Personality: The Characteristics,

Foundations and Nature

The personality implies psychological and social character that an
individual acquires by hereditary biological endowment which
provides him the basis for development and social growth of
environment within which he springs forth.

The continuing process whereby the child is influenced by others

(especially the parents) is called socialisation. It is a course of learning
whereby the child comes to act in accordance with the special
demands that membership in a certain society imposes upon him.

The term personality is used in various senses. Generally, it is used to

indicate the external outlook of an individual. In philosophy it means
the internal quality. But in social psychology the term personality
indicates neither the external or outward pattern nor does it indicate
the internal quality. It means an integrated whole.

The term ‘persona’ was used to indicate the actions of an individual. In

the modern world and psychology it has come to indicate the sum total
of an individual’s characteristics and qualities. Various thinkers, social
psychologists and others have defined personality in various ways.

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According to K. Young, “Personality is a patterned body of habits,

traits, attitudes and ideas of an individual’s, as these are organised
externally into roles and statues and as they relate internally to
motivation, goals, and various aspects of selfhood. As G.W. Allport has
defined, “Personality is the dynamic organisation with the individual
of those psycho-physical system that determine his unique adjustment
to his environment.”

By personality Ogburn means “the integration of the socio-

psychological behaviour of the human being, represented by habits of
action and feeling, attitudes and opinions.”

Bonner provides six propositions to classify the nature of

personality within the context of change and development:
(i) Human behaviour is composed of acts.

(ii) Personality visualized as a whole actualizes itself in a particular

environment.

(iii) It is distinguished by self consistency.

(iv) It forms a time-integrating structure.

(v) It is a goal directed behaviour and

(vi) It is a process of becoming.

From the above, it becomes very clear that personality is a very diverse
psychological concept.

Determinants of Personality:
Now that we have understood the meaning of personality, the next
question is what determinants go into the development of personality?
Was the individual born with that personality or was it developed
afterwards as a result of his interaction with his environment?
Generally the consensus is that heredity and environment jointly affect
the individual’s personality development.

The factors affecting personality development are illustrated

as follows:

According to Lundberg and others, “The term personality refers to the

habits, attitudes and other social traits that are characteristic of a
given individual’s behaviour”.

“Personality represents those structural and dynamic properties of an

individual or individuals as they reflect themselves in characteristic
responses to situations”. This is the working definition of personality
given by Lawrence A. Pewin.

Personality is a sum of physical, mental and social qualities in

integrated manner. On the basis of definitions it may be said that there
are two main approaches to the study of personality: (i) the
psychological and (ii) the sociological. The psychological approach
considers personality as a certain style peculiar to the individual. This
style is determined by characteristic organisation of mental trends,
complexes, emotions and sentiments.

The sociological approach considers personality in terms of status of

the individual in the group, in terms of his own conception of his role
in the group of which he is a member. What others think of us plays a
large part in the formation of our personality.

Thus, personality is the sum of the ideas, attitudes and values of a

person which determine his role in society and form an integral part of
his character. Personality is acquired by the individual as a result of
his participation in group life.

Characteristics of Personality:
New comb has discussed personality in the light of certain
characteristics and traits. These characteristics and traits
are as follows:
1. Personality is something which is unique in each
individual:
Personality refers to internal as well as external qualities, some of
which are quite general. But it is unique to each individual. It is not
possible for any other individual to reproduce or imitate the qualities
of the personality of the individual.

2. Personality refers particularly to persistent qualities of an

individual:
Every individual has certain feeling as well as other permanent traits
and qualities. Personality is mainly composed of the persistent or
permanent qualities that exhibit themselves in form of social
behaviour and attempt to make adjustment with the environment.

3. Personality represents a dynamic orientation of organism

to environment:
Personality represents the process of learning. It takes place in
reference to the environment. We do not acquire all the traits of
personality all at once.

4. Personality is greatly influenced by social interactions:

Personality is not an individual quality. It is a result of social-
interaction. In other words, it means that when we come in contact
with other members of the society, we acquire certain qualities while
we exhibit certain others. All these come to form personality.

5. Personality represents a unique organisation of persistent

dynamic and social predisposition:
In personality various qualities are not put together. They are, in fact,
integrated into one. This integration is nothing but a result of
organisation which may be different from man to man. The behaviour
of a person directed to one particular individual may differ from the
behaviour of another person. That is why; we put the condition of
suitable environment. This suitability is concerned with individual
specificity.

