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.
Through college Eric Davis was a baseball player who was forever looking for a way to improve his pitch, or how he could train better for longer without consequences to his body. “I was constantly looking for new ways to improve my body, or the way I did things. I was always interested in finding how much I could do without causing injury.” (Davis)
For many years now, my biggest influencer has been Roberto Clemente, who played Major League Baseball in the 60’s and 70’s. Roberto Walker Clemente was born the youngest of seven children to Melchor and Luisa Clemente in Puerto Rico on August 18, 1934. Although growing up poor in Barrio San Anton in Carolina, he was happy and remained very close to his family and to his country and its inhabitants throughout his entire life. Roberto was an industrious young man and worked various odd jobs including milk delivery. He began playing baseball with his brothers and friends and was eventually signed for forty dollars a month by a professional hardball team in the Puerto Rican town of Santurce. His natural ability got him recognized by a Dodger scout and he was signed in 1954 to a minor league team in Montreal. His
Since then he has led his team to five world series titles and become the team captain. He is known for his good looks and quiet confidence. He is still playing shortstop for the Yankee’s today and never stops improving. More world series titles are seen in his future.
Albert Pujols said, “Baseball was an outlet for him to be able to do that, and he had some special talent to go through what he did and still set an example for others. You cannot replace it.”
David Ortiz is an icon because of his contributions to the welfare of children and to baseball. His charity raises money to give kids medical care that they need or don’t have access to, and it trains doctors and nurses. He has made significant contributions to baseball by changing the designated hitter’s role and donating equipment to children in need. If more wealthy people followed Ortiz’s humanitarian values, many of our current problems like poverty, racism and education imbalance would most likely not exist.
Willie Mays once said, “In order to excel, you must be completely dedicated to your chosen sport. You must also be prepared to work hard and be willing to accept constructive criticism. Without one-hundred percent dedication, you won’t be able to do this.” Willie Mays that gave all that he had and took criticism because he was black. He would always show up to the games to support his team even if he was benched.
Derek was drafted by the Yankees with the 6th pick of the draft out of high school. Despite turning down dozens of D1 offers, he decided to take a chance at entering the MLB (Derek Jeter Stats, Video Highlights, Photos, Bio). Derek came up short a few times in the MVP voting. The seasons he didn 't win, he lost only to people who had seasons that will forever be in the record book. In Jeter 's Prime, he played against some of the best players in the last half century. The Captain has finished in 2nd place once, and 3rd place twice in MVP voting. Winning MVP is an extremely hard thing to do. Many contradict and say he should have won the three years he finished in the top three. In 2000, Derek was named the MVP of both the All-Star Game and the World Series (DerekJeter.com). That is something that is extremely uncommon. Mr. November lead the MLB in hits during the years 1999 and 2012 (Derek Jeter Stats, Video Highlights, Photos, Bio). He has won five career World Series in the years 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2009 (Derek Jeter Stats, Video Highlights, Photos, Bio). Very few players will even have a chance at a World Series ring let alone to win five. Derek Jeter was honored and accepted to play for Team USA in the first-ever World Baseball Classic (Derek Jeter Stats, Video Highlights, Photos, Bio). This honor is only an option to the best United States natives. D.J. has also received 13 All-Star Game
"All the ballparks and the big crowds have a certain mystique. You feel attached, permanently wedded to the sounds that ring out, to the fans chanting your name, even when there are only four or five thousand in the stands on a Wednesday afternoon." - Mickey Mantle (Frommer). The Mick, or the Commerce Comet, did the exact same thing and was the hero of young boys playing America’s favorite pastime. His lifetime average of .298, a Gold Glove, and 3 MVP’s were all on the resume for his Hall of Fame career. He recorded the fastest home to first ever at 3.1 seconds. Mammoth homeruns of over 500 feet were also in his repertoire. The biggest stage, the World Series, was his shining moment. Records for homeruns, RBIs, runs scored, walks, extra base hits, and total bases are all under his name in the World Series statistics. To add, he owns the record for most walk off homeruns. These aspects all appealed to the sluggers and quick single hitters in the neighborhood little league. Children could be seen playing pickup games going on with boys and girls alike taking up Mickey’s stance. Before and after games, Mickey would always sign autographs just to see the smile of children (Early).
