Runny nose

Galen's types of temperament. Types of temperament and their psychological characteristics

The set of spiritual, mental properties of a person, characterizing the degree of his excitability and manifested in his attitude to the surrounding reality, in behavior.

Each person is different not only in their external features, but also by the nature of their behavior. This is due to his temperament, which reflects a person’s tendency to express a certain reaction to various influences:

in the degree of emotionality of behavior;
impulsiveness or restraint;
sociability or isolation;
ease of adaptation in society.

Properties of temperaments

Speaking about such a concept as temperament, they mean a certain pace of human behavior, the energy of expressing one’s feelings and the actions caused by them. This is determined by the specific structure of his nervous system, which is laid down at birth. People's behavior is largely related to the properties of their temperament.

The main ones include:

sensitivity, reflecting the strength of external factors necessary for the appearance of a person’s mental response, as well as the speed of its manifestation;
reactivity, characterizing a reaction to external or internal influences one intensity, for example, a sharply spoken word, an unfair remark, etc.;
activity, indicating the vigor of a person’s influence on the external environment and overcoming emerging difficulties in achieving assigned tasks;
the ratio of reactivity and activity, which determines the predominance of a person’s behavior: from random internal or external circumstances (poor health, mood, etc.) or from his beliefs, general worldview, his goals, etc.;
plasticity, reflecting the ease of adaptation to events external changes;
rate of reactions, reflecting the speed of mental processes;
introversion and extraversion, which determines the connection of the reaction with internally created images and ideas based on past experience or the expected future, or with thoughts directed at external present events;
emotional excitability, reflecting the minimum necessary impact to obtain a response in the form of emotion and the speed of its occurrence.

What types of temperaments are there?

Taking into account the properties of temperament, it is divided into four different types: choleric, sanguine, melancholic and phlegmatic.

A choleric person is a person who vividly and emotionally experiences different states, but also quickly forgets them. This is a quick-tempered and easy-going person. He is active and energetic, and his experiences are particularly deep; feelings can change instantly.

In its sensuality, a sanguine person resembles a choleric person, but unlike him, he is not so harsh in his movements. Such people are sometimes called superficial because emotional experiences in them change quickly, leaving no trace in consciousness. Therefore, they are able to quickly forget both grievances and attachments. He gives the overall impression of a cheerful, impressionable person, always reacting to surrounding stimuli.

Melancholic - a person with a slow course of mental internal processes and slow movements. He, most often, has a gloomy or sad mood, is indecisive in actions and withdrawn in communication. Such a person has a hard time enduring failures, worrying inside, and always wavers in his actions.

A phlegmatic person, just like a melancholic person, is slow in actions, distinguished by measured speech and an imperturbable character, thanks to which he cannot be thrown out of balance. He thinks about every action for a long time before taking it. Such people are inveterate conservatives who are not accustomed to changing their work and usual living conditions.

Physiological basis of different characters

The scientist physiologist Pavlov explained the manifestation of a certain temperament by the specificity of the ongoing nervous processes. He identified several varieties of the nervous system, dividing them into types, which were based on the properties of the processes occurring within the nervous system.

They appear:

in the ability of brain cells to withstand exposure to stimuli of varying strengths and their overall performance;
in the balance of irritative and inhibitory processes;
in the ability to quickly change excitation to inhibition and vice versa.

The complex structure of the nervous system gives it the ability to combine properties, combining them in a certain order. Depending on the combination of properties, the nervous system can be classified as:

to the weak type;
strong balanced, as well as mobile or inert type;

People who have a weak type of system are not able to withstand strong stimuli. Under the influence of strong irritating factors, the appearance of conditioned reflex reactions is delayed.

People with a strong balanced type have mainly excitation reactions and a small amount of inhibitory manifestations.

The mobile, balanced type is characterized by a rapid succession of reactions of inhibition and irritation, which creates some instability of nerve connections.

The inert, balanced type is also strong, but the ongoing nervous processes are slowed down. Such people are distinguished by external calm and are not subject to excitement.

The type of activity of the nervous system is given to each person from birth. It is the basis of conditionally occurring reactions, which are expressed differently in all people. Temperament is precisely a manifestation of the type of human nervous system through the prism of ongoing connections.

Can a person change his temperament?

Psychological well-being, determined by the circumstances of life, is mainly associated with the type of personality temperament. But the external manifestation of a person’s condition largely depends on his upbringing, beliefs, attitude towards other people or current events. By mobilizing his energy, he is able to withstand prolonged mental stress, influence the speed of reactions and the overall pace of work.

For example, upbringing and will help a choleric person to be restrained and to switch thoughts to other events and tasks.

Replacing the weaknesses of your temperament with a system of volitional training, education and influence environment, a person can radically change its external manifestation. Under certain living conditions in which a person spends a long time, a choleric person can become inert and slow, while a melancholic person can become energetic and decisive. The true natural properties of temperament can only appear under unexpected strong influence or dangerous life situation, When external factors, with the help of which he changed earlier, loses its meaning.