Foundations of Personality:
On the basis of various definitions it can be said that personality is
founded on certain structures. These are (i), Physiological structure of
the organism, (ii) Psychic structure of the organism and (iii) Social
and cultural structure. These structures contribute to the formation of
personality.

Individual is born with certain physical and psychological traits or

structures. The physiological and psychological traits react to the
social and cultural atmosphere. Consequently, the personality is made
up. Various structures that form the personality are discussed below.

1. Physiological structure:
Physiological structure of an individual influences the development of
personality to a large extent. The foundation of this structure is laid in
the mother’s womb. The physiological structure is deeply influenced
by certain internal as well as external agencies. Heredity as well as
social environment influence the development of the physiological
structure.

Heredity contributes to intelligence and mental traits. These factors do

influence the development of personality, because they have a place in
the society.

Heredity imposes several limitations and restrictions on the

personality of an individual. Culture is very much a gift of the heredity.
Due to this culture, it is possible for an individual to adjust himself to
different situations.

Besides biological inheritance, in social heredity there is a

transmission of personality characteristics from one generation to
another through pattern of relationship. The vehicle of transmission is
not the germ plasm but a psychogenetic influence of parent on child.
Heredity may prove the raw material, out of which experience moulds
the personality.

2. Psychic Structure of the Personality:

The Psychic structure consists of (a) attitudes (b) traits, (c) sentiments
(d) feelings and emotions (e) values and ideals.

The attitudes influence the psychic structure and latter on,

physiological structures.

Traits are inherent as well as the acquired qualities of an individual.

Sentiments and emotions play a very vital role in the development of

the personality. Human behaviour is very much influenced by
sentiments and emotions. Emotions are short – lived while sentiments
are permanent. Sentiments may be termed as permanent emotions.
Feeling is again more short-lived. It is the feeling that turns into an
emotion. Feeling and emotion play a vital role in the development of
the personality of an individual.

Values and ideals also influence the development of personality to a

large extent. Almost all our behaviours are more or less guided by
values and ideas.

3. Social and Cultural Structure:

Every society has a culture of its own and in the atmosphere of that
socio cultural background, the personality of individual develops in its
own way. The attitudes of an individual are largely influenced by
cultural order. We find difference in the behaviour of individuals due
to sociocultural environment. That is why culture play an important
role in the development of personality.

Besides the above structures, experience play in important role in the

formation of personality. Man is the child of experience. The
experience are of two types, one that the infant acquires in his group,
for example family. The parents being very intimate to the child make
a deep impact of him. The child is fashioned in his home after his
parents. He picks up their patterns, manners and poise. The learning
of social norms form parents and other agents of socialisation has
significant formative influence on him.

Another set of experience he goes through, is the result of his

interaction with others in the context of a social situation. Children
brought up in the same family may not have similar experience. The
change of social environment in family, variation attitude of parents
towards the children, the temper of playmates, school environment
create the differing experience. The personality that one have acquired
also play a part in determining the impact of new experience.
Nature of Relationship between Culture and
Personality:
Culture and personality are interrelated. Culture influences the
development of personality to a very large extent. The relationship
between culture and personality discussed by various scholars are
enumerated below.
Man is a social animal. But he is not born social. He is born into the
stream of the social process, into a cultural milieu. Culture makes him
human being out of a biological organism. It is only through his
interaction with his fellow, the carriers of culture that his original
nature is transformed into human nature and he acquires that
combination of acts and thoughts which is called personality.

As Clifford Geertz observed: “Culture provides the link between what

men are intrinsically capable of becoming and what they actually, one
by one, in fact become. Becoming human is becoming individual, and
we become individual under the guidance of cultural patterns”. The
experiences which the individual acquires in the social process have a
cultural component. Therefore, the pattern of culture basically
determines the broad contours of personality of the individual.

Linton has laid down the following general postulates in regard to

personality and culture relationship.

1. The experience of the childhood of a man have a lasting impression

on the personality, specially the projective system.

2. Similarity of experiences produce personality configuration.

3. Members of a society use similar methods for bringing up their

children, although they are not, at all, similar.

4. The methods of bringing up children differ from society to society.

Some of the sociologist and anthropologists have made certain studies
in order to have categorical idea of the effect of the culture on
personalities. The studies that were carried out by Ruth Benedict are
very valuable in this regard. Studies were conducted on Zuni Indians
or Zuni tribes in New Mexico, Dobu tribe of Malaysia and Arapash
tribe in New Guinea etc.

The studies reveal certain traits regarding the effect of culture on the
personality of the members of the society. These traits are indicative of
the influence of culture that is caused on biological and psychologically
activities of individual. This can be further clarified from following
examples.

