We are all aware of the term personality and have always been using it in our lives. This is commonly recognized by the way people behave, present themselves or appear to others. In general, the term personality is used to describe the behavior of a person.
When we talk about someone having a pleasant personality, we mean that most of the times, the person is pleasant and is easy to get along with. Similarly, we often come across irritable, charming, approachable and such other personalities.
While these are just general opinions and thoughts on behavior and attitude of a person, psychologists dealing with the study of personality have tried to get into the depth of it. There are numerous theories and concepts related to personality and its development in human life.
What is personality?
Personality can be defined as a long term consistency in a person’s behavior, beliefs, actions, reactions, perceptions and ways of thinking. It is the most obviously noticeable part of an individual.
For example, some people like to talk to others and easily make friends wherever they go. They have a pleasing appearance and like the company of others. On the other hand, some people like being alone or choose selective people to get along with. They are more comfortable with themselves than with others.
While there is nothing good or bad about these behaviors, it is worth noting that they are the individual characteristics of a person. Also, that some people in most of the occasions will prefer to behave this way and hence are said to have that kind of personality.
Some of the definitions of personality include,
“Personality is the entire mental organization of a human being at any stage of his development. It embraces every phase of human character: intellect, temperament, skill, morality, and every attitude that has been built up in the course of one’s life.”
Or
“Personality refers to the organized, consistent and general pattern of behavior of a person across situations which help us to understand his or her behavior as an individual.”
