3. Personality is defined as a relatively stable set of
characteristics that influence an individual’s behaviour
.
Human personality includes:
1. External appearance and behaviour or social stimulus
value.
2. Inner awareness of self as a permanent organising
force.
3. The particular pattern or organisation of measurable
traits, both “inner and “outer”.”
4. Determinants of personality
1. Biological Factors
Heredity: Heredity refers to those factors that were
determined at conception. Physical stature, facial
attractiveness, gender, temperament, muscle
composition and reflexes, energy level, and
biological rhythms are characteristics that are
considered to be inherent from one’s parents.
5. Brain: The second biological approach is to
concentrate on the role that the brain plays in
personality.
The most recent and exciting possibilities come from
the work done with electrical stimulation of
the brain (ESB) and split-brain psychology.
Preliminary results from the electrical stimulation
of the brain (ESB) research indicate that a better
understanding of human personality and
behaviour might come from a closer study of the
brain.
Physical features: A vital ingredient of the
personality, an individual’s external appearance, is
biologically determined .
6. 2. Cultural Factors: Among the factors that
influence personality formation is the culture in
which we are raised, early conditioning, norms
prevailing within the family, friends and social
groups and other miscellaneous experiences that
impact us .
7. 3. Family Factors: Whereas the culture generally
prescribes and limits what a person can be taught, it
is the family, and later the social group, which
selects, interprets and dispenses the culture.
8. 4. Social Factors: There is increasing recognition
given to the role of other relevant persons, groups
and especially organisations, which greatly influence
an individual’s personality. This is commonly called
the socialization process.
Socialization involves the process by which a person
acquires, from the enormously wide range of
behavioural potentialities that are open to him or
her, those that are ultimately synthesized and
absorbed.
9. 5. Situational Factors: Human personality is also
influenced by situational factors. The effect of
environment is quite strong. Knowledge, skill and
language are obviously acquired and represent
important modifications of behaviour.
10. Theories of Personality
1. Carl Jung’s Extrovert-introvert Theory
Carl Jung proposed his own two-part theory of
personality. These two types are:
(a) Extrovert: They are optimistic, outgoing,
gregarious and sociable. Extroverts are basically
objective, reality-oriented individuals who are more
doers than thinkers.
(b) Introverts: By contrast, introverts are more
inward-directed people. They are less sociable,
withdrawn and absorbed in inner life. They tend to
be guided by their own ideas and philosophy
11. Type I: Person is a sensation – thinking individual, is basically analytic, oriented
toward the present. He/she is primarily interested in facts, and extremely practical in
outlook and approach.
Type II: Persons are intuition – thinking. He/she is rational, analytic, takes a broad
view, and is sociable.
Type III:Person is sensation – feeling. He/she is factual, wishes to grasp tangible
things, but is emotional
Type IV: Persons are intuition – feeling. He/she is emotional, sociable, takes a broad
view, and is more prone than others to hypothesizing.
12. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI) personality inventory is to
make the theory of psychological types described by C. G. Jung
understandable and useful in people’s lives.
They addressed the two related goals in the developments and
application of the MBTI instrument:
1. The identification of basic preferences of each of the four
dichotomies (Extraversion or Introversion, Sensing or Intuition,
Thinking or Feeling, Judging or Perceiving) specified or implicit
in Jung’s theory.
2. The identification and description of the 16 distinctive
personality types (which can be expressed as a code with four
letters) that result from the interactions among the preferences
17. Social Learning Theory
The focus of social learning approach is on
the patterns of behaviour the individuals
learn in coping with environment.
Some behaviour patterns are learned or
acquired through direct experience.