Temperament is a set of typological characteristics of a person, manifested in the dynamics of his psychological processes: in the speed and strength of his reaction, in the emotional tone of his life. Temperament is a manifestation of an innate type in the human psyche nervous activity. Consequently, the properties of temperament include, first of all, the innate and individually unique properties of a person. The word “temperament” translated from Latin means “proper ratio of parts”; the Greek word “krasis”, equal in meaning to it, was introduced by the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates (5th-4th centuries BC). By temperament he understood both the anatomical, physiological, and individual psychological characteristics of a person.

Properties of temperament

For some people, mental activity proceeds evenly. Such people are always outwardly calm, balanced and even slow. They rarely laugh, their gaze is always stern and hungry. When finding themselves in difficult situations or funny situations, these people remain outwardly unperturbed. Their facial expressions and gestures are not varied and expressive, their speech is calm, their gait is firm. Other people psychological activity proceeds spasmodically. They are very active, restless and noisy. Their speech is impetuous and passionate, their movements are chaotic, their facial expressions are varied and rich. Often such people wave their arms and stomp their feet when talking. They are fussy and impatient. The properties of temperament are those natural properties that determine the dynamic side mental activity person. In other words, the nature of the course of mental activity depends on temperament, namely:

the speed of occurrence of mental processes and their stability (for example, speed of perception, speed of mind, duration of concentration);

mental rhythm and tempo;

the intensity of mental processes (for example, the strength of emotions, the activity of the will);

the focus of mental activity on some certain objects(For example, constant desire a person to contacts with new people, to new impressions of reality, or a person’s turning to himself, to his ideas and images).

Also, the dynamics of mental activity depend on motives and mental state. Any person, regardless of the characteristics of his temperament, works more energetically and faster in the presence of interest than in the absence of it. For any person, a joyful event causes an upsurge of spiritual and physical strength, and misfortune is their fall. On the contrary, the properties of temperament manifest themselves in the same way in the most diverse types of activity and for the most diverse purposes. For example, if a student is worried before taking a test, shows anxiety before teaching a lesson at school during teaching practice, or is anxiously awaiting the start of a sports competition, this means that high anxiety is a property of his temperament. Temperament properties are the most stable and constant compared to others mental characteristics person. Various properties of temperament are naturally interconnected, forming a specific organization, a structure that characterizes the type of temperament.

To compile the psychological characteristics of the traditional 4 types of temperament, the following basic properties of temperament are usually distinguished:

Sensitivity is determined by what is the least strength external influences necessary for any psychological reaction to occur.

Reactivity is characterized by the degree of involuntary reactions to external or internal influences of the same strength (a critical remark, an offensive word, a harsh tone - even sound).

Activity indicates how intensely (energetically) a person influences the outside world and overcomes obstacles in achieving goals (perseverance, focus, concentration).

The ratio of reactivity and activity determines what a person’s activity depends on to a greater extent: on random external or internal circumstances (moods, random events) or on goals, intentions, beliefs.

Plasticity and rigidity indicate how easily and flexibly a person adapts to external influences (plasticity) or how inert and skeletal his behavior is.

The pace of reactions characterizes the speed of various mental reactions and processes, the pace of speech, the dynamics of gestures, and the speed of the mind. Extraversion and introversion determine what a person’s reactions and activities primarily depend on - on external impressions arising in at the moment(extrovert), or from images, ideas and thoughts associated with the past and future (introvert). Emotional excitability characterized by how weak an impact is necessary for the occurrence of an emotional reaction and with what speed it occurs.

Characteristics and features of the main psychological types of temperament

Sanguine

A sanguine person quickly gets along with people, is cheerful, easily switches from one type of activity to another, but does not like monotonous work. He easily controls his emotions, quickly gets used to a new environment, and actively comes into contact with people. His speech is loud, fast, distinct and is accompanied by expressive facial expressions and gestures. But this temperament is characterized by some duality. If stimuli change quickly, novelty and interest of impressions are maintained all the time, a state of active excitement is created in a sanguine person and he manifests himself as an active, active, energetic person.

If the influences are long-lasting and monotonous, then they do not maintain a state of activity, excitement, and the sanguine person loses interest in the matter, he develops indifference, boredom, and lethargy. A sanguine person quickly develops feelings of joy, grief, affection and hostility, but all these manifestations of his feelings are unstable, do not differ in duration and depth. They arise quickly and can disappear just as quickly or even be replaced by the opposite. The mood of a sanguine person changes quickly, but, as a rule, a good mood prevails.

Choleric

People of this temperament are fast, overly mobile, unbalanced, excitable, everything mental processes They proceed quickly and intensely. The predominance of excitation over inhibition, characteristic of this type of nervous activity, is clearly manifested in the incontinence, impetuosity, hot temper, and irritability of the choleric person. Hence the expressive facial expressions, hasty speech, sharp gestures, unrestrained movements. The feelings of a person with choleric temperament are strong, usually clearly manifested, and arise quickly; the mood sometimes changes dramatically. The imbalance characteristic of a choleric person is clearly associated with his activities: he gets down to business with increasing intensity and even passion, showing impetuosity and speed of movements, working with enthusiasm, overcoming difficulties.

But in a person with a choleric temperament, the supply of nervous energy can quickly be depleted in the process of work, and then a sharp decline in activity can occur: elation and inspiration disappear, and the mood drops sharply. In communicating with people, a choleric person admits harshness, irritability, and emotional incontinence, which often does not give him the opportunity to objectively evaluate people’s actions, and on this basis he creates conflict situations in the team. Excessive straightforwardness, hot temper, harshness, and intolerance sometimes make it difficult and unpleasant to be in a group of such people.