1. Influence of the culture on the internal biological

behaviour:
Culture influences the biological behaviour of individuals such as
physical development, appetite etc. In Figians, there is a tendency to
secrete saliva when they see a beautiful woman.

2. Influence of culture on sexual behaviour:

Burdock, Beach and Ford carried out several experiments to test the
influence of culture on human personality regarding sexual behaviour.
Their studies indicate that sexual behaviour is influenced by cultural
traits to a large extent.

3. Influence of culture on perception:

Hellowel tried out several experiments to prove that perception is very
much influenced by cultural traits.

4. Culture and cognition:

According to several sociologists and anthropologists cognition is very
much influenced by culture. The tribe called Yoruba is very keen is
discerning between a meaningful explanation and important facts.

5. Effect of culture on sentiment and emotions:

Labora carried out several experiments in this regard. For example,
spitting is indicative of hatred in most of the societies but in Africa
some of the tribes do not consider it so.

6. Influence of culture on mode of habit:

Different cultures have different types of mode of habits. For example,
in America, the child indicates height, he does so by separating the
palm paralleled to the earth or in a horizontal manner, but in Mexico it
is indicated by placing the plan in the perpendicular manner.

7. Influence of culture on abnormal behaviour:

Different cultures have different standards in regard to abnormal
behaviour. This is true about dowry, suicide, norms of abnormal
sexual behaviour etc.

We find differences in personality traits of members of different

societies, such as punctuality and cleanliness. Custom, law, religion,
art and ideology furnish values which influence personality. Since
these values differ from one society to other, members of different
societies show difference in personality. The value placed on religious
life by Hindus and Muslims in India results in a quite different
personality type when compared with the more practical value placed
on religious life Westerners.
There is also variation in personality within a culture. All the members
of the society do not have identical personality. This is due to
difference of cultural experiences within a society. A person is not only
exposed to culture general, national culture as it is called. He is also
exposed to the cultures of a particular group within the larger society
such as class, religion and caste. These groups have distinctive culture
which differ from group to group.

They are subcultures. The Muslims or tribes of India have a subculture

of their own within the larger framework of the culture of India.
Similarly, rural and urban ways of life tend to produce different kinds
of person with different ways of thinking, feeling acting, and
perceiving.

Culture is a human product. It is not a force, operating by itself and

independent of the human actors. There is an unconscious tendency to
defy culture – to endow it with life and treat it as a thing. Culture is
creation of society in interaction and depends for its existence upon
the continuance of society. In strict sense, therefore, culture does not
‘do’ anything on its own. Culture in short is a human product it is not
independently endowed with life.

There is no doubt that every man is the product of cultural milieu in

which he is born. Personality is not determined by culture alone.
Culture does not determine every aspect of human personality. Ruth
Benedict writes, No anthropologist with a background of experiences
of other cultures has ever believed that individuals were automations,
mechanically carrying out the decrees of their civilisation.
No culture observed has been able to yet eradicate the differences in
the temperaments of the persons who compose it. It is always give and
take affair.” The individual receives culture as part of social heritage,
in turn, may reshape the culture and introduce changes which then
become part of the heritage of succeeding generations.

Factors that Influence Our Personality:

There are several factors that influence the shaping of our personality.
By observing the behaviour of a person, we can understand which
behaviour has what influence on the personality characteristics of an
individual.

Here we have briefly reviewed such personality characteristics:

1. Heredity:Some characteristics of our behaviour are genetic, which

we inherit. Some of the traits like physical height, slimness, dexterity,
intellectual capacity, ability to learn, logical power, etc. are also
inherited. All these have a significant influence on our behavioural
patterns.

2. Family background:The socio-economic status of the family,

education of the parents, and other family members shape the
personality of an individual to a considerable extent. In fact, family
members themselves try to influence the behaviour of children in a
desperate attempt to personify their own values, roles, etc.
3. Nature of people with whom we interact:People influence each
other and such influences shape the personality. For this reason, we
often say that one’s personality is constantly evolving and is shaped
throughout one’s life.

4. Culture:Culture shapes our personal values and predispositions. It

is the unique characteristic of a social group. The values and norms
shared by its member’s sets it apart from other social groups. The
essence of culture is the collective programming of the mind.

According to anthropological concepts, culture relates to a shared

system of beliefs, attitudes, possessions, attributes, customs, and
values that define group behaviour. Values are assumptions about
‘how things ought to be’ in the group. Thus, culture plays a significant
role in influencing the behaviour of an individual.