Introduction to

BLOCK - I Personality and

Personality Theory
NATURE AND THEORETICAL APPROACH

NOTES
UNIT 1 INTRODUCTION TO
PERSONALITY AND
PERSONALITY THEORY
Structure
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Objectives
1.2 Personality: Meaning and Related Concepts
1.2.1 Factors that Contribute to Personality Change and Personality Stability
1.3 The Process of Personality Development
1.4 The Nature of Theories and its Functions
1.5 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
1.6 Summary
1.7 Key Words
1.8 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
1.9 Further Readings

1.0 INTRODUCTION
The personality of a person is a combination of trait and patterns which have an
effect over the behaviour and emotions and their reactions to the things around
them. Since humans are a social animal, personality and its analysis has been a
major preoccupation. Research and theorization of personality has been taking
place since time immemorial, and while the concerns may be affected by the
dominant issues of the time, some of the analysis has been universal and applies to
the personality of humans regardless of the time period they are a part of. In this
unit, you will be introduced to the concept of personality and personality theory
including the varied definitions, the factors contributing personality change, the
process of personality development and the nature of theories and its functions.

1.1 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit, you will be able to:
 Discuss the meaning of personality and related concepts
 Explain the factors that contribute to personality change and personality
stability
 Describe the process of personality development
 State the nature of theories and its functions Self-Instructional
Material 1
Introduction to
Personality and 1.2 PERSONALITY: MEANING AND RELATED
Personality Theory
CONCEPTS

NOTES There appears to be little unanimity among psychologists on the exact meaning of
personality. It is interesting to note that in 1937, G W Allport in his book,
Personality: A Psychological Interpretation, mentioned fifty-three definitions
of personality. Many more definitions were incorporated later. This divergence of
views clearly demonstrates the importance of the subject.
At the outset, it must be pointed out that personality should not be equated
with character. While, character denotes something ethical and moral and refers
to the standards of right and wrong, personality is not just the outward appearance
and behaviour of a person. It is the totality of everything about a person—his
emotional, mental, social and spiritual make-up. In fact, it also includes ethical and
physical make-up of an individual. Thus, character is just one aspect of personality.
The term ‘personality’ is derived from the Latin word Persona, which means
the mask worn by the Roman actors. In this sense, personality means the individual
as seen by others. The term personality is used in so many different ways, that a
detailed discussion is neither possible nor desirable in the present context. However,
some of the important definitions given below may throw light on the meaning of
the term ‘personality’.
 According to G W Allport (1937), “Personality is the dynamic organization
within the individual of those psycho-physical systems that determine his
unique adjustment to the environment.”
 Holly E Brisbane and Andrey Palm Riker (1965) observed, “Personality is
the sum total of specific traits (such as shyness or cheerfulness) that are
noticeably consistent in an individual’s behaviour.”
 W Brown (1946) was of the view, “Personality is the total differentiation
which the individual makes by incorporating the inherited and acquired
powers to stimulate and to activate the imagination of others in art, science
and public affairs and also to live in and partake of a super-individual and
super temporal world of values.”
 In the words of R B Cattel (1967), “Personality is that which permits a
prediction of what a person will do in a given situation.”
 According to L J Cronbach (1963), “Character is not really a cumulation of
separate habits and ideas. Character is embedded in the total structure of
personality.”
 J F Dashiell (1929) described an individual’s personality, “As his system of
reactions and reaction-possibilities in total as viewed by fellow members of
society. It is the sum total of behaviour trends manifested in his social
adjustments.”
Self-Instructional
2 Material
 H J Eysenck viewed personality “As a stable and enduring combination of Introduction to
Personality and
a person’s various physical and mental aspects.” Personality Theory
 Fredenburgh stated, “Personality is a stable system of complex
characteristics by which the life pattern of the individual may be identified.”
NOTES
 R G Gordon considered “Personality as a comprehensive term which includes
character also.”
 According to J P Guilford (1967), “An individual’s personality then, is his
unique pattern of traits—a trait is any distinguishable, relatively enduring
way in which one individual differs from another.”
 G W Hartman defined the term as, “Personality is integrated organization of
all the pervasive characteristics of an individual as it manifests itself in local
distinctions from others.”
 William Healy (1930) described personality as “An integrated system of
habitual adjustment to the environment particularly of the social environment.”
 According to A J Jones (1930), in simple terms, personality consists of the
following:
(a) The way one comes across or his appearance, (b) The way one dresses
up, (c) The way one talks, (d) The way one walks, (e) The way one acts or
behaves, (f) The skill with which one does his work, (g) One’s health.
 Kempf stated, “Personality is the habitual mode of adjustment which the
organism effects between its own egocentric drives and the exigencies of
environment.”
 H J Klausmeier (1961) said, “Though personality integration includes
internalization of ethical values, in practice a distinction is frequently made
between personality integration and character, with character used to denote
ethical attitudes, values and motives.”
 Kurt Lewin considered personality as “A dynamic totality of systems.”
 J W McDougall (1932) defined personality as “A synthetic unity of all mental
features and functions in their interplay.”
 Prince Morton (1914) was of the view that personality can be seen as,
“The sum total of biological innate dispositions, impulses, tendencies,
aptitudes and instincts of the individual and the dispositions and tendencies
acquired by experience.”
 To Muir, “Personality is the individual considered as a whole. It may be
defined as the most characteristic integration of an individual’s structure,
modes of interests, attitudes, behaviour, capacities, abilities and attitudes.”
 G Murphy (1933) explained personality as, “A unitary mode of adjustment
in relation to which each specific activity must be taken into consideration.”
 According to H A Murray (1933), “Personality is a temporal configuration.”
Self-Instructional
Material 3
Introduction to  In the view of R M Ogden (1926), “Personality is the expression of man’s
Personality and
Personality Theory inner life, character is the expression of what he does or achieves.”
 Rexroad explained, “Personality is the balance between socially approved
NOTES traits.”
 Stout observed personality as the embodied mind.
 Mark Sherman (1979) stated, “Personality is the characteristic patterns of
behaviours, cognitions and emotions which may be expressed by the
individual and or manifest to others.”
 According to G G Thompson (1979), “Personality is the theoretical
construct employed to focus attention on the individual as an integrated
striving organism. It involves:
o the overall organization and the relative potencies of his psychological
needs,
o the manner in which he customarily tries to satisfy these needs, the
various psychological—adjustment functions, and
o the ways, in which his individual style of living affects other personnel.”
 H C Warren (1935) defined personality as, “The entire mental organization
of a human-being at any stage of development.”
 J B Watson (1924) regarded personality as, “The sum of activities that can
be discovered by actual observation over a long enough period of time to
give reliable information.”
1.2.1 Factors that Contribute to Personality Change and Personality
Stability
From the aforemention defintions, the following characteristics of personality emerge
very clearly:
 Personality is what one is.
 Personality of each individual is unique.
 Personality is dynamic, and not static.
 Personality functions as a unified whole.
 Personality is the product of both heredity and environment.
 Personality is completely social in its outlook.
 Personality is continually adjusting itself to environment.
 In rare cases, personality influences the environment.
 Personality is always striving for certain ends.
 Personality is self-consciousness. We do not attribute personality to animals.