Phlegmatic person

A person of this temperament is slow, calm, unhurried, and balanced. In his activities he demonstrates thoroughness, thoughtfulness, and perseverance. As a rule, he finishes what he starts. All mental processes in a phlegmatic person seem to proceed slowly. The feelings of a phlegmatic person are poorly expressed outwardly; they are usually inexpressive. The reason for this is the balance and weak mobility of nervous processes. In relationships with people, a phlegmatic person is always even, calm, moderately sociable, and his mood is stable.

The calmness of a person of phlegmatic temperament is also manifested in his attitude towards events and phenomena in the life of a phlegmatic person who is not easily enraged and emotionally hurt. It is easy for a person of phlegmatic temperament to develop self-control, composure, and calmness. But a phlegmatic person should develop the qualities he lacks - greater mobility, activity, and not allow him to show indifference to activity, lethargy, inertia, which can very easily form under certain conditions. Sometimes a person of this temperament may develop an indifferent attitude towards work, towards surrounding life, to people and even to yourself.

Melancholic

Melancholic people have slow mental processes, they have difficulty reacting to strong stimuli; prolonged and strong stress causes people of this temperament to slow down their activity, and then stop it. In work, melancholic people are usually passive, often have little interest (after all, interest is always associated with strong nervous tension). Feelings and emotional states in people of melancholic temperament arise slowly, but differ in depth, great strength and duration; melancholic people are easily vulnerable, they have a hard time withstanding insults and grief, although outwardly all these experiences are poorly expressed in them.

Representatives of a melancholic temperament are prone to isolation and loneliness, avoid communicating with unfamiliar, new people, are often embarrassed, and show great awkwardness in a new environment. Everything new and unusual causes melancholics to become inhibited. But in a familiar and calm environment, people with this temperament feel calm and work very productively. It is easy for melancholic people to develop and improve their characteristic depth and stability of feelings, increased susceptibility to external influences.

4 types of temperament

Temperament is individually unique properties of the psyche that reflect the dynamics of a person’s mental activity and manifest themselves regardless of its goals, motives and content. Temperament changes little throughout life, and, in fact, it is not even the temperament that changes, but the psyche, and the temperament is always stable. The magic of numbers in the Mediterranean civilization led to the doctrine of four temperaments, while in the East a five-component “world system” developed. The word “temperament” and the Greek word “krasis” (Greek hraots; “merging, mixing”), which is equal in meaning, were introduced by the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates. By temperament he understood both the anatomical, physiological, and individual psychological characteristics of a person. Hippocrates, and then Galen, explained temperament, as behavioral characteristics, by the predominance in the body of one of the “vital juices” (four elements):

the predominance of yellow bile (“bile, poison”) makes a person impulsive, “hot” - choleric;

the predominance of lymph (“phlegm”) makes a person calm and slow - phlegmatic;

the predominance of blood (“blood”) makes a person active and cheerful - a sanguine person;

the predominance of black bile (“black bile”) makes a person sad and fearful - melancholic.

This system still has a profound influence on literature, art and science.

A truly turning point in the history of the natural scientific study of temperaments was the teaching of I.P. Pavlova about the types of the nervous system (types of higher nervous activity) common to humans and higher mammals. I.P. Pavlov proved that physiological basis temperament is a type of higher nervous activity determined by the relationship between the basic properties of the nervous system: strength, balance and mobility of the processes of excitation and inhibition occurring in the nervous system. The type of nervous system is determined by the genotype, i.e. hereditary type. I.P. Pavlov identified four clearly defined types of the nervous system, i.e. certain complexes of basic properties of nervous processes.

The weak type is characterized by weakness of both excitatory and inhibitory processes - melancholic. The strong unbalanced type is characterized by a strong irritability process and relatively strong process inhibition - choleric, “uncontrollable” type. A strong, balanced, mobile type is a sanguine person, a “living” type. Strong, balanced, but with inert nervous processes - phlegmatic, “calm” type.

Strength - ability nerve cells maintain normal performance under significant stress in the processes of excitation and inhibition, the ability of the central nervous system to perform certain work without the need to restore its resources. A strong nervous system is able to withstand a heavy load for a long time and, conversely, a weak nervous system cannot withstand a large and long-term load. It is believed that people with a stronger nervous system are more resilient and more resistant to stress. The power of the nervous system to excite is manifested in the fact that it is relatively easy for a person to work in unfavorable conditions, a short rest is enough for him to recuperate after tiring work, he is able to work intensively, does not get lost in an unusual environment, and is persistent. The power of the nervous system to inhibit is manifested in a person’s ability to restrain his activity, for example, not to talk, to show calmness, self-control, to be restrained and patient.

The balance of nervous processes reflects the ratio, balance of excitation and inhibition. In this case, balance means the same expression of nervous processes. The mobility of the nervous system is expressed in the ability to quickly move from one process to another, from one activity to another. Persons with a more mobile nervous system are characterized by flexible behavior and adapt more quickly to new conditions. Describing the characteristics of different temperaments can help to understand the traits of a person’s temperament if they are clearly expressed, but people with clearly expressed traits of a certain temperament are not very common; most often people have mixed temperament in various combinations. Although, of course, the predominance of traits of a particular type of temperament makes it possible to classify a person’s temperament as one or another type.

