What is a person’s personality and does everyone become one?

The fact that a baby belongs to the human race is fixed in the concept of an individual. This term embodies a person’s tribal affiliation. An individual is a newborn, an adult at the stage of savagery, and a highly educated resident of a civilized country.

Man is a biological being, an animal, which is endowed with consciousness, speech, and has the ability to work, as well as to cognize the surrounding reality and change, transform it. At the same time, man is a social being. This is an important sign, because social relations and social life, collective work have subjugated and changed the bodily, biological organization of man.

Personality is the socio-psychological essence of a person, which is the result of a person’s assimilation of social forms of behavior and consciousness.

A person is able to make choices and evaluate the consequences of decisions made, and have an active life position.

Natural features are important prerequisites, a necessary condition for mental development, but at the same time they do not determine the character, abilities, interests, ideals, and beliefs of a person. The brain, being a biological formation, serves as a prerequisite for the manifestations of personality, but they themselves are a product of social human existence. A creature that has a human brain, developing outside the framework of human society, will never become even a semblance of a person.

In psychology, along with the concepts of “personality” and “person,” the concept of “individuality” is also used.

Individuality is the personality of a certain person, in its specific version, as a unique symbiosis of unique psychological characteristics.

In the article we will consider how the psychological characteristics of a person are compiled.

What is personality

The concept of personality characterizes a person as a being endowed with consciousness, using it in the process of communication, intellectual activity, work, and interaction in society. A person has a unique character, exhibits an active life position, is aware of his actions and accepts responsibility for them.

There are no identical personalities, since each person has his own life experience, mental characteristics, congenital and acquired qualities. You might think that animals are also different from each other, but this does not make them individuals. After all, a person is a part of human society, performing certain functions in it, playing its roles.

Many people wonder at what age does a person become an individual? But there is no exact answer; everyone goes through this process individually, at their own time. We can talk about the beginning of personality formation if the child separates himself from the people around him and understands his place among family members and relatives. Then he begins to compare himself with his peers, other children. Thus, personality gradually develops from childhood.

This is interesting! Children under 1 year of age are not able to distinguish themselves in the mirror. They watch with interest the reflection that appears, but still cannot understand that it is themselves. Often the baby tries to look behind the back of the mirror, wanting to find another child there. But from 12-16 months, children already establish a connection between themselves and the emerging reflection. This is one of their first “steps” towards self-knowledge and development of themselves as individuals.

Personalities can be very different: positive and negative, developed and backward, sincere, mean, benevolent and others. It all depends on a set of individual qualities that are formed from early childhood.

Character

Temperament is the biological basis of another individual-personal property - character.

Character as a biosocial personality make-up

Being a member of society, from the moment of birth a person interacts with other people, learns norms of behavior, and absorbs culture and traditions. As a result, each personality is a unique fusion of biological and social, and character formation occurs in the interaction of these two principles. Therefore, in the same environment, people develop different characters. They are different even among twins, who have very similar biological backgrounds.

It's all about experience. From the moment of birth, we find ourselves in situations to which we react differently, not only depending on our temperamental traits, but also on external circumstances. As a result, we accumulate diverse, but absolutely unique experience, which influences the formation of character no less, and most likely more than the properties of physiology and the nervous system.

Character is a set of characteristics and personality traits that manifest themselves in all spheres of life and leave an imprint on communication with other people, interests, nature of activity, etc. It is not without reason that the term “character” from ancient Greek can be translated as a distinctive feature, seal, sign.

Character traits are quite stable; they are formed in childhood and are a kind of calling card of a person. But still, this personality trait is more changeable than temperament, since its content is influenced by life experience. And often, when we meet a person after several years of separation, we are surprised to notice changes in his character.

Character is a complex formation that has a complex structure. Therefore, there are many typologies or sets of basic traits, which are described by different psychologists.

Trait theory

The English psychologist G. Allport, one of the authors of the theory of traits, believed that each person is a unique and inimitable combination of individual character properties or dispositions (traits). By disposition he understood a stable feature of behavior, the individual’s readiness to behave in a certain way in a given situation. That is, character always manifests itself in behavior or activity, and in order to get to know a person, you need to interact with him, see what he is like in business.

