PERSONALITY

The word personality is derived from a Greek word persona which means to speak through.
Personality is the combination of characteristics or qualities that forms a persons unique
identity. It signifies the role which a person plays in public. Every individual has a unique,
personal and major determinant of his behavior that defines his/her personality.

Personality trait is basically influenced by two major features

Inherited characteristics
Learned characteristics

Inherited Characteristics

The features an individual acquires from their parents or forefathers, in other words the gifted
features an individual possesses by birth is considered as inherited characteristics. It consists of
the following features

Color of a persons eye

Religion/Race of a person
Shape of the nose
Shape of earlobes

Learned Characteristics

Nobody learns everything by birth. First, our school is our home, then our society, followed by
educational institutes. The characteristics an individual acquires by observing, practicing, and
learning from others and the surroundings is known as learned characteristics.

Learned characteristics includes the following features

Perception Result of different senses like feeling, hearing etc.

Values Influences perception of a situation, decision making process.
Personality Patterns of thinking, feeling, understanding and behaving.
Attitude Positive or negative attitude like expressing ones thought.

Traits of Personality

Personality traits are the enduring features that define an individuals behavior. A personality
trait is a unique feature in an individual. Psychologists resolved that there are five major
personality traits and every individual can be categorized into at least one of them. These five
personality traits are

Extrovert
Neurotic
Open
 Agreeable
Conscientious

Major Personality Attributes

Following are the five major personality attributes that influence OB

Locus of Control

Locus of control is the center of control of an individuals code of conduct. People can be
grouped into two categories i.e., internals and externals respectively.

People who consider themselves as the masters of their own fates are known as internals, while,
those who affirm that their lives are controlled by outside forces known as externals.

Before making any decision, internals actively search for information, they are achievement
driven, and want to command their environment. Thus, internals do well on jobs that craves
complex information processing, taking initiative and independent action.

Externals, on the other hand, are more compliant, more willing to follow instructions, so, they do
well in structured, routine jobs.

Machiavellianism

Machiavellianism is being practical, emotionally distant, and believing that ends justify means.

Machiavellians are always wanting to win and are great persuaders. Here are the significant
features of a high-mach individuals

High-Machs prefer precise interactions rather than beating about the bush.
High-Machs tend to improvise; they do not necessarily abide by rules and regulations all
the time.
High-Machs get distracted by emotional details that are irrelevant to the outcome of a
project.

Self-esteem

It is the extent up to which people either like or dislike themselves. Self-Esteem is directly
related to the expectations of success and on-the-job satisfaction.

Individuals with high self-esteem think that they have what it takes to succeed. So, they take
more challenges while selecting a job.

On the other hand, individuals with low self-esteem are more susceptible to external distractions.
So, they are more likely to seek the approval of others and to adapt the beliefs and behaviors of
those they respect.
Self-monitoring

Self-monitoring is the capability of regulating ones behavior according to social situations.

Individuals with high self-monitoring skill easily adjust their behavior according to external,
situational factors. Their impulsive talents allow them to present public personae which are
completely different from their private personalities.

However, people with low self-monitoring skills cannot cover themselves. Regardless of any
situation, they are always themselves. They have an attitude of, what you see is what you get.

Risk taking

Generally, managers are reluctant on taking risks. However, individual risk-taking inclination
affects the bulk of information required by the managers and how long it takes them to make
decisions.

Thus, it is very important to recognize these differences and align risk-taking propensity with
precise job demands that can make sense.

The Origins of Personality: The Nature-nurture Debate

For psychologists studying the development of Personality, nature vs. nurture was a central
debate. Nature vs. nurture suggests that biology (a persons genes) and society (the environment
in which a person grows up) are competing for developmental forces. In the past, the debate
sought to find whether one may be more important than the other. Today most psychologists
would concede both nature and nurture are necessary for personality development. Both help to
make us who we are.

Determinants of Personality

Several factors influence the shaping of our personality. Major among these are

1. Heredity,

2. Culture,

3. Family Background,

4. Our Experiences through Life,

5. And The People we interact with.
Heredity

There are some genetic factors that play a part in determining certain aspects of what we tend to
become. Whether we are tall or short, experience good health or ill health, are quickly irritable or
patient, are all characteristics which can, in many cases, be traced to heredity. How we learn to
handle others reactions to us (eg. our appearance) and the inherited traits can also influence how
our personality is shaped.

Culture

The culture and the values we are surrounded by significantly tend to shape our personal values
and inclination. Thus, people born in different cultures tend to develop different types of
personalities which in turn significantly influence their behaviors. India being a vast country with
a rich diversity of cultural background provides a good study on this. For example, we have seen
that people in Gujarat are more enterprising than people from other states, Punjabis are more
diligent and hardworking, people from Bengal are more creative and with an intellectual bend
and the likes.

Family Background

The socio-economic status of the family, the number of children in the family and birth order,
and the background and education of the parents and extended members of the family such as
uncles and aunts, influence the shaping of personality to a considerable extent.

Firstborns usually have different experiences, during childhood than those born later; Members
in the family mould the character of all children, almost from birth, in several ways -by
expressing and expecting their children to conform to their own values, through role modeling,
and through various reinforcement strategies such as rewards and punishments which are
judiciously dispensed. Think of how your own personality has been shaped by your family
background and parental or sibling influences!

