Cultural and Personality Differences - Research Paper Example

? Culture and personality: Differences. College: Assignment Two basic broad areas of research show that personality is influenced by biological make up of an individual or by genes. These broad areas touch on psychodynamics and the traits that are portrayed by an individual. An individual’s personality is a sum up of his mental features that make them unique. It entails all patterns of thinking, feelings that cause them to behave in a given manner. Personality is primarily expressed through temper and sentiments. Personality is also responsible for bringing out characteristics on beliefs, values and expectations. Although many factors are at play in shaping personality, hereditary factors are seen as major players. Psychologists have asserted that hereditary factors determine more important personality traits. Others personality traits are acquired through socialization by the society. Hereditary factors contributing to personality development are integrated with social environment. For example, heredity determines your physical and mental abilities. This impacts on how you view yourself and others. In a circumstance where a student does not perform well in class, teachers, fellow students, friends and relatives will label you as someone who is inadequate or a failure. This labeling leads the student to perceive himself in such a manner, becoming less hopeful about his capabilities and his future. This leads to development of certain personality traits in the future. Cultures perceive different hereditary determined appearances in various ways. For example, one may be slender in cultures where obesity is considered attractive. These hereditary factors may cause someone to feel nice-looking, ugly or inadequate. Skin color, gender and sexual orientation may have major influence on how one is perceived or perceives himself. This acceptance or rejection notion or normal and abnormal based on characteristics that are genetically determined leads to development of personality traits that are socially acceptable or in a deviant way. Gordon Alport (1936) stated that there were central traits that formed the foundations of personality. Though they were not very dominant, they were the major factors that led to the development of the more dominant traits (cardinal traits). For example, writers who coined theories did so because they were intelligent and could have access to initial knowledge. Intelligence portrayed by the scholars was because of inheritance that was biologically determined. The less dominant traits which were as a result of heredity played a crucial role in forging the more dominant traits that people came to be identified with, for example, Marxism, Freudian, Machiavellian et cetera. These arguments on personality lead us to believe that it is not only culture that determines its development, but biological factors play a crucial role in shaping major personality traits. Sigmund Freud working on personality development laid great emphasis on the insentient of personality. The argument placed personality development on the unconscious, dictating that several internal factors are at work shaping people’s personality without their knowledge. Freud discussed five stages of personality development to further strengthen his assertion that internal biological factors shaped personality. Although, biological factors are seen as major players in the development of an individual’s personality, anthropologists and other scholars have argued that social environment play the big role in shaping one’s personality. Culture is a way of adapting to a given environmental situation. Though it is adaptive in nature, culture is a way of fulfilling the biological needs of a population. If therefore biological factors are not major factors, culture can be said to be maladaptive and can lead to extinction of a given society. Interesting though is the fact that changing biological traits dictates changes in personality and environment. Assignment #2 Environment is the key shaping aspect of culture, which in turn affects the development of personality of an individual. Understanding of culture is important in the understanding of personality since, cultural instruments are key factors in shaping an individual’s personality. Cultural instruments include the family, societal institutions like schools, churches; law-governing bodies’ etc. friends and peers, ethnicity, class, language etc. people fashion people. Personality is made up of the characteristic patterns of thoughts, feelings and behaviors that distinguish a person. According to Freud’s psychoanalysis theory, all new members in a cultural setting have the same personality but culture acts to shape their consequent adult personality. Culture is defined by the use of agreed upon symbols, ideas, beliefs, norms, knowledge that are transferred to a new member of the society through the socialization process. These accumulated knowledge; beliefs and norms constitute the basic elements of culture and shape personality development. Hofstede (2001) stated that differences observed in personal traits on how people viewed family ties, egalitarian relationships, work flexibility, personal space and ownership of property was as a direct effect on the cultural differences of the individuals. Socioeconomic factors are also a key shaping factor in the development of personality. Socially a society may be structured in a hierarchical system with each hierarchy having some minority differences in culture. Through socialization process, newborns in the hierarchy will adopt and develop personality that displays certain different traits from other individuals in other hierarchies. Individuals belonging to wealthy families (those at higher socioeconomic status) are able to access good nutrition, hospitals and other life necessities as compared to those at lower socioeconomic status. In many African countries, children from poor families (those at lower socioeconomic status) barely survive to adulthood. Basic social amenities like medical care, nutrition are hard to get and therefore the people suffer from multiple diseases and consequent