Chapter 7 - Personality

Question- Explain personality development Discuss in brief the determinant (factors) which affect personality development.

Or
Define Personality. Describe the biological and environmental determinants of development of personality.

Or
What is the Meaning of Personality Development.
Or
Describe the concept of ‘Personality’.
Or
Define Personality.
Or
Describe the Determinants of Personality Development.
Or
Explain the Psychological and Social Deterrents.

Answer-

Personality Development

Meaning : The word personality has been derived from the Latin world ‘persona’, which was the mask which Greek actors wore while acting. This, however, is not the meaning taken in the modern word personality. Thus, personality is not a fixed state but a dynamic totality which is continuously changing due to interaction with the environment. Personality is known by the conduct, behaviour, activities, movements, and everything else concerning the individual. It is the way of responding to the environment. The way in which an individual adjusts with the external environment is personality. Following are some definitions of personality :

(1) Munn : “Personality may be defined as the most characteristic integration of an individual’s structure, modes, of behaviour, interests, attitudes, capacities, abilities and aptitudes.”

(2) Allport : “Personality is a dynamic organization within the individual of those psycho-physical systems that determine has unique adjustment to his environment.”

(3) Watson : “Personality is the sum of the activities that can be discovered by actual observation over a long enough period of time to give reliable information.”

(4) Cattell : “Personality is that which permits a predication of what person will do in a given situation.”

(5) Woodworth : “Personality is the total quality of individual behaviour.”

The personality is the organisation of internal and external activities. It includes the external appearances, aptitudes and capacities, etc. It is the result of the interaction of the individual and capacities with the environment. It is not a collection of the traits, but a particular organisation of them. It is the total quality of the individual’s behaviour. Individual affects other individuals through his personality. Thus, personality is manifested in his various activities. In short, personality is the total quality of the behaviour, attitudes, interests, capacities, aptitudes and behaviour pattern which are manifested in his relation with environment.

Determinants of Personality Development

Biological Determinants

(1) Endocrine Glands : Ductless glands send their secretions directly to the blood without ducts. Their secretions are called hormones. These hormones are responsible for many changes in the personality. Different glands secrete one or more type of hormones. A description of the effect of some of the ductless glands will show the extent to which personality is influenced by them.

(2) Physique : Another important biological factor affecting personality is physical structure. It is seen in daily life that often the fat man are easy going and social, while the thin persons are self-controlled, irritated and un-social. Thus, the physical structure has some relation with the temperament. But even the instances contrary to this rule are also existing. As a matter of fact, the relation of physical structure and the temperament has not been definitely established. More experiments are required in this direction. The experiments conducted so far have been mostly on college students. Before one arrives at some definite conclusion, experiments must be conducted on adult persons as well. But even after that, the problem of the basis of co-relation remains un-answered. Simply by co-relation, the temperament cannot be taken as a result of physical structure. It should also be remembered in this context that the physical structure makes a difference in others behaviour towards a particular person. It is observed that our behaviour towards different individuals is modified, to some extent, according to their physical structure. This difference in our behaviour makes a change in their personality. Hence, a particular difference should not be supposed due to physical structure alone but also due to others’ behaviour towards the particular person, though the former may be more important.

(2) Body Chemistry : Another important biological factor affecting personality is body chemistry. In ancient times the difference of temperament was supposed due to differences of chemical elements in different men. Thus, the nervous personality was taken as the result of excess of nervous fluid. It was supposed that the sanguine persons have an excess of blood, the choleric persons and excess of bile, phlegmatic persons an excess of phlegm and the melancholic persons, and excess of spleen. This principle is not accepted in modern psychology, but still no psychologist denies the relation of personality with the proportion of chemical elements in the body. These chemical elements are of two types. Some reach the body from outside while some are created in the body itself. Thus, the drugs have sufficient effect on personality. The behaviour of the drunkard is an example of such effect. Different types of intoxicating drugs have a clear influence upon the personality of the individual. The deficiency of different vitamins also causes some change in the personality. With the increase or decrease of the quantity of sugar in the body, the physical and mental state of the man is very much changed. In convalescence, one finds a difference in individual’s personality. Difference is also noticed after long illness.

