Understanding yourself and others
| English | Chinese | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| personality trait | 人格特质 | rén gé tè zhì |
| introversion and extraversion | 内向与外向 | nèi xiàng yǔ wài xiàng |
| self-awareness | 自我认知 | zì wǒ rèn zhī |
| values | 价值观 | jià zhí guān |
| empathy | 同理心 | tóng lǐ xīn |
People differ in stable ways
- Two students given the same group task behave differently, and it is not about effort.
- A personality trait 人格特质 is a consistent pattern in how someone thinks, feels and behaves.
- Traits describe tendencies. They never excuse behaviour, and GAC006 marks the difference.
Introversion and extraversion
- Introversion and extraversion 内向与外向 describe where attention and energy go.
- An introvert is not shy. They recover attention alone rather than in company, which is a different thing entirely.
- ⚠ Neither is better in a team. A group of only extraverts produces a loud meeting and no notes.
What does introversion actually describe?
An introvert recovers alone rather than in company. That is not the same as being shy or unfriendly.
Self-awareness comes first
- Self-awareness 自我认知 is knowing your own tendencies, including the inconvenient ones.
- It is the first thing this module assesses, because every other skill is built on it.
- Values 价值观 are what a person treats as important — two people can share a goal and still disagree about the route.
Two teammates agree the project should get a high mark, but argue constantly about how. What differs?
Shared goal, different ranking of what matters — one values thoroughness, the other values finishing early.
Empathy is a skill, not a personality. Empathy 同理心 is understanding how a situation looks from someone else's position, and it improves with practice like any other skill in this programme.
A group member has been silent for twenty minutes. What is the strongest move?
A specific question invites the contribution. A general instruction to speak does not give them anything to say.
Write one question that would bring a quiet teammate into a discussion about a survey they helped design.
Naming what they worked on gives them something concrete to answer, which is why it works.
Two readings of the same silence.
A group member says nothing for twenty minutes.
Reading one: "He is not contributing." The group works around him and loses whatever he prepared.
Reading two: "He may be waiting to be invited." One question — "Chen, you looked at the data last night, what did you find?" — and the group gains a member.
Reading two costs one sentence. Reading one costs a quarter of the team.
"I am an introvert, so I should not have to present" is a legitimate use of a personality trait.
A trait describes a tendency; it never excuses a task. Self-awareness tells you to prepare more, not to opt out.
Do not use a personality label to predict what a specific person will do. A trait is a tendency across many situations, not a rule about the next one — and telling a teammate "you are an introvert so you will not present" is both wrong and rude.