So, temperament should be understood as individually unique properties of the psyche that determine the dynamics of a person’s mental activity, which are equally manifested in various activities regardless of its content, goals, motives, remain constant in adulthood and in their mutual connection characterize the type of temperament. Specific manifestations of the type of temperament are diverse. They are not only noticeable in the external behavior, but seem to permeate all aspects of the psyche, significantly manifesting themselves in cognitive activity, the sphere of feelings, motives and actions of a person, as well as in the nature of mental work, speech characteristics, etc.

Currently, science has enough facts to give a complete psychological description of all types of temperament according to a certain harmonious program. However, to compile the psychological characteristics of the traditional 4 types, the following basic properties of temperament are usually distinguished:

Sensitivity is determined by what is the smallest force of external influences necessary for the occurrence of any mental reaction in a person, and what is the speed of occurrence of this reaction.

Reactivity characterized by the degree of involuntary reactions to external or internal influences of equal strength (a critical remark, an offensive word, a harsh tone - even sound).

Activism indicates how intensely (energetically) a person influences the outside world and overcomes obstacles in achieving goals (perseverance, focus, concentration).

Plasticity and rigidity indicate how easily and flexibly a person adapts to external influences (plasticity) or how inert and inert his behavior is.

The pace of reactions characterizes the speed of various mental reactions and processes, the pace of speech, the dynamics of gestures, and the speed of the mind.

Extraversion and introversion determine what a person’s reactions and activities primarily depend on - on external impressions arising at the moment (extrovert), or on images, ideas and thoughts associated with the past and future (introvert).

Emotional excitability is characterized by how weak an impact is necessary for the occurrence of an emotional reaction and at what speed it occurs.

Taking into account all the listed properties, J. Strelyau gives the following psychological characteristics of the main classical types of temperament:

Sanguine. A person with increased reactivity, but at the same time his activity and reactivity are balanced. He responds vividly, excitedly to everything that attracts his attention, has lively facial expressions and expressive movements. He laughs loudly for a minor reason, but an insignificant fact can make him very angry. From his face it is easy to guess his mood, attitude towards an object or person. He has a high sensitivity threshold, so he does not notice very weak sounds and light stimuli. Possessing increased activity and being very energetic and efficient, he actively takes on new work and can work for a long time without getting tired. He is able to concentrate quickly, is disciplined, and, if desired, can restrain the manifestation of his feelings and involuntary reactions. He is characterized by quick movements, flexibility of mind, resourcefulness, fast pace of speech, quick inclusion in new job. High plasticity is manifested in the variability of feelings, moods, interests and aspirations. A sanguine person easily gets along with new people and quickly gets used to new requirements and surroundings. Without effort, he not only switches from one job to another, but also relearns, mastering new skills. As a rule, he responds to a greater extent to external impressions than to subjective images and ideas about the past and future, an extrovert.

Choleric. Like a sanguine person, he is characterized by low sensitivity, high reactivity and activity. But in a choleric person, reactivity clearly prevails over activity, so he is unbridled, unrestrained, impatient, and quick-tempered. He is less plastic and more inert than a sanguine person. Hence - greater stability of aspirations and interests, greater perseverance, difficulties in switching attention are possible, he is more of an extrovert.

Phlegmatic person has high activity, significantly prevailing over low reactivity, low sensitivity and emotionality. It is difficult to make him laugh and sadden - when people laugh loudly around him, he can remain calm. In big troubles he remains calm. Usually he has poor facial expressions, his movements are inexpressive and slow, just like his speech. He is unresourceful, has difficulty switching attention and adapting to a new environment, and slowly rebuilds skills and habits. At the same time, he is energetic and efficient. Characterized by patience, endurance, self-control. As a rule, he has difficulty meeting new people, responds poorly to external impressions, and is an introvert.

Melancholic. A person with high sensitivity and low reactivity. Increased sensitivity with great inertia leads to the fact that an insignificant reason can cause him to cry, he is overly touchy, painfully sensitive. His facial expressions and movements are inexpressive, his voice is quiet, his movements are poor. Usually he is unsure of himself, timid, the slightest difficulty makes him give up. A melancholic person is not energetic, unstable, gets tired easily and is not very productive. It is characterized by easily distracted and unstable attention and a slow pace of all mental processes. Most melancholic people are introverts.

Temperament and activity

The dynamic traits of a person’s personality appear not only in the external manner of behavior, not only in movements - they also appear in the mental sphere, in the sphere of motivation, in general performance. Naturally, the characteristics of temperament affect educational activities and work activities. But the main thing is that differences in temperament are differences not in the level of mental capabilities, but in the originality of its manifestations.

It has been established that there is no relationship between the level of achievement, i.e. the end result of actions, and characteristics of temperament, if the activity takes place under conditions that can be defined as normal. Thus, regardless of the degree of mobility or reactivity of an individual in a normal, non-stressful situation, the results of performance will in principle be the same, since the level of achievement will depend mainly on other factors, especially the level of motivation and ability. At the same time, studies establishing this pattern show that depending on the characteristics of temperament, the way of carrying out the activity itself changes.