Self-Instructional
4 Material
  Personality is influenced by the environment in the school. Introduction to
Personality and
 By studying the personality of individual students, the relative differences Personality Theory

among them can be known and their personality can be developed to the
optimum level. NOTES
Important Elements of Personality
 Physical appearance,
 Emotionality,
 Intelligent behaviour,
 Sociability,
 Character.
Marks of Balanced Personality
 Good physical appearance,
 Emotional stability,
 High intellectual ability,
 High degree of social adjustment,
 High moral character,
 Cool temperament,
 Good directedness,
 High adjustability,
 Commonsense, drive and pragmatic thinking.
Behavioural Patterns of Personality
The totality of a man’s personality may be listed as under:
 The attitude of an individual with which he does some work.
 The skill with which he does his job.
 The way he acts.
 The way he behaves.
 The way he dresses.
 The way he drinks and eats.
 The way he sits and stands.
 The way he speaks.
 The way he walks and so on.

Self-Instructional
Material 5
Introduction to Classification of Types of Personality
Personality and
Personality Theory
There are sixteen different approaches followed in the classification of personality:
I. Body-built Classification: Kretschmer classified personality on the basis
NOTES of body structure:
(i) Aesthetic type is a tall but a lean narrowly built man. He is withdrawn
from the outside world.
(ii) Athletic type has a marked muscular development. He has a balanced
body as well as personality.
(iii) Pyknic type is a short and fat person with abnormal swings in mood.
II. Stable and Unstable: Trottor classified personalities into ‘stable- minded’
and ‘unstable-minded’. According to him, “The stable-minded person has
fixed opinions, generally consistent with those of the ‘herd’ to which he
belongs. He does not readily change them, or conceive them as open to
question. The unstable-minded is more changeable, being sensitive to
experience.”
III. Romantic or Classical: According to Ostwald, the personalities belong
to either ‘romantic type’ or the ‘classical type’. “The man of romantic type
is especially differentiated by the extraordinary rapid character of his thought.
He and his occupations are varied. The classical type, on the other hand, is
distinguished by a slower form of thought.”
IV. Active and Reflective: According to Jordan, personality can be classified
into active and reflective.
V. Subjective or Objective: In Binet’s view, personalities can either fall in
the subjective or objective categories.
VI. Masculine and Feminine: Apfelback distinguished between masculine
and feminine type of personalities.
VII. Active and Inactive: Heymans was of the view that personalities may be
divided into active and inactive category.
VIII. Emotional and Unemotional: Wiersma categorized personality into
emotional and unemotional types.
IX. Temperamental: Galen classified personality based on temperament.
(a) Choleric (yellow bile) — These people are energetic but disposed
to anger.
(b) Melancholy (black bile) — They are pessimistic and depressed.
(c) Phlegmatic — People belonging to this category are cool but lazy.
(d) Sanguine — They are optimistic and full of energy.
X. Tender Minded and Tough Minded: William James classified persons
into two categories, i.e., tender minded and tough-minded. The outlook of
Self-Instructional
6 Material
 the former is idealistic. They follow principles and are given to thinking. Introduction to
Personality and
Besides, they are religious-minded persons. The tough-minded are Personality Theory
materialistic in their outlook, go by facts and have little interest in religion.
XI. Extrovert and Introvert: C G Jung was the originator of this classification.
NOTES
XII. Physique and Temperament: Sheldon classified personality on the basis
of very relationship between physique and temperament.
(i) Endomorphic: People belonging to this category usually have a fragile
body and are spherical in appearance. They are fat but have weak
muscles and bones, are fond of comfort and are have an active social
life.
(ii) Mesomorphic: These people usually have a muscular and hard body
and have strong resemblance with athletes. They are assertive and
energetic and have love for adventure and physical activity.
(iii) Ectomorphic: People of this kind are usually physically weak. Their
temperament is marked by inhibition and restraint. They are withdrawn
but have a liking for mental activity.
XIII. Eysenck’s classification (1947) was two-fold. The first was emotional
stability versus neuroticism and the second was labelled as extroversion
and introversion.
XIV. Hallworth’s classification (1964) included two types: The first is reliability
and consciousness or emotional stability, and the other one is sociability
or social extroversion.
XV. Spranger’s six types of personality were:
(i) Aesthetic: Lovers of beauty
(ii) Economic: Inclined to hoard money
(iii) Political: Interested in social affairs
(iv) Religious: Believer in mysticism and engaged in religious activities
(v) Social: Interested in social affairs
(vi) Theoretical: Theoretical in nature
XVI. Freud classified personality based on his theory of psycho-sexual
development.
Type Main Characteristics
(i) Oral-erotic type: Sex in infancy is located in mouth. Sexual gratification
through sucking, biting or putting anything in the mouth gratifies sex.
(ii) The anal type: Gratification through expulsion of fecal material through
the anus. Traits include obstinacy, miserliness, etc., in later life.
(iii) The phallic type: The third stage of psycho-sexual development is phallic.
A person shows self-love and tries to draw the attention of others.
Self-Instructional
Material 7
Introduction to Evaluation of Types of Personality
Personality and
Personality Theory
Kretschmer’s (1925) classification of personality was based on the relationship
between body and temperament. However, the relationship between the two has
NOTES not been established so far. Moreover, both aesthetic or athletic kinds of personalities
can grow into the pyknic type with age.
As Sheldon ignored the influence of environment and nutrition on the
development of personality, his classification of personality was not of much
relevance.
No one in this world is either completely an introvert or an extrovert, but a
mixture of the two. While some are predominantly extroverts in some respects,
others are predominantly introverts. An individual may appear to be an extrovert
from one point of view and an introvert from another. Thus, very few fall in these
categories. A vast majority falls in the third category of ambiverts where introversion
and extroversion are nearly balanced.
As seen from above, there has been a common tendency of psychologists
to categorize people having one type of personality or the other type, thereby
taking extreme positions. It is, however, very difficult to categorize individuals
under one of the 16 approaches as mentioned above. A variety of behaviour
cannot be categorized into a few limited categories. Personality of an individual is
an admixture of so many qualities that it is wrong to describe them as one type or
the other.
Character and Personality
As mentioned earlier, character is a part of personality, which is a broader concept.
In the words of Ogden, “While personality is the expression of a man’s inner life,
character is the expression of what he does or believes.” According to Gordon
too, “Personality is a more comprehensive term and includes character.” He
regarded character as a mere special aspect of a developed personality.
McDougall believed, “Personality to be something bigger—a synthetic unit of
all mental features and functions in their intimate interplay.” According to
him, “Character consists of sentiments formed by the combination of native
propensities or instincts with ideas in various ways.” Watson was of the view,
“Character is only a term used when considering the individual from the stand-
point of his responses to the more conventionalized and standardized situations.”
According to Shand, “Every sentiment or emotional reaction towards ideas or
objects forms a type of character.”
Walter B Kolesnik defined character as, “It is an acquired component of
personality which inhibits impulses of an immoral or unsocial nature and disposes
an individual to act in accordance with relative principles.”
Lee J Cronbach stated the concept of character as “the way an individual
makes choices in relationship to others or which affects the welfare of others.”
Self-Instructional
8 Material
 Ross considered character as “just the organized self.” Introduction to
Personality and
According to Cronbach, “Character is not really a cumulation of separate Personality Theory
habits and ideas. Character is embedded in the total structure of personality.”
Klausmeier stated, “Though personality integration includes internalization NOTES
of ethical values, in practice a distinction is frequently made between personality
integration and character, with character used to denote ethical attitudes, values
and motives.”
Thus, character refers to the conformity to ethical and moral values set up
by the society.
It is, however, not desirable to differentiate too much between the character
of a person and his personality in so far as their educational implications are
concerned.

