Sunday, October 26, 2008
Personality.

In almost all management studies, probably the easiest of them all is the topic on personality. Unlike most classical theorists like Henri Fayol and Max Weber that emphasised on the issues of efficiency,profits and bureaucratization, many of the new schools of thought in both management studies and sociology have emphasised on the human factor within an organisation. Most importantly, as we move on in time, the issue here is no longer concerned with the efficiency of the production line itself, but on a more "human-approach" basis.

Question is: How do we make the most out of the people under us?

Mankind have the unprecedented advantage of technology within its grasp and for that, it has done wonders to the evolutionary of men. But in most cases, a machine will remain a useless item if its not being properly cropped up and used. Thus, there is always the cliche of finding the best man for the best job and in most cases, managers only look out for one thing--Personality.

A very sound definition of personality. A man's personality is his psychological patterns of behaviour, his organisational dynamics and how he responds or behaves in a particular situation. His personality affects how he interact with others. To simplify the idea of personality, it is actually the personal characteristics that determines his behaviour.

To distinguish personality between individuals, an interesting aspect is to look what really shapes one's personality. One of the 4 personality determinants is heredity. The issue on heredity, while emphasising on its importance as it has links to nature, cannot fully explain an indivdual's personality. Scientists have known for years that traits such as eye color and hair color are determined by specific genes encoded in each human cell. The Nature Theory takes things a step further to say that more abstract traits such as intelligence, personality, aggression, and sexual orientation are also encoded in an individual's DNA.

While not discounting that genetic tendencies may exist, supporters of the nurture theory believe they ultimately don't matter - that our behavioral aspects originate only from the environmental factors of our upbringing. Studies on infant and child temperament have revealed the most crucial evidence for nurture theories. American psychologist John Watson, best known for his controversial experiments with a young orphan named Albert, demonstrated that the acquisition of a phobia could be explained by classical conditioning. Harvard psychologist B. F. Skinner's early experiments produced pigeons that could dance, do figure eights, and play tennis. Today known as the father of behavioural science, he eventually went on to prove that human behavior could be conditioned in much the same way as animals.

So, was the way we behave engrained in us before we were born? Or has it developed over time in response to our experiences? Researchers on all sides of the nature vs nurture debate agree that the link between a gene and a behaviour is not the same as cause and effect. While a gene may increase the likelihood that you'll behave in a particular way, it does not make people do things. Which means that we still get to choose who we'll be when we grow up.

The other essential factor linked to the construction of an individual's personality is mass media. Mass media is a potent instrument in this new millennium where its influences stretch from biased newspaper reports to superficial magazine issues and from the internet to even propaganda podcasts on ipods. Its most astounding aspect bears from its ability to make believe nifty tabloid celebrities into important political figures in society. Just take a look at Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera to name a few. The way most of these celebrities are dressed and their lifestyles were well potrayed by tabloid journalists like the Papparazzis. Mass media drains society. It promotes the idea of "new materialism" in society. The new human race is all about being a fashionista and getting them expensive handbags or shoes.

But, let us not leave out the good side of mass media. Some media in fact makes the society think and engage in a constant debate. For instance, the road to the US presidential election have cropped up issues like gay marriage and restructuring the tax system within the country itself. Harvard Bussiness Review, Herald Tribune and British Broadcasting Channel are just some incredibly important sources in when it comes to reports in the bussiness world.

In conclusion, personality is a socially constructed agenda and it is constantly changing, depending mainly on our environment, culture and influences. Our peer groups, could well affect our personality as well. Hence, the need to look out for and adapt to new social groups is enormously important.

p.s---this thread is hanging, thus there is a need to redraft it. At the moment, I shall just post it.