B.M. Teplov also drew attention to the fact that, depending on the characteristics of their temperament, people differ not in the final result of their actions, but in the way they achieve results. Developing this idea, a number of domestic researchers conducted studies to establish the relationship between the method of performing actions and the characteristics of temperament. These studies examined individual performance style as a path to achieving results or a way of solving a certain problem, determined mainly by the type of nervous system. The results of studies by the vast majority of authors, regardless of the characteristics of the groups studied and the experimental situations in which the typical way of performing actions for these individuals was studied, show that it is the type of nervous activity, and above all the strength and mobility of nervous processes, that has a significant impact on the formation of a certain style activities.

Innate characteristics of temperament are manifested in a person in such mental processes that depend on upbringing, social environment and the ability to control one’s reactions. Therefore, according to R.M. Granovskaya, a specific reaction to a situation can be determined both by the influence of characteristic differences in the nervous system and as a result of training and professional experience. For example, a high reaction speed in an experienced driver, pilot, or boxer is not necessarily a natural property of their nervous system; it can also be achieved as a result of training and education. However, the limits of the possible development of reaction speed are determined by the innate properties of the nervous system.

Professional selection helps to select applicants with the most suitable psychophysiological qualities for a given specialty, since some of the qualities required by some professions are difficult to train and are limited by the properties of temperament. For example, it is known that an underdeveloped sense of time or a low speed of motor reaction can be developed through individual training only within certain limits. For the purpose of professional selection, tests have been developed to assess the characteristics of attention, the accuracy of time estimation, the speed of motor reaction, etc. in relation to various specialties. Not only professional selection is important, but also career guidance, i.e. the choice by each person of a work activity that would correspond not only to his interests, but also to his individual characteristics and capabilities. Research shows that individuals who have undergone professional specialization taking into account their psychophysiological characteristics experience great satisfaction from their work, which has the most favorable effect on their productivity.

A person's work productivity is closely related to the characteristics of his temperament. Thus, the special mobility (reactivity) of a sanguine person can bring an additional effect if the work requires a change in objects of communication, type of occupation, or frequent transition from one rhythm of life to another. A false impression may be created that inert people (phlegmatic people) do not have advantages in any type of activity, but this is not true: it is they who carry out slow and smooth movements especially easily, they show a preference for stereotypical methods of action, punctually observing the once accepted order. People with a weak nervous system - melancholic people - are more motivated to perform simpler actions than others, they are less tired and irritated from their repetition. It has been experimentally shown that sanguine and choleric people show less resistance and reduced productivity in situations where conditions and methods of activity are strictly regulated and do not allow the inclusion of individual techniques.

In order to optimize training and education, it is important for a teacher to take into account the possible type of temperament of his students in his activities. Here is the advice R.M. Granovskaya gives: it is useful to control the activities of a choleric person as often as possible; when working with him, harshness and lack of restraint are unacceptable, as they can cause negative response. At the same time, any of his actions must be demanding; and fairly priced. At the same time, negative assessments are necessary only in a very vigorous form and as often as necessary to improve the results of his work or study. A sanguine person should be constantly given new, possibly interesting tasks that require concentration and tension from him. It is necessary to constantly include him in active activities and systematically encourage his efforts.

A phlegmatic person needs to be involved in active activities and interested. It requires systematic attention. It cannot be quickly switched from one task to another. In relation to a melancholic person, not only harshness and rudeness are unacceptable, but also simply a raised tone and irony. It is better to talk to him alone about the offense committed by a melancholic person. He requires special attention; he should be praised in time for his demonstrated success, determination and will. Negative assessment should be used as carefully as possible, mitigating its negative effect in every possible way. Melancholic is the most sensitive and vulnerable type. You have to be extremely soft and friendly with him.

Thus, the way a person implements his actions depends on temperament, but their content does not depend on it. Temperament manifests itself in the peculiarities of the course of mental processes, affecting the speed of recollection and the strength of memorization, the fluency of mental operations, the stability and switchability of attention.

CHARACTER

In psychology, the concept character(from the Greek charakter - “seal”, “minting”), means a set of stable individual characteristics of a person that develop and manifest themselves in activity and communication, determining typical modes of behavior for it.

When determining the character of a person, they do not say that such and such a person showed courage, truthfulness, frankness, that this person is courageous, truthful, frank, i.e. named qualities - properties this person, traits of his character that may appear under appropriate circumstances. Knowing a person’s character makes it possible, with a significant degree of probability, to anticipate and thereby correct expected actions and actions. They often say about a person with character: “He had to do exactly this, he could not have acted this way, he could not have acted differently - that’s his character.”

However, not all human features can be considered characteristic, but only significant and stable ones. If a person, for example, is not polite enough in a stressful situation, this does not mean that rudeness and intemperance are a property of his character. Sometimes even very cheerful people can feel sad, but this will not make them whiners and pessimists.

