CHAPTER 8 – PERSONALITY

1. What is personality? Give definitions of personality.

The word 'personality' is derived from the Latin word ‘persona' which means 'mask'
or 'dress' worn by a player or an actor on the stage. The word implies the external
appearance of the player. But personality is not only the physical appearance; rather, it
includes the acquired traits, sentiments, belief, opinions etc. which the person expresses in
his social relations.
According to Woodworth, “Personality is the study of sum total of the behavior of
an individual.

2. How does Jung classify personality/Analyze the different types of personality

classified by Jung.
Jung classified individuals into two categories - Introverts and Extroverts To this, a
third category was later on added – Ambivert, as certain individuals are neither fully
extroverts nor fully introverts. Some of the major characteristics of these types are given
below:

Introverts

1. Submissive and self-centered

2. Do not express their feelings to others

3. Keep themselves busy with indoor activity, mainly reading books and magazine:

4. Better at writing than at speaking:

5. Afraid of external realities, so attention directed inward,

6. Aloof and day dreamer, lost in reveries;

7. Inclined to worry:

8. Careful of ailments and personal belongings.

Extroverts

1. Having strong desire for activity-interested in athletics;

2. Flexible and adaptable;

3. Enjoyment seekers in outer life;

4. Gain easy popularity; make dents in every company;

5. Get pleasure in change;

6. Fluent in speech;

7. Not much fussy about personal ailments or belongings;

8. React readily to environmental influences.

Ambiverts

Life demands that an individual should be mixture of both. Such individuals are given
the name Ambiverts. An ambivert may exhibit certain qualities an extrovert in one situation
while in another situation, he may exhibit the traits of introvert. It is in this manner that an
ambivert is successful in achieving harmony with himself and with the surroundings.

3. Assessment of personality.

There are three main techniques of assessment of personality. These are -

1. Subjective techniques: Autobiography, Interview.

2. Objective techniques: Observation, Rating scales.

3. Projective techniques: Rorschach's Ink-blot Test, Thematic Apperception Test,

Autobiography or Self-History (Subjective technique)

This technique is employed to get a faithful record of one's experiences, past as well
as present. The individual writes his personal history in which he describes his experiences,
achievements, attitudes, likes and dislikes. A careful study of this data enables the
psychologist to arrive at certain conclusions regarding the various aspects of personality of
the subject. It is an economical method of collecting data for further assessment.

The chief limitations of this method are

1) The subject may exaggerate his qualities and conceal his weakness.
2) Much depends upon memory and memory may fail.
3) The unconscious desires, wishes, attitudes of the subject cannot be thoroughly
appraised.

Interview (Subjective technique)

It is a face-to-face contact between the interviewer and the interviewee. It is a direct

way of getting information about the subject. An expert interviewer quickly establishes
rapport with the subject and can draw out maximum details for the purpose of making an
assessment of his personality. However, the psychologist should guard himself against
making hasty conclusions as this technique is fully subjective, hence less reliable.

Observation (Objective technique)

This method is used to observe the behavior of the subject under given conditions
and in given situation. This method can be best used in a psychological laboratory. The
person's behavior while he is performing the given activity reveals a number of his
personality traits. The chief limitation of this method is that it is time consuming.

Rating Scales (Objective technique)

Rating Scale is a useful technique to make an assessment of the personality traits of

a person. The data is gathered by getting it rated by another person who may be an expert
in the use of this technique, or a teacher, a friend or a parent. Such personality traits as
honesty, sociability, patriotism, etc. can be assessed with the help of a five-point rating
scale.
 Examples are:

1. Excellent – Above average – Average - Below Average - Poor.

2. Exceedingly patriotic - Fairly patriotic - Just patriotic - Unpatriotic at times - Completely

Unpatriotic.

The chief advantages of this technique are: i) the intermediate degree of a trait can
be better expressed ii) the judgments given by two or more raters may be pooled and
average taken.

Projective techniques

The important projective techniques are: i) Rorschach Ink-Blot Test ii) Thematic
Apperception Test.

1. Rorschach Ink-Blot Test: Designed by Herman H. Rorschach, in this test the

individual is given an ink-blot figure on which he projects his thoughts and feelings, thus
revealing his personality. In this test, an ink-blot is thrown on a piece of white paper which
is then folded, pressed and opened afterwards. The resulting figure known as Ink-blot.

In the standardized Rorschach Test, ten cards are used, each bearing the
reproduction of an ink-blot. Five of these blots are in black; two are black and red and three
are in colors. These cards are given to the subject one after the other. The subject is asked
to state one after the other what he sees in each of the ten cards.

The subject ‘A’ may see in a particular ink-blot a 'tree' while subject ‘B’ may see an
animal in the same blot. The responses of the subject are recorded, classified and then
analyze. The examiner records: what the subject sees; where in the ink-blot he sees what
he sees; whether the subject sees the figure as a whole or a part of it; the position in which
the card is held; facial expressions, if any. There is no time limit and fix number of
responses for each card.

2. Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

This test was developed by Henry Murray of Harvard University. In this test, the
examiner uses twenty cards out of which nineteen are picture cards and one is a blank card.
These cards are shown one by one to the subject taking the test and he is asked to tell a
story about the picture shown in the card.

The story should describe the individuals that are there in the picture, what they are
doing etc. Five minutes are allowed for each picture. When the blank card is presented, the
subject is asked to imagine a picture by himself and narrate a story connected with that
picture. The recorded responses are analyzed and this makes it possible to get an indication
of the attitudes of the individual towards his own self, parents, friends, teachers etc. The
responses also give a picture of the individual's motives, feeling, like and dislikes.

