It seems like a very pertinent question to me! Maybe because I write stories, and so I'm always trying to design a "theory of human personality" so I can write believable characters. It's also the kind of thing my sister and I talk about on long car trips.
Anyway, my specific theory about personality being mainly genetic and attitudes mainly environment-acquired actually comes from reading the scientific literature, especially from "twin studies", where scientists assess the personalities and attitudes of identical twins raised apart. They often find that the personalities of the identical twins are similar, but their attitudes and beliefs tend to reflect those of the adoptive family. (I'll see if I can find an article on these studies for you.) Conversely, studies on unrelated children adopted and raised together show that their personalities are not at all similar, but their beliefs tend to be more similar (though not the same, since their peers at school are also an influence
What I've seen among my friends and family reflects this, so it seems true to me. It was obvious from when he was a baby onwards that my brother's personality isn't like mine. Where I'm eager to please everyone, my brother resents authority. If someone's mad at me, I assume it's my fault and try to be extra nice so there won't be conflict. Especially with adults, my brother gets mad and fights back. I get anxious if I'm not running around all day being "productive", but my brother can happily do nothing all weekend. However, our political leanings are similar, and similar to our parents' beliefs (including the fact that none of us are really THAT interested in politics). We also have in common that a lot of our beliefs about the future are shaped by reading sci-fi.
I've seen this "environmental influence" even more in other families. Take my friend in Toronto: even though her personality, her dad's personality, and her sister's personality are all VERY different, they share an avid interest in politics, and they're all fairly radical-left.
I guess I like analyzing people to understand them. I also like being able to understand myself. And I disagree that we can't change our environment. I think we can. Example: when most of my friends were atheists, I was an atheist. When I decided to sing in an Anglican choir, simply the fact of sitting in church every Sunday, singing sacred music and listening to people talk about God, slowly made my beliefs changed. I went from "God doesn't exist and organized religion is stupid" to "I'm still not sure about God, but organized religion is really cool and I bet it serves an important part in society."
So I think you CAN change or at least broaden your general beliefs and attitudes if you decide to hang out with people who believe something different. Once you're a certain age and maturity, you can even do it consciously and on purpose. As for innate "personality" characteristics, you can at least stop blaming yourself for them, since they aren't your fault.
Anyway, my specific theory about personality being mainly genetic and attitudes mainly environment-acquired actually comes from reading the scientific literature, especially from "twin studies", where scientists assess the personalities and attitudes of identical twins raised apart. They often find that the personalities of the identical twins are similar, but their attitudes and beliefs tend to reflect those of the adoptive family. (I'll see if I can find an article on these studies for you.) Conversely, studies on unrelated children adopted and raised together show that their personalities are not at all similar, but their beliefs tend to be more similar (though not the same, since their peers at school are also an influence
What I've seen among my friends and family reflects this, so it seems true to me. It was obvious from when he was a baby onwards that my brother's personality isn't like mine. Where I'm eager to please everyone, my brother resents authority. If someone's mad at me, I assume it's my fault and try to be extra nice so there won't be conflict. Especially with adults, my brother gets mad and fights back. I get anxious if I'm not running around all day being "productive", but my brother can happily do nothing all weekend. However, our political leanings are similar, and similar to our parents' beliefs (including the fact that none of us are really THAT interested in politics). We also have in common that a lot of our beliefs about the future are shaped by reading sci-fi.
I've seen this "environmental influence" even more in other families. Take my friend in Toronto: even though her personality, her dad's personality, and her sister's personality are all VERY different, they share an avid interest in politics, and they're all fairly radical-left.
I guess I like analyzing people to understand them. I also like being able to understand myself. And I disagree that we can't change our environment. I think we can. Example: when most of my friends were atheists, I was an atheist. When I decided to sing in an Anglican choir, simply the fact of sitting in church every Sunday, singing sacred music and listening to people talk about God, slowly made my beliefs changed. I went from "God doesn't exist and organized religion is stupid" to "I'm still not sure about God, but organized religion is really cool and I bet it serves an important part in society."
So I think you CAN change or at least broaden your general beliefs and attitudes if you decide to hang out with people who believe something different. Once you're a certain age and maturity, you can even do it consciously and on purpose. As for innate "personality" characteristics, you can at least stop blaming yourself for them, since they aren't your fault.
Reply
Leave a comment