Personality

Definitions of personality

Some of the definitions of personality are as follows

1. According to Norman Munn, “Personality is a unique combination of individual's physical structure, needs, interests, abilities and aptitudes.’’

2. According to Gordon Allport, “Personality is the dynamic organization within the individual of those psychophysical systems that determines his unique adjustments to the environment.”

Factors shaping personality

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An individual’s personality gets shaped by a wide variety of factors, which often act in conjunction. Some of the factors shaping personality of an individual are as follows :

1. Heredity

   Heredity implies all those characteristics that an individual inherits from his parents. Heredity affects the physical and mental makeup of a person.

2. Endocrine glands

   Endocrine glands such as the pituitary, thyroid, pancreas, adrenals gonads, etc. play an important role in shaping personality of an individual. Over secretion or the under secretion of hormones produced by various glands may adversely affect the personality of an individual.

3. Family

   Family is one of the most important factors influencing personality of an individual. The elements related to family such as structure of family, socio-economic status of family, emotional, academic and cultural environment in family, interactions between family members, child rearing practices followed by parents, etc. have significant effects on personality of an individual.

4. Peer group

   Peers are a pervasive aspect of our social life. Peers surround us in our everyday lives from early childhood until old age. Members of the same classroom, workplace or sports club, etc. constitute peer group. The peer group may influence personality in a positive as well as negative manner.

5. School

   The school plays an important role in the personality development of students. The elements related to school like the teaching learning process, academic activities and co curricular facilities provided by school, teachers’ rapport with students, school discipline and policies etc. have a significant impact on the personality of students.

6. Mass media

   Internet and other forms of mass media are now deeply integrated in almost everyone’s daily lives. Mass media is a source of entertainment, informal education, socialization, etc. to many of us.

7. Culture

   Cultural factors also play an important role in shaping the personality of an individual. Every culture has its own set of values, beliefs, norms, etc. influencing thoughts, feelings and behavior patterns of an individual.

Perspectives of studying Personality:

Carl Jung’s Theory of Personality

Carl Jung, a Swiss Psychiatrist classified people on the basis of mental characteristics into introverts and extroverts as follows

1. Introverts : Introvert individuals tend to look within themselves for stimulation. Mostly they are shy and reserved. They prefer to work alone and avoid social contacts.

2. Extroverts : Extrovert individuals are aroused by external stimulation. They are social, outgoing, mix easily with others and prefer jobs that bring them in contact with others.

Allport’s theory of personality

Allport’s theory of personality is one of theories based on the trait perspective to study personality.

A trait is a relatively enduring and consistent way of thinking, feeling and acting. That means the trait is consistently found in an individual over a period of time.

1. Cardinal Trait : It is a single trait that dominates an individual’s entire personality. The person becomes known specifically for this trait. It dominates and shapes a person’s behavior for their whole life.

2. Central Traits : These traits are general characteristics that form the basic foundation of a personality of an individual. Around 5 to 10 traits that best describe an individual’s personality are called central traits. Central traits are the building blocks of our personality.

3.Secondary Traits : These traits appear only in specific situations and hence are narrow in effect. Such traits play a very minor role in determining the personality of an individual because such traits are situational.

Big Five Factor Model of personality : (OCEAN)

. The five major factors (traits) of personality are as follows :

(1) Openness to experience (O) : Openness to experience is a trait related to appreciation for art, emotion, adventure, unusual ideas, creativity, imagination, curiosity, and variety of experience. People who are open to experience are curious, imaginative, and creative whereas those who are less open to experience are non-creative and lack aesthetic sense.

(2) Conscientiousness (C) : Conscientiousness is a trait showing tendency to display self discipline. It is related to the way in which people control, regulate, and direct their impulses. People having high conscientiousness are well organized, responsible, dependable, hardworking whereas people having low conscientiousness are unorganized, irresponsible, spontaneous and careless.

(3) Extroversion (E) : Extroversion is a trait characterized by breadth of activities and energy creation from external means. People having high extroversion are talkative, enthusiastic, open minded, sociable, assertive, and courageous. On the other hand, people having low extroversion are less talkative, shy, alone and less involved.

(4) Agreeableness (A) : The agreeableness is a trait showing an ability of an individual to get along with people and concern for social harmony. People having high agreeableness are kind, loving, caring, friendly and cooperative whereas people having low agreeableness are uncooperative, jealous, hostile and argumentative.

(5) Neuroticism (N) : Neuroticism is a trait showing the tendency to experience negative emotions, such as anger, anxiety, or depression. People having high neuroticism are anxious, depressed, irritable, fearful, impulsive, angry and unstable. People having low neuroticism are balanced, calm and stable.

Measurement of personality

Behavioural Analysis:

Refer to the text book

Self report inventories:

In self-report technique an individual provides information of his / her own personality by responding to questions / sentences set in a particular inventory. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), 16 Personality Factors (PF) by Cattell, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), High School Personality Inventory (HSPQ) are some of the examples of self report inventory.

Projective methods

Refer to text bk