CHAPTER 6

Introduction to: Personality

6.1 Definition and Concept of Personality

6.2 Determinants of Personality
6.3 Types of Personalities
6.4 Theories of Personality
6.5 How Personality Develops?
6.6 How Personality Influences Organizational Behaviour?

6.1 Definition and Concept of Personality

Personality is a patterned body of habits, traits, attitudes, and ideas of an individual’s, as

these are organized externally into roles and statues and as they relate internally to
motivation, goals, and various aspects of selfhood. The term personality is derived from the
Latin word “Persona” which means to speak through. This Latin term was used to denote the
mask, the actors used to wear in ancient Rome and Greece, An individual’s personality is the
combination of traits and patterns that influence their behaviour, thought, motivation, and
emotion. Personality is the fundamental and foremost determinant of individual behaviour. It
seeks to integrate the physiological and psychological facets of an individual to put them into
action. Personality consists of an individual's characteristics and distinctive ways of
behaviour.

It drives individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways; in essence, it is
what makes each individual unique. Over time, these patterns strongly influence personal
expectations, perceptions, values, and attitudes. In addition to this, personality arises from
within the individual and remains fairly consistent throughout life. It is a pattern of stable
states and characteristics of a person that influence his or her behaviour towards goal
achievement. Each person has unique ways of projecting these states.

1. According to Gordon Allport, “Personality is the dynamic organization within the

individuals of those psychophysical systems that determine his unique adjustments to his
environments”.

2. Feist and Feist said, “personality is a pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique
characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to a person’s behavior.”
3. By personality Ogburn means “the integration of the socio-psychological behavior of the
human being, represented by habits of action and feeling, attitudes and opinions.”

4. Lawrence A. Pewin said, “Personality represents those structural and dynamic properties
of an individual or individuals as they reflect themselves in characteristic responses to
situations”.

5. According to Hilgard et at', "Personality may be understood as the characteristic patterns

Of behaviour and modes Of thinking that determine a person's adjustment to the
environment."

6. In the opinion of Ruch, "Personality can be described as how he understands and views
himself and his pattern of inner and outer measurable traits".

Thus, it reflects from above definitions that personality includes both internal and external
aspects of a person. Here, external aspects relate to one's height, weight, facial features,
colour and other physical aspects and traits. One's attitude, values, learning etc. are the
examples of internal aspects of personality. Of more importance to organisational behaviour
are internal aspects of personality. Now, personality can be defined as the sum total of ways
in which an individual reacts and interacts with others and environment. In other words,
personality is an organised behaviour of an individual to react to a given stimulus in a set
manner. This is most often in the form of consistent response to environmental stimuli. An
individual's personality is influenced by the personal life and where he/she is working.

The 4 Major Personality Perspectives

The study of personality is one of the major topics of interest in psychology. Numerous
personality theories exist and most of the major ones fall into one of four major perspectives.
Each of these perspectives on personality attempts to describe different patterns
in personality, including how these patterns form and how people differ on an individual
level.

Learn more about the four major perspectives of personality, the theorist associated with each
theory, and the core ideas that are central to each perspective.

Psychoanalytic Perspective

The psychoanalytic perspective of personality emphasizes the importance of early childhood

experiences and the unconscious mind. This perspective on personality was created by
psychiatrist Sigmund Freud who believed that things hidden in the unconscious could be
revealed in a number of different ways, including through dreams, free association, and slips
of the tongue.1

Neo-Freudian theorists, including Erik Erikson, Carl Jung, Alfred Adler, and Karen Horney,
believed in the importance of the unconscious but disagreed with other aspects of Freud's
theories.

Major Theorists

Below are the most prominent psychoanalytic perspective theorists:

• Sigmund Freud: Stressed the importance of early childhood events, the influence of
the unconscious, and sexual instincts in the development and formation of personality.
• Erik Erikson: Emphasized the social elements of personality development, the
identity crisis, and how personality is shaped over the course of the entire lifespan.2
• Carl Jung: Focused on concepts such as the collective unconscious, archetypes, and
psychological types.
• Alfred Adler: Believed the core motive behind personality involves striving for
superiority, or the desire to overcome challenges and move closer toward self-
realization. This desire to achieve superiority stems from underlying feelings of
inferiority that Adler believed were universal.
• Karen Horney: Focused on the need to overcome basic anxiety, the sense of being
isolated and alone in the world. She emphasized the societal and cultural factors that
also play a role in personality, including the importance of the parent-child
relationship.

