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A psychobiographical study of Temujin's (Genghis Khan) personality

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 Journal of Psychology in Africa

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A psychobiographical study of Temujin’s (Genghis

Khan) personality

Bao Xiaohong, Dong Jia & Zheng Jianhong

To cite this article: Bao Xiaohong, Dong Jia & Zheng Jianhong (2021) A psychobiographical study
of Temujin’s (Genghis Khan) personality, Journal of Psychology in Africa, 31:2, 177-183, DOI:
10.1080/14330237.2021.1903154

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Journal of Psychology in Africa, 2021
Vol. 31, No. 2, 177–183, https://doi.org/10.1080/14330237.2021.1903154
© 2021 Africa Scholarship Development Enterprize

A psychobiographical study of Temujin’s (Genghis Khan) personality

Bao Xiaohong1,2 , Dong Jia3 and Zheng Jianhong4,5*

1
College of Education, Minzu University of China, Beijing, China
2
College of Psychology, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China
3
College of Education, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, China
4
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Development and Education for Special Needs Children, Zhanjiang, China
5
School of Special Education & Key Laboratory of Psychological Assessment and Rehabilitation for Exceptional Children, Lingnan
Normal University, Zhanjiang, China
*Correspondence: zjhong@sina.com

This psychobiography study of Temujin employed the Personality Adjective Evaluation Scale, the Personality Adjective
Classification Survey, and the Delphi method to characterise Temujin’s personality traits and probable influences . One
hundred and thirty-two participants rated Temujin’s personality on 248 evaluation words, while an expert panel (n = 4)
utilised the Delphi consensus building method for convergence of the trait characterisation . Following factor analysis
and multi-dimensional classification analysis, we found six personality trait categories to characterise Temujin: cruel and
aggressive, forthright and chivalric, intelligent and capable, outstanding, self-reliant, and martial spirit . Findings may be
explained by Temujin’s life experiences, role models, culture background, such as family upheavals, economic distress, the
metaphor of the sun and the moon of wise persons, the education received from his mother Hö’elün, the achievements of
the ancestors and father, and the manner of their achievements . Moreover, the harmony and separation culture, the worship
of power and heroes, and the nomadic and hunting life would have been significant influences . From these findings, we
concluded that personality traits are influenced by early experiences, role models, and cultural background .

Keywords: cultural background, early experiences, personality traits, psychobiography, Temujin

Introduction Khwarazm caused countless casualties as well as the

Temujin is a household name for the Mongolian people . In
1162, Borjigin Temujin was born into the Golden family .
His life was rich and colourful . At the age of nine, his father
was fatally poisoned over a feud with the Tatars . Following
his death, Temujin’s family lost their leadership position
and were abandoned by their relatives and subordinates .
Subsequently, they experienced many misfortunes, such as
being attacked by the Tayichiud tribe, having their horses
stolen, and Temujin’s new wife being kidnapped . Temujin
began his war career in the process of uniting the Ong Qan
of the Kereyits and Jamuqa of the Jadaran clan to attack
the Merkids tribe and rescue his wife . After more than
twenty years, by 1206, Temujin eliminated all the tribes on
the grassland and established the great Mongolia, claiming
himself as Genghis Khan . He carried out many reforms,
including establishing guards, formulating codes that made
detailed provisions on the national system, a service tax,
and a postal system . Following this, Temujin conquered
the Xi Xia Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty and destroyed
the Khwarazm . Temujin died in 1227 (Inner Mongolia
Institute of Law and Sociology of Laws, 2007; Yu, 2014) .
Temujin ended tribal divisions in the Mongolian
grasslands, achieved the first unification after hundreds of
years, promoted the formation of Mongolian nationality,
created and popularised Mongolian characters, and
enacted and codified laws. He also proposed and practiced
superb military strategies, established a huge empire,
opened a transcontinental road between Asia and Europe,
and established unprecedented Eurasian economic and
cultural exchanges . Meanwhile, his wars against the Jin
Dynasty, the Xi Xia, and Khwarazm were serious regional
consequences . In particular, the western expedition to
destruction of an agricultural economy and a brilliant
civilization (Balajinima et al ., 2005; Zhu, 2004) .
Temujin had a far-reaching influence on Mongolia
and the world (both positive and negative) . His ascension
to power would be explained, in part, by his personality
traits . Although there are numerous studies on Temujin
(e . g ., Maikhiyev, 2014; Shlapentokh, 2009), none of
them are psychobiographies or in-depth exploration
of his personality characteristics and specific life
experiences . Psychobiography is unique and important
for exploring the depth of an individual’s life, revealing
individual personality traits, behaviour, and reasons for
their formation (Kőváry , 2011; Runyan, 2005; Schultz
& Lawrence, 2017) . To provide a background to readers
less familiar with Temujin, we briefly outline his cultural
background .
Cultural background
Culture is the most profound macro background of human
psychology and behaviour . It provides a way for people
to understand and construct themselves, others, and the
world . Moreover, culture shapes personality tendencies
in unique ways (Bruner, 1990) . Therefore, to know a
historical figure, we must put that figure in its cultural
context or background .
Harmony and separation
The ancient Mongols regarded Monghe Tengri as
the Supreme God: “the important content of which is
nature worship, with the sky and earth most respected”
(Wu, 2017, p . 44) . They regarded the sky as “the father
of compassion and benevolence” (Wu, 2017, p . 84),