Responses can also be acquired or learned
without direct reinforcement
18. Social Learning Theory
Attentional Processes : People tend to be most
influenced by models
Retention Processes : How well the individual
remembers the model’s actions and behaviours after
the model is no longer available
Motor reproduction processes : Person has seen a
new behaviour by observing the model, the watching
must be converted to doing
Reinforcement Processes : Individuals will be
motivated to exhibit the modelled behaviour if
positive incentives or rewards are provided
19. Personality Characteristics in
Organisations
Locus of Control : Believing that what happens to them
in their lives is due to luck or chance.(Internal /External)
Machiavellianism : indicating one’s willingness to do
whatever it takes to get one’s way
Self-esteem : Individual’s general feeling of self-worth
Self-Efficacy: Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s belief
that he or she is capable of performing a task
20. Self-monitoring : It refers to an individual’s ability to
adjust his or her behaviour to external situational factors.
Positive/Negative Affect: Individuals who focus on the
positive / negative aspects of themselves related to work.
Risk-taking: People differ in their willingness to take
chances
21. Personality Type :
Type A : Characterized by a constant feeling of working against the clock and a
strong sense of competitiveness. Individuals with a Type A personality
generally experience a higher stress level, hate failure and find it difficult to
stop working, even when they have achieved their goals
Type B : Characterized by a relaxed, patient, and easy-going nature. Individuals with a
Type B personality work steadily, enjoying achievements, but do not tend to become
stress when goals are not achieved.
23. Openness
Openness (also referred to as openness to
experience) emphasizes imagination and insight the
most out of all five personality traits.1 People who are
high in openness tend to have a broad range of
interests. They are curious about the world and other
people and are eager to learn new things and enjoy
new experiences.
People who are high in this personality trait also
tend to be more adventurous and creative
24. Openness
High
Very creative
Open to trying new things
Focused on tackling new challenges
Happy to think about abstract concepts
Low
Dislikes change
Does not enjoy new things
Resists new ideas
Not very imaginative
Dislikes abstract or theoretical concepts
25. Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness is one defined by high levels of
thoughtfulness, good impulse control, and goal-
directed behaviors.
Highly conscientious people tend to be organised and
mindful of details. They plan ahead, think about how
their behavior affects others, and are mindful of
deadlines.
26. High
HighSpends time preparing
Finishes important tasks right away
Pays attention to detail
Enjoys having a set schedule
Low
• Dislikes structure and schedules
• Makes messes and doesn't take care of things
Fails to return things or put them back where they belong
Procrastinates important tasks
Fails to complete necessary or assigned tasks
27. Extraversion
Extraversion (or extroversion) is a personality trait
characterized by excitability, sociability,
talkativeness, assertiveness, and high amounts of
emotional expressiveness.
People high in extraversion are outgoing and tend to
gain energy in social situations. Being around others
helps them feel energized and excited.
28. High
• Enjoys being the center of attention
• Likes to start conversations
• Enjoys meeting new people
• Has a wide social circle of friends and acquaintances
• Finds it easy to make new friends
• Feels energized when around other people
• Say things before thinking about them
29. Low
Prefers solitude
Feels exhausted when having to socialize a lot
Finds it difficult to start conversations
Dislikes making small talk
Carefully thinks things through before speaking
Dislikes being the center of attention
30. Agreeableness
This personality trait includes attributes such as
trust, altruism, kindness, affection, and
other prosocial behaviors.People who are high in
agreeableness tend to be more cooperative while
those low in this personality trait tend to be more
competitive and sometimes even manipulative
31. High
Has a great deal of interest in other people
Cares about others
Feels empathy and concern for other people
Enjoys helping and contributing to the happiness of
other people
Assists others who are in need of help
32. Low
Takes little interest in others
Doesn't care about how other people feel
Has little interest in other people's problems
Insults and belittles others
Manipulates others to get what they want
33. Neuroticism
Neuroticism is a personality trait characterized by
sadness, moodiness, and emotional instability.1
Individuals who are high in neuroticism tend to
experience mood swings, anxiety, irritability, and
sadness. Those low in this personality trait tend to be
more stable and emotionally resilient.
34. High
Experiences a lot of stress
Worries about many different things
Gets upset easily
Experiences dramatic shifts in mood
Feels anxious
Struggles to bounce back after stressful events
35. Low
Emotionally stable
Deals well with stress
Rarely feels sad or depressed
Doesn't worry much
Is very relaxed