There are central dispositions or traits that determine the entire mental appearance of a person, and they immediately catch the eye. Some are obvious workaholics, while others seek to avoid hard work. One is a cheerful, cheerful joker, and the other is always dissatisfied with everything and complains about everything. Some are bold to the point of recklessness, while others are cautious and indecisive. These are all central dispositions; we call them first when we are asked to characterize a person.

Along with the central ones, there are many secondary features. They are not immediately noticeable and require more time to recognize. Secondary ones, for example, include interests, hobbies, clothing preferences, tastes, etc.

Allport also identifies general and individual features. Being a part of society, a person from birth acquires the qualities inherent in most people from his environment, for example, what we call national character. Italians and Latin Americans are easily excitable and emotional, Norwegians and Swedes, on the contrary, are very calm, reasonable and slow, and the Japanese are characterized by contemplation and restraint.

Individual character traits are what distinguishes a person from other people. The more strongly they are expressed, the more vivid the individuality of the subject. However, if individual traits contradict the general ones, then society can apply social sanctions to such a person, express censure, for example.

Based on the theory of traits by G. Allport, methods for psychological diagnostics of personality were created, for example, factor analysis, tests by G. Eysenck, R. Cattell, etc.

Character Structure

Due to the complexity of this property and the diversity of its manifestations, there are many different classifications of character traits. So, depending on the sphere of the psyche, which plays an important role in human behavior, the following groups of traits are distinguished:

• Emotional, associated with the characteristics of the sphere of emotions and feelings: cheerfulness or gloominess, emotional excitability or coldness, etc.
• Strong-willed: decisiveness and indecisiveness, perseverance, perseverance, independence, self-reliance, etc.
• Moral: honesty or deceit, kindness and cruelty, responsiveness, courage, etc.
• Intellectual: curiosity, resourcefulness, intelligence, thoughtfulness, etc.

You can often hear the expression “a weak-willed person.” What is this? The characteristics of a person’s character are manifested not only in the combination of traits, but also in the strength of their expression. There are people who, due to a weakness of the nervous system or due to problems in their upbringing, have an unstable character. Some of his features are weakly expressed, especially problems are observed in the volitional sphere. Such people are called weak-willed.

Qualities inherent in personality

Personality is the totality of a person’s qualities. Each personality has its own unique set of qualities, there are a lot of them, sometimes one contradicts the other. So, a good-natured person may have greed in his character. He treats people around him well, but never lends money or gives expensive gifts.

Distinctive personality traits are:

1. Worldview. This is a whole system of views on the world, ideas about it, values ​​that can be realistic or illusory.

For example, a seven-year-old boy, Vasya, believes that all doctors are cruel and evil. He formed this opinion after Vasya suffered from a purulent sore throat. The doctor gave him injections for a whole week; a strong painful reaction was left in the boy’s memory for a long time.

But the worldview can change over time, so, having matured, Vasya will understand that he was mistaken about doctors in childhood.

1. Character. Each person has a set of personal characteristics and qualities that determine his behavior. Character is closely related to emotionality, so excessive sensitivity can lead to touchiness, hot temper makes a person angry.
2. Degree of responsibility . You can tell whether a person is serious or not by his actions. Individuals who are constantly late, fail to fulfill their obligations, promises, or refuse responsibilities are called irresponsible. A responsible person, on the contrary, strives to bring all matters to the end, keeps his word, and is responsible for his own actions. Such people are always respected and valued in society, they are entrusted with responsible tasks, and appointed to higher positions.
3. Self-esteem. An individual can distinguish himself from the rest of society and evaluate his own activities, appearance, habits and other characteristics. Self-esteem is developed through the process of comparing yourself to others.

Self-esteem largely determines how society will accept a person and whether others will love him. You can notice how in the school class they tease narcissistic children who do not respect teachers and peers, considering themselves superior and much better than others. But guys with low self-esteem are also shunned; they often have few friends due to shyness and indecisiveness.

1. Mental capacity . From birth, everyone has their own intellectual potential, that is, the ability to develop their minds. But a person can surpass his natural abilities thanks to perseverance, determination, and his work.

