3 approaches to the study of personality

Burham’s phrase “Everyone knows what personality is, but no one can express it in words.”” describes one of the biggest problems we encounter in the study of this psychological construct. If we look for a scientific definition of what it is, we will find that we almost have one for each author. Even so, we can understand personality as a construct that includes traits that mediate people’s behavior.

Different methodological problems have arisen in relation to the study of personality.. The main ones have been the creation of instruments that can measure it and a clear approach from which to start. In this article we are going to talk about the different approaches or models that have been adopted when researching in this field. These are the internalist, situationist and interactionist approaches.

The internalist approach

This theoretical approach understands the person as an active being and fundamental determinant of their manifest behavior. The main characteristic to study are the personal variables of the subject. Therefore, in this model the important thing is to know the personality traits of each of the individuals.

Being a personalistic model, we can deduce that it is also stable and consistent. This means that, according to the theorists of the approach, personality will be maintained over time and in different situations. In this way, if we manage to isolate a person’s traits, we will be able to predict their future behavior. From this approach, a multitude of tests have been born that attempt to measure personality or even its traits, such as the Big Five Inventory (BFI).

Taking into account current scientific evidence, This model is often seen as outdated and unrealistic.. At first glance it is seen that people change their behavior depending on the context. We do not behave the same when we are with family, at work or with friends. Furthermore, trying to group a subject’s personality into a few stable factors that predict overt behavior is really complicated. Data obtained from personality tests they show us more the subject’s self-conceptthan a real measure of personality.

Personality is something excessively complex and cannot be simplified into a few mere personal variables. We must conduct a thorough personality study to truly understand the depth of it.

The situationalist approach

Unlike the previous approach, This understands the person as a passive subject and reactive to the context. What will influence when predicting behavior will be the situational variables. In this model, the traits and qualities of a person do not matter, the greatest weight falls on the strength of the situation.

This model It is based on the assumption that all behavior is learned; Therefore, the learning processes through which we acquire new ways of acting must be studied. Here a stimulus-response approach very typical of behavioral paradigms is born. Thus, to develop it, an experimental and highly positivist methodology is used.

Although this approach is more realistic when it comes to seeing the instability and specificity of personality, it falls into the error of excessive reductionism: leaving aside all personal variables, since Obviously the attitude of a subject affects his behavior. If this were not the case, all people would behave the same in the same situation.

The interactionist approach

In an attempt to combine the two previous perspectives and solve their errors, the interactionist model of personality was born. From this paradigm we understand that Behavior is determined by the interaction between the subject’s personal variables and situational variables.. An important aspect to understand is that personality is a product of the interaction of the subject with its context.

From the interactionist approach, the person is an active subject who observes and constructs his world through his own perception and ways of acting. The interaction of personal variables with the situation in which the individual is immersed is what triggers one behavior or another. However, two aspects must be taken into account:

When we talk about personal variables we are referring to the person’s cognitive factors. When talking about the situation, we are referring to the subject’s individual perception of his or her context, not its objective characteristics.

We thus find an exhaustive model that overcomes the limitations of the previous two.. Now, the problem with the interactionist approach to the study of personality is that it shows us a reality that is difficult to explore and investigate. This is because it tells us that behavior is the product of inaccessible cognitive factors and an inaccessible construction of the context. Even so, it is undoubtedly a very interesting model for the study of personality.

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