Acting as a person’s lifetime education, character is determined and formed throughout a person’s life. The way of life includes the way of thoughts, feelings, motives, actions in their unity. Therefore, as a certain way of life of a person is formed, the person himself is formed. A big role here is played by social conditions and specific life circumstances in which a person’s life path takes place, based on his natural properties and as a result of his actions and actions. However, the actual formation of character occurs in groups of different levels of development (family, friendly company, class, sports team, work team, etc.). Depending on which group is the reference group for the individual and what values it supports and cultivates in its environment, the corresponding character traits will develop in its members. Character traits will also depend on the individual’s position in the group, on how he integrates into it. In a team as a group of a high level of development, the most favorable opportunities are created for the development of the best character traits. This process is mutual, and thanks to the development of the individual, the team itself develops.

The content of character, reflecting social influences, constitutes the life orientation of the individual, i.e. her material and spiritual needs, interests, beliefs, ideals, etc. The orientation of the individual determines the goals, life plan of a person, and the degree of his life activity. The character of a person presupposes the presence of something significant for him in the world, in life, something on which the motives of his actions, the goals of his actions, the tasks that he sets for himself depend.

Crucial to understanding character is the relationship between what is socially and personally significant for a person. Every society has its own most important and essential tasks. It is on them that the character of people is formed and tested. Therefore, the concept of “character” refers to a greater extent to the relationship of these objectively existing tasks. Therefore, character is not just any manifestation of firmness, perseverance, etc. (formal persistence may simply be stubbornness), but a focus on socially significant activities. It is the orientation of the individual that underlies unity, integrity, and strength of character. Possessing goals in life is the main condition for the formation of character. A spineless person is characterized by the absence or scattering of goals. However, the character and orientation of a person are not the same thing. Both a decent, highly moral person and a person with low, unscrupulous thoughts can be good-natured and cheerful. The orientation of the individual leaves an imprint on all human behavior. And although behavior is determined not by one impulse, but by an integral system of relationships, in this system something always comes to the fore, dominating it, giving a person’s character a unique flavor.

In a formed character, the leading component is a belief system. Conviction determines the long-term direction of a person’s behavior, his inflexibility in achieving his goals, confidence in the justice and importance of the work he is doing. Character traits are closely related to a person’s interests, provided that these interests are stable and deep. Superficiality and instability of interests are often associated with great imitation, with a lack of independence and integrity of a person’s personality. And, conversely, the depth and content of interests indicate the purposefulness and perseverance of the individual. Similarity of interests does not imply similar character traits. Thus, among rationalizers one can find cheerful and sad people, modest and obsessive people, egoists and altruists.

A person’s attachments and interests related to his leisure time can also be indicative of understanding character. They reveal new features, facets of character: for example, L.N. Tolstoy was fond of playing chess, I.P. Pavlov - small towns, D.I. Mendeleev - reading adventure novels. Whether a person’s spiritual and material needs and interests dominate is determined not only by the thoughts and feelings of the individual, but also by the direction of his activity. No less important is the correspondence of a person’s actions to the goals set, since a person is characterized not only by what he does, but also by how he does it. Character can only be understood as a certain unity of direction and course of action.

People with similar orientations can take completely different paths to achieving goals, using their own special techniques and methods to achieve this. This dissimilarity also determines the specific character of the individual. Character traits, having a certain motivating force, are clearly manifested in the situation of choosing actions or methods of behavior. From this point of view, the degree of expression of an individual's achievement motivation - his need to achieve success - can be considered as a character trait. Depending on this, some people are characterized by a choice of actions that ensure success (showing initiative, competitive activity, risk-taking, etc.), while others are more likely to simply avoid failures (deviation from risk and responsibility, avoidance manifestations of activity, initiative, etc.).

Teaching about character - characterology has a long history of development. The most important problems of characterology for centuries have been the establishment of character types and their definition by their manifestations in order to predict human behavior in various situations. Since character is the lifetime formation of a personality, most of its existing classifications are based on grounds that are external, indirect factors in personality development.

One of the most ancient attempts to predict human behavior is to explain his character by his date of birth. Various ways of predicting the fate and character of a person are called horoscopes. Practically, all horoscopes are compiled in the same way: the generally accepted time period is divided into certain intervals, each of which is assigned a specific sign or symbol. A description of a person’s character is given through the prism of the various properties of this symbol. However, the characters of people born at the same time turn out to be different according to different horoscopes. So, for example, in accordance with the horoscope of the Druids, who connect human characters with trees, a person born between December 22 and January 1 is an apple tree. According to the horoscope, the apple tree is rarely tall, there is a lot of cuteness in it, a lot of charm, and warmth. Inspires the idea of love, even when she herself doesn’t think about it. By astrological signs The zodiac sign of a person born between December 22 and January 20 is Capricorn. According to this horoscope, this suggests a stubborn character, the most persistent, hardy, hidden, secretly proud. Lives in reality, overcoming troubles and obstacles. Eastern horoscopes establish 12-year cycles, each of which passes under the sign of an animal. A person born in a certain year receives a number of innate properties, according to which his character is formed. However, comparing the characteristics of similar animals in Japanese or, say, Chinese horoscopes also varies significantly.

