Q 3. Personality
development occurs early in life but later years provide an opportunity for the
modification of previously developed trends’. Discuss. OR
What are Components of a
Child's Personality? Also Discuss Stages of Personality development of a Child
Course: Elementary Education
Course Code 8623
Topics
Personality development of Children
- Components of a Child's Personality
- Stages of Personality development of a Child
- Phases of Personality development of a Child
AIOU Solved Assignment |Semester: Autumn/Spring | B.Ed/Bacherlors in Education /Masters in Education / PHD in Education | BEd / MEd / M Phil Education | ASSIGNMENT Course Code 8623| Course: Elementary Education
Answer:
Personality development is the development of the organized
pattern of behaviors and attitudes that makes a person distinctive. Personality
development occurs by the ongoing interaction of temperament, character, and
environment.
Description
Personality is what makes a person a unique person, and it is
recognizable soon after birth. A child’s personality has several components:
- Temperament,
- Environment, and
- Character.
Temperament is the set of genetically determined traits that determine the
child’s approach to the world and how the child learns about the world. There
are no genes that specify personality traits, but some genes do control the
development of the nervous system, which in turn controls behavior.
A second component of personality comes from adaptive patterns
related to a child’s specific environment. Most psychologists agree that these two
factors—temperament and environment—influence the development of a person’s
personality the most. Temperament, with its dependence on genetic factors, is
sometimes referred to as “nature,” while the environmental factors are called
“nurture.”
While there is still controversy as to which factor ranks higher
in affecting personality development, all experts agree that high-quality
parenting plays a critical role in the development of a child’s personality.
When parents understand how their child responds to certain situations, they
can anticipate issues that might be problematic for their child. They can
prepare the child for the situation or in some cases they may avoid a
potentially difficult situation altogether.
Parents who know how to adapt their parenting approach to the
particular temperament of their child can best provide guidance and ensure the
successful development of their child’s personality.
Finally, the third component of personality is character—the set of emotional,
cognitive, and behavioral patterns learned from experience that determines how
a person thinks, feels, and behaves. A person’s character continues to evolve
throughout life, although much depends on inborn traits and early experiences.
Character is also dependent on a person’s moral development.
In 1956, psychiatrist Erik Erikson provided an insightful
description as to how personality develops based on his extensive experience in
psychotherapy with children and adolescents from low, upper, and middle-class
backgrounds.
According to Erikson, the socialization process of an individual
consists of eight phases, each one accompanied by a “psychosocial crisis” that
must be solved if the person is to manage the next and subsequent phases
satisfactorily. The stages significantly influence personality development,
with five of them occurring during infancy, childhood, and adolescence.
Infancy
During the first two years of life, an infant goes through the
first stage: Learning Basic Trust or Mistrust (Hope). Well-nurtured and loved,
the infant develops trust and security and a basic optimism. Badly handled, the
infant becomes insecure and learns “basic mistrust.”
Toddlerhood
The second stage occurs during early childhood, between about 18
months to two years and three to four years of age. It deals with Learning
Autonomy or Shame (Will) . Well-parented, the child emerges from this stage
with self-confidence, elated with his or her newly found control. the early
part of this stage can also include stormy tantrums, stubbornness, and
negativism, depending on the child’s temperament.
Preschool
The third stage occurs during the “play age,” or the later
preschool years from about three to entry into formal school. The developing
child goes through a Learning Initiative or Guilt (Purpose) .
The child learns to use imagination; to broaden skills through
active play and fantasy; to cooperate with others; and to lead as well as to
follow. If unsuccessful, the child becomes fearful, is unable to join groups,
and harbors guilty feelings. The child depends excessively on adults and is
restricted both in the development of play skills and in imagination.
School age
The fourth stage, Learning Industry or Inferiority (Competence) ,
occurs during school age, up to
and possibly including junior high school. The child learns to
master more formal skills: relating with peers according to rules progressing
from free play to play that is structured by rules and requires teamwork (team
sports) learning basic intellectual skills (reading, arithmetic).
At this stage, the need for self-discipline increases every year.
The child who, because of his or her successful passage through earlier stages,
is trusting, autonomous, and full of initiative, will quickly learn to be
industrious. However, the mistrusting child will doubt the future and will feel
inferior.
Adolescence
The fifth stage, Learning Identity or Identity Diffusion
(Fidelity) , occurs during adolescence from age 13 or 14. Maturity starts
developing during this time; the young person acquires self-certainty as
opposed to self-doubt and experiments with different constructive roles rather
than adopting a negative identity, such as delinquency. The well-adjusted
adolescent actually looks forward to achievement, and, in later adolescence,
clear sexual identity is established. The adolescent seeks leadership (someone
to inspire him or her), and gradually develops a set of ideals to live by.
The Child Development Institute (CDI) rightfully points out that
very little knowledge is available on the type of specific environment that
will result, for example, in traits of trust being more developed in a person’s
personality. Helping the child through the various stages of emotional and
personality development is a complex and difficult task. Searching for the best
ways of accomplishing this task accounts for most of the research carried out
in the field of child development today.
Renowned psychologist Carl Rogers emphasized how childhood
experiences affect personality development. Many psychologists believe that
there are certain critical periods in personality development—periods when the
child will be more sensitive to certain environmental factors.
Most experts believe that a child’s experiences in the family are
important for his or her personality development, although not exactly as
described by Erikson’s stages, but in good agreement with the importance of how
a child’s needs should be met in the family environment. For example, children
who are toilet trained too early or have their toilet training carried out too
strictly may become rebellious. Another example is shown by children who learn
appropriate behavior to their sex lives when there is a good relationship with
their same-sex parent.
Another environmental factor of importance is culture. Researchers
comparing cultural groups for specific personality types have found some
important differences. For example, Northern European countries and the United
States have individualistic cultures that put more emphasis on individual needs
and accomplishments. In contrast, Asian, African, Central American, and South
American countries are characterized more by community-centered cultures that
focus on belonging to a larger group, such as a family, or nation. In these
cultures, cooperation is considered a more important value than
competitiveness, which will necessarily affect personality development.
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