Beside the above mentioned biological factors, many other factors influence personality, e.g., sex, intelligence, intellect and nervous system, etc. The difference in the sex of male and female creates an essential difference in their personality, though it has been established that much of this difference is caused by social and cultural environment. Galton and Goddard believe that intellect is absolutely hereditary. The modern psychologists do not agree with this hereditary view though the influence of heredity is not denied. The environment affects intellect, but the development of intellect if ultimately limited. The influence of special talents, as that of music, mathematic, etc. on human personality is very well-known. Like the intellect, the talents are also generally hereditary. According to Kempf, the writer of “The autonomic function and personality”, the nervous system is one of the important determinants of personality.

Psychological And Social Determinants

The environment of different individuals are very much different from one another and so also their effects, but the influence of environment on personality can roughly be divided into that of home; school and society. All these three play an important part in the development of personality :

(1) Influence on Home on Personality : The environment of the home has a wide influence on the development of personality. This influence, as a general rule, is according to the patterns found in a particular culture. In the family relation of child with the parents is the most intimate. The cultural development of the child is very much influenced by the behaviour of the parents e.g., a child brought up in Indian family will be very much different in his behaviour than another brought up in western culture. But even in the same culture, much difference can be observed in parent-child relationship in different families e.g., generally the child has respectable place in Indian family, but all Indian parents do not sufficiently love and sympathise with the child. In such circumstances an introvert and often enjoys in his dreams, day-dreams and imaginations things which are denied to him by his parents. The influence of the presence of the parental love is again not the same in the case of all children. A child may become aggressive while another may become submissive in the same circumstances. On the other hand, if the parents show excessive affection towards the child, the child may become an extremist and excessively dependent upon the parents. A child excessively ignored shows different types of conflicts in his personality. Children brought in the psychological clinics for the curse of defects of personality showed that an important cause of their defects was the behaviour of their parents towards them. According to Sigmund Freud, the tendency to depend upon the parents in the childhood is manifested in the tendency to depend upon the leader in the adult age. If the child is allowed freedom in the matters concerning his belongings, food, clothes, books, etc., he will develop a habit of free will, if all these are decided by his parents he will not get any opportunity to utilise his judgement and so become over dependent or submissive.

(2) Influence of School on Personality School also has an important influence on the personality of the child. In school both the teachers and class fellows mould his personality, Just as in the family the parents are ideals before the child so are teachers in the school. The child hates the cruel and strict teacher. On the other hand, he respects good and sympathetic teacher. The personality of the teacher and his behaviour towards the child both exercise important influence on the child's personality. The child tends to identify himself with the teacher and tries to imitate his ways, manners and personality traits. This is only with the influential teachers and not with everyone.

Beside the teacher, the classmates and playmates exercise important influence on the personality of the child. These constitute a group in which every child has his own particular status and roles corresponding to it. One can see the leader, the dare devil and the scapegoat child in the group. The leader is the mind of the group. He plans adventures and games. The dare devil executes them while the scapegoat is left to receive the blame and consequent punishment. In different types of groups of children, different traits of leadership are required according to the purpose. Thus, sometimes the intelligent child leads while at other times the leader is the dare devil. This particular role in the group determines the future role of the individual in society. This, however, is not without exceptions. The development of the personality is a complex process and serious changes are affected in new circumstances which the individual has to face.

(3) Influence of Society on Personality Society is a web of social relationships. These social relationships connect men and women with one another. These interpersonal relations influence and mould the personality of the individual. In the society each individual has some peculiar of the individual has some peculiar status and roles corresponding to them. For example, in Hindu community, members of different castes have different social status in society. The roles and functions of an individual are determined by his status. This mechanism controls the behaviour of the individuals, Social control is further exercised by mores, traditions, myths, legends, customs, etc. these determine the style of life of the individual. The individual cannot behave in the society as he likes. Society punishes the individual who breaks its norms. The fear of society is often more powerful than even the fear of heaven and hell or punishment by the state. Therefore, social norms influence even the ways and attitudes of the individuals. This ultimately influences his personality. The individual adopts the prevalent patterns of social behaviour. That is why one notices one so much difference in the behaviour and personality of members of different societies. This however, does not mean that there are no individual differences in the same society. In fact, in every society one can find men and women who scarcely care for the social norms. But in every case, personality is affected by the social environment. Individuality is an outcome of the process of socialisation which is impossible without society. There is constant interaction between the individual and society and this interaction moulds the personality of the individual.

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