Societal Effects on Personality
Personality is the individual differences in the way of thinking, behaving and emotions. It is the extreme realization of the idiosyncrasy of the living being, and an act to the way of life, the absolute affirmation if the way of life and is a universal condition that adoptable that is accompanied with the greatest freedom for self-identity. It is the collection of behavior, attitude and emotional way of life of individuals in the world. Personality differs among people as a result of the difference in the environment that an individual is brought up, the situations that surround an individual and conditions a person is committed to live. There are several factors that affect the personality of individuals which are either internal or external aspect in life. Notably the society plays an important role in influencing the personality of an individual through the different aspect such as the culture, education, situation an individual is in and the social factor that surrounds an individual.
First, the family the most important environment influence on development of the personality of a child. The child learns and adopts traits such as love and the value of trusting others in the society which are gained through love and the continuous response from the caregiver of the child. The family has also assisted in shaping the personality of the child through behaviors that are installed by the parent. As the child grow and develop as they learn how to be sensitive and understanding about the feeling other family members and people that they interact with in the society. This understanding that is derived from the immediate family influences the personality of a child. These behaviors and beliefs are later transmitted to another generation whether they are positive or negative ones. In addition, a child can develop his personality from family cultural pattern. Each family has its own unique behavior and beliefs depending with the culture of the community from which the family emanate from. Arguably, the family heritage influences relationships in families. For instance some cultural influences members of the family to show their affection openly while others regulate and limit members of the family not to show affection to people who are not members of the immediate family. The size of the family affects the personality of the child. Children who spend most of their time with adults develop their personality and become well- spoken, confidential and may have a tendency towards perfectionism. According to a research that was conducted in the US children from large families are more prone to delinquent behavior as a result of having more relationships to experience. Family environment that a child is brought up in influences his personality of the child, parent who fight and argue in the presence of the child might provoke the child to develop aggressive behaviors and the child may become withdrawn. Children who are brought up in a stable family exhibit a sense of belonging which in term lead to a healthy character that is enriched with confidence and self-esteem (Anderson, John, Keltner& Kring, 2001, p. 116).
Secondly, peer group also influences the personality of individuals. Peer pressure is considered as one of the strongest force that influence everyone in life and is one of the important force that impact the development of an individual personality. Peer pressure the personality of an individual through different stages in life. Teens in particular are greatly affected by peer pressure, whether they are at school or at work peer pressure playing a significant role in shaping the personality of individuals output and outlook. Teenseasily influenced by their peers and other people that they interact with. There are several peer influences that are positive can encourage an individual to be more focused impact is on the personality of an individual. Teens tend to follow other people that they perceive as role models and as a source change of personality. Some teens are influenced to deviant acts such as drinking and smoking behavior citing their peers as the source of the influence. A teen who is rarely supervised by their parents are likely to be influential in deviant behaviors. However, the positive influence of their peers can assist in the development of personality and can incite people to remain focused in the endeavor of achieving their goals. Positive influence in the personality of a teen is notable in tents when they motivate by another student who are performing well to work harder on their studies. Peer pressure can be a source of reflection of actions that an individual and to change and become better individuals in the future. Engaging with a peer group that exercise positive behavior can influence an individual to change from bad behavior to collecting positive ones that will shape their personality (DeLongis & Holtzman, 2005, p. 1640).
Thirdly, education environment has an impact and provide influence on personality development. The school environment equips an individual with skills that can be used to solve problems and relevant information on the how to relate to authority effectively. The classroom environment provides a platform for cooperating and competing with others therefore getting an opportunity to create and evaluate whether a belief right or wrong. School experience assists an individual to develop personality and provide them with a ground that is valuable to practice for the purposes of the future.
Fourthly, Technology also affects the personality of an individual. The recent shift information from industrial society. The rapid change in the state of technology has had a significant effect on individuals as they can now access information using computers either at the workplace or at home. A student can now use the computer to enable them complete their school assignment using computer programs. The internet can be used as a venue for collecting information and communicating with friends all over the world. Technology has led to the development of devices that make communication easy and effective. People can compare the way of life different people in the world with theirs. However, care must be taken to avoid devices from overtaking the value of face to face conversation (Kamdar & Van Dyne, 2007, p. 1286).
Finally, Media is a significant source of influence on the development of personality. Movies, internet, magazines and television are an example of the media. The vulnerable group that is likely to be influenced by the media is the youth. The media is a source of entertainment and information to the society, however, most of the entertainment influences the personality of individuals negatively. Most of the popular individuals that are featured in this entertainment impact the audience with a negative image and examples that negatively develop the personalities of individuals influencing individuals to be attracted in behaviors that are considered as deviant such as drinking and smoking. There are programs and materials that are present in the media has been disturbing and annoying to the view harming the development of personality in an individual. Parents have the responsibility of protecting their children from view and accessing materials that contain violence and explicit programs. According to a research carried out in the US, children who spent most of their time watching violent programs on the TV in the early age become aggressive and insensitive towards the feeling other people that they encounter during this teen age. Arguably, the more violence an individual is exposed to the more likely for an individual to become insensitive to other peoples’ feelings. The less insensitive an individual become poorer in forming and maintaining a relationship even with a close friend. The media effect the personality of an individual. For instance when an individual’s constantly watch anti social programs on the TV, they tend to think that the behavior is acceptable in the society this may include dishonesty, sexual violence, and greediness among other behaviors that may be acquired from the media (Shaffer, 2009, p. 234)
Conclusion
The society plays a significant role in influencing the personality of an individual. Regardless of the biological factors that determine the personality of an individual, it is evident that the society also has an effect on the development of personality among individuals. It is the responsibility of people and parent to protect their children from the negative personalities that are prevalent in the society and to choose the positive one in the development of better personality. People should emulate positive influences that surround them the purpose of making the world a better place for themselves and others.
Reference
Anderson, C., John, O. P., Keltner, D., & Kring, A. M. (2001). Who attains social status? Effects of personality and physical attractiveness in social groups. Journal of personality and social psychology, 81(1), 116.
DeLongis, A., & Holtzman, S. (2005). Coping in context: The role of stress, social support, and personality in coping. Journal of Personality, 73(6), 1633-1656.
Kamdar, D., & Van Dyne, L. (2007). The joint effects of personality and workplace social exchange relationships in predicting task performance and citizenship performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92(5), 1286.
Shaffer, D. (2009). Social and personality development. CengageBrain. com.