Journal of Psychology in Africa is co-published by NISC (Pty) Ltd and Informa UK Limited (trading as Taylor & Francis Group)
178 Bao et al.
dominating all natural things, including the blessings and
misfortunes of the world . Further the earth was regarded
as the “mother of charity” (Wu, 2017, p . 84) which
nurtures and protects everything . Additionally, people
worshiped specific natural objects, such as mountains,
trees, and water . The Monghe Tengri belief was to seek
the harmonious coexistence of man and nature .
Mongolians believed the natural environment to not
only make people harmonious with all things but also
to make them independent, antagonistic, and divided
(Qian, 1988) . These beliefs may be associated with the
survival needs on the Mongolian Plateau, with its highly
changeable climate, shortage of water resources, and
extremely harsh natural conditions . Economic distress led
to political instability among these nomadic people, who
look outwards for survival, accompanied by a strong desire
to overcome obstacles . Thus, the nomadic Mongolians had
a free, independent, and opposing worldview between man
and nature, the enemy, and themselves (Qian, 1988) .
Power and hero worship
Mongolians were hero worshippers, in part from the
survival needs in the poor natural conditions, economic
distress, frequent war, and social tensions in the grassland
areas (Edentaogetao, 2013) . To the Mongolians, heroes
could uphold justice, defeat demons, and defend their
homeland . As examples, Mongolian people would name
their children “ba’atur” (hero), create and recite heroic
epics, and educate their children to follow the example of
heroes . In addition, once a person was regarded as a hero,
he or she would quickly be followed by others, showing
extraordinary appeal .
Nomadic and hunting life
The life of nomadic people is dynamic and uncertain due
to continuous movement and relocations (Yu, 2007) .
Nomadic migration was the most basic survival mode of
ancient Mongolia . Nomadic migration is driven by the
laws of nature, as in the changes of the four seasons . It is
also very unpredictable . What awaits the nomadic herders
may be lush meadows, barren land, a struggle for control,
or a great storm, so migration activity is about conquering
or being conquered (Schinbatu, 2006) .
Hunting is a prime activity of nomadic culture . The
ancient Mongolians hunting season lasted for two to three
months from the beginning of winter snow to the following
spring . Hunting was not allowed at other times of the year
to maximize the reproduction of all species in spring,
summer, and autumn . Hunting played an important role in
the lives of ancient Mongols and carried high significance
comparable to military drills and war (Schinbatu, 2006) .
Goal of the study
This study aimed to explore Temujin’s personality
characteristics and influences on their formation from
a psychological perspective . We aimed to address the
following questions . What personality traits did Temujin
have? How did they come into being? How are his
personality traits explained by his unique life experiences,
role models, and cultural background?
Methods
Participants and sampling
Our sample were two student groups and a group of
experts on Temujin:
• 132 university students mainly from the Chinese
cities of Nanjing, Hefei, and Beijing (female = 59 .8%;
postgraduates = 63 .6%),
• 106 students mainly from Nanjing, China (female =
55 .6%; all postgraduates) .
• Four experts on Temujin, and the history of Mongolia
or the Yuan Dynasty, all from Inner Mongolia, China
(female = 25%) .
The students completed Personality Adjective
Evaluation Scale and Personality Adjective Classification
Survey while the experts completed two Delphi consensus
building rounds (as described below) .
Measures
Temujin’s biography familiarisation
Participants studied a historical record on Temujin and
completed a knowledge test to be included in this study .
The familiarity test questionnaire comprised of 15 items
with content extracted from Temujin’s brief biography .
The participants whose correct answer rate was greater
than or equal to 80% in the familiarity test questionnaire
were included in the study .
Personality Adjective Evaluation Scale
The Personality Adjective Evaluation Scale (PAES:
Zheng et al ., 2003) comprises 248 personality adjectives .
Participants rated the degree of conformity to Temujin’s
personality on a seven-point scale (Cronbach’s α
coefficient of 0 .963) . 21 evaluation words were retained
with an average score greater than 5 and a cumulative
frequency of 5, 6, and 7 greater than or equal to 85% .
Personality Adjective Classification Survey (PACS,
self-compiled)
The Personality Adjective Classification Survey (PACS) is
a self-compiled measure . It contains 21 evaluation words
(Cronbach’s α coefficient = 0 .91) . Theoretically, scores
range from 1 to 21 .
Delphi method interview
To cross-validate the evidence from the surveys data,
our expert panel completed two rounds of Delphi
(Yang, 2012) for consensus building on Temujin’s most
defining personality characteristics (from a shortened
list of personality attributes following the analysis of the
data from the surveys as described above) . A consensus
agreement of 75% was required to retain a personality
attribute to the next and final round .
Procedure
All participants individually consented to the study with
our explanation of the goals and procedures . The student
and expert panel completed the surveys online .
Data analysis
We analysed the data using Excel version 2003 and SPSS
version 21 . Specifically, we utilised the Q classification
 Psychobiographical study of Temujin’s personality 179