Example. Petya Ivanov has innate mathematical abilities. But he gets 4s and 3s because of laziness and unwillingness to do his homework. Sasha Sidorov is not good at mathematics, but he devotes a lot of time to extracurricular activities, and has already begun to earn his first A's.

If desired, a person can develop his memory, logical thinking, willpower and even physical abilities.

The qualities of a person’s personality are manifested and developed in the process of communication, interaction and work activity.

Psychological characteristics of a 6th grade student

The boy is friendly, emotional, very impulsive, restless, sometimes it seems that the child does not control his actions and statements. Subject to frequent mood swings. Social distance is not always maintained.

With a little help from an adult, he can independently identify a learning task, build a hypothesis, predict the result, choose a method of action, act in accordance with the chosen or learned instructions, and shows a tendency to non-standard ways of solving learning problems. Does not always give an adequate assessment of his own activities.

The boy has a wide range of cognitive interests and high learning potential. However, educational activities are not a priority.

Features of the development of sensory systems:

• the leading perception system is auditory;
• concentration of attention corresponds to the average level;
• stability and distribution of attention according to several criteria is at a medium-low level;
• the volume of visual and auditory-verbal memory is at the upper normative limit of the age norm.

The speech sphere is without features.

The type of nervous system is moderately weak: during monotonous activity, fatigue in the form of satiety is observed, but is capable of short-term mobilization. Little time is required for processing; the greatest productivity corresponds to the first half and middle of the lesson. The pace of mental activity corresponds to the age norm.

The emotional-personal sphere is characterized by increased anxiety and the desire for self-affirmation and leadership in the group (self-esteem is low with an adequately high level of aspirations). He has difficulty comparing himself to others, so he prefers individual communication with teachers, especially in situations where knowledge is being tested. The façade of lack of educational motivation hides a high level of anxiety, which at times can even manifest itself in refusal to do activities in case of expectation of “failure.” The peculiarities of his upbringing have led to the fact that the boy, copying the behavior of his older brother and often provoking adults to a negative assessment of his actions, involuntarily seeks to confirm it. In a group of peers he occupies the position of an informal leader.

Recommendations for teachers

When organizing the educational process, a child sometimes needs organizing and stimulating help at the stage of comprehending the task. When learning new or difficult educational material, it is better to offer it in the first half of the lesson. If difficulties arise while completing a task, you should repeat the complex material again. If signs of fatigue appear, you should change the type of activity.

To overcome anxiety, it is advisable for the child to offer those types of tasks (providing the opportunity to consult with the teacher) that involve the use of non-standard solution methods and in which the boy can be most successful. When assessing activities, it is better to express critical comments confidentially and be sure to provide reasons.

It should be borne in mind that the external behavioral manifestations of a child often do not correspond to his internal state of mind.

Individual and individuality

An individual is a separate representative of the human race by virtue of his birth. The qualities of an individual are manifested in his appearance: eye shape, leg size, hair color, and so on. An individual has innate inclinations and abilities, but will become an individual only in the process of social development.

The concept of individuality is different from the concept of individual. Individuality is the characteristics of an individual, its uniqueness, originality. It includes intellectual, spiritual qualities and physical characteristics. Individuality manifests itself when a person makes choices, makes independent decisions, or engages in any activity.

The concept of individuality is inextricably linked with personality. The relationship between the concepts of individuality and personality is manifested in the fact that a person who is an individual will necessarily demonstrate his individuality in interaction with society.

Fundamental Traits of an Extrovert

The fundamental personality traits of an extrovert are the following:

1. extraversion (a set of such qualities of the human personality as sociability, talkativeness, and a desire for people);
2. goodwill (consists of friendliness, politeness, ability to make compromise decisions);
3. conscientiousness (accuracy plus hard work);
4. neuroticism (inability to remain calm in stressful situations coupled with emotional instability);
5. openness to learning everything new.

How and in what environment personality is formed

Personality is formed in the process of interaction with other people: parents, family, friends, teachers, work colleagues and others. The process of personality formation is long and complex, impossible without socialization. Socialization is the individual’s acquisition of values, rules of behavior and norms accepted by society.