Check Your Progress

1. Mention the origin of the word ‘personality.’
2. List the important elements of personality.
3. What are the stable and unstable personalities as per Trottor?
4. Who was the originator of the classification extrovert and introvert
personalities?

1.3 THE PROCESS OF PERSONALITY

DEVELOPMENT

The development of personality of an individual depends on his view about himself.

The emergence of a positive self-concept is likely to lead to a well-developed,
harmoniously developed personality. It is, therefore, important that children are
made to learn and develop from the very beginning a positive self-concept, which
is socially desirable. The child’s perception or view of himself is called self-concept.
The part of the environment in which he lives is known as his phenomenal self
and the rest of the environment of which he is aware or to which he responds is
called phenomenal environment or perceived environment and not self. Figure
1.1 adapted from A Ward Combs and D Snygg’s book, Individual Behaviour:
A Perceptual Approach to Behaviour, explains these concepts.
Self-concept is what the individual thinks of his actual self. It is ‘me’. Some
psychologists refer to as personal field, behavioural field, life-space, or
psychological field.

Self-Instructional
Material 9
Introduction to
Personality and
Personality Theory

NOTES

Fig 1.1 Diagrammatic Representation of the Concept of ‘Self-structure’

A newborn infant finds the world a confused mass. As he grows up, he

begins to differentiate. He slowly begins to distinguish between what belongs to
him and what is not his. He reacts to the world which he perceives as his.
The perception of one’s self changes with maturity. With the change in
perception, behaviour also changes. Praise and blame, rewards and punishments
and the personality of the teacher also have an influence on the self-concept of
children. Lives of great men provide motivation for developing positive self-concept
and therefore, students should be encouraged to read about the lives of great
personalities. Thus, teachers should guide them to set realistic goals in accordance
with their personalities and help them to attain the same. Setting unrealistic goals
is likely to develop frustration and despair.
Personality Development
Personality development implies the development of the traits of an the individual.
Here, trait theory of personality comes to our help to have an adequate
understanding of the problem. An attempt is made to describe the traits that help
to constitute a personality. At the same time, it should be pointed out that the
personality is the individual as a whole and it is ‘what one is, what one was and
what one will be.’ In other words, it includes an individual’s past, present and
future. An individual’s personality is determined and built in the present, based on
the past, and for the future. The list of traits is so exhaustive, that it defies all
attempts to complete it. Thus, only salient traits of personality development are
mentioned here.
Salient Traits of Personality
1. Abstinence 2. Anti-untouchability 3. Appreciation of other
attitude people’s values
4. Consideration for 5. Cleanliness 6. Compassion
others
7. Common good 8. Cooperation 9. Courage
10. Courtesy 11. Curiosity 12. Democratic attitude
13. Devotion to duty 14. Dignity of manual labour 15. Dignity of self and others
16. Discipline (self 17. Dressing oneself 18. Endurance
and collective)
Self-Instructional
10 Material
19. Equality 20. Friendship 21. Faithfulness Introduction to
Personality and
22. Fellow-feeling 23. Forward outlook 24. Gentlemanliness Personality Theory
25. Gratitude 26. Honesty 27. Humanism
28. Hygienic living 29. Initiative 30. Integrity
31. Justice 32. Kindness to others, 33. Loyalty NOTES
including animals
34. Leadership 35. Nationalism 36. Non-violence
37. National integration 38. Obedience 39. Patriotism
40. Peacefulness 41. Physical appearance 42. Physical stamina
43. Postures (sitting, 44. Purity 45. Quest for knowledge
speaking,walking,
reading and writing)
46. Regularity 47. Resourcefulness 48. Respect for others
49. Reverence for old 50. Self-confidence 51. Self-discipline
age
52. Self-reliance 53. Self-respect 54. Self-restraint
55. Self-support 56. Self-study 57. Simple living
58. Sincerity 59. Social justice 60. Solidarity of mankind
61. Spirit of enquiry— 62. Team spirit 63. Tolerance
scientific temper
64. Truthfulness 65. Universality 66. Values
67. Worship