method (Stephenson, 1952) for the classification of
personality traits and adjectives . To profile the personality
traits, similar to a previous study (Sun & Wu, 2013), we
employed both factor analysis and multidimensional scale
analysis drawing on their relative advantage providing
factor load and structure fitting indices by items or factors .
We applied the Q classification method in Microsoft Excel
and converted into 106 21×21 symmetric dissimilarity
matrices . We then imported symmetric dissimilarity
matrices data into IBM SPSS Statistics Software 23 .0 for
multidimensional scaling analysis .
Results
Factor analysis results
Following factor analysis on the 21 evaluation words, we
extracted a total of four factors (see Table 1 for the results),
which were named as “rare gifts and bold strategy,” “seek
to prevail over others,” “martial arts and chivalry,” and
“cruel and aggressive .” The cumulative contribution rate
was 63 .09% .
Multidimensional scale analysis results
Participants divided 21 adjectives into 2 to 18 categories
with an average eigenvalue of 4 .9 . The results showed
that the conceptual structure of 21 personality traits
could be explained by two dimensions: stress = 0 .17870
and RSQ (squared correlation) = 0 .86935 . The model
explained 86 .94% of the variation in scores . Further, the
scatter plot of linear fitting was approximately a straight
line, indicating that the two-dimensional model fits the
observed data well . The mental picture as determined by
the 106 participants on the 21 personality traits is shown
in Figure 1 .
Figure 1 shows that the 21 feature words are grouped
into six categories: (i) cruel and aggressive (which includes
cruel, fierce, and aggressive); (ii) forthright and chivalric;
(iii) intelligent and capable (which includes intelligent,
self-confident, decisive, determined, and strong); (iv)
outstanding (which includes progressive, outstanding, and
promising); (v) self-reliant (which includes independent,
first-hand, and self-esteem); and (vi) martial spirit (which
includes martial, adventurous, emulous, rebellious, and
competitive) .
Two dimensions
The semantic space map of the 21 personality trait
words includes two dimensions . Dimension 1 refers to
relationship/independence: most of the personality traits on
the left are shown in the presence of others, and the ones
on the right are shown in an independent state . Dimension
2 refers to self/achievement: personality traits on the top of
the vertical axis mostly reflect Temujin’s inner self, while
personality traits on the bottom mostly reflect his pursuit
of external achievements .
Shared attributes by method
Comparing the results of the factor analysis and the
multidimensional scale analysis, we found the “cruel and
aggressive” factor consistent across methods . Furthermore,
the “martial arts and chivalry” factor includes the
“forthright and chivalric” factor, both were also roughly
similar across methods . The minor difference is that even