Willie Mays once said “In order to excel, you must be completely dedicated to your chosen sport. You must also be prepared to work hard and be willing to accept constructive criticism. Without one-hundred percent dedication, you won't be able to do this” In order to succeed it’s required to put everything on the line to survive in the world of sports. Without devoting to sports there is no correct path to success. Nobody will be on the level of competition. Dedication also comes into play where people will need to be better in other areas. Technique is another must have to be involved with sports. If its not possible to do something right then try over and over until it is. Speed is needed to be able to get place to place or to shoot a swift shot. Working out lower body will help with strength which comes back to dedication. Therefore, everything comes back to each other and helps be better, faster, harder, and stronger.
“It ain’t braggin’ if you can back it up.” –Dizzy Dean. Dizzy Dean lived up to his famous quote throughout his baseball career. He had a daring character, and never backed down from a challenge. He was known as nonchalant, and boastful man. He did whatever he wanted and did not care about the consequences. Dean was not the most intelligent man, although he was very witty and always had sly remarks. He was an interesting character, and Robert Gregory defines him in great detail in his biography, Diz: The Story of Dizzy Dean and Baseball During the Great Depression.
Athletes waiver an uncanny amount of courage, by pushing their bodies to the test and showcasing themselves and abilities to the judgement of the public. Sports may come natural for many people, but having utmost character and bravery does not come easy to anyone. Undoubtedly, having both is a rare occasion. Being a prime example, Jackie Robinson used his natural born gifts of a strong character and personality, along with an unprecedented athletic ability. He fought for equality by dignity and hard work. Respectfully, he was one of the best in Major League baseball for his time, and sparked a Civil RIghts Movement while doing it.
There are many great people come from American baseball player, for example Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, etc.
Throughout these years, Sanders developed a rigorous work ethic to complement his indomitable will to excel. "Let me tell you something," Sanders told Esquire. "The best athletes in the world end up at home on the corner. Oh you bet they do. I call them Idas." He elaborated: "'If I'da done this, I'd be here today.' 'If I'da practiced a little harder, damn, I'd be a superstar.' They'll be standing on that corner till they die telling you all the things they woulda done. I see 'em all the time. Guys who were as fast as me when we were
(2004), were among the first to challenge Jones et al’s 2002 definition on grounds that the definition didn’t succintly define the construct, but rather it explaned what a mentally tough individual is capcable of. In contrast to Jones et al., they defined mental toughness as “an unshakeable perserverance and conviction toward a commmon goal despite pressure or adversity” (p. 6). The researchers argue that their definition is a better representation of mental toughness because it encompasses a larger sample (33 participants), comprised of a greater variety of sports. Furthermore, all the athletes within the sample had a gold medal or world championship, in their respective sport. Middleton et al’s work goes on to divide the construct into a specific orioentation and strategies of mental toughness. Mental toughness orientation is subdivided into four categories: (a) self-belief, (b) task familiarity, (c) motivation, and (d) goal commitment. Middleton et al. listed three separate characteristics under mental toughness strategy: (a) perserverence, (b) task-specific attention, and (c) emotion
After doing some research, I do consider Roberto Clemente a Visionary Leader. Not only was he a great baseball player, but he was also a great humanitarian. Roberto Clemente’s motto was “if you have a chance to help others and fail to do so you are wasting your time on this earth” (Biography.com, 2017). Roberto Clemente gave his life to this motto. On December 31, 1972, he boarded a plane to deliver food, clothing and medicine to the victims of a devastating earthquake in Nicaragua. He knew the plane was in bad shape but he still took that risk and got on it. According to the Thomas N. Barnes Center of Enlisted Education [BCEE] (2017c), “Courage should empower you to take necessary personal or professional risks” (p.16). Roberto