Determinants of Personality
The factors which determine a personality can be personal, family or environmental.
1. Personal Factors: These include: (i) Physical structure of the individual,
(ii) Emotional reactions, (iii) Aspirations, (iv) Aptitudes, (v) Attitudes, (vi)
Interests,
(viii) Motivation and intellectual level—thinking, contemplation, reasoning,
etc.
2. Family Factors: These are: (i) Discipline of self and others, (ii) Number of
children, (iii) Value placed on the gender of the child, (iv) Nuclear or joint
family, (v) Accommodation in the house, (vii) Parents’ambitions and interests,
(viii) Economic, political, religious and social status of the family.
3. Environmental Factors: Environment of an individual include his
neighbourhood, community, peer groups, etc., among others. These can be
cultural environment, political environment, religious environment, social
environment, environment created by the media and school environment.
The school environment further includes: (i) Curriculum, (ii) Technology of
teaching, (iii) Co-curricular activities, (iv) Discipline — constructive, creative,
social discipline, (v) Teachers’ personality, (vi) General approach of the
school, and (vii) Physical environment.
Self-Instructional
Material 11
Introduction to Role of the Teacher in the Personality Development of Students
Personality and
Personality Theory
(i) Teacher is the ‘spiritual preceptor’ as in the Vedic period.
(ii) Teacher is the ‘communicator and provider of knowledge’ and is the
NOTES ‘Learning Facilitator’.
(iii) Teacher is the ‘gardener’ of learning in the Naturalist Movement in education
and is the ‘Manager’ of learning activity in the pragmatic philosophy of
education.
(iv) Teacher is the ‘ideal person’ in the philosophy of idealism and is regarded
as a ‘soldier’ in Nazism and Communism.
(v) Teacher acts as an ‘agent of social change’ in the democratic philosophy as
he spearheads changes in the society. He is the ‘mediator’ between the
learner and the subject matter and is the ‘Transmitter’ of cultural heritage.
Teacher is the ‘educational media user.’
Character and Personality of the Teacher
Character and personality of the pupils cannot be developed if the teacher, who is
the role model to be followed, lacks character and personality himself. ‘Example
is better than precept’ is an old saying and is holds truth in the teaching profession.
No amount of sermons from the teacher can make much headway. A teacher
teaches not only by ‘what he says and does’ but very largely by ‘what he is’.
Children are imitative and suggestive by nature. They imitate the dressing
style, speaking skills, habits and manners of their teachers. As children in early
childhood are easily influenced by their teachers, the likes and dislikes of their
teachers become their likes and dislikes. Thus, teachers should teach what they
practise.
Gandhiji rightly observed, “Woe to the teacher who teaches one thing with
the lips and carries another in the heart.” The Greek philosopher, Socrates’ advice
in the Greek polis states, ‘Man know thyself’ holds good even today. Thus, the
teachers must undergo an inner training themselves to find out their own shortcomings
and try to remove them. As Ryburn put it, “Self analysis on the part of a teacher is
a necessary equipment.” Montessori stressed that every teacher worth his salt
must destroy these sins: pride, anger, sloth, sensuality, gluttony and envy. The
teacher should be partly a scientist, partly a doctor and completely religious. He
must acquire a moral alertness; mingling of patience, love and humility. He should
always be frank, sincere and honest. Prof. Raymount urged that the teacher must
avoid everything that is petty and mean.
Love for the Profession: A teacher should feel the importance of his profession,
i.e., teaching. He would not be doing justice to his profession if after joining it, he
is engaged in other pursuits. Without an exclusive and undivided attention to his
job, he would fail in bringing forth a fine harvest of young men and women who are
able to contribute their best for the welfare of mankind. If a teacher takes to his
Self-Instructional
12 Material
work just to make his living because nothing else is available, he will lack the Introduction to
Personality and
essential zeal required for teaching. He must be a teacher first and the teacher last. Personality Theory
A person who wants to join this profession must feel the passion for it. “If a teacher
has not an ideal aim, he had better to take to shop keeping at once, he will there
doubtless find an ideal within his capacity,” said Lauurie. In the words of the NOTES
Secondary Education Commission, “They will not look upon their work as an
unpalatable means of earning a scanty living but as an avenue through which they
are rendering significant social service as well as finding some measure of self-
fulfilment and self-expression.”
Love for Children: A teacher must enjoy the company of children and should
feel energized by the presence of young children. “Love the child and the child will
love you; hate the child and the child will hate you,” is a famous maxim. Thus, one
who does not like children, should not stay in teaching.
Respect for the Individuality of each Child: A child or a student should not be
treated just like a dumb-driven cattle. He has his own individuality. He thinks and
feels and his self-respect should not be hurt. Emerson rightly stated, “The secret of
education lies in respecting the pupil.” A child wants to be listened to and his
opinion should not be brushed aside merely because he is a child.
Teacher as a Guide: A child being the ‘Hero in the drama of education’ must be
allowed to play an active role in the process of education. “The teacher is a guide,
a director, he steers the boat but the energy that propels it must come from those
who are learning,” remarked Dewey. Similarly, Sri Aurobindo wrote, “The first
principle of true teaching is that nothing can be taught. The teacher is not an
instructor or a task master, he is a helper and a guide. His business is to suggest
and not to impose. He does not actually train the pupil’s mind, he shows him how
to perfect his instruments of knowledge and helps and encourages him in the process.
He does not impart knowledge to him; he shows him how to acquire knowledge
for himself. He does not call forth the knowledge that is within; he only shows him
where it lies and how it can be habituated to rise to the surface.”
Some of the important guidelines for teachers are as under:
Attention:
1. One of the best methods of developing personality is to pay due attention to
children.
2. The quality of attention counts.
3. If children ask a question, the teacher should try to answer it immediately.
They are important and they need to be paid attention. If the teacher brushes
them aside, they are under the impression that they have been ignored and
lose confidence.
Discipline:
1. The teacher should be fair, frank, honest, and loving, but firm and
consistent.
Self-Instructional
Material 13
Introduction to 2. Rules should neither be too gentle as they are seldom obeyed, nor too
Personality and
Personality Theory severe, as they are seldom executed.
3. Discipline should be modified according to children’s needs.
NOTES Example:
1. Children should be impressed by means of actions, which speak much louder
than words.
2. The teacher should be careful how he lives and behaves.
Fun:
The teacher must have fun with children once a while. Teaching through playful
and funfilled activities is also educational in its own way.
Inspiration:
The secret of providing inspiration as a teacher is to
— know what he is doing.
— love what he is doing.
— believe in what he is doing.
Love:
A popular saying is: “Love the child and the child will love you. Hate him and he
hates you.”
Patience:
A lot of patience is required to train and teach children.
Praise:
1. One of the most important tenet of teaching is to recognize that children
thrive on praise.
2. If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn. If he lives with praise,
he works hard to his maximum capacity to attain his goal.
3. It is more important to praise a child for his good behaviour, than it is to
scold him for his bad behaviour.
Understanding:
To understand children, a teacher must first understand himself.
It may be emphasized that the teacher is not just concerned with one or
the other aspect of development of personality of a child. He is expected to be
‘all things’ to all pupils at the same time—a physician concerned about their
physical health; a mental hygienist leading them carefully to sound mental health;
a philosopher guiding them in their search for truth; a moralist assisting and
encouraging them to acquire goodness; and an artist helping them to find beauty.
In fine, he must be a minister ministering to their every need. Such a ministry
calls for dedicated service.
Self-Instructional
14 Material
Role of the head of school in the development of total personality of Introduction to
Personality and
children Personality Theory