Humanistic Perspective

The humanistic perspective of personality focuses on psychological growth, free will, and
personal awareness. It takes a more positive outlook on human nature and is centered on how
each person can achieve their individual potential.

Major Theorists

The following are the most influential humanistic perspective theorists:

• Carl Rogers: Believed in the inherent goodness of people and emphasized the
importance of free will and psychological growth. He suggested that the actualizing
tendency is the driving force behind human behavior.
• Abraham Maslow: Suggested that people are motivated by a hierarchy of needs.4
The most basic needs are centered on things necessary for life such as food and water,
but as people move up the hierarchy these needs become centered on things such as
esteem and self-actualization.

Trait Perspective

The trait perspective of personality is centered on identifying, describing, and measuring the
specific traits that make up human personality. By understanding these traits, researchers
believe they can better comprehend the differences between individuals.
 Major Theorists

Below are the most important trait perspective theorists:

• Hans Eysenck: Suggested that there are three dimensions of personality: 1)

extraversion-introversion, 2) emotional stability-neuroticism, and 3) psychoticism.
• Raymond Cattell: Identified 16 personality traits that he believed could be utilized to
understand and measure individual differences in personality.
• Robert McCrae and Paul Costa: Introduced the big five theory, which identifies
five key dimensions of personality: 1) extraversion, 2) neuroticism, 3) openness to
experience, 4) conscientiousness, and 5) agreeableness.6

Social Cognitive Perspective

The social cognitive perspective of personality emphasizes the importance of observational

learning, self-efficacy, situational influences, and cognitive processes.

Major Theorists

The main proponent of the social cognitive perspective is:

•
Albert Bandura: Emphasized the importance of social learning, or learning through
observation. His theory emphasized the role of conscious thoughts including self-
efficacy, or our own beliefs in our abilities.

The Trait Theory of Personality

If someone asked you to describe a close friend's personality, what kind of things would you
say? A few things that might come to mind are descriptive terms, such as "outgoing," "kind"
and "even-tempered." All of these represent traits. What exactly does this the word "trait"
mean?

A trait can be thought of as a relatively stable characteristic that causes individuals to behave
in certain ways. The trait approach to personality is one of the major theoretical areas in the
study of personality. The trait theory suggests that individual personalities are composed of
these broad dispositions.1

Unlike many other theories of personality, such as psychoanalytic or humanistic theories, the
trait approach to personality is focused on differences between individuals. The combination
and interaction of various traits form a personality that is unique to each individual. Trait
theory is focused on identifying and measuring these individual personality characteristics.1
Gordon Allport’s Trait Theory

In 1936, psychologist Gordon Allport found that one English-language dictionary alone
contained more than 4,000 words describing different personality traits. He categorized these
traits into three levels:2

• Cardinal traits: Allport suggested that cardinal traits are rare, and dominate, usually
developing later in life. They tend to define a person to such an extent that their
names become synonymous with their personality. Examples of this include the
following descriptive terms: Machiavellian, narcissistic, Don Juan, and Christ-like.
• Central traits: These general characteristics form basic personality foundations.
While central traits are not as dominating as cardinal traits, they describe the major
characteristics you might use to describe another person. Terms such as "intelligent,"
"honest," "shy," and "anxious" are considered central traits.
• Secondary traits: Secondary traits are sometimes related to attitudes or preferences.
They often appear only in certain situations or under specific circumstances. Some
examples include public speaking anxiety, or impatience while waiting in line.

Cattell’s 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire

Trait theorist Raymond Cattell reduced the number of main personality traits from Allport’s
initial list of over 4,000 down to 171. He did so primarily by eliminating uncommon traits
and combining common characteristics.

Next, Cattell rated a large sample of individuals for these 171 different traits. Then, using a
statistical technique known as factor analysis, he identified closely related terms and
eventually reduced his list to just 16 key personality traits.