Experiences in Life

Whether one trusts or mistrusts others, is miserly or generous, have a high or low self-esteem and
the like, is at least partially related to the past experiences the individual has had. Imagine if
someone came to you and pleaded with you to lend him Rs. 100 which he promised to return in a
weeks time, and you gave it to him even though it was the last note you had in your pocket to
cover the expenses for the rest of that month. Suppose that the individual never again showed his
face to you and you have not been able to get hold of him for the past three months. Suppose also
that three such incidents happened to you with three different individuals in the past few months.
What is the probability that you would trust another person who comes and asks you for a loan
tomorrow? Rather low, one would think. Thus, certain personality characteristics are molded by
frequently occurring positive or negative experiences in life.
People We Interact With

A Person is known by the company he or she keeps is a common adage. The implication is that
people persuade each other and tends to associate with members who are more like them in their
attitudes and values. Beginning childhood, the people we interact with influence us. Primarily
our, parents and siblings, then our teachers and classmates, later our friends and colleagues, and
so on. The influence of these various individuals and groups shapes our personality. For.
Instance, if we are to be accepted as members of our work group, we have to conform to the
values of that group which mayor may not always be palatable to us; if we dont, we will not be
treated as valued members of the group. Our desire to be a part of the group and belong to it as
its member, will compel many of us to change certain aspects of our personality (for instance, we
may have to become less aggressive, more cooperative, etc.). Thus, our personality becomes
shaped throughout our lives by at least some of the people and groups we interact with.

In summary, our personality is a function of both heredity and other external factors that shape it.
It is important to know what specific personality predispositions influence work behaviors.

Personality Theories

Traits Theory:

The traditional approach of understanding personality was to identify and describe personality in
terms of traits. In other words, it viewed personality as revolving around attempts to identify and
label permanent characteristics that describe an individuals behavior.

Popular characteristics or traits include shyness, aggressiveness, submissiveness, laziness,

ambition, loyalty, and timidity. This distinctiveness, when they are exhibited in a large number
of situations, are called personality traits. The more consistent the characteristic and the more
frequently it occurs in diverse situations, the more important that trait is in describing the
individual.
Measures of Personality

Can Personality be Measured?

If we wish to measure the current in a electric circuit, we can insert an ammeter into the circuit.
If we wish to measure the weight of some substance, we simply place that substance on scales
designed to measure weight. What about personality?

Unfortunately, we cannot directly measure personality. But if we cannot directly observe the
seemingly unconscious, how do we know it exists?

The answer to the question lies in the fact that we can, in fact, directly observe behaviors. As
students of human behavior, we are then left to infer personality from the behaviors it manifests.
Psychologists thus use behavioral indicators in constructing projective tests. These tests are
designed to draw conclusions about personality from observed behaviors.

There are various standard tests and scales available to measure personality. In the following
section we will be describing a few of these.
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT):

It is a projective test that offers more validity. The TAT consists of drawings or photographs of
real-life situations. People taking the test are instructed to construct stories based on these
images, and trained raters then score the recorded story for predefined themes. Psychologists
assume that the stories people tell reflect the unconscious.Myers-Briggs Types Indicator (MBTI)
was originally developed by a mother & daughter team which have the following components.

INTJs are Visionaries

They usually have original minds and great drive for their own ideas and purposes. They are
characterized as skeptical, critical, independent, determined, and often stubborn.

ESTJs are Organizers

They are realistic, logical, analytical, decisive, and have a natural head for business or
mechanics.

They like to organize and run activities.

The ENTP Type is Conceptualize

He or she is pioneering, individualistic, versatile, and attracted to entrepreneurial ideas. This

person tends to be resourceful in solving challenging problems but may neglect routine assign-
ments. A recent book that profiled 13 contemporary businesspeople who created super successful
firms including Apple Computer, Federal Express, Honda Motors, Microsoft and Sony found
that all 13 are intuitive thinkers (NTS).lZ

This result is predominantly interesting because intuitive thinkers represent only about 5 percent
of the population.

More than 2 million people a year take the MBTI in the United States alone. Organizations using
the MBTI include Apple Computer, AT&T, Citicorp, Exxon, GE, 3M Co., plus many hospitals,
educational institutions, and even the U.S. Armed Forces.

The Big Five Model

MBTI may be deficient in valid supporting evidence, but that cant be said for the five-factor
model of personality more typically called the Big Five.

In contemporary, an impressive body of research supports that five basic dimensions. motivate
all others and encompass most of the significant variation in human personality .
The Big Five factors are:

Extra-version: This dimension captures ones comfort level with relation ships.
Extraverts tend to be gregarious, assertive, and sociable. Introverts tend to be reserved,
timid, and quiet.

Agreeableness: This dimension refers to an individuals tendency to defer to others.

Highly agreeable people are cooperative, affectionate, and trusting. People who score low
on agreeableness are cold, disagreeable, and antagonistic. Conscientiousness. This
dimension is a measure of reliability. A highly conscientious person is responsible,
organized, dependable, and persistent. Those who score low on this dimension are easily
distracted, disorganized, and unreliable.

Emotional stability: This dimension taps a persons ability to bear up stress. People with
positive emotional stability tend to be calm, self-confident, and secure. Those with highly
negative scores tend to be nervous, anxious, Depressed, and insecure.

Openness to experience: The final dimension addresses an individuals range of interests

and fascination with novelty. Extremely open people are creative, curious, and artistically
sensitive. Those at the other end of the open-ness category are conventional and find
comfort in the familiar.