General Grant is said to have remarked that there are no poor regiments but poor
colonels. Sultan Mohi-ud-din rightly stated that no school could succeed if the NOTES
teachers in it work only as individuals and not as a group. Just as every group
needs a leader, a school must also have a leader who would stimulate and direct
its work. Such a leader is the headmaster or the principal of the school. He is the
hub of the education process. The success of the school system depends on his
ability and skill as a sound and effective educational leader. The success or the
failure of the school depends upon its headmasters or principals. A popular saying
goes thus, “As is the headmaster, so is the school.” Great headmasters make
schools great. “The reputation of the school and the position it holds in the society,
depends in a large measure, on the influence that he exercises over his colleagues,
the pupils and their parents and the general public,” observed the Secondary
Education Commission.
W M Ryburn compared the position of the headmaster of a school with the
Captain of a ship. P C Wren summed up the importance of the job of the
headmaster, “What the main spring is to the watch, the flywheel to the machine or
engine to the steamship, the headmaster is to the school.” It is stated, “He is an
organizer, leader, governor, business director, coordinator, superintendent, teacher,
guide, philosopher and friend.”
As a leader of the instructional staff and the community, the headmaster or
the principal should possess all the qualities that are usually sought for in teachers.
He should be respected for his general scholarship and for his special competence,
in at least one area of learning. He should have had successful experience as a
teacher. He should be mentally and physically active and should be energetic.
Society has no right to expect the principal to be a paragon of all virtues, but
qualities such as fairness, patience, buoyancy, flexibility, sympathy and persistence
must be in some degree be possessed by him. In order to be effective, the principal
cannot be inferior in these personal characteristics. In addition to the general qualities
needed by all teachers, the high school principal should acquire the basic philosophy
of education, professional knowledge and understanding. He should have an interest
in ideas and professional literature and interest in children and adolescents and
devotion to the highest ideals that will enable him to lead a faculty and community
to the highest levels of cooperative work with youth.
The objective of total personality development can be achieved only when
four categories of relationships within the school community, i.e., relations between
organizers and teachers, relations between teachers and teachers, relations between
pupils and pupils and relations between pupils and teachers—are pleasant and
constructive based on mutual goodwill and cooperation.

Self-Instructional
Material 15
Introduction to
Personality and 1.4 THE NATURE OF THEORIES AND ITS
Personality Theory
FUNCTIONS

NOTES The goal of every personality theory is the understanding of the diversity and
complexity of the whole person functioning in the real world. Theories of personality
represent elaborate speculation or hypotheses about why people behave as they
do and they serve the following functions:
1. A personality theory is descriptive. In other words, a theory provides a
meaningful framework for simplifying and integrating all that is known about
a related set of events. A good personality theory provides a meaningful
context within which human behaviour can be consistently described and
interpreted.
2. The second function of a personality theory is to provide a basis for the
prediction of events and outcomes that have not yet occurred.
3. This purpose clearly implies that a theory's concepts must be testable and
capable of being confirmed or disconfirmed.
4. Personality theorists are people, and, like the rest of us, they hold divergent
views about human nature.
We will discuss the nature of personality theories and its functions in detail later on
in the book.

Check Your Progress

5. What is phenomenal self and phenomenal environment?
6. List the personal factors of personality.
7. How can the objective of total personality development be achieved?

1.5 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

QUESTIONS

1. The term ‘personality’ is derived from the Latin word Persona, which means
the mask worn by the Roman actors.
2. Important elements of personality include:
 Physical appearance,
 Emotionality,
 Intelligent behaviour,
 Sociability,
 Character.
Self-Instructional
16 Material
 3. Trottor classified personalities into ‘stable- minded’ and ‘unstable-minded’. Introduction to
Personality and
According to him, “The stable-minded person has fixed opinions, generally Personality Theory
consistent with those of the ‘herd’ to which he belongs. He does not readily
change them, or conceive them as open to question. The unstable-minded
is more changeable, being sensitive to experience.” NOTES

4. C G Jung was the originator of the extrovert and introvert classification.

5. The part of the environment in which he lives is known as his phenomenal
self and the rest of the environment of which he is aware or to which he
responds is called phenomenal environment or perceived environment and
not self.
6. Personal factors of personality include: (i) Physical structure of the individual,
(ii) Emotional reactions, (iii) Aspirations, (iv) Aptitudes, (v) Attitudes,
(vi) Interests, (viii) Motivation and intellectual level—thinking, contemplation,
reasoning, etc.
7. The objective of total personality development can be achieved only when
four categories of relationships within the school community, i.e., relations
between organizers and teachers, relations between teachers and teachers,
relations between pupils and pupils and relations between pupils and
teachers—are pleasant and constructive based on mutual goodwill and
cooperation.

1.6 SUMMARY

 There appears to be little unanimity among psychologists on the exact

meaning of personality. It is interesting to note that in 1937, G W Allport
in his book, Personality: A Psychological Interpretation, mentioned
fifty-three definitions of personality. Many more definitions were
incorporated later. This divergence of views clearly demonstrates the
importance of the subject.
 At the outset, it must be pointed out that personality should not be equated
with character. While, character denotes something ethical and moral and
refers to the standards of right and wrong, personality is not just the outward
appearance and behaviour of a person. It is the totality of everything about
a person—his emotional, mental, social and spiritual make-up. In fact, it
also includes ethical and physical make-up of an individual. Thus, character
is just one aspect of personality.
 The term ‘personality’ is derived from the Latin word Persona, which means
the mask worn by the Roman actors. In this sense, personality means the
individual as seen by others. The term personality is used in so many different

Self-Instructional
Material 17
Introduction to ways, that a detailed discussion is neither possible nor desirable in the present
Personality and
Personality Theory context.
1. Important Elements of Personality
NOTES 2. Physical appearance,
3. Emotionality,
4. Intelligent behaviour,
5. Sociability,
6. Character.
 There are sixteen different approaches followed in the classification of
personality.
 There has been a common tendency of psychologists to categorize people
having one type of personality or the other type, thereby taking extreme
positions. It is, however, very difficult to categorize individuals under one
of the 16 approaches as mentioned above. A variety of behaviour cannot
be categorized into a few limited categories. Personality of an individual is
an admixture of so many qualities that it is wrong to describe them as one
type or the other.
 Character is a part of personality, which is a broader concept. In the words
of Ogden, “While personality is the expression of a man’s inner life, character
is the expression of what he does or believes.” According to Gordon too,
“Personality is a more comprehensive term and includes character.”
 The development of personality of an individual depends on his view about
himself. The emergence of a positive self-concept is likely to lead to a well-
developed, harmoniously developed personality. It is, therefore, important
that children are made to learn and develop from the very beginning a positive
self-concept, which is socially desirable.
 Personality development implies the development of the traits of an the
individual. Here, trait theory of personality comes to our help to have an
adequate understanding of the problem. An attempt is made to describe the
traits that help to constitute a personality. At the same time, it should be
pointed out that the personality is the individual as a whole and it is ‘what
one is, what one was and what one will be.’
 The factors which determine a personality can be personal, family or
environmental.
 Just as every group needs a leader, a school must also have a leader who
would stimulate and direct its work. Such a leader is the headmaster or the
principal of the school. He is the hub of the education process. The success
of the school system depends on his ability and skill as a sound and effective
educational leader. The success or the failure of the school depends upon
its headmasters or principals.
Self-Instructional
18 Material
 Introduction to
1.7 KEY WORDS Personality and
Personality Theory

 Personality: According to G W Allport (1937), “Personality is the dynamic

organization within the individual of those psycho-physical systems that NOTES
determine his unique adjustment to the environment.”
 Ambiverts: It refers to the personality type where introversion and
extroversion are nearly balanced.
 Character: It consists of sentiments formed by the combination of native
propensities or instincts with ideas in various ways.
 Self-concept: It is what the individual thinks of his actual self.

