Definition of Personality - Essay Example

For many years scholars and authors have not come up with a single definition of personality. This is because, authors who study the discipline, come up with different definitions of personality. This is a result of different aspects of personality, which must be featured in the term. Different theorists have come up with their own definitions, which suit the discipline of focus.  For instance, Funder defined personality to refer to an individual’s characteristics, emotions, and behavior together with psychological mechanisms (Funder, 1997). On the other hand, Feist, and Feist define personality as “A pattern of relatively permanent traits and unique characteristics that give both consistency and individuality to the behavior of a person” (Feist, 2010). This essay discusses personality in detail.

Unconscious, Preconscious, and Conscious

They are considered the three parts of the mind, which influence the understanding of personality. Feud identified the three parts as the measures of the level of awareness of a person. The conscious mind describes a situation when a person is aware of the present and the things happening in the surrounding because there are various reactions taking place in the brain at that moment showing what is happening (Bargh & Morsella. 2009). The preconscious mind is also referred to as the subconscious mind, which represents the moment you can get information by paying attention. The actions of the subconscious are out of reach by the conscious mind unless one is interrupted. Freud found out that most behaviors are directed by the subconscious mind. Finally, the unconscious mind describes the moment when a person cannot relate to a past experience due to a time difference. For instance, it is difficult for a person to recall the events in the past even though they influence their present.

The three minds relate in the fact that they all show how a person`s personality is shaped by the situation and moments they are in. People might behave in a way not expected, which might be a result of either the unconscious or subconscious mind. It is important to understand the relationship so that we can be in a position to judge people`s actions fairly. We could condemn an individual`s action not knowing she/he is acting subconsciously. In conclusion, it is evident that personality is a wide subject that theorists will keep investing in for new aspects, thus inhibiting advocacy for a single definition of personality.