On a blank sheet of paper,
draw a pig.
Draw a pig however you’d
like.
What do all of these dwarfs
have in common?
Happy
Sleepy
Grumpy
Sneezy
Bashful
Dopey
Doc
What is personality?
Personality is defined as
the group of behavioral
and emotional traits that
distinguishes an individual
It can also be defined as
the sum of all the traits you
have inherited or acquired
You have been expressing yourself through your actions
since you were born!
In order to understand yourself and those around you, you
need to understand what shapes your personality
3 Factors That Shape
Personality
Heredity
Environment
Response
Heredity
The sum of all the traits that are passed from your
ancestors to you
Inherited traits
the human traits determined by heredity.
Examples– you have two eyes, to ears, a nose, a
mouth, two arms, and two legs.
Heredity also effects:
1. Your attitude.
2. Your intelligence.
3. Your behavior.
Environment: all the conditions, objects, and
circumstances that surround an individual
Your environment affects your thoughts, feelings and
actions and helps to shape your personality!
What are some examples of environments?
Can your home environment
impact your personality?
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•
•
•
•
•
Parents
Grandparents
Brother and sisters
Birth order
Neighbors and neighborhood
Geographical location
Your personality begins to develop in the first few years of
life, the home is a very important factor
Acquired Traits
traits developed as a result of your environmental factors.
What are some examples of acquired
traits?
The third and final factor is your response to your
environment
YOU are an individual!
Your personality helps to determine how you deal with the
challenges, successes, and frustrations you come across
from day to day
You, as an individual, have inborn qualities
determined by heredity
You are in a particular environment, and you
respond uniquely to that environment
Together, these three factors shape your
personality
Personality Development
is the development of the organized pattern of behaviors
and attitudes that makes a person who they are; it occurs
by the constant interaction with others and with the
surrounding environment
Research by psychologists over the last several decades has
increasingly pointed to hereditary factors being more
important
Heredity &
Environment:
Nature & Nurture
Are we who we are because of the traits we were born with
or because of the environment we were brought up in?
Studies of identical twins separated at birth reveal that
heredity plays a very big role in who we are
Other studies have shown that you are born with certain
traits and potential, but the environment determines which
potentials are developed
“Jim Twins”
http://www.longwood.k12.ny.us/lhs/science/mos/twins/jimtwins.html
The debate between heredity and environment is
termed, “Nature vs. Nurture.”
You are born with certain traits, but the traits that you
develop will be determined by your environmental
upbringing
Both
heredity and environment will affect who you are
Heredity
(Nature)
Environment
(Nurture)
Physical
Appearance
Community & School
Involvement
Intelligence
How you use your
intelligence (grades,
curiosity, etc.)
Physical Traits
(coordination, rhythm,
balance, athletic
abilities)
Talents & Innate
Abilities (a beautiful
singing voice, artistic talent,
etc.)
Religious Beliefs
Interests & Hobbies
So…what is personality
development?
Personality development is the development of the
organized pattern of behaviors and attitudes that
makes a person who they are
It occurs by the constant interaction with others and
with the surrounding environment