Socialization begins in early childhood, when parents teach their children by example and educate them. While reading a fairy tale, the mother explains to the baby which heroes are bad, what good and evil are, and what a good person should do. Gradually, the child develops basic standards of morality, ethics, the concept of what is good and what is bad.

Socialization continues with entry into school. There, the child is influenced by teachers, classmates, and school administration. Gradually, a person’s social circle expands, he establishes contact with a large number of people. Socialization continues throughout life, that is, personality formation is a continuous process.

This means that personality changes over time, character or individual qualities change, and new physical and intellectual characteristics appear. Thanks to the knowledge of personality characteristics at each age, an entire science was created - Developmental Psychology. This does not mean that at a certain age people become the same, but they exhibit common features and qualities characteristic of a given age.

Example. It can be noted that adolescents in adolescence exhibit common character traits: hot temper, stubbornness, and susceptibility to the influence of peers. Old people exhibit other characteristics: slowness, constant worry about their well-being.

Psychological characteristics of a 7th grade student

The boy has been studying at school since the beginning of the current school year; the adaptation process has not yet been completed. In general, the teenager is friendly, calm, and experiences some difficulties in establishing contacts. Maintains social distance.

Left-handed (it is recommended to tell teachers in detail about the peculiarities of educational activities and the emotional sphere of left-handed people).

With a little help from an adult, he can independently identify a learning task, build a hypothesis, predict the result, choose a method of action, work in accordance with selected or learned instructions, and shows a penchant for creative ways to solve learning problems. Can give an adequate assessment of one's own activities.

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Has a wide range of educational interests.

Features of the development of sensory systems:

• the leading perception system is auditory;
• concentration of attention corresponds to a high level;
• stability and distribution of attention according to several criteria is at a high level;
• The volume of visual and auditory-verbal memory corresponds to the age norm.

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An example of a reference for a chief accountant for an award: example

A feature of the speech sphere is impaired sound pronunciation. This can cause private dysgraphic errors and, in turn, require the student to consult a speech therapist and additional classes in the Russian language.

The type of nervous system is moderately weak: during monotonous, monotonous activities, the child, experiencing fatigue and satiety, strives to rationally distribute his forces and is capable of short-term mobilization. It takes a little time to master the task, after which a rather long productive period of activity begins, which coincides with approximately the first half of the lesson. The pace of mental activity corresponds to the upper normative limits.

The emotional and personal sphere is characterized by high anxiety caused by dissatisfaction with one’s physical characteristics. This anxiety situationally manifests itself in verbal aggression of a defensive nature. The teenager has adequate self-esteem with a high level of aspirations. Accepted in the peer group.

Recommendations for teachers

When organizing the educational process, the teenager should be given independence and encouraged to strive for non-standard ways of solving educational problems, since he is able to solve problems of increased complexity. At the same time, it is recommended to take into account that a teenager will obviously be able to learn difficult or new educational material better in the first half of the lesson. In cases of difficulties, explanations on the task can be repeated orally. When assessing activities, emphasize the child’s successes in every possible way. Give critical comments mainly confidentially and reasoned.

The influence of society on personality

Personality and social environment are inextricably linked. Its future depends on the environment in which a personality is formed. Seeing bad examples and irresponsible behavior in front of him, the child perceives this as a model. After some time, he may begin to behave the same way as his friends and people close to him. He may start drinking, smoking, stealing, without knowing that such behavior is the result of formed views on the world, the bad influence of his immediate environment.

Sometimes a person can fall under the bad influence of the social environment despite his desire. A schoolboy begins to smoke, fearing the ridicule of his classmates, who have long been addicted to cigarettes. A teenager decides to steal because of his friends’ obsessive persuasion to get easy money. An employee deceives his superiors after much persuasion from his colleague.

The positive influence of the environment on personality development is also manifested. Seeing before him examples of successful, happy and respected people, the child strives to imitate them and copy their behavior. Therefore, at school a lot of time is devoted to studying the biographies of national heroes, patriots, and outstanding personalities. A good example becomes an inspiration for work, creative activity, and activity in society.