Table 1. The results of factor analysis (after rotation) of the 21 personality trait words describing Temujin

Rare gifts and Seek to prevail Martial arts Cruel

bold strategy over others and chivalry and aggressive
Progressive 0 .763
Determined 0 .723
Decisive 0 .710
Self-confident 0 .704
Intelligent 0 .678
Promising 0 .645
Strong 0 .611
Self-esteem 0 .602
Independent 0 .565
Rebellious 0 .510
Firsthand 0 .838
Outstanding 0 .803
Competitive 0 .795
Emulous 0 .784
Adventurous 0 .779
Martial 0 .896
Chivalric 0 .816
Forthright 0 .756
Fierce 0 .841
Cruel 0 .789
Aggressive 0 .725
Eigenvalue after rotation 4 .876 3 .978 2 .256 2 .139
Contribution rate after rotation (%) 23 .217 18 .945 10 .743 10 .185
Cumulative contribution rate (%) 23 .217 42 .162 52 .905 63 .090
180
Figure 1. The two-dimensional spatial distribution of the 21 personality trait words describing Temujin
though the results of the multidimensional scale analysis
contain more items than the results from factor analysis,
accentuating the core meaning . For example, “cruel, fierce,
aggressive” all point to Temujin’s “cruel and aggressive”
personality traits when facing the enemy; while “forthright
and chivalric” point to Temujin’s “forthright and chivalric”
personality traits towards his friends . The traits of
“intelligent, self-confident, decisive, determined, strong”
point to his “internal”, “intelligent and capable” personality
traits; while “progressive, promising, outstanding” all
point to his “external”, “outstanding” personality traits
in pursuit of achievement . The traits of “independent,
first-hand and self-esteem” refer to his “self-reliant”
personality traits when facing life . “Martial, adventurous,
emulous, rebellious, and competitive” all point to “martial
spirit” personality characteristics . From this point of view,
the contribution of the factor analysis was to clarify the
general classification of Temujin’s personality traits, while
multidimensional scale analysis provided a more accurate
classification of his personality traits .
Delphi method results
Our sample of experts who completed two rounds resulted
with the following profiling by round:
• Round 1: cruel and bloodthirsty, forthright and
chivalric, intelligent and capable, outstanding, self-
reliant, martial spirit, heroic, and combatworthy .
• Round 2: cruel and aggressive, forthright and chivalric,
intelligent and capable, outstanding, self-reliant, and
martial spirit .
Thus, the consensus result list was as follows: cruel
and aggressive, forthright and chivalric, intelligent and
capable, outstanding, self-reliant, and martial spirit .
Discussion
The formation of personality traits is influenced by many
factors . We profiled Temujin’s personality traits applying
a mixed methods psychobiography approach (Zheng et
al ., 2003) . We discuss the key personality attributes that
Bao et al.
define Temujin and proffering explanations based on his
life experience, role models, and culture background .
Cruel and aggressive
Historical records of the expression of these personality
traits date back to Temujin’s childhood . For instance,
when Temujin was a child, he killed his half-brother
(Bekter) over a hunting conflict . Moreover, it is worth
mentioning that Temujin and his biological young brother
(Qasar) killed Bekter by shooting him from the front
and behind, that is, without giving him any chance to
escape . This character became more evident in his adult
life . For example, because the Jürkins wounded Belgütei
and refused to take part in the war of revenge against the
Tatars, and even raided Temujin’s strongholds, Temujin
finally killed its three core leaders and wiped out the
entire tribe . In addition, Temujin ordered soldiers to kill
civilians and cut open their bellies “to get the jewels” .
Further, because his beloved grandson was killed in the
battle, Temujin ordered his soldiers to kill all the people
and animals (D’ohsson, 2013) .
We can understand the reasons for this aspect of his
personality from the following two considerations . One is
that the harsh natural environment and an underdeveloped
economy caused an “internal deficiency” in Mongolia,