1.8 SELF ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS AND

EXERCISES

Short Answer Questions

1. List the characteristics of personality.
2. What are the marks of balanced personality and its behavioural patterns?
3. Briefly explain the concept of character and personality.
4. List the determinants of personality.
Long Answer Questions
1. Discuss some of the important definitions given below may throw light on
the meaning of the term ‘personality’.
2. Describe the classification of types of personality.
3. Explain the salient traits of personality.
4. Examine the role of teachers in the personality development of students.

1.9 FURTHER READINGS

Arthur, John. 2016. Personality Development. New Delhi: Lotus Press.

John, Oliver P, Richard W Robins and Lawrence A Pervin. 2010. Handbook of
Personality: Theory and Research. New York: Guilford Press.
Engler, Barbara. 2008. Personality Theories. Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning.
Ewen, Robert B. 2014. An Introduction to Theories of Personality: 7th Edition.
London: Taylor and Francis.
Friedman, H. S., & Schustack, M. W. 2015. Personality: Classic Theories and
Modern Research (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.
Self-Instructional
Material 19
Introduction to Boyle, G.J., Matthews, G., & Saklofske, D.H. 2008. (Eds.), The Sage handbook
Personality and
Personality Theory of personality theory and assessment (Vols. 1–2). Los Angeles: Sage.
Larsen, R. J., & Buss, D. M. 2010. Personality psychology (4th ed.). New
York: McGraw Hill.
NOTES
Loehlin JC. 1992. Genes and Environment in Personality Development.
Newbury Park,CA: Sage.
Stewart, A. J. 1998. Doing personality research: How can feminist theories
help? In B. M. Clinchy & J. K. Norem (Eds.), Gender and psychology
reader (pp. 54–68). New York: New York University Press.
Uher, J. ‘Basic Definitions in Personality Psychology: Challenges for Conceptual
Integrations’, European Journal of Personality, 31, 572-573. 2017. http:/
/dx.doi.org/10.1002/per.2128.

Self-Instructional
20 Material
 Nature of Personality

UNIT 2 NATURE OF PERSONALITY Theory

THEORY
NOTES
Structure
2.0 Introduction
2.1 Objectives
2.2 Personality Theory and other Psychological Theories and Overview
2.2.1 Type Theories
2.2.2 Trait Theory
2.2.3 Psychoanalytic Theories of Personality
2.3 Phenomenological, Learning, Social Behaviour and Expectancy-
Reinforcement Models
2.4 Current Research Focus in Personality Psychology
2.5 Answers to Check Your Progress Questions
2.6 Summary
2.7 Key Words
2.8 Self Assessment Questions and Exercises
2.9 Further Readings

2.0 INTRODUCTION

In the previous unit, you were introduced to the varied definitions of personality
and the major factors which affect it and the basic classifications. In this unit, you
will learn about the nature of different personality theories. As mentioned in Unit 1,
there have been many different research in the area and several thinkers have
propounded different factors which has an effect over how personality develops
and differs from another. In this unit, you will get an overview of personality and
psychologyical theories, along with an overview of current area of personality
theory research.

2.1 UNIT OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you will be able to:

 Discuss an overview of the personality theory and other psychological
theories
 Describe the current research focus in personality psychology

Self-Instructional
Material 21
Nature of Personality
Theory 2.2 PERSONALITY THEORY AND OTHER
PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES AND
OVERVIEW
NOTES
Psychologists have developed several theories of personality to study the structure
and growth of it. Space does not permit to describe all theories of personality so
we shall follow a sample approach in the description of theories.
1. Type theory,
2. Trait theory,
3. Psychoanalytic theory,
4. Phenomenological theories,
5. Learning theory of personality,
6. Social behaviour theory,
7. Rotter’s Expectancy—reinforcement model.
In this unit, you will only learn about the basics of these theories.
2.2.1 Type Theories
It has been the nature of man, from ancient times, to name and classify objects of
his environment and human beings into different categories called ‘Types’. The
old system of typology still continues and even in modern times, psychologists
have developed various typologies which will be described. Greek physicians
were the first in the 5th century B.C. who classified people into four broad categories
on the basis of emotional and temperamental characteristics. One of Aristotle’s
pupils theorized that human body consists four fluids. The personality of an individual
is typed by the dominance of one of them in the body. The four types are as
follows:
S. No. Humour Temperament Characteristics
1. Blood Sanguine Active, hopeful
2. Yellow bile Choleric Irritability, quick to anger
3. Phlegam Phlegmatic Calm, temperamentally
(Mucus) sluggish
4. Black bile Melancholic Depressed, slow and
pessimistic

It we study our own scriptures we find in ancient India we had an advanced

system of Ayurveda in which our ancient physicians broadly categorized all human
beings on the basis of three elements in the body. The predominance of one of the
three decided the category of the person. It appears that systems of Hippocrates
and Indian physicians were, more or less, similar. The three elements which the
Indian physicians theorized are pitt (bile), bat (wind), and kuf (mucus).

