What determines your personality?
MadManLee
Banned
in General Chat
Is it how your brain is,hormones, upbringing etc?
Or is it completely your choice?
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All of the above.
Everything you listed and more.
your sweg
Edit: fuk
My personality and attitude is reflective of other's attitudes and personality towards me
As someone who is interested in pursuing a field in psychology, I find this kind of thing very interesting. Are criminals born evil or are they somehow fashioned that way by the people in their lives and the environment in which they were raised? Are they predisposed to act a certain way due to chemical imbalances or other disorders that alter cognitive development, making them more likely to act out of violence? Is it in their genes? What makes a person racist?
I think it has to do with a little bit of all the things you've mentioned. It's hard to say for sure since every individual is so different, but I think it's safe to say that those factors all play a role. I think it's also very ignorant when people say that every person who acts out of violence towards others or suffers fom a mental illness were abused in some way because, although abuse can cause illness, it isn't always associated. There are some people I know who were abused at home who turned out to be exemplary role models for abuse victims, and there are people who have grown up in "perfect" households who have become degenerates, rebels and even criminals.
Get used to hearing the question, "Is it nature or is it nurture?"
In my own opinion, experience has shaped my personality more than anything else. I'm way up in years, though, so I can't say the same is true for children.
Well I can't say that experience has played a big factor in my personality since I'm only 17 and I haven't seen enough of the world to really decide what I want to be yet. I do think that the way I was raised has a lot to do with who I am today, though. I was raised in a pretty conservative household so I grew up modestly, and I still am quite modest, but I'm trying to overcome that now that my views on the world have changed.
Of course it would appear that experiences are the driving factor behind personality to the person experiencing them, but that hardly speaks of the truth of personality development and even the state of having a personality to begin with. Personally I attribute personality mostly to genetics, because having a personality and even being able to feel like you experience something all stems from this central point.
What changed your views like this, if I may ask?
I guess it was just my own realization that what my family believed in was ridiculous. I wanted a reason to believe that I was more than what they said I was. If there's anything I hate most in this world, it's being controlled.
I totally agree. I know parents always want the best for their children, but sometimes they can't realize that what they're doing might be wrong.
My parents kimd of wanted to control me when I was younger, but I kind of rebelled... not in a piercings, tattos, wacky hair kind of way... So they just didn't.
I remember my mother talking about how she didn't support Trans people or gay marriage, and I was like "really??". My family always told me "God hates gays", but that was never something that stuck with me. I can't trust a God who chooses favorites when it comes to His children. I just can't.
I rebelled too. My brother was never one to believe such crap so it was easy to remain liberal as long as he was there. My rebellion did result in dark clothes and wacky hair though, haha.
Yeah, I feel this so much. I once just told my mom there's nothing wrong with being gay, she just said it's wrong, that it's not natural. At least she didn't throw the religion card since she's a pretty avid christian.
Then she asked if I was gay in a worried voice. You don't have to be gay to not hate gays...
I kind of don't blame her though, that anti gay propaganda was shoved in her throat since she was a kid, since then the soviets had us occupied.
I believe in god, just not that avidly. I just think that the people who wrote the bible added some of their own beliefs in there, at least I hope.
I think it varies per person, for some people how they grew up could determines their personality, whilst for others how they grow up doesn't necessarily define that aspect of them. Personalities can also change, I've changed my personality quite allot of times but for me, my personality developed by the negativity I faced some years ago that made me into an angry, mean and silent person, people who weren't my friends treated me like an outcast, they bullied me because I was an easy target and they just constantly got on my nerves, this changed my personality, but as I go through high school now, my personality is no longer defined by how people around me treat me, I've learned for myself that I can define what my personality really is, I let go of all that anger and sadness and learned to be myself instead of act the way society treated me, and most people call me shy, kind and if you're my friend - talkative - lol I guess our personalities can also develop through what we experience, as I said, it's not necessarily the same for everyone, someone's personality can change after experiencing a heartbreak but people who've never experienced a heart break don't use that as a way to continue the development of our personalities. I think our personalities are always developing, at least for some of us and because we each develop so differently, there's never a one right answer to what determines our personality, especially when that is technically subjective and personal.
Ah yes, the "but you're not gay so why do you care?" card. Like, sorry for trying to be a decent human being. I didn't know it was so unpopular to support equal rights.
That brings be back to the original topic. How you were raised really plays a role in your personality. Why are some people homophobic or racist? Because they were taught at a young age that gays and those belonging to a different race are something to be feared. What does fear do? It makes us hate.
I believe in God, but I don't believe in many of the things written in the Bible. I simply cannot stand by a religion that forces everyone to be cookie cutter and identical.
All the above.
It is true, that your genetic makeup and your upbringing have a powerful effect on your personality.
Mostly however, you are whoever you CHOOSE to be!
That is the one thing about your life, that is always in your control.
There is always a choice!
Your actions and your perceptions.
Just like my mother did attempt to take control of me, too, until I put a stop to her, then needed to talk to a Psychologist about it, and yeah, thats how it ended all.
Every little thing in our lives affects us and it's really fascinating. Things like upbringing, your current surroundings, people with whom you're spending your time and etc. most certainly play a huge role in shaping your personality.
I believe that it's my past experience (including family and friends in my life, every problem, every tough and happy moment, every big and small event and so on) which made me who I am now. But I also like to believe that my personality is slightly changing for better every day, because I want to get rid of some bad traits.... at least I'm trying to.... and every new day fills my mind with something interesting and new.
It's never a question of "Nature or Nurture".
Every human trait is influenced by both genetics, and environment. Nature and Nurture. People who say that personality is due solely to genetics are just as wrong as those who assert that personality is due only to your experiences.
Some people are born with genes that predispose then to have angry personalities. What this means is that they have a greater chance to develop angry personalities than most other people. But that doesn't mean they will certainly develop angry personalities. If the child is raised in a caring environment, they may not be as violent as they otherwise would be.
Think of this as a video game. You get a character with some base stats
strength +5
speed +2
int +5
these are your genes. We can see that the character is predisposed to having more strength and int, and less speed. But if we put on some equipment:
speed chainmail
strength -2
speed +4
int +0
If we put on the speed chainmail, then our character's stats become:
strength +5 -2 ---> +3
speed +2 +4 ---> +6
int +5 +0 ---> +5
now our character is good at speed and int, because we've added on the new equipment.
Our equipment is our environment. It is both genes and environment working together that make us who we are, just like it is your game character's base stats as well as the equipment they have, that make up the character's final stats.
Edit: I'm serious.
Good for you champ.
Umm, should I be creeped out, cuz the gif is giving me the creeps.