deaths. Though socioeconomic factor plays a major role in shaping the development of an individual’s personality, few or no scholars have studied the subject. Behavioral economics use social, emotional and cognitive factors in the analysis of hoe economics shape personality. Market choices are heavily influenced by personality of an individual. Behavioral biases, effects of altruism, capitalism and socialism all affects the economic choices of individuals based on their personality. Economics also play a part in the development of an individual’s personality. The study by Marx illustrated how capitalistic economies exploit workers by paying them less as compared to their work input. Further, he stressed at the profit margin that the producer got from the sale of the products at the expense of the laborers. The workers therefore developed a negative attitude towards their employers bringing in riots, strikes etc., personality traits developed because of the exploitation. Labeling of individuals from a minority group or stereotyping influences the personality exhibited by the individuals from that community. Erik Erikson (1968) stated that no matter how much the majority groups negatively stereotyped; they struggled to maintain an ethnic identity displaying similar personalities. The American Indians, one of the most negatively stereotyped have struggled to excel in sports and other ventures like trade that were initially cut off from them. This stereotyping has led to development of a ‘winning personality’ to show that they too can excel. Of all theories, ethnographic field research theory best explains influence of culture on personality. It draws conclusions from different scholars who extensively studied it. Referencing from observed life phenomena, the theory establishes a tight link between culture and personality. The socioeconomic theory worst explains the influence of culture on personality. Its argument is shallow and does not draw inferences from adequately researched work. In addition, it has received little or no attention from scholars. Assignment #3 Based on the assumption that different individuals come from different backgrounds, behavior observed in different individuals can be explained. From political, social to economic behaviors, individuals portraying different personalities towards them can be understood. For example, the socialization process he underwent motivates an individual who does business. The socialization process occurs in school, church and in the family. The desire and motivation to engage in business was because of the culture that was a norm in the society. Business deals entail movement of goods, services across regions or nations (multinational business deals). To get to such a level, an individual must have the willingness to risk. Capital is a major factor in business. Whether borrowed or from family connections, the ability of the individual to access capital may be influenced by the socio-economic status of the involved family. For example, it is easier for an individual from a family in a high socio-economic status to start a business than another individual from a low status family. The success of the business depends also on the ability of the individual to run and operate it. This entails access to knowledge on how to manage business, which is easily accessible by individuals from wealthy families. On the other hand, business deals that entail higher amounts of goods and movement across wider regions require several require the establishment of large networks with which these products can be produced, transported and marketed. Setting these working networks need comparable business connections with other businesses. The links differ with the magnitude of the operations involved in the business. Higher operational magnitudes results into higher level of links which in turn gives more capital. The links can easily be established via existing business or creation of which already established links are easier to work with. In case of an individual taking over an already existing family business, input by the individual is less as compared to starting a new business. Furthermore, existing business offer more competition and lock out potential threat in the form of upcoming businesses. Economic choices are influenced by social, cognitive and emotional factors, which are key pillars of an individual’s personality. This in essence validates the fact that business people come from cultural backgrounds that have strong business backgrounds. Using culture as a primary tool to define and understand the personality of an individual related to business it is important to look at the factors propelling the individual to indulge in business activities. For example, the socio-economic status of the individual’s background determines whether the individual survives to adulthood, accessibility to education, capital and trade links that in turn affects the business outcome. On the other hand, other players like individualism and capitalism also play part in trying to understand the personality of an individual. In the United States with its individualistic cultural settings may have many individuals engaging in business as compared to Japan that is a collectivist state that does not embrace individual choices, achievements or freedom. In addition, several countries have regulations regarding running of businesses, which may range from amount of capital required, professional qualification etc. these regulations impede some individuals who have the desire to start business but cannot meet these requirements. References Cultural Influencies on Personality. Annual Review of Psychology. 53: 133-160. Published Feb. 2002. University of Illinois. Allport, G. W. & Odbert, H. S. (1936). Trait names: a psycho-lexical study. Psychological monograph, 47(211). Cohen, J. (1982). Review of G.A. Cohen, Karl Marx Theory of History. Journal of Philosophy, Erikson, E. H. (1968). Identity youth and crisis. New York: W.W. Norton. Gul, F. (2008). Behavioral Economics and Game Theory: The New Palgrave Dictionary Of Economics. Santrock, J.W. (1997). Life-span development. Madison, WI: Brown and Benchmark. Read More