How Is Personality Developed?

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How is Personality Developed * How is personality developed? B.F. Skinner believed that human behavior and lives are products of social learning in culture, and Operant Conditioning. Pavlov believed that personality is developed through classical conditioning. (McAdams, 2006) I believe that ones personality is developed through a combination of both Operant and Classical conditioning. * What roles do genetics and environment play in personality development? According to B.F. Skinner “a person does not act upon the world, the world acts upon him” Therefore, if the environment shapes the person, than a just and happy society should produce just and happy citizens. (McAdams, 2006) It is my belief that not only does the environment play an important role in personality development genetics are just as important. The role ones family plays in their development helps to develop the person as a whole. An example of this theory would be the way a child is raised, if the parents are loving and attentive to the child’s needs the child in most cases will grow and develop into an adult who is caring and loving; however if the parents are distant and non-attentive to the child the child will most likely grow into an adult with a form of attachment disorder in which there is little concern for the wants and feelings of others. * How do experiences influence personality? Experiences that one lives through will greatly influence ones personality. As in the case of Pavlov and his dog, the classical conditioning taught the dog that a bell was rung the dog would salivate at the thought of receiving food. For the human classical conditioning can be represented by the experiences of each individual causing the same type of a response. For example if as a child one is taught that positive behavior would warrant a reward one could grow up believing that if they are
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