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Psychological Traits Essay

Personality Traits The discussion of "nature vs. nurture" has been a long-standing one. It relates to whether the main characteristics of an individual are genetically determined or whether these are actually deeply affected by environmental factors and by society as the individual evolves. This is where the discussion of whether an individual's personality is largely fixed at birth or not can also be placed. Arguments are both for and against, although this paper will eventually argue that this is not the case.

As Chapter 5 shows us, the idea that "personality is something we arrive with at birth, genetically determined and unchangeable is not the case." This statement can be analyzed from different perspectives. On one hand, it is difficult to accept the idea that people cannot change and the fact that personality traits could actually be something the individual is born with implies the fact that individual cannot change. What this would mean is that no matter what education the individual receives and no matter what environment he grows into and where he lives, the individual will still have the same personality traits he was born with.

Can this be acceptable for society? That is definitely not the case: society is built on...

By adapting, they can also change their personality in a way that makes them fit better within the group. Some of their personality traits will be suppressed, while encouraging other characteristics, so that the individual can properly perform within the community.
As chapter 5 shows, environmental and social context have a deep impact on the personality development. This opinion appears defendable particularly if one looks at factors such as education or peer influence. In terms of education, personalities change as individuals enter groups and are the recipients of educational programs. At the same time, belonging to a group is very likely to affect the individual's personality.

Chapter 5 also mentions that the individual does not behave in all situations in the same manner. There is a distinct flexibility in the way that the individual determines the decision making process. Fluidity is the key word: an individual will appear from the outside as having different personalities, depending on the way he reacts in a particular situation. According to this, the individual will as having a…

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