Neuroticism in the US Sitcom Friends - Essay Example

IntroductionNeuroticism is a personality trait manifested by various character traits such as envy, worry, anxiety, jealousy, anger, guilt, depression, low level of confidence or shyness, being self conscious, panic disorders, phobia disarray, and trouble in controlling urges. Ross is observed to have a higher percentage of neuroticism in his personality in the program.In season one, it is seen that Ross had a crush on Rachel since they were in high school. He failed to tell her about his feelings, which caused him to hold them for a long time (Walte, 2007).

This makes it quite visible about the character of Ross being neuroticism. He is in a state of depression whenever he thinks of approaching her, and this is the reason why he failed to express his emotions. He even ends up marrying another woman. Individuals who have a high level of neuroticism are self-conscious and quite shy and have low self esteem. The act of Ross being unable to approach Rachel all is evident that he has a trait of neuroticism.In another episode, Rachel finally lets Ross know how she feels through a phone call, and decides to dump her girlfriend Julie.

In the course of their dating, Rachel discovers that Ross has a list of bad things comparing her to Julie. This makes her mad and moves out of the relationship. Neuroticism individuals worry more compared to normal people. This can be a cause that explains Ross’s decision on keeping a comparative list about Julie and Rachel. He is probably worried that Rachel will make the same mistakes Julie made. He is uncomfortable and is somehow insecure. In another episode, Rachel meets a stranger Mark Robinson who assists her to secure a job as an assistant at a company, Bloomingdale’s.

Ross starts being suspicious of Mark. Individuals with the Neuroticism have a higher level of jealousy than other normal people. What makes Ross suspicious is because he is jealous (Walte, 2007). People with the neuroticism trait interpret ordinary situations as threatening. The event of someone helping another person to get a job is quite normal and should not be a source of panic in anyway, but in the case of Ross he felt it so unusual and that is what caused him to be suspicious. In episode 4, Rachel finds out that Mark is suspicious about her since he behaves strangely by being nice to everyone.

The fact that Mark begins to be nice is an evident that he is envious of what he thinks he has been doing to Rachel or giving to her better than himself. Individuals with the Neuroticism personality are always quite envious as compared to normal people.After breaking up with Rachel, Ross decides to manage his frustrations by sleeping with Chloe, a girl from a copy shop. He does this out of anger and depression. These traits are witnessed more on individuals having neuroticism than ordinary people (Walte, 2007).

Through this, Ross’ inability to handle his frustration and thoughts is seen when he gets intimate with Chloe after the breakup. ReferenceWalte, I. (2007). The American way of Comedy: A comprehensive Analysis of Humour in the Basis of the US Sitcom "Friends". Munchen: Grin-Verl.