Different structures of society have varying degrees of influence on the individual.

1. Parents and close relatives have the greatest influence when raising a child from infancy.
2. Second in terms of influence are school teachers.
3. They are followed by friends, acquaintances, colleagues.
4. The media play an important role (mass media: Internet, television, print media).

In addition, the individual is influenced by the socio-cultural environment characteristic of the state and the area in which he lives. So in Russia, the USA, India, Israel - the conditions for the formation of a personality are significantly different. Thanks to this, individual peoples and the population of different countries have their own distinctive character traits and individual characteristics.

Psychological presentation of an 8th grade student

The girl is calm, reasonable, easily establishes contacts, and is interested in the results of her activities. Maintains social distance. Focused on formal compliance with social norms.

Can independently navigate a learning task, build a hypothesis, predict a result, choose a method of action, work in accordance with well-learned instructions, evaluate the results of one’s activities (there is a tendency to overestimate). For a girl, the formal side of assessing her success is more important.

Cognitive interests are formed and cover subjects of the humanities and natural sciences.

Features of the development of sensory systems:

• the leading system of perception is auditory, lower - visual;
• concentration of attention at an average level;
• stability and distribution of attention according to a number of characteristics - at an average level;
• The volume of visual and auditory-verbal memory corresponds to the age norm.

The speech sphere is without features.

Type of nervous system - medium: potentially capable of withstanding long-term stress during monotonous activity. It takes considerable time to get into the task, after which the most productive period of activity begins, corresponding to the middle and second half of the lesson. The pace of mental activity is high. Fatigue occurs in the form of satiety.

The emotional sphere is characterized by high situational anxiety due to the desire to meet the “ideal” created by the girl under the influence of the inflated demands of significant adults (parents), and the fear of not meeting expectations.

The external impression of inadequately high self-esteem hides internal dissatisfaction with her real achievements, which is why the girl attaches so much importance to formal signs of success (good grades). The level of claims is too high. Accepted in the peer group.

Recommendations for teachers

When organizing the educational process, you should use the girl’s ability to work independently according to the learned algorithm. When learning new or complex educational material, it should be offered closer to the middle of the lesson or in the second half. If difficulties arise, it is advisable to repeat the most difficult moments orally and/or offer visual supports. If fatigue occurs, the girl is recommended to change the type of activity.

When assessing the results of activities, it should be argued in detail. It is useful to encourage the girl to independently evaluate her results, explaining her point of view. It is necessary to provide the opportunity for self-expression in the most successful activities, encouraging real achievements in every possible way.

The impact of the individual on society

The role of the individual in the development of society is also high. Let's look at an example of how a person influences society:

1. A.V. Suvorov is a famous Russian commander, enjoyed great respect among the soldiers. He managed to win many battles in which the enemy army was several times larger than the Russian one. The soldiers loved and respected Suvorov so much that they went into any battle without fear, under his leadership. Thus, thanks to the personal qualities of a military leader, Russia won victories in many wars.
2. The famous inventor Henry Ford created an assembly line production of cars, thanks to which the car became an affordable means of transportation for many Americans.
3. Nicolaus Copernicus was the first to reject the idea that the Earth is stationary, suggesting that it rotates around the Sun and on its own axis. His works subsequently led to many different discoveries.

Thus, the influence of the individual on society and society on the individual are interconnected.

Temperament

Temperament is a type of nervous system, an innate characteristic. This is a set of psychophysical properties of a person that determines the specifics of performing an activity. Rhythm, speed, intensity of reactions - all this depends on temperament. Let's take a closer look at the types of temperaments, and then their properties.

Types of temperament according to Hippocrates

Hippocrates was the first to talk about temperaments. He identified four personality types based on which fluid predominates in a person:

1. Holi (bile). These are active and sometimes fussy people. They are characterized by sudden mood swings and sociability, turning into obsession.
2. Phlegm (mucus). These are calm, reasonable, slow people.
3. Melan holi (black bile). These are pessimists, in a state of decline and characterized by indecision.
4. Sangwa (blood). These are active and persistent people who always achieve their goals. Born leaders.