Self-Instructional
22 Material
A number of typologies have been attempted for constitutional, temperamental Nature of Personality
Theory
and behavioural types of persons by philosophers and psychologists in the ancient
and current literature. It is not possible to describe all types of typologies in this
unit so we will follow the sample approach.
NOTES
Constitutional Type
Ernest Kretschmer, a German psychiatrist, classified human beings on the basis of
physical constitution. He attempted to establish relationship between personality
characteristics and body build.
S. No. Type Characteristics
1. Pyknic Stocky, full-chested, popular
2. Asthenic Weak, tall, sensitive and thin
(Leptosomic)
3. Athletic Strong
4. Dysplastic Mixed type

Somato Type
Dr. William H. Sheldon, an American surgeon, divided all human beings into three
broad categories of physical dimensions and their corresponding temperamental
characteristics. He believes that physical structure of the body is the determinant
of personality characteristics.
S. No. Physical characteristics Temperament
1. Endomorphic (soft, round) Viscerotonic (sociable, extrovert affectionable),
love of physical comfort
2. Mesomorphic (muscular Somatotonic (energetic and muscular,
and strong love of risk and chance)
3. Ectomorphic (thin and tall) Cerebrotonic (fearful, artistic introvert and
restrained)

Spranger’s Type
E. Spranger, a German philosopher, divided human beings, on the basis of interests,
in the following categories:
(a) Theoretical: Persons who are theoretical in nature, neglect social and
political participation.
(b) Economic: Those persons who are interested in money-hoarding.
(c) Aesthetic: Those persons who are lover of beauty and are busy in sensuous
gratification.
(d) Social: Persons who are interested in social activities.
(e) Political: Dominating and desirous of power.
(f ) Religious: Persons who devote themselves to religious activities and
mysticism.
Self-Instructional
Material 23
Nature of Personality Jung’s Typology
Theory
Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist, attempted to classify human beings on two behavioural
dimensions: extrovert and introvert. His typology is widely known and is most
NOTES influential among professional workers. The major characteristics of two types are
as follows:
1. Introvert: A person who tends to withdraw into himself, especially when
faced with emotional conflicts and stress in his environment. An introvert is
shy, avoids people and enjoys being alone. Scientists and philosophers may
be termed as introverts.
2. Extrovert: In contrast to the introvert type, an extrovert’s orientation is
towards the external world. He deals with people intelligently in social
situations. He is conventional, outgoing, social, friendly and free from
worries. Social workers, politicians, and business executives may be typed
as extroverts. These two broad categories have been further classified on
the basis of rational and irrational processes.
Jung’s system of classification of human beings is eight-fold and not two-
fold as is popularly known. A person, according to Jung, may be extrovert for one
function, for example, feeling and the same person may be introvert in intuition. All
persons can be divided into eight types, based on the dominance of one of the
above factors.
Modern writers have introduced ambivert, another type in between two
extreme poles of extroversion and introversion. Ambivert refers to those persons
who could be classified as neither extroverts nor introverts.
Freud’s Typology
Freud, on the basis of his theory of psycho-sexual development, identified three
types of personality. The type depends on the fixation of sexual energy at a particular
stage of sex development. The three types are as follows:
1. Oral-erotic type: According to Freud, sex in infancy is located in mouth.
There is a membrane in the mouth which, when irritated, gives pleasure to
the infant. Sexual gratification at this stage involves activities related to the
mouth. Oral-erotic type of personality shows excessive degree of pleasures
associated with oral activity. Sucking, biting or putting anything in the mouth
gratifies the sex in infancy. Fixation at the oral stage results in two types of
personality in later life:
(a) Oral passive type: This type of person is dependent, optimistic and
immature in his thinking and other activities like a child. He expects
help from other persons.
(b) Oral sadistic type: This type of person is pessimistic. He is suspicious
and aggressive. He is often bitter in his dealings with others.

Self-Instructional
24 Material
 2. The anal type: The second stage of sex development is anal when the Nature of Personality
Theory
child obtains gratifications through anal activities. These activities generally
relate to the expulsion of faecal material through the anus or the retention of
these materials in response to the social demands of toilet-training. Some
traits of personality develop due to fixation of sex energy at this stage. These NOTES
traits include obstinacy, miserliness, orderliness, etc. in later life.
3. The phallic type: The third stage of psycho-sexual development is phallic.
This type of person shows self-love, exhibitionism. He tries to draw the
attention of others. These characteristics are found in early adolescents.
Evaluation of the Type Approach
Classification of human beings into types has been generally criticized by
psychologists on the basis that typologies tend to place emphasis upon one or
another phase of development. They deal with extremes rather than mediocrity of
human nature. It is very difficult to categorise individuals under one of the types as
proposed by some typologists. Two or three types are wholly inadequate to describe
human beings. It is oversimplification of personality by forcing a great varieties of
behaviour into a few limited categories. The second criticism of typology is that
types are discontinuous and non-scaleable. There is multiplicity of type theories
which are very difficult to apply in practice.
Criticism does not mean that typology is useless. Typology has its historical
value in the sense that it was the first attempt to typify people which generated a
great deal of research.
The second important contribution of typology is that it attempts to assess
the personality of an individual as a whole. It does not study personality in fragments
of traits. The type approach is very useful for psychologists who attempt to
comprehend the personality of an individual as a whole.
The third advantage of typology is that types are useful and valuable from
the point of view of experiments in physical sciences where attention to certain
process is called in relatively pure form, uncontaminated by accidental and confusing
factors.
Lastly, we can say that they serve one very important function as reference
points or guides for the examination of dimensions of personality by different
psychologists.
2.2.2 Trait Theory
Typology and trait approaches are interrelated to each other in the sense that
typology includes a wide variety of traits in classifying human beings in broad
types while in trait approach we label or call a person by a specific mode of
behaviour which he shows in a wide variety of circumstances.

Self-Instructional
Material 25
Nature of Personality In modern psychology, type approach is not so widely used as trait approach
Theory
to understand the development of personality. In our daily life, we label traits to
our friends or other persons as honest, aggressive, fearful, dependent, lazy and
dull, etc. In the simplest sense by trait we mean a mode of behaviour which is
NOTES manifested in a number of life situations consistently. It is any distinguishable,
relatively enduring way in which one individual varies from other. Trait may be
defined as, “a property within the individual that accounts for his unique but relatively
stable reactions to environment.”
Walter Michel in his book, Introduction to Personality defined, “trait is a
continuous dimension on which individual differences may be arranged quantitatively
in terms of the amount of the characteristics the individual has.”
Let us explain the process of development of trait.
Trait in daily life, first, is used simply as an adjective as Ram behaves in a
lazy way in several situations. When this description is generalized from his behaviour
to the person (Ram), we say that he (Ram) is lazy. Laziness becomes a trait of his
personality, a characteristic mode of his behaviour.
Development of Friendliness

Stimuli Trait Responses

1. Meeting friends 1. Helpful
2. Meeting with strangers friendliness 2. Pleasant
3. Dealing with poor, 3. Warm and interested
disabled children

Some Properties of Traits

 Scaleability: Traits are scaleable. They can be measured and scaled
quantitatively.
 Inference from behaviour: Personality traits are not directly observable
but they are manifested in a number of activities and verbal expression. We
infer a trait from the behaviour of the individual.
 Flexibility: Traits are not static in nature. They are flexible in childhood
and become stable with the maturity of the person in age but some variability
is always there.
 Universality: There are certain traits which are universal in nature as height
and weight.
 Functional unity: The trait must have functional utility. It means that there
must be different indications which may vary or are manifested consistently
in the behaviour of the individual.
 Traits are higher order habits: Guthrie conceived that a trait is a higher
order habit which recurs in the behaviour frequently.

