Blog eight- Personality

Personality can be defined as ‘the characteristic patterns of thoughts, feelings and behaviors that make a person unique’ (about psychology 2011). It explores ways in which individuals react and interact with others and describes the concept of growth and development within the psychological system.

Personality is subject to much debate as to whether it is inherited or developed as a response to environmental conditions. This is known as the nature versus nurture debate. Both play at part in an individual’s personality and are considered to both be right but it is still unclear how much is determined by DNA and how much is by life experiences. It is clear that physical characteristics such as eye colour are hereditary yet genetically speaking it is not so clear when it comes to an individual’s behavior and intellect.  

The nature theory of human behaviour refers to the nomothetic approach which suggests that individuals behave in certain manners due to genetic predispositions, inborn abilities and traits. Mullins (2010) suggests that this approach is measurable as it identifies characteristics that can be subjected to observation and tests. It has already been determined that certain traits are encoded in each human cell as specific genes however the nature debate takes this a step further and suggests that other traits such as personality and sexual orientation are also encoded in an individuals DNA. This approach suggests that these traits or characteristics are fixed; i.e. cannot be changed as they link to heredity, biology and genetics. It claims that it is possible to predict the ways different personality groups would behave in certain situations. In order to do so they would conduct a statistical study of groups, conduct objective questionnaires and then sort individuals into different personality types. Eysenck and Cattell both created theories to support the nomothetic approach as they believed that personality was largely inherited. Ensenck’s personality questionnaire defines four distinctive personality types; stable extraverts, unstable extraverts, stable introverts and unstable introverts. This questionnaire appeals to managers in organisations for both selection and promotion to preface an employee’s future behaviour. Cattell’s work was very similar in that he analysed data to understand the dimensions of personality. He identified the two main personality traits as surface and source. Ensenck’s model can be seen below left and Cattell’s 16 factor theory can be seen below right.



Cattel's 16 factor theory



Ensenck's personality model







However some scientists believe the nurture theory is correct as individuals behave and think in certain ways due to the way they were raised based on environmental factors. According to Mullins (2010) ‘idiographic approaches are concerned with understanding the uniqueness of individuals and the development of the self concept’. This concept suggests that an individual’s personality development is open to change as they respond to the environment and people around them which plays a crucial part in shaping their personality. Within this approach individuals are often influenced by social and cultural processes for example at school or church. Carl Rodgers idiographic theoretical approach suggests that personality is embedded within individual’s personal relationships. The ideographic approach greatly differs to the nomothetic approach in that it sees measuring traits inappropriate as it is not always possible to compare one individual’s responses to another. They believe that the depth of an individuals personality cannot be judged by a questionnaire especially when the categories are to narrow in both scope and depth.  

I feel that both the nomothetic and idiographic approaches are correct to a certain extent. Many of our genetic traits cannot be changed as they are heredity. However I support the idiographic view in that if two identical twins were separated at birth and put in two completely different environments I don’t think they would have the same personality as each other. Environmental factors and the way they were brought up would have also had an effect.

The BBC website contains a personality test which puts together a portfolio of your personality based on five attributes these being; openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness and Neuroticism. After completing the test the results are presented in a graph, my results can be seen below.

Openness scored lowest which means that I tend to have a smaller range of interests and would rather stick to what I know than try new things. The highest score was conscientiousness, this suggests that my life is well-planned and I prefer to approach things in a thorough and organised manner. This trait is considered to be the most consistent indicator of job success. I feel that this description does fit my personality as I am very organised when I approach tasks and work. However I disagreed when it states that individuals who are more conscientious are more disciplined about diet and exercise. Extroversion is related to positive emotions and the risk people take within their lifestyles. A medium score suggested that I am comfortable in social situations but wouldn’t lead a risky lifestyle in pursuit of rewards. Other qualities connected to this trait include leadership qualities and a healthier lifestyle i.e. a non-smoker. Scoring highly on agreeableness suggests that I am likely to get along with others and excel at teamwork situations. It measures how sympathetic and considerate a person is and suggests that those who score highly are more considerate to others feelings. The final personality trait is neuroticism which relates to responses to threatening and stressful situations. My score suggests that I may often experience changeable moods due to stress or anxiousness. However it also states that a combination of high Neuroticism and conscientiousness can result in a power work ethic. Based on the questions asked in the personality test I found it very interesting as to how they reached their results as in my opinion they provided an accurate profile of my personality.

To conclude an individual’s personality is what makes them unique from everyone else. Everyone has different traits and characteristic which make up their personality from both genetic and environmental sources. The nature versus nurture debate has been ongoing between scientists for some time but what has been agreed is that although certain genes may increase the chances that an individual will act in a certain way it does not make people do things. Individuals still make decisions based on their upbringing and their environment. There are many theories which support both the Ideographic and the nomothetic approaches providing may personality assessment and questionnaire tools for organisations.

References

Books

Mullins, L. (2010) Management and organisational behaviour.9^th ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Websites

About psychology (2011) What is Personality [online]. Available from: http://psychology.about.com/od/overviewofpersonality/a/persondef.htm [accessed 1 March 2011].

About genealogy (2011) Nature vs nurture [online]. Available from: http://genealogy.about.com/cs/geneticgenealogy/a/nature_nurture.htm [accessed 1 March 2011].

BBC (2010) The big personality test [online]. Available from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/whatamilike/index.shtml [accessed 1 March 2011].

Chimaera Consulting (1999) Cattell 16PF Profile [online]. Available from: http://www.chimaeraconsulting.com/16pf.htm [accessed 1 March 2011].

Kheper (2008) The Four Humours [online]. Available from: http://www.kheper.net/topics/typology/four_humours.html [accessed 1 March 2011].