kaplan.
Derek Jeter, one of the most respected and admired players and leaders in baseball, is driven by the personality trait conscientiousness. Conscientiousness is defined as “ a character in which the individual values and obeys order and duty, performs with competence, and perhaps, values achievement.” (Mayer, 2007 pg. 284). It is also further defined as a “tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully, and aim for achievement against measures or outside expectations.” (OED, 2014). Jeter’s hard work, tenacity, and demand to get better and better have helped build his strong, inspiring character, which many players, coaches, and fans look up to him for. An example of Jeter’s conscientious personality shines through from a quote he gave to a newspaper in 1999; “I don’t think you’ll ever sit around and say you’re good, until you bat a thousand with no errors.” Derek Jeter is a positive role model for the young and old, and as Michel Jordan said, “reflects a positive image”, making him an iconic athlete in America (Leung, 2010).
Jeter showed signs of conscientiousness since he began playing baseball. By then end of his first season in the big leagues, he was named rookie of the year (The Official Site of Derek Jeter, 2011). He attributed this to his aim to be the best and achieve all that he could, a value of conscientiousness. This quality of competence lead him to many greater successes on the baseball field including several World Series Championships, All-Star game appearances, and MVP titles as a shortstop. His work ethic as a player is unparalleled to the majority of baseball pl...
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...mplifies conscientiousness the most through his actions on and off the baseball field.
References
Anonymous. (n.d.). Derek Jeter: baseball's capital shortstop. Scholastic Scope.
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Derek Jeter: biography. (2011, November). Retrieved April 21, 2014, from The Official Site of Derek
Jeter and the Turn 2 Foundation website: http://mlb.mlb.com/players/jeter_derek/about/bio.jsp--
Leung, W. (2010, April 6). What would Derek Jeter do? Globe and Mail (Toronto, Canada).
Maese, R. (2012, October 14). Yankees prepare for life after Derek Jeter. The Washington Post.
Mayer, J.D. (2007). Personality: A systems approach. Boston: Pearson.
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