Self-Instructional
26 Material
  Traits are mental sets: Some psychologists define trait as a mental set. It Nature of Personality
Theory
is a readiness to respond to any variety of situations in a consistent way.
Cason referred that there is generalized tendency in some people to be
annoyed easily.
NOTES
 Traits are frame of reference: The personality of an individual is an
organized whole of beliefs, emotions, etc. about the environment. In this
reference, traits are organized frames of references.
 Traits are learned: Traits are learned in the interaction with the
environmental stimuli. They are biologically determined as neuroticism and
other traits which depend on the disposition and intellectual potentialities of
the individual.
G.W. Allport’s Classification
G.W. Allport is one of the most outstanding trait psychologists. His conception
and research on trait approach to personality had great influence on psychologists.
He has conceived that traits have a real and vital existence. He defined a trait as,
“a generalized and focalized neuropsychic system with the capacity to render many
stimuli functionally equivalent and to imitate and guide consistent forms of adaptive
and expressive behaviour.”
The definition given by Allport is a comprehensive one. It emphasizes that traits
are not linked with a small number of stimuli but they are general and enduring in
nature. Allport is also famous for his emphasis on functional autonomy and the
Concept of Propium. Functional autonomy means that motives of an adult may
have their roots in the tension-reducing motives of the child. The adult grows out
of them and becomes independent of these earlier tension-reducing efforts. The
propium includes the different aspects of the self (bodily self, self-identity, self-
esteem) which the person seeks to organise into an integrated, unified whole. He
classified all human traits into three broad categories as given below:
 Cardinal trait: Traits which appear in most of the behaviour of the organism
are called cardinal. It may be illustrated with the example of achievement in
life. Some people are so devoted to achievement that this trait pervades the
whole life.
 Central trait: Central traits are less pervasive than cardinal traits but are
quite generalized dispositions.
 Secondary dispositions: Secondary dispositions are specific narrow traits.
They are called attitudes.
Development of Personality
According to Allport, personality development is related to the concept of self or
propium. It includes all the aspects of personality that make for internal unity. The
propium develops through conditioning, reinforcement, habits and other aspects
Self-Instructional
Material 27
Nature of Personality of learning. Allport outlines the following stages of the development of propium or
Theory
self or personality:
 Bodily self (Birth to first year): During infancy sensations provide the
anchor. It is the feelings or awareness of body. It is confined to one’s own
NOTES
body.
 Self-identity: After about 18 months the child is capable of recognising
himself/herself as a distinct ‘person’ and not merely a ‘body’. He is aware
of his likes and dislikes and his relationship with others in the immediate
surroundings. The continuity of experience is made possible through the
development of language.
 Self-esteem (2–3 years): From second through third year of life emerges
a sense of autonomy. The child is no more dependent on parents and
experiences pleasure (pride) over his accomplishments and humiliation over
his failure. He also develops negativism, i.e., refusal to obey or receive
orders from others. This results in the development of self-esteem.
 Self-extension (4–6 years): The child meets people and develops new
interests and habits and develops self-image. He develops conscience. He
learns to confirm to the expectations of others. The child develops good
and naughty selves. He is sensitive to praise and blame.
 Self as rational coper (6–12 years): The individual develops reasoning
power and uses problem-solving approach. Allport calls this rational coper.
 Propriate strivings (12 years–Adolescence): As the child reaches
adolescence, he is able to distinguish between peripheral and propriate
motives. Peripheral motives include impulses, drives and striving for
immediate gratification of needs. Fulfilment of peripheral motives reduces
tension. Propriate motives are our efforts to increase tension rather than to
reduce it. The individual strives for important goals in life. The conversion
of peripheral motives to propriate motives is called ‘Functional Autonomy’.
 Self as knower: It includes all the previous aspects of the propium.
According to Allport, traits differ in intensity and magnitude in general
population from individual to individual. No two individuals are alike in their
behaviour. They operate in their unique way in the environment. Each individual is
unique in his adjustment.
R.B. Cattell’s Classification
Raymond B. Cattell is another ardent propounder of the trait theory of personality.
The basic structural element for him is the trait. He defined that a trait is structure
of the personality inferred from behaviour in different situations. He classified traits
into four categories:
 Common traits: There are certain traits which are found widely distributed
in general population or among all groups. They are called common traits.
Self-Instructional
Honesty, aggression and cooperation can be called common traits.
28 Material
  Unique traits: These traits are possessed by particular persons as Nature of Personality
Theory
temperamental traits, emotional reactions, and energy, etc.
 Surface traits: Traits which can be easily recognized by overt manifestation
of behaviour, are called surface traits as curiosity, integrity, honesty, tactfulness
NOTES
and dependability.
 Source traits: Source traits an the underlying structures or sources that
determine the behaviour of are individual. They are inferred from behaviour.
Dominance and emotionality are source traits. Cattell, through factor analytic
approach, determined the contribution of hereditary and learning factors in
the development of traits in the individual. He emphasized the importance
of interaction between hereditary and environment influences in personality
development.
H.J. Eysenck’s Classification
H.J. Eysenck, a British psychologist, devoted much of his research studies to
explore the trait dimensions. He conducted extensive research on trait dimensions
by applying quantitative technique of factor analysis.
He conducted research on ten thousand soldiers and by statistical analysis
isolated two dimensions in personality: (a) Introversion-extroversion, and (b)
Neuroticism.
Later on, he isolated another personality dimension as psychoticism.
According to Eysenck, psychoticism is an independent dimension of personality.
It is quite different from introversion-extroversion dimension.
Eysenck has found three fundamental dimensions of personality:
1. Introversion vs extroversion,
2. Normality vs neuroticism,
3. Psychoticism.
People high on this dimension tend to be solitary, insensitive, uncaring about
others, and opposed to accepted social custom.
According to Eysenck, the typical extrovert is sociable, likes parties, has
many friends, is caring and impulsive. Extroverts are chronically understimulated
and seek external stimulation as a mean of raising their arousal level. An introverted
person tends to be quiet, introspective, reserved, reflective, distrustful of impulsive
decisions and prefers a well ordered life because he has high level of arousal in the
brain and the central nervous system than extroverts. So introverts do not require
any external stimulation.
A person who is an extrovert and stable is active and hopeful. Whereas a
person who is introvert and stable is calm and temperamentally sluggish. An introvert
and unstable person is depressed, slow and pessimistic whereas an extrovert and
unstable person is irritable and quick to anger.
Self-Instructional
Material 29