Personality development is a persistent pattern of behaviors, thoughts, and feelings that make people distinct. Studies show that the personality of an individual emerge early in their life and continues to have an impact in their daily life. However, it is subject to change based on various social factors and perception. The unique set of traits that people possess determines their response. Personal development entails careful considerations of personal conflicts can provide insights into the current traits of the person and the areas that need to be improved. Personal development does not take place in an isolated environment, and since people are social beings, it is likely to be held in the context of relationships that are constantly changing. The mind which is responsible for the thinking process is vital in the upholding the sense of self. The unresolved intrapersonal and intrapsychic issues are manifested in certain ways during the stages of development. Thus the present nature of the person is an interplay of the past and future aspect (Hindle & Smith, 2002). Besides, culture also seems to play a role in the development of personality whereby certain society promotes individualistic, and this is likely to lead to competitiveness. Another society upholds community culture that is characterized by cooperation and not competition. Therefore, personality development is a vital concept that has developed over time, and it will influence the individual’s attributes that help one adapt socially and peacefully in the society.
Factors That Influences the Personality Development
Three basic components shape the individual personality making it unique and this is the temperament, environment and character (Rod Plotnik & Haig Kouyoumdjian, 2013). These elements can be recognized soon after the child is born. Temperament is thought to be genetically controlled in that certain genes w are responsible for the development of the nervous system which can control personal behavior. This leads to a conclusion that temperament is genetically controlled and plays a major role in shaping how people approach the world and manage relationships. The environment forms the adaptive component, and it plays a major role in one's personality. This is because environment affects the upbringing and it is the basis of social interactions that exposes one to various temperaments and one has to change certain personal attributes to integrate with other people without major conflicts. Most of the Psychologist tend to believe that the most important components of the personality are the temperament and the environment. Temperament is more of genetic factors, and thus it is also referred as the nature of a person, while the environment entails a set of things that has to do with how people are nurtured. Therefore parenting plays a major role in the development of personality and poor parenting is attributed to be the cause of the problematic issues later in life (Shiner & DeYoung 2013).
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Another component of the personality is the character, and this includes the behavioral pattern, cognitive factors and the set of emotions that are learned from life experiences and leads to the formation of attitudes, behavior and the feelings of an individual. The character continues to evolve all through their life, but it is determined to a larger extent by the inborn traits and experience. Moral development that relies much on the societal values also plays a major role in the process of the refining character.
Characteristics of Personality Development
Personality has two main attributes that are the individual perception and reaction towards situations that are encountered in life. The actions, thoughts, and feelings are unique to individuals. Therefore, there are four perceptive that can be used to elaborate personality and they include, trait, humanistic, social-cognitive and psychoanalytic aspect (Carver & Scheier, 2008).
Psychoanalytic perceptive focus on the personality and behavior that arises from unconscious inner motives and conflicts. Sigmund Freud studied the neurological disorders to establish the psychological causes. Freud came up with different regions of the human mind that he discussed as follows; the unconscious region was the reservoir for thoughts feelings, wishes, and memories which human beings are unaware. Then there was the preconscious are which stores the things found in the unconscious level temporarily and eventually retrieve them into conscious awareness. He concluded that human beings are being influenced feelings which could be troublesome or conflicting which they are not consciously aware. ID is the part of the mind that tries to satisfy basic drives that operate on the pleasure principle. The ego is to a greater extent the conscious component of the mind that revolves among the id, superego, and reality and guides the behavior so that desires can be satisfied in a realistic way. The superego is the part of the mind that represents ideals, morals, and the conscience. Therefore, the concept of personality development is intertwined with the concept of perfection of oneself as well as one's reaction to external factors for the purpose acquiring a well-developed personality.
The trait perceptive considers personality to be stable for a considerable time and they differ from one to an individual. In this perceptive, traits are measurable and various models have been devised to try and explain different personality traits, for instance, the five-factor model commonly called the Big Five. The model comprises of the emotional stability factor that measures the things such as the calmness versus anxiety, security versus insecurity among others. Then the extraversion aspect such as the social level f an individual, then there is the openness, the agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Some of the traits have a genetic predisposition factors, and they seem to run in the family. The can also be associated with cultural prevalence, and they can be used to predict the future of an individual.
On the other hand, humanistic perceptive seeks to explain how human needs shapes the development of the personality. Abraham Maslow explained that human beings are driven by a desire for self –actualization. Thus, they have a hierarchal rank of their needs from the most basic to the advanced ones. Maslow went on to identify the characteristic of the self-actualized people that include positive attitude and self-awareness, loving character, self-confidence, security and psychologically satisfied. Though Maslow was criticized for his ideas due to lack of scientific proof, his concepts gained popularity, especially in the 20th Century. This perception was also faulted due to lack of consideration of the society in developing a personality. Besides, the hierarchal of needs reflected cultural bias as they were more inclined towards particular society (Abrams, Ellis, & Abrams, 2009).
The other perceptive is the social-cognitive aspect that focuses on how the environment, people, and behavior relate to each other and lead to personality development. Children learn certain behavior by mere observation of people around them (Shaffer & Kipp, 2010). They are likely to imitate the people who they perceive to be somehow like themselves. Furthermore, those people around the children will respond either by reinforcing the child’s behavior or by punishing them. Reinforced behavior develops into a character that eventually shapes the personality. The social aspects entail observable relationships among people, and that contributed to their personality development while the perceptive-cognitive entails internalized behavior that is portrayed outwardly (Abrams, Ellis, & Abrams, 2009).