predisposing them to overcome obstacles by utilising
violence and aggression (Qian, 1988, p . 2) . The other
consideration is their belief in separation cultures (Meng,
1999) . To the Mongolians, war was the primary means
of accomplishing great achievements at that time, and a
war of revenge was considered brave and praiseworthy .
In fact, both war and revenge were very unforgiving,
because people had to eliminate their opponents . If they
failed, they were likely to be subjected to revenge actions
by their opponents, which would not only be accompanied
by civilian casualties and property loss, but also the death
of individuals and relatives and the demise of the nation .
As examples, the Tatars once killed Temujin’s ancestors;
Temujin’s father Yisügei killed the two leaders of the
 Psychobiographical study of Temujin’s personality
Tatar tribe for revenge . Consequently, Yisügei himself was
finally poisoned to death by the Tatars (Yu, 2014, pp.65–
86) . During this period, the two tribes suffered numerous
casualties . The Tatars, the Tayichi’ut, and other tribes were
afraid that Temujin’s power would grow . Consequently,
they could not allow him to continue to live; accordingly,
Temujin needed to treat them cruelly to ensure his own
survival (Yu, 2014) .
Forthright and chivalric
There are many records of Temujin’s love for his
subordinates and the help he provided to friends . For
example, when Temujin hunted with the Zhaolie, he took
the initiative to drive livestock to them so that the small
and weak tribe could obtain more food, and therefore
survive (Song, 1976) . Moreover, Temujin and his father
helped Ong Qan defeat his enemies and regain his
throne many times . However, later, Ong Qan engaged in
unsavoury behaviours, such as appropriating to himself
all the goods captured in the wars . Temujin chose to try
to repair their relationship rather than vanquish Ong Qan
(Yu, 2014, p . 258) . In his life, Temujin killed none of
the generals with whom he built his empire . He not only
conferred meritorious titles on officials according to their
military achievement but also sincerely appreciated their
contributions .
The following reason can explain the formation of this
personality . Hö’elün’s (Temujin’s mother) education about
unity affected Temujin deeply . For instance, Hö’elün often
admonished Temujin about the importance of unifying
the scattered Mongolian tribes into a prosperous national
(Erdunbielige & Zhao, 1989) . She also would have taught
him about harmony culture, expressed as respect and love
for family and others (Inner Mongolia Institute of Law
and Sociology of Laws, 2007) . These aspects of Temujin’s
background enabled him to be kind to subordinates,
relatives, and other tribes and to offer considerable help
if necessary .
Intelligent and capable
Young Temujin demonstrated superior intelligence and
capabilities early in his life, in being optimistic and with
no substance use problems . These capabilities enabled
him to escape from capture, “with the help of someone
he could trust” (Yu, 2014, p . 110) . In defeat, he remained
hopeful, enabling him to regain the initiative and victory
over his enemies . Earlier in his life, his family overcame
tribulations from incessant food shortages, robberies, and
the revenge of old enemies . His heroic included wisdom,
confidence, courage, responsibility, and so forth .
Outstanding
Temujin attained many great achievements in his life . For
example, he created the largest empire in the world . His
vast steppe empire stretched from the Korean Peninsula in
the east, to Poland and Hungary in the west, to the Russian
principalities of Siberia in the north, and to the Indo-China
Peninsula of Java in the south . It was three times the size
of China today . Temujin’s empire extended far beyond
the boundaries of Alexander the Great’s Macedonia and
the Roman empire . Moreover, Temujin fought more
181
than 60 battles in his life, winning almost all of them . He
epitomised military genius to the greatest extent, which
had an immeasurable impact on the world of his time
(Balajinima et al ., 2005) .
The personality of Temujin was influenced by the