According to Cattell, these 16 traits are the source of all human personality. He also
developed one of the most widely used personality assessments known as the "16 Personality
Factor Questionnaire."3

Analyzing Personality Factors for Counseling and Career Guidance

Eysenck’s 3 Dimensions of Personality

British psychologist Hans Eysenck developed a model of personality based upon just three
universal trails.4

• Introversion/extraversion: Introversion involves directing attention to inner

experiences, while extroversion relates to focusing attention outward on other people
and the environment. A person high in introversion might be quiet and reserved, while
an individual high in extroversion might be sociable and outgoing.
• Neuroticism/emotional stability: This dimension of Eysenck’s trait theory is related
to moodiness versus even-temperateness. Neuroticism refers to an individual’s
tendency to become upset or emotional, while stability refers to the tendency to
remain emotionally constant.
• Psychotics: Later, after studying individuals suffering from mental illness, Eysenck
added a personality dimension he called psychotics to his trait theory. Individuals who
are high on this trait tend to have difficulty dealing with reality and may be antisocial,
hostile, non-empathetic, and manipulative.

The 5-Factor Theory of Personality

Both Cattell’s and Eysenck’s theories have been the subject of considerable research. This
has led some theorists to believe that Cattell focused on too many traits, while Eysenck
focused on too few. As a result, a new trait theory often referred to as the "Big Five" theory
emerged.

This five-factor model of personality represents five core traits that interact to form human
personality.5 While researchers often disagree about the exact labels for each dimension, the
following are described most commonly:

• Agreeableness
• Conscientiousness
• Extraversion
• Neuroticism
• Openness

The Big 5 Personality Traits

 Assessing the Trait Theory

Most theorists and psychologists agree that people can be described based on their
personality traits. Yet, theorists continue to debate the number of basic traits that make up
human personality. While trait theory has an objectivity that some personality theories lack
(such as Freud’s psychoanalytic theory), it also has weaknesses.

Some of the most common criticisms of trait theory center on the fact that traits are often
poor predictors of behavior. While an individual may score high on assessments of a specific
trait, he may not always behave that way in every situation. Another problem is those trait
theories do not address how or why individual differences in personality develop or emerge.

Freud's Id, Ego, and Superego

According to Sigmund Freud, human personality is complex and has more than a single
component. In his famous psychoanalytic theory, Freud states that personality is composed of
three elements known as the id, the ego, and the superego. These elements work together to
create complex human behaviors.1

Each component adds its own unique contribution to personality and the three interact in
ways that have a powerful influence on an individual. Each element of personality emerges at
different points in life.

According to Freud's theory, certain aspects of your personality are more primal and might
pressure you to act upon your most basic urges. Other parts of your personality work to
counteract these urges and strive to make you conform to the demands of reality.

The Id

• According to Freud, the id is the source of all psychic energy, making it the primary
component of personality.1
• The id is the only component of personality that is present from birth.
• This aspect of personality is entirely unconscious and includes instinctive and
primitive behaviors.

The id is driven by the pleasure principle, which strives for immediate gratification of all
desires, wants, and needs.1 If these needs are not satisfied immediately, the result is a state
anxiety or tension. For example, an increase in hunger or thirst should produce an immediate
attempt to eat or drink.

The id is very important early in life because it ensures that an infant's needs are met. If the
infant is hungry or uncomfortable, they will cry until the demands of the id are satisfied.
Young infants are ruled entirely by the id, there is no reasoning with them when these needs
demand satisfaction.
Imagine trying to convince a baby to wait until lunchtime to eat their meal. The id requires
immediate satisfaction, and because the other components of personality are not yet present,
the infant will cry until these needs are fulfilled.

However, immediately fulfilling these needs is not always realistic or even possible. If we
were ruled entirely by the pleasure principle, we might find ourselves grabbing the things that
we want out of other people's hands to satisfy our own cravings.

