Personality

Personality consists of a complex of qualities influenced by behavioural, temperamental, emotional and mental traits that characterise a unique individual that explains why a person behaves in a particular way.

Differences between ‘nature’ and ‘nurture’ approaches to personality

Nature- The nature approach to personality is the idea that individual’s personality is inherent in our genetic make-up.

Nurture- This approach states personality is caused and influenced by the environmental factors e.g. culture

However the whole matter of whether a trait exists in all people to a greater or lesser extent is complicated by different views of the trait perspective. There are two different views as to whether all traits exist in all people. These are the nomothetic and idiographic views.
The distinction between the nomothetic and the idiographic is often equated with two types of science – the natural sciences and the social sciences. The nomothetic view is that people have unique personality structures and differ only in the amount of each trait. The nomothetic approach is that a person's personality is permanent and cannot be changed. For example the person’s inherited genetic make-up would be resistant to change. The Idiographic view emphasises that each person has a unique psychological structure and that some traits are possessed by only one person. This viewpoint also highlights that traits may differ in importance from person to person to its difficult to compare two people’s personalities because it can adapt to change. For example environmental and social factors may influence change e.g. the lifestyle they are living in. (wilderdom, 2009)

A useful article- http://tap.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/8/1/23

In my opinion I think that nurture is a stronger influence than nature because there are many social and environmental factors that play greater part in our life and much more influential than the set of personality characteristics that is inherited. For example when growing up, the sort of friends you are around can affect your personality as you would want to be just like them to fit in. Depending on the environment, people adapt to the change in order to benefit themselves. Darwin’s theory of evolution, ‘survival of the fittest’ shows how species would change to be able to survive.

Online Tests:

Test 1- http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/whatamilike/index.shtml

I scored 3.3 out of 5 for Openness. This trait is sometimes known as ‘Openness to experience’. People with scores like yours tend to have a less broad range of interests. They usually stick to what they know rather than being overly enthusiastic about trying new things. You may find that generating imaginative things is not your biggest strength.

I scored 2.9 out of 5 for Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness describes how dependable, organised and hard-working a person is likely to be. People with low Conscientiousness may be well-suited to investigative or artistic careers.

I scored 3.4 out of 5 for Extroversion
Extroversion is characterised by positive emotions and the tendency to seek out pleasure-stimulating or risk-taking activities. You are likely to have a generally positive outlook on life and may display a greater gift for leadership compared to those with low scores on this trait.

I scored 3.1 out of 5 for Agreeableness
Agreeableness measures how sympathetic and considerate a person is likely to be
It's likely that you appear tough-minded and direct to other people. You probably have little aversion to stating your thoughts and feelings.

I scored 3 out of 5 for Neuroticism
'Neuroticism' relates to a person’s response to threatening or stressful situations, but you may find yourself worrying when faced with uncertainty or unfamiliar situations.

Test 2- www.initforlife.com/home/tm.asp

These are the results from the personality questionnaire.





SOCIABILITY involves seeking contact and initiating casual conversation; expressing feelings; making friends; enjoying the company of others; acting and reacting spontaneously; and getting involved in group activities. Because it’s so comfortable for you, you’re likely to use SOCIABILITY first and more often than any other aspect of thought or behaviour. As a result, this will be the most visible characteristic of my personality.











My second highest-scoring mindframe is CHARISMA. This involves expressing values and commitment; affirming beliefs; sparking excitement; persuading people to follow; motivating and encouraging; and urging others to action.

Comparing findings from both tests

Both tests in my view gave me rather different results but there were certain facts from both tests which I agreed on, some findings which I disagreed on and some facts which made me think again. From test 1 it said I am likely to have a generally positive outlook on life which is true. I scored 3.1 out of 5 for Agreeableness which means I appear tough-minded and direct to other people and don’t care about what other people feel which honestly is false because I am quite a sensitive person and I am sensitive to other people’s feelings. I scored low on Conscientiousness which suggest I may be well-suited to investigative or artistic careers which is something I never considered and as I chose accounting and finance as a degree it made me think whether I chose the right choice. On test 2, sociability and charisma were considered my strongest trait of my personality which I agree on but it said that logic and sensitivity and control was outside my comfort zone which I have to slightly disagree on because before I take any action I think through things logically and carefully and if I got a slight doubt I would not do it. I like to be organised and in control of situations.

Personality test as selection tool

I do not think taking these personality tests should be considered as a selection tool for a job. There are other ways such as interviews that would be enough to judge a person and get to know their personality. Relying on personality tests would be unfair because most of the results might not be accurate as I have experienced and may give a totally wrong perspective of a person. Also candidates might not answer the questions of the test honestly and just tick the answers as to what seems right and impress the manager so the personality results would be mistaken.

Conclusion

There is not a right or wrong answer to personality being down to nature or nurture is still a huge question, as there are many ways for and against this topic. But I believe nurture has more of an impact on a person’s personality due to the surroundings. I had never taken a personality test before and I did not know the kinds of questions that would be asked but I was keen to know what results I would get. I can’t say that taking a personality test would be the best way of really knowing a person as it is not accurate enough.

Reference:
Wilderdom (2009) [online]. Avaiable from: http://wilderdom.com/personality/traits/PersonalityTraitsIdiographicNomothetic.html Assessed 21 December 2009.