One of the oldest debates in psychology is the argument of nature vs. nurture in personality development. Some people believe that a person’s genetic makeup is what causes certain traits and types of personality. In contrast, others believe that personality comes from a nurturing aspect, or how a human’s environment and childhood shape who they are. While there isn’t a clear answer to the argument, a good proposal is that combining both sides ultimately decides a good reason for the making of a person’s personality.
Penn State Psychologists define personality as “the set of unique and relatively stable patterns of thought, emotion, and behavior that define an individual and their distinctive way of experiencing and interacting with the world” (“Personality – Department of Psychology”). This means that personality is the traits/abilities that define who someone is and how they act. These traits and characteristics aren’t set abilities created when a person is born though as personality develops throughout life. This is supported by the Social-Cognitive Theory, which states that a person is influenced by their environment, experiences, and others around them. For example, people who experience more traumatic events may have less extraversion than those who have been supported and surrounded by open-minded and social individuals. Another theory that presents itself as a factor of personality is the Psychodynamic Theory, which explains that unconscious thoughts and early childhood experiences influence people. While many different types of traits are seen in humans, the main ones associated with personality are neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. This makes up the “Big 5”.
The Big 5 was created through an early English lexical study that found these traits to be associated with the majority of different types of behaviors and characteristics used to describe personality. Interestingly enough, from these traits, the anatomy of the brain from person to person can hint at how personality is formed. For instance, differences in the brain’s cortex region, such as folding, thickness, and surface area, influence the Big 5 personality traits. Higher levels of neuroticism can be linked to increased thickness in some areas of the brain while a person’s level of openness can be linked to an increased folding size and decreased thickness. Professor Nicola Toschi from the University of Tor Vergata states how “the fact that we see clear differences in brain structure which are linked with differences in personality traits suggests that there will almost certainly be an element of genetics involved…” (Ricelli et al.).
This is where the argument of nature vs. nurture steps back in. While shaped by our experiences and environment, it seems genetics and the brain’s anatomy are an essential part of personality. Using this information, scientists could better understand what the brains of people with mental disorders may look like. Dr. Luca Passamonti states “Linking how brain structure is related to basic personality traits is a crucial step to improving our understanding of the link between the brain morphology and particular mood, cognitive, or behavioral disorders” (Ricelli et al.).
Personality can impact the outcomes in someone’s life. Throughout time, actions and behaviors can be changed, despite the belief that personality is immutable. In a study, Brent W Roberts and Hee J Yoon found that with therapy, the Big 5 traits can be changed. This can apply specifically to neuroticism. In 200 studies, there equated to about a half deviation of change in a specific targeted trait after six weeks of therapy. In this case, because it can change, it seems personality is more nurtured, as it develops over time instead of having a set of biological traits.
One popular way of assessing personality from person to person is by taking the Myers-Briggs personality test. This is a multiple-choice test that asks questions about who the tester thinks they are and what behaviors they display. Based on the responses, a personality type is given to them. There are 16 different results, and they all have different meanings. Afterward, the tester can read a breakdown of what that personality type specifically means and how it is represented in life.
A diagram that breaks down the different functions of each of the 16 MBTI personalities
Overall, the argument of nature vs. nurture and its role in human personalities can’t be solved with a simple argument. Some traits evolve biologically for reasons such as brain structure and genetic disorders. Other traits develop over time due to environment and social interactions. No matter what, the traits that culminate to make a human’s personality change and develop over time, showing that human growth and development are important.
Sources
Buss, David M. “(PDF) Evolutionary Personality Psychology.” ResearchGate, https://www.researchgate.net/profile/David-Buss/publication/21138411_Evolutionary_Personality_Psychology/links/0deec518179193ccd4000000/Evolutionary-Personality-Psychology.pdf. Accessed 25 October 2024.
“Personality – Department of Psychology.” Psychology, https://psych.la.psu.edu/about-us/research/personality/. Accessed 25 October 2024.
Ricelli, Roberta, et al. “Personality traits linked to differences in brain structure.” University of Cambridge, 25 January 2017, https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/personality-traits-linked-to-differences-in-brain-structure. Accessed 25 October 2024.
Roberts, Brent W., and Hee J. Yoon. “Personality Psychology.” PubMed, 13 September 2021, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34516758/. Accessed 29 October 2024.
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