Personality, in the field of organizational behavior, is the aggregate of a

persons feelings, hinking, behaviors and responses to different situations

and people. Every person has a different personality and there are a lot of
factors which contribute to that personality. We call them the
determinants of personality or the factors of personality.
These determinants and factors of personality can belong to very different
categories. Earlier, the major debate was primarily between the heredity
and environmental factors. Many psychologists believe that the
environment, in which an individual lives in, forms his personality. On the
other hand, some psychologists used to debate that personality is predetermined at the time of birth which means that it is hereditary.
Actually, it appears that both the environmental and heredity factors
contribute as the important determinants and factors of personality.
Apart from that, there are several other factors as well that determine an
individuals personality. In this article, we discuss these important
determinants and factors of personality, along with a very interesting case
study of two twins.
So, lets discuss the four major determinants of personality:

1. Environmental Factors of Personality:

The environment that an individual lives in has a major impact on his
personality. The culture and environment establish attitudes, values,
norms and perceptions in an individual. Based on the cultures and
traditions, different senses of right and wrong are formed in individuals.
These environmental factors also include the neighborhood a person lives
in, his school, college, university and workplace. Moreover, it also counts
the social circle the individual has. Your friends, parents, colleagues, coworkers and bosses, everybody plays a role as the determinants of your
personality.

2. Physical Factors of Personality:

Just as environmental factors, there are many physical factors as well that
determine your personality. These physical factors include the overall
physical structure of a person: his height, weight, colour, sex, beauty and
body language, etc. An individuals personality can change over time.
Physical factors are one of the major reasons of that. Most of the physical
structures change from time to time, and so does the personality. With
exercises, cosmetics and surgeries etc. many physical features are
changed, and therefore, the personality of the individual also evolves.

3. Situational Factors of Personality:

Although these factors do not literally create and shape up an individuals
personality, situational factors do alter a persons behavior and response
from time to time. The situational factors can be commonly observed
when a person behaves contrastingly and exhibits different traits and
characteristics. For example, a persons behavior will be totally different
when he is in his office, in front of his boss, when compared to his hangout
with old friends in a bar. In this way, situational factors impact a
personality in a significant way. They often bring out the traits of a person
that are not commonly seen.

4. Heredity Factors of Personality:

Last, but not the least, the heredity factors play a very important role as
the major determinants and factors of personality. Heredity factors are the
ones that are determined at the time of conception. These factors not only
affect the physical features of a person, but the intelligence level,

attentiveness, gender, temperament, various inherited diseases and

energy level, all get affected by them.
The example of how heredity factors determine such a huge and
significant part of an individuals personality can easily be observed in
children. Many children behave exactly how their parents do. Similarly,
twin siblings also have a lot of things in common.
Here, I would like to quote a paragraph from Stephen P.
Robinsons book on the essentials of Organizational Behavior. He writes:
Researchers in many different countries have studied thousands of sets
of identical twins, who were separated at birth and raised separately. If
heredity played little or no part in determining personality, you would
expect to find few similarities between the separated twins. But the
researchers found a lot in common. For almost every behavioral trait, a
significant variation between the twins turned out to be associated with
genetic factors. For instance, one set of twins who had been separated for
39 years and raised 45 miles apart, were found to drive the same model
and color car. They chain-smoked the same brand of cigarette, owned
dogs with the same name, and regularly vacationed within three blocks of
each other in a beach community 1500 miles away.
This case study shows significant correlation between heredity factors and
personalities. Although the twins were raised in completely different
environments, they had amazing similarities in various tastes and
preferences. This particular study showed that although the environment
is a major determinant and factor of personality, the heredity factors
turned out to have a more significant impact on the studied twins.
Apart from that, researchers have found that genetics account for
about50% of the personality differences and more than 30% of the
variation in occupational and leisure interests. However, it is also equally
important to understand that an individuals personality evolves gradually
over a certain span of time. As I mentioned earlier that physical factors
change over time, environmental factors, social circles and situations also
change. So, personality is something that does not really settle in and
thats what makes people so unpredictable and hard to manage.

Summarizing
Personality:

the

Determinants

and

Factors

of

Our entire topic can be summarized in the following important points:

Every person has a different personality, which is the result of

various factors that shape it up. We call them the determinants of
personality or the factors of personality.

These determinants or factors of personality can be divided into 4

major categories: environmental factors, physical factors,
situational factors and heredity factors.

Contrary to many beliefs, heredity factors are indeed major

determinants of personality.

Personalities change over time. As an individual grows,

experiences different environments, lives and works with other
people, and as his physical structures change, his personality also
evolves.