Nature, Nurture and Personality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Nature, Nurture and Personality - Essay Example I believe that it is this base personality that is genetically determined and is the most important factor in determining the true nature of personality. While there remains a number of external factors that contribute to the development and change of an individual’s personality, my personal understanding is that ultimately personality is most closely linked to these genetic factors that are affected upon in a variety of ways by external cultural and environmental factors. Personality is related to culture in a number of prominent ways. Indeed, this question can be considered on a micro and macro level. On a micro level, immediate social relations affect personality as individuals must tailor their personality and demeanor to fit into a variety of social situations. While this is not directly considered an element of culture, it is culture that determines the social structures in which human beings interact. As culture is a learned phenomenon and has evolved over the centuries there are many such elements that influence personality. It’s important in these regards to consider what constitutes personality. While the outward expression of an individual’s actions has become the accepted definition of personality, can one more accurately identify personality as an entity that is more highly personal? In terms of the first definition, culture greatly determines how a person acts in nearly all situations. In this understanding, personality is also an evolving thing that is directly connected to the evolution of culture. As social mores and appropriateness change with the progression of time, or even with the change of one’s culture surroundings (poor New Orleans vs the Hamptons, for instance) personality continues to be strongly linked to culture. While psychoanalytic thinkers believed that personality was greatly affected by early childhood events that become rooted in unconscious desires and impulses (some of which can be