Psychologists have tried to understand personality development using various models and one of the notable study is the socialization process that was described by the Erik Erickson in the year 1956 (Sigelman & Rider, 2012). He studied children and adolescent and came up with eight phases that influence the personality development that was interrelated. The stages include infancy, where the child learns basic trust or mistrust and if they are well nurtured the child develops trust, feels secure, and they exhibit a positive attitude, However, if the neglected and not loved they become insecure and develops mistrust (Shaffer & Kipp, 2010). The subsequent stage is the toddlerhood that is characterized by tantrums, and stubbornness and occurs between the age of 18 months and four years just before they are well integrated into the in the school system properly. At this age, the child learns autonomy and if well nurtured the come out of this stage with self-confidence. Preschool is the third stage, where the child learning potential is initiated; they interact with other children while playing. Their skill broadens as well as their imaginations. However, if the child does not develop well in this stage, they are unable to cooperate with others in the following stage. The fourth stage is the school age where the child learns how to be competent. They also learn to participate in organized teams and adhere to rules. For instance, they can participate in sports and interact with their peers in a proper way. Their intellectual skills develop as they can read and write. The child who was successful in the previous stages is more likely to be industrious, but those who failed have a higher chance of feeling inferior. The fifth stage is identity stage that occurs at adolescence stage, where the child feels self-certain and engage in constructive roles. The child that has successfully passed through the other stages endeavors to achieve while those who were not well nurtured can adopt unacceptable behavior and become delinquent. Carl Rogers, one of the recognized elites in the field of psychology, agreed that childhood experiences contribute to the development of personality in a significant way. The experience can be within the family environment or in the external social realm of life (Specht et. 2014).
Evolutionary Perceptive
This theory seeks to explain why human beings have a different personality. The main concept is that, during evolution when human beings were learning how to function, they become part of social groups, and they did not see themselves as individuals, their personality depended on each other and they held a common identity. People belonged to a tribe, and there was a collective responsibility. The group later differentiated as mankind sought to function more efficiently, and consequently increased the social interactions leading to the development of personality and individualistic nature. Thus people adopted an individual life other than living collectively (Zelazo, 2013).
Lifespan Perceptive
There various classic theories that personality develops since childhood and stabilizes later in life, for instance, the developmental theories established by Sigmund Freud (Sigelman & Rider, 2012). The concept of lifespan perceptive is based on the plasticity principle that emphasizes that personality traits are like an open system that is prone to the influences of environmental factors and that there is a clear relationship between the individual and the surrounding environment. Human beings have potential change their personality, and it seems to improve with age (Zelazo, 2013).
In the contemporary society, people have access to various personality development programs that can enhance their individual personality. This is because a well-developed personality can improve social interactions and reduce inner conflicts besides boosting individual well-being. A developed personality makes people is characterized by self-confidence, a positive outlook on life despite the existence of challenges, positive thoughts, motive, and action. Consequently, this leads people living life without stress as they can manage the stressing factors properly. Such people live a healthier life, and they can make sound decisions due to the state of the emotional maturity. A developed personality is attractive and pleasing to other people (Allen, 2015).
In conclusion, it is evident that personality development is a critical matter that requires careful analysis. The psychologist views may differ, but they provide insights that most people can identify with in their daily life. A developed personality is an important asset, however, there less that a person can do to change the past other than acknowledging the existence conflicting issues and then finding the best way to prevent the negative impact of the past from affecting the present. It is important for the society to nurture their children in the right way and to help them develop the appropriate personality to help them in their social interactions. Parents have the responsibility of assisting their children to adapt to their world in the best way despite their inborn temperaments Shiner & DeYoung 2013). It is important for the parents to monitor their children carefully and in case they discover that they have a personality disorder, they can seek professional help on time so that they can get appropriate treatment on time.
It is also the responsibility of each and every person to develop their personality so that they can manage challenges that bring stress in the best way possible. As we have seen, a personality can be changed to a greater extent and thus people should endeavor to improve themselves so as to enjoy healthy relationships. There are various programs available that seek to help people improve their personality. Seeking professional help can enable an individual to appreciate their uniqueness and thus become optimistic and experience joy in life. This is because people try comparing themselves with certain people and imitating them in the process, but this is not helpful and affects them emotionally.
References
Abrams, L., Ellis, A., & Abrams, M. (2009). Personality Theories: Critical Perspectives (1st Ed.). Sage Publications.
Allen, B. P. (2015). Personality Theories: Development, growth, and diversity. Psychology Press.
Carver, C. & Scheier, M. (2008). Perspectives on personality - 6th edition (1st Ed.). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.
Hindle, D. & Smith, M. (2013). Personality development (1st Ed.). London: Routledge.
Shaffer, D. & Kipp, K. (2010). Developmental Psychology (1st Ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Shiner, R. L., & DeYoung, C. G. (2013). The Structure of Temperament and Personality Traits: A Developmental. The Oxford Handbook of Developmental Psychology, Vol. 2: Self and Other, 2, 113.
Sigelman, C. & Rider, E. (2012). Human development across the lifespan (1st Ed.). [Belmont, Calif.?]: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Specht, J., Bleidorn, W., Denissen, J. J., Hennecke, M., Huttman, R., Kandler, C., & Zimmermann, J. (2014). What drives adult personality development? A comparison of theoretical perspectives and empirical evidence. European Journal of Personality, 28(3), 216-230.
Zelazo, P. (2013). The Oxford Handbook of developmental psychology (1st Ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Rod Plotnik, Haig Kouyoumdjian. (2013). Introduction to Psychology. New York: Cengage Learning
