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PERSONALITY
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Although
we can all feel happy or nervous, something that scares
one person may exhilarate another. The fact that one person
tends to react fairly consistently to his or her life
experiences but different people react to things in different
ways lies at the core of what personality is. Psychologists
see personalities as either unique combinations of "traits"
or as conforming to a limited number of "types".
Temperament is closely related to personality – it
is a person’s characteristic disposition. Personality
and temperament are influenced by many things and, in
turn, colour all of our life experiences. |
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Human Facts |
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did
you know…
…The theory that all humans have the same repertoire of
distinct emotions was first put forward by Charles Darwin
in the 19th century. More recently, this theory has been
further developed by American psychologist Paul Ekman. |
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Personality
traits
Just as we can create any hue from just three primary colours,
some psychologists think all personalities are formed from a
small number of personality "traits". These traits
have been identified by asking people to describe themselves
using set questionnaires. Most experts now agree on five distinct
traits, each of which works on a sliding scale. Known as the
"Big Five" personality test – find out where
you fit in by taking our quiz
here. |
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Personality
types
Theories of personality types are more of a two-dimensional
"all or nothing" approach than the "sliding
scale" approach of the trait theories. A well-publicized
example of a type theory is the Type A-Type B pattern.
"Type A people" are classified as achievement
orientated individuals who find it difficult to relax.
They are highly driven to meet goals and tend to be vigorous,
efficient, and easily frustrated. "Type B people"
are the opposite: generally relaxed, unhurried, and down
to earth. They may still work hard but are rarely as driven
as Type A people. |
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Human Facts |
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did
you know...
…The idea of classifying people into "types" was
developed by Greek thinkers around 400BC. They proposed
that personality was determined by the dominant
one of four bodily fluids which has since been
proven wrong. Hippocrates was the first person to
apply this idea to medicine. |
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| Temperament |
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The
term temperament refers to the usual vigour of a person’s
response. It is a useful way of assessing young children,
whose personalities are not yet fully developed; research
has shown that a baby’s disposition in the early
weeks is to some extent a sign of the adult he or she
will become. Most experts also agree that temperament
results from inborn tendencies as well as from how a family
reacts to a child. |
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