On the model of [Link] which are designed for adults, Children Apperception Test
(C.A.T.) has also been prepared by Bellak.
 Comparison of Ink-Blot Test and T.A.T

Ink-blot test throws light on the structure of the personality, while the T.A.T.
reveals functioning of the personality. In this way, these are not supplementary but
complementary. But Ink-Blot Test is too technical to be used commonly. We need highly
trained personnel to give test and interpret the data. Again, it is time-consuming.
Adaptation of this test to suit local conditions is difficult, as it is very difficult to construct
new one and standardize the same on a new population. Again, it is not specially meant for
children. On the other hand, T.A.T. is less time-consuming, less technical, can be easily
adapted and is certainly more useful. T.A.T. can be used both for adults and children
separately.

MCQ
(a) A person who is tall, thin and lean, sensitive to criticism himself/herself but critical of
others, is classified as:
(i) Pyknic (ii) Aesthetic
(iii) Sanguine (iv) Athletic

(b) A person who is short and stout, easy going and gets along with people well, is
classified as......
(i) Aesthetic (ii) Athletic
(iii) Sanguine (iv) Pyknic

(c) Who defined personality as 'the study of sum total of the behavior of an Individual'...:
(i) Boring (ii) Woodworth
(iii) Martin Prince (iv) Allport

(d) Which of the following attributes does not hold good for personality?
(i) Dynamic (ii) Unique
(iii) Static (iv) Adjustment to environment

(e) Who regarded personality as 'the sum total of innate and acquired dispositions'.
(i) Boring (ii) Vallentine
(iii) Woodworth (iv) Martin Price

(f) .... are submissive and self-centered:

(i) Extroverts (ii) Ambiverts
(iii) Introverts (iv) Pyknic

g) A person who is muscular and tends to be responsive to desirable adjustments is

classified as
(i) Athletic (ii) Aesthetic
(iii) Pyknic (iv) Sanguine

(h) This is a Subjective method of assessing personality

(i) Ink-blot Test (ii) Story Completion Test
(iii) Case History (iv) Rating Scale

(i) This is a Projective technique of assessing personality.

(i) Ink-blot Testing (ii) Rating Scale
(iii) Interview (iv) Sociogram

(j) A person having fragile somatic structure, unsociable and reserved classified as
(i) Endomorphic (ii) Ectomorphic
(iii) Introvert (iv) Sanguine
Fill in the blanks
(a) To define 'personality' is to define the _____________.
(b) _____________defined personality as the "sum total of innate and acquire
dispositions".
(c) Personality includes physical, mental and _____________traits.
(d) _____________of personality refers to 'type approach to the understanding
personality.
(e) Those having muscular and bony bodies, heavy physique and thick size are classified
as _____________.
(f) Ink-blot test was designed by _____________.
(g) Rating scale is a/an _____________technique of personality assessment.
(h) In Thematic Apperception Test, the assessor uses _____________cards, out which
_____________are picture cards and _____________is/are blanks.

PYQ
1. One who reacts readily to environmental influences are categorized as
_____________. (extrovert/introverts/ambiverts)
2. Ink blot test was designed by _____________. (Guilford/Herman H. Rorschach/ WH
Sheldon/ Henry Murray)
3. _____________ are submissive and self-centered.
A. Extrovert B. Introverts
C. Ambiverts D. Aesthetics
Which of the following is/are correct?
i) A and C ii) B and D
iii) D only iv) B only
4. Thematic Apperception Test of measuring personality is a _____________. (Objective
technique/projective technique)
5. According to _____________, “Personality is the entire organization of a human being
at any stage of his development” (H.C. Warren/E.W. Burgess)
6. The method of _____________ is a useful technique to make assessment of the
personality traits by getting rated by another person. (observation/rating scale)

PYQ
2020
1. Who are the ‘Ambiverts’? Make a comparison between Rorschach and Thematic
Apperception Test of personality assessment (1+6=7)
OR
Explain the concept of IQ. Differentiate between Spearman’s Two Factor Theory and
Multi-Factor Theory of Intelligence (2+5=7)
2. What do you understand by emotional intelligence? (2)

2021
1. What is personality? Briefly discuss the personality of extroverts, introverts and ambiverts
(2+5=7)
OR
What is Intelligence? Explain Spearman’s Two Factor theory and Multi-factor theory of
intelligence (2+5=7)

2022
1. Explain the concept of IQ. Explain Spearman’s two factor theory of intelligence (2+5=7)
2023
1. Define intelligence (2)
2. Analyze the different types of personality as classified by Jung. Based on your analysis,
which personality type do you think would be the most successful in meeting the demand
of life? Justify your answer (5+2=7)
OR
Describe Rorschach Ink-blot test and Thematic Apperception Test of personality and make
a comparison between these two tests (4+3=7)
2024
1. Explain IQ. Briefly explain it (2)
2. Who are Ambiverts? (2)
3. Explain any four attributes of Emotional Intelligence (4)

2025
1. What is meant by Emotional Intelligence? (2)
2. What is personality? Discuss the various traits of Introverts, Extroverts and Ambiverts.
(2+2+2+2=8)
OR
3. What is meant by Intelligence? Discuss the various attributes of Emotional Intelligence.
(2+6=8)

2026
1. ‘A girl is outgoing but is self-centered’. Describe her personality type. (2)
2. Why do extroverts usually manage stress better than introverts? Elaborate Jung’s classification
of personality in your own words by describing the personalities of three of your friends.
(2+2+2+2=8)