Types 0f Personality

Personality Traits

Personality Determinants
•Heredity
•Environment
•Situation
 PERSONALITY TRAITS
Traits can be defined as habitual patterns of behaviour, thought, and emotion.

When the popular features of an human being are exhibited in large number of situations,
are called personality traits.

The more the frequency it occurs in diverse situations, the more important that trait is in
describing the personality of the individual.

The research has proved that these traits could help in employee selection, matching right
job for the right person and guiding in carrier development.

Traits are relatively stable over time, differ among individuals (e.g. some people are
outgoing whereas others are shy), and influence behaviour.

Traits are a readiness to think or act in a similar fashion in response to a variety of different
stimuli or situations.
Personality Traits
Enduring characteristics that describe an individual’s behavior
The more consistent the characteristic and the more frequently it occurs in
diverse situations, the more important the trait. Traits are characteristics of
an individual’s behaviour. Psychologists have identified certain enduring
characteristics which describe an individual’s behaviour in a large number
of situations

Two dominant frameworks used to describe personality:

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI®)
Big Five Model

4-4
Characteristics that Determine
Heredity & Environment.

Heredity Environment
Physical Structure ⚫ Culture
Facial Attractiveness
⚫ Norms among our family
Gender and friends.
Muscle Composition
⚫ Social groups
Reflexes
⚫ Experience
Energy level, etc.,
SOME PERSONALITY TRAITS
 THEORIES OF PERSONALITY

PSYCHOANALYTIC: (Freud & Jung): unconscious

mechanisms
SOCIOCULTURAL: (Adler) cultural determination-roles
TRAIT: ( Caattell): learned & genetically determined-constant
LEARNING: (Skinner & Bandura): reward &
punishment-control
SOCIOBIOLOGICAL: (Wilson): inherited tendencies
EXISTENTIAL-HUMANISTIC: (Rogers, Maslow & Frankl):
free choice & responsibility-values, existence
 Theories of Personality
Type theories are the early perspectives on personality. These theories
suggested that there are a limited number of "personality types" which are
related to biological influences.
Trait theories viewed personality as the result of internal characteristics
that are genetically based.
Psychodynamic theories of personality are heavily influenced by the work
of Sigmund Freud, and emphasize the influence of the unconscious on
personality. Psychodynamic theories include Sigmund Freud’s
psychosexual stage theory and Erik Erikson’s stages of psychosocial
development.
Behavioral theories suggest that personality is a result of interaction
between the individual and the environment. Behavioral theorists study
observable and measurable behaviors, rejecting theories that take internal
thoughts and feelings into account. Behavioral theorists include B. F.
Skinner and John Watson.
Humanist theories emphasize the importance of free will and individual
experience in the development of personality. Humanist theorists include
Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow.
Big Five Personality Traits
 BIG – FIVE MODEL
The big five factors that encompasses most of the significant variation in human personality
are:-

1. Extroversion : This dimension addresses a person's preference for sociability and

interactivity (high Extraversion, or E+) versus solitude and privacy (low Extraversion, or E-).
E+ types tend to be quick to self-disclose, to process information out loud, to seek high levels
of activity (to be outwardly busy), and to seek generalist work roles.
E- types tend to be slow to self-disclosure (or selective about self-disclosure), to process
information inwardly, to seek low levels of activity (to be inwardly busy), and to seek
specialist work roles.
 BIG – FIVE MODEL continue…
2. Agreeableness : This dimension measures good natured, trustworthy and cooperative
(high Agreeableness or A+) versus competitive (low Agreeableness or A-) approaches to
interactions with others.

A+ types usually describe themselves as empathic, sensitive, harmony-seeking; they like tasks
and situations in which "everyone wins".

A- types usually describe themselves as impersonal, analytical, outcome-driven; they like

tasks and situations in which there are clear winners and losers.
 BIG – FIVE MODEL continue…
3. Conscientiousness : This dimension measures convergent, task oriented (high
Conscientiousness or C+) versus divergent, process oriented (low Conscientiousness or C-)
work styles.

C+ types usually describe themselves as organized, structured, systematic, early starters with
steady work habits; they lose efficiency in low structure situations (needing stability), and
usually adopt a "work first, play later," serious minded stance to life.

C- types usually describe themselves as spontaneous, flexible, adaptable, "feast or famine"

workers who rely on bursts of enthusiasm or energy; they lose efficiency in high structure
situations (needing autonomy), and usually adopt a "mix work and play", fun loving stance to
life.

4. Emotional stability : A personality dimension that characterizes some one as clam,

self confident, secure (positive) versus someone nervous, depressed, and insecure (negative).
 BIG – FIVE MODEL continue…
5. Openness to experience : This dimension addresses a person's preference for
abstract ideas and possibilities (high Openness, or O+) versus concrete realities and facts (low
Openness, or O-).

O+ types focus on thinking about the world as it might be, are more theory-driven, and tend to
focus on the possibility or opportunity side of change (which, depending on their core values,
may make them more "liberal").

O- types focus on acting in the world as it is now, are more application- or practice-driven,
and tend to focus on the threat or risk side of change (which, depending on their core values,
may make them more "conservative").
BIG – FIVE THEORY
 Locus Self-Esteem
of Control

Other Key
Machiavellian Self
Personality Personality Monitoring
Attributes

Risk Type A
Propensity Personality

Prentice Hall, 2000 15

PERSONALITY TRAITS INFLUENCING
ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR (OB)
1. Locus of control : a person’s perception of the source of his or her fate is termed
locus of control.

Some people believe that they control their destinies and such people are called as internals.
Research shows that, people with internals exhibit more motivation and job satisfaction.

Some people believe that lives are controlled by outside forces, such people are called as
externals.
where as, individuals with high in externality are less satisfied with their jobs, more
absenteeism and less involvement in their jobs.
PERSONALITY TRAITS INFLUENCING ORGANIZATIONAL
BEHAVIOR (OB) continued….
2.Machiavellianism : The degree to which an individual is pragmatic, maintains
emotional distance, and believes that ends can justify means.
High mach's manipulate more, win more, are persuaded less, and persuade others .
On the other hand lower mach's can easily be persuaded by others and like to carry on with
the proper code of conduct of their job.

3. Self – esteem : Individuals degree of liking or disliking themselves.

High self-esteems believe that they possess the ability they need to succeed in at work, they
take more risks. And likely to choose diverse jobs.

Low self-esteems are dependents on the receipt of positive evaluation from others.

Therefore high SE’s are more satisfied with their job than low SE’s.
PERSONALITY TRAITS INFLUENCING ORGANIZATIONAL
BEHAVIOR (OB) continued….
4. Self-monitoring : A personality trait that measures an individual’s ability to adjust his or
her behavior to external, situational factors.

people with high self-monitoring tends to pay close attention to the behavior of others, they can
emerge as better leaders. Such managers are tend to be more mobile in their careers and receive
promotions.

Low self-monitors try to display their true dispositions and attitude in every situation, hence they
create a difference between who they are and what they do.

5. Risk taking : It refers to that trait of any person or a manager which is concerned with
decision making and how much time he/she takes to take that particular decision.

It is see in a research that managers with high risk taking attitude can take equally good decisions as
per the managers who take much time and information to think much and then take a decision in
order to avoid any risk