following three factors. The first is his sense of identity
as a king . Temujin was born in the Golden family that is
considered the most central branch of the Mongol tribe
whose orthodox supremacy has never changed . Temujin
was born “with a blood clot in his hand”, a spear-shaped
flag, and a symbol of the Mongolian God of war (Sukhbalu,
1984, p . 11) . The ancient Mongols generally believed that
holding blood meant holding life and the capabilities for
conquering everything because of the special relationship
between blood and life .
Temujin obtained great affirmation from the wise and
capable Dei-sechen of the Onggirat tribe, as evidenced by
Dei-sechen symbolising Temujin as the sun and moon,
which had the high status in ancient Mongolian culture
(Yu, 2014, p . 80) . These factors laid the foundation
of Temujin’s identity as a king . Second, Temujin’s
ancestors and father achieved great success . For example,
Bodonchar, the tenth patriarch, conquered the Jarchi’ut
tribe which ensured that he obtained many riches and
power; the sixth ancestor Qaidu launched a war of revenge
against the Zarayier tribe, who became the generation
slaves of Qaidu and his descendants (Yu, 2014, pp . 39–43) .
While Temujin’s father Yisügei did not have the title
of the Khan, he was the leader of Mongolian tribes and a
famous hero in this period (Zhu, 2004, p .55) . The glorious
achievements of his ancestors and his father enhanced
Temujin’s sense of identity with these ancestors and helped
establish his life goals . Thus, Temujin internalised the
images of these people and hoped that he could become the
same as them, and even want to surpass them and achieve
higher achievements . Third, the hero culture fostered in
him the notion that everyone could become a hero . This
hero culture encouraged people of his time to fight to earn
the honorary title of hero by performing great feats of
bravery . This was a common notion among Mongolians,
that heroes would have outstanding achievements .
Self-reliant
Temujin was only nine years old when his father died (Yu,
2014, pp . 78–87) and the lack of a father figure motivated
him to develop a sense of independence . This sense of
independence helped him and his family to survive the
hardships they endured . He believed that: “close relatives
and friends are not better than … wisdom… although there
are many confidants, the most trustworthy is yourself”
(Rosundzin, 1993, p . 182) .
The personality of Temujin was influenced by the
following two factors. The first factor relates to Temujin’s
own experiences . After Yisügei died, his subordinates
betrayed and abandoned the Temujin family . As Temujin’s
power grew, his old reliable allies, such as Ong Qan of the
Kereyits, and Jamuqa of the Jadaran, eventually left him
and became his enemies (Yu, 2014) . They made Temujin
more firmly believe that steppe alliances were unreliable
and fragile . The second factor was Hö’elün’s (his mother)
far-reaching influence on him. After Yisügei died, the
182
Temujin family was ostracised, but Hö’elün did not yield
and fought against unfair treatment . Faced with an isolated
and dangerous life, Hö’elün bravely shouldered the heavy
responsibility of taking care of the family (Yu, 2014) . She
was
…wearing her high hat tightly on her head…she ran
upstream along the Onon’s banks, gathering ÖlirsÜn
and moyilsun with which to nourish their gullets day and
night…Wielding a pointed stick of juniper, she dug up
südün and chichigina and nourished them (Yu, 2014, p .
99) .
In brief, Temujin’s self-reliant personality was formed
through his own experiences of fragile alliances, his
mother’s self-reliant traits .
Martial spirit
Martial spirit was primarily reflected in resisting the
oppression of the Jin Dynasty and realising the goals of
internal unity and national independence . The Jin Dynasty
spared no effort to suppress competing tribes, which
impended unity of the Mongolian grasslands people . The
dynasty even sent troops to slaughter the young steppe
people, aggravating the suffering of these people (Zhao,
1985, p .6) . Faced with the cruel rule of the Jin Dynasty,
Temujin waged a hard war and gained the independence