Since then, many studies have been carried out, different classifications of temperaments have appeared, but this typology is still taken as a basis. True, no one talks about the predominance of liquids anymore, and the names have changed a little. The study of temperaments is conducted around the reactions of excitation and inhibition. And the main person in this theory is considered to be I.P. Pavlov.

Temperament in modern psychology

In modern psychology, the following classification of temperaments is used:

1. Choleric. Strong, agile, unbalanced type. They say about these people: “Starts with half a kick.” True, the choleric person cools down just as quickly. Moreover, he not only cools down, but forgets the reason for the quarrel, the unpleasant fact itself. Therefore, it is difficult to resolve disagreements with choleric people. Cholerics have leadership qualities, but lack of restraint and emotionality prevent them from achieving a stable result in life.
2. Sanguine. Agile, balanced, strong type. The processes of excitation and inhibition occur quickly, but this does not affect the mood as clearly as in a melancholic person. Sanguine people are more into humor. They can be called easy-going. They are distinguished by high adaptive abilities, flexibility, and sociability. These are positive and active people who know how to find an approach to every person and have leadership characteristics. A sanguine person does not tolerate boredom and monotony. It is characterized by high speed and strength in performing activities.
3. Phlegmatic person. Strong, balanced, motionless type. The arousal reaction is weak. Phlegmatic people are distinguished by restraint and prudence, which sometimes turn into tediousness. These are the executive and most responsible workers, but living with a phlegmatic person is difficult. He is stingy with emotions, does not know how to empathize, is cautious and passive. Does not like surprises, experiments, novelty. His restraint, resistance to stress and composure are sometimes mistaken by others for indifference. Phlegmatic people do not like changes in activity.
4. Melancholic. Weak, unbalanced, mobile type. Like a choleric person, his mood constantly fluctuates, but negative connotations predominate. This is a passive, insecure, vulnerable type. Gets tired quickly and does not adapt well to changes. At the same time, these are the most sincere and empathetic people with a rich and interesting inner world.

Psychologists note that not a single temperament occurs in its pure form. That is, more often a person has 2 or 3 types mixed.

In addition, modern psychology relies on the typology of temperaments by K.G. Cabin boy. He identified two types: extroverts and introverts. The former direct their energy to the outer world, the latter to the inner world. Extroverts have a more acute need for social contacts and group work than introverts. The latter are prone to solitude. This is due to the fact that introverts have a higher sensitivity to external stimuli. Extroverts are more stable, so they need strong emotional influences to be aroused.

Interesting! There are other typologies of temperaments, for example, Galen’s classification, the theory of E. Kretschmer.

Properties

Balance, mobility, strength are properties of temperament. We have already mentioned this, but there are other properties. Let's look at them in more detail:

• sensitivity (sensitivity) – reaction to minimal exposure to a stimulus;
• reactivity - the strength of the emotional reaction to stimuli;
• activity – activity in interpersonal relationships, when performing activities;
• pace of reactions - speed of movements, speech, thinking, performance of activities;
• mobility (plasticity/rigidity) – speed of adaptation to changing conditions.

Let’s imagine portraits of temperaments through a table, where “+” is a high level, and “–” is a low level of some property.

In addition, when considering temperaments, it is customary to study concentration. Choleric people have slow concentration (distractable type), sanguine people have fast concentration, phlegmatic people have slow concentration, melancholic people have unstable attention (they get tired quickly, are distracted a lot).

Important! Characteristics of temperament must be taken into account during the learning process, during employment and when building relationships with others. The psychological climate in the family, work team, class, group depends on the compatibility of temperaments.

Will

Will is a person’s ability to consciously regulate his behavior and activities. The presence of will presupposes overcoming external and internal obstacles on the path to the goal. The will is formed by the age of 5-6 years. Until this moment, the child has only involuntary activity. But gradually the child learns to structure his motives and desires, overcome difficulties, and analyze his thoughts and actions.

Will is manifested in such character traits as perseverance, determination, dedication, independence, courage, endurance, diligence, and discipline. The presence of these qualities is noticeable at the cognitive, emotional and behavioral level.

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