Personality is the relatively stable and distinctive pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behaviours that characterizes an individual. It develops through continuous interaction between genetic predispositions and the environment, rather than being determined entirely by either one.
Genetics can influence biological characteristics associated with personality, including temperament, emotional reactivity, sociability and sensitivity to stress. These inherited tendencies create predispositions, not fixed outcomes. For example, an athlete may inherit a tendency toward high emotional reactivity, but this does not guarantee anxiety during competition.
Environmental influences include parenting, culture, education, peer groups, coaching, previous sporting experiences and reinforcement. A supportive coach who teaches effective coping strategies may help an emotionally reactive athlete become more confident and composed under pressure.
The interactionist approach explains that behaviour results from the interaction between personal characteristics and the situation. Therefore, the same athlete may appear confident in training but anxious during an important final because the competitive environment changes the behavioural response.
| Influence | Contribution to personality | SEHS example |
|---|---|---|
| Genetics | Provides inherited predispositions and aspects of temperament | A performer may be naturally more sociable or stress-reactive |
| Environment | Shapes tendencies through learning, culture and experience | Positive feedback may develop confidence and persistence |
| Gene-environment interaction | Environmental experiences can strengthen, reduce or redirect inherited tendencies | Stress-management training may reduce the expression of competitive anxiety |
A common misconception is that personality is either inherited or learned. The correct explanation is that personality is multifactorial: genes influence the range of possible characteristics, while environmental experiences affect how those characteristics develop and are expressed.
In an IB SEHS response, define personality first, then explain both genetic and environmental influences and show their interaction using a sporting example. For an evaluate question, discuss evidence for both influences and conclude that neither genetic determinism nor environmental determinism provides a complete explanation of personality.