of the Mongolian plateau (Yu, 2014) . It was Temujin who
eliminated the Tayichiud, the Merkids, the Tatars . The
Kereyits and other tribes, finally ending the steppe division
of nearly 400 years, thereby realising the grand unification
of the Mongolian Plateau (Yu, 2014) . Temujin’s martial
spirit was of positive significance in achieving these goals .
His nomadic and hunting culture combined to build in him
the character traits, such as being adventurous, rebellious,
and competitive, at a time when scholarly pursuits were
looked down upon (Song, 1976) .
Strengths and limitations of the study
This study is the first psychobiography study of Temujin .
First, although psychobiographical research has exhibited
consistent growth and popularity internationally (Du
Plessis, 2017; Ponterotto & Reynolds, 2017), and on the
Chinese mainland (Zheng, 2014) . Nonetheless, there
remains a great need for psychobiographies of ethnic
minority figures, contributing to the richness of the
international literature . Accordingly, the current study is
a significant contribution on a well-known ethnic minority
figure, Temujin . Second, this study used a combination of
qualitative and quantitative methods, an approach which
has been generally neglected in psychobiographical studies .
This mixed methods approach minimized subjectivity
and personal arbitrariness in our psychobiographical
analysis . Third, this study provides a specific and detailed
description of Temujin’s personality traits and explains
their formation based on his life experiences, role models,
and cultural background, addressing deficiencies in extant
research on Temujin in the field of psychology .
We acknowledge three important limitations of the
study . First, we relied on a student sample and a small
sample of experts. There is need to replicate the findings
of this study with a sample from the general population
and larger panel of experts . Second, this study focused
Bao et al.
on the relatively static personality characteristics of
Temujin but ignored the fact that personality is dynamic .
Moreover, we neglected to find the evidence to suggest any
changes in Temujin’s personality characteristics over his
lifespan . Third, we relied on historical texts for the student
participant orientation and such texts lack in details of
daily life important to exploring personality . Details of
daily life may be impactful on the individuals, perhaps
more than those of large events, which are more likely to
be modified due to their association with group interests.
Conclusion
Six personality traits characterised Temujin: “Cruel and
aggressive”, forthright and chivalric”, “intelligent and
capable”, “outstanding”, “self-reliant”, and “martial
spirit” . They intermingled by context and setting: “Cruel
and aggressive” was the personality trait when facing the
enemy; “forthright and chivalric” was the personality trait
in the presence of friends . Additionally, “Intelligent and
capable” was the personality characteristic in the aspect
of self-development . Further, “Outstanding” was the
personality trait in the aspect of life goal; “self-reliant ”
was the personality trait in terms of personal orientation;
and “martial spirit” was the personality trait in the face of
oppression and suffering .
The influencing factors of these personality traits are
as follows: cultural background, including harmony and
separation, power and hero worship, nomadic and hunting
life experience, including the death of his father Yisügei;
economic distress; wars and rebellions; belief in symbols
and in the divine influences of the sun and the moon, the
education received from his mother Hö’elün and role
models, including his ancestors . These jointly promoted
the formation of Temujin’s personality characteristics .
Declaration
This research was supported by the 2016 General Project
of Education of the National Social Science Foundation:
Research on the Growth Characteristics and Influencing Factors
of Outstanding Scientific Talents from the Perspective of
Psychobiography (BBA160043) .
ORCID
Zheng Jianhong http://orcid .org/0000-0002-5583-9853
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