This behavior would be both disruptive and socially unacceptable. According to Freud, the id
tries to resolve the tension created by the pleasure principle through the use of primary
process thinking, which involves forming a mental image of the desired object as a way of
satisfying the need.1

Although people eventually learn to control the id, this part of personality remains the same
infantile, primal force throughout life. It is the development of the ego and the superego that
allows people to control the id's basic instincts and act in ways that are both realistic and
socially acceptable.

The Ego

• According to Freud, The ego develops from the id and ensures that the impulses of the
id can be expressed in a manner acceptable in the real world.
• The ego functions in the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious mind.
• The ego is the component of personality that is responsible for dealing with reality.

The ego operates based on the reality principle, which strives to satisfy the id's desires in
realistic and socially appropriate ways. The reality principle weighs the costs and benefits of
an action before deciding to act upon or abandon impulses.

In many cases, the id's impulses can be satisfied through a process of delayed gratification—
the ego will eventually allow the behavior, but only in the appropriate time and place.1

Freud compared the id to a horse and the ego to the horse's rider. The horse provides the
power and motion, while the rider provides direction and guidance. Without its rider, the
horse may simply wander wherever it wished and do whatever it pleased. The rider gives the
horse directions and commands to get it to go where the rider wants it to go.

The ego also discharges tension created by unmet impulses through secondary
process thinking, in which the ego tries to find an object in the real world that matches the
mental image created by the id's primary process.

Imagine that you are stuck in a long meeting at work. You find yourself growing increasingly
hungry as the meeting drags on. While the id might compel you to jump up from your seat
and rush to the break room for a snack, the ego guides you to sit quietly and wait for the
meeting to end.

Instead of acting upon the primal urges of the id, you spend the rest of the meeting imagining
yourself eating a cheeseburger. Once the meeting is finally over, you can seek out the object
you were imagining and satisfy the demands of the id in a realistic and appropriate manner.
 The Superego

The last component of personality to develop is the superego.

• According to Freud, the superego begins to emerge at around age five.

• The superego holds the internalized moral standards and ideals that we acquire from
our parents and society (our sense of right and wrong).
• The superego provides guidelines for making judgments.

The superego has two parts:

1. The conscience includes information about things that are viewed as bad by parents
and society. These behaviors are often forbidden and lead to bad consequences,
punishments, or feelings of guilt and remorse.
2. The ego ideal includes the rules and standards for behaviors that the ego aspires to.

The superego tries to perfect and civilize our behavior. It works to suppress all unacceptable
urges of the id and struggles to make the ego act upon idealistic standards rather that upon
realistic principles. The superego is present in the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious.

The Interaction of the Id, Ego, and Superego

When talking about the id, the ego, and the superego, it is important to remember that these
are not three separate entities with clearly defined boundaries. These aspects are dynamic and
always interacting to influence an individual's overall personality and behavior.

With many competing forces, it is easy to see how conflict might arise between the id, ego,
and superego. Freud used the term ego strength to refer to the ego's ability to function despite
these dueling forces.6

A person who has good ego strength can effectively manage these pressures, while a person
with too much or too little ego strength can be unyielding or disruptive.

What Happens If There Is an Imbalance?

According to Freud, the key to a healthy personality is a balance between the id, the ego, and
the superego.7

If the ego is able to adequately moderate between the demands of reality, the id, and the
superego, a healthy and well-adjusted personality emerges. Freud believed that an imbalance
between these elements would lead to a maladaptive personality.

For example, an individual with an overly dominant id might become impulsive,

uncontrollable, or even criminal. Such an individual acts upon their most basic urges with no
concern for whether their behavior is appropriate, acceptable, or legal.

On the other hand, an overly dominant superego might lead to a personality that is extremely
moralistic and judgmental. A person ruled by the superego might not be able to accept
anything or anyone that they perceive to be "bad" or "immoral."
Freud's theory provides one conceptualization of how personality is structured and how the
elements of personality function. In Freud's view, a balance in the dynamic interaction of the
id, ego, and superego is necessary for a healthy personality.

While the ego has a tough job to do, it does not have to act alone. Anxiety also plays a role in
helping the ego mediate between the demands of the basic urges, moral values, and the real
world. When you experience different types of anxiety, defense mechanisms may kick in to
help defend the ego and reduce the anxiety you are feeling.