No less popular are attempts to connect a person’s character with his name. Recently, this branch of characterology has received a new impetus for development. Theorists of this direction believe that the determining influence of a person’s name on his character is caused by the following factors. On the one side, maximum speed growth of muscle tissue in a child is observed in the first months of life, on the other hand, at the same time the most frequent range of sounds that the child observes is his given name. The baby does not imitate heard sounds, but imitates voiced facial expressions. As a result, the child’s nerve impulses are reflexively excited in precisely those muscle groups - facial, articulatory and respiratory - that are involved in pronouncing the name. Metabolism in the muscles where the impulse occurs accelerates against the backdrop of already rapid growth. In the end, these small, but noticeable in their influence on the structure of the facial muscles, facial muscles will be accentuatedly developed. This is why people with the same names look alike. The character of Antonov is formed in a similar way - contradictory, stubborn, persistent; Vladimirov's is thinner and more solid; Boris, on the other hand, is prone to leadership, proud, balanced, but not without ardor, etc.

A significant influence on the development of characterology was exerted by physiognomy (from the Greek physis - “nature”, gnomon - “knowing”) - the doctrine of the connection between the external appearance of a person and his belonging to a certain type of personality, thanks to which the psychological characteristics of this person can be established by external signs type. Aristotle and Plato already proposed to determine a person’s character by looking for similarities in his appearance with some animal, and then identifying his character, as in the eastern horoscope, with the character of this animal. So, according to Aristotle, a thick nose like a bull’s meant laziness, a wide nose with large nostrils like a pig’s - stupidity, a nose like a lion’s - importance, thin hair like the wool of goats, sheep and hares - timidity, coarse hair, like lions and boars - courage.

The most famous was the physiognomic system of Johann Kasper Lavater, who considered the main way to understand human character to be the study of the structure of the head, the configuration of the skull, facial expressions, etc. Thus, according to Lavater, Goethe’s genius is most evidenced by his nose, which “marks productivity, taste and love - in a word, poetry.”

When determining a person’s character, physiognomists used a variety of characteristics as defining characteristics. So, in addition to the nose, attention was paid to the person’s mouth. Lavater in his “physiognomy” wrote: “Everything that human nature contains is put into his mouth. Both in their calm state and in the endless variety of their movements, they contain a whole world of characters. They are the main residence of reason and madness, strength and weakness, virtue and vice, the delicacy of human rudeness, they are the residence of love and hatred, sincerity and hypocrisy, humility and pride, truth and lies.” And Delestre noted that the degree of pursing of the lips is directly proportional to the strength of character; relaxed lips are a sign of possessing “feminine” character traits (gentleness, courtesy), and the more, the more pronounced (in a stupid person, for example, the mouth is generally open). This was explained by the fact that even when a person laughs, a certain mask reflexively appears on his face, correspondingly associated with character. A smile can be complacent, sweet, happy, bright, cold, mocking, meek, stupid, etc. A person’s characteristic attitudes are manifested not only in the facial expressions of his mouth, but also in his speech. A person’s character is revealed both in the content of speech, i.e. in what a given person mainly talks about, and in the form of speech, in the way he speaks. Great writers often emphasized the character of the heroes of their works through their speech. Prostakova’s shout: “Lie down!” Oh, she's a beast! Lying down! As if she were noble!..” - testifies to the heartlessness, rudeness, and cruelty of the “noble” noblewoman towards her devoted Eremeevna.

However, the most important indicator of character was a person’s eyes. Even the ancients said: “The eyes are the mirror of the soul.” Aristotle pointed out that large, good-natured, but bulging eyes are a sign of stupidity. L.N. Tolstoy distinguished, for example, cunning eyes, radiant, bright eyes, sad, cold, lifeless. He wrote: “There are people whose only eyes laugh - these are cunning and selfish people. There are people whose mouth laughs without eyes - these are weak, indecisive people, and both of these laughter are unpleasant.”

Currently, they are trying to provide scientific evidence for these purely fictional facts. American psychologists J. Glaive and E. Clery, after a five-year study of the character traits of approximately 10 thousand children, proved that children with dark eyes have more life, initiative and a more restless character than children with light eyes. In adults, some deviations are possible. The authors claim that people with dark blue eyes are very assertive, but tend to be sentimental. They are easily moody, remember grievances for a long time, are capricious, and sometimes their actions are unpredictable. People with dark gray eyes - stubborn and courageous, they are persistent and achieve their goal, despite various difficulties. They can be quick-tempered and vindictive. Jealous, mostly monogamous. Those who have dark brown eyes are cheerful, witty, quick-tempered, but easy-going. They are amorous, but not very constant. As a rule, they are sociable, love humor, and get along with people easily. They often act rashly, after which they are tormented by remorse. Owners of light brown eyes are shy, prone to solitude, dreamy, and have a hard time bearing the insult inflicted on them. They are hardworking, diligent, you can rely on them - they will not let you down. Blue eyes indicate romantic inclinations, but at the same time, selfishness and conceit. Blue-eyed people easily give in to impulses, but quickly cool down. Their undoubtedly positive feature is truthfulness. As for people with green and gray-green eyes, as J. Glaive and E. Clery assure, in most cases they have a strong will, are decisive and strictly follow their goal. They are characterized by consistency. They can be tough and intractable.

As a separate area of characterology, one can distinguish the determination of the individual characteristics of a person by his posture and body position. According to some psychologists, character is most clearly revealed in a person’s posture: how he stands, how he walks, how he sits, and even in what position he falls asleep. In ordinary consciousness, for example, there is an opinion that arrogant people more often tilt their body back, stick out their chest, throwing their head back. The sycophant leans forward with an ingratiating gaze, although there is a barely noticeable sly laugh in the corners of his eyes, and a wide, obsequious smile on his face.

And here is how women are characterized by the position in which they sit on a chair, modern characterologies. If a woman prefers to sit on the edge of a chair with her knees clenched, then she is very active, cheerful, and restless. Constantly grabs onto everything without finishing what he starts. They are too impatient, but they involve in any undertaking even those who do not like this or that work. Their whole day passes in troubles, but there is no end in sight for them in the following days. A criss-cross position at the knees, legs extended forward, and hands resting on the knees - the type of selfish, self-righteous, narcissistic women. She tries to attract attention to herself at any cost and strives to show herself smarter than others in all matters. If she fails, she becomes aggressive or retires to a dark corner. Too curious. Legs stretched forward, one slightly in front of the other, “speak” of an unstable, uncooperative character. These women believe that they know everything, and only in exceptional cases admit their mistakes. Their persistence in convincing their interlocutor that they are right quickly becomes boring. Despite this, their arguments are often irresistible, and in many issues logic is on their side.

Palmistry has no less famous and rich history than the physiognomic direction in characterology. Palmistry (from the Greek cheir - “hand” and manteia - “fortune telling”, “prophecy”) is a system for predicting a person’s character traits and his fate based on the skin texture of the palms. Palmistry has been known since ancient times, but its greatest flourishing occurred in the 16th-18th centuries, when many universities in Europe had departments of palmistry. In its origins, palmistry is closely related to astrology, since the main signs of the hand that are taken into account are the “7 hills” on the palm, called by the names of the Sun and planets: Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury, Mars and the Moon.

Until recently, scientific psychology invariably rejected palmistry, but the study of the embryonic development of finger patterns in connection with heredity gave impetus to the emergence of a new branch of knowledge - dermatoglyphics. In particular, it was shown that the formation of the pattern of the palms of each person, as well as the development of the brain, occurs at 3-4 months intrauterine development and is caused by the same influence of the gene set of the parents or chromosomal abnormalities of the fetus. Therefore, palmistry should be considered rather as an anatomical or physiological feature of the body, and it can be put on a par with the constitutional direction of characterology, of which E. Kretschmer was a prominent representative. Kretschmer considered character in connection with the structure of the body as the mental constitution of a person corresponding to his bodily constitution, and explained character, ultimately, by innate, primarily endocrine factors.

However, at present, neither anthropology, nor anatomy, nor psychology has any reliable data that a person’s character depends on the structure of the body, facial configuration, eye color, etc. Does it follow from this that determining a person’s character based on studying his appearance is impossible? It probably makes sense to recall the statement of Charles Darwin that it is essential for a physiognomist to know that “... each individual primarily contracts only certain muscles of the face, following his personal inclinations. These muscles may be more developed, and therefore the lines and wrinkles of the face formed by their habitual contraction may become deeper and more visible.” The connection between a person’s appearance and his character is clearly visible in literary works, and in the depiction of the great masters of portraiture. However, scientific psychology proceeds from the position that the relationship between a person’s habitual facial expression and his character is not unambiguous. This or that facial expression, folds, wrinkles can have a variety of causes. And here one cannot but agree with A.V. Petrovsky that the reason for a slightly open mouth can be not only a person’s stupidity, but also deafness, a sore nasopharynx, and intense attention.

The most vivid, clear idea of a person’s character can be obtained by knowing the specifics of his actions, behavior, and activities. Movements and actions, the implementation of which becomes a need under certain conditions, are known as habits. Here it is appropriate to recall the Eastern proverb: “Sow an action and you will reap a habit, sow a habit and you will reap a character, sow a character and you will reap a destiny.” The emphasis in it is on the habitual actions of a person, which, when repeated, become character traits, making up his being, influencing a person’s position in public life and the attitude towards him from other people. This was also pointed out by Andre and Gaston Durville, according to whom, expression is a gesture consolidated by long repetition. The idea and its external image are closely related. That is why the movements of musicians are beautiful and harmonious, but weak-minded people are usually awkward in their movements. Fearful people, as the Durvilles believe, betray themselves with discordant gestures. This is caused by “the irrational fears that rush through their minds. Their eyebrows, foreheads, lips, arms, legs also gesticulate randomly. If they want to say something, they cannot because of their stuttering. It is common for them to break a chair, sit on someone’s hat, spill tea, etc.”

In this regard, graphology can be considered more valuable in diagnostic terms compared to, say, physiognomy - a science that considers handwriting as a type of expressive movements that reflect the psychological properties of the writer. Graphological information, accumulated over centuries, established a connection between two series of facts - features of handwriting and character. Some connections were quite obvious: “The eccentric (original) writes in a unique way, so it’s easy to recognize him.” Others are not so clear: “A strong slope expresses great impressionability.”

In those days when writing was a professional art - calligraphy, it seemed obvious that writing was connected not only with the technique, skills and abilities of the author, but also with his spiritual and moral character. The calligrapher was presented with the most severe demands of asceticism, because for pure writing a person was needed, endowed with enormous self-control, with a rigid internal organization, in order to completely master the handwriting, so that nothing superfluous would penetrate from the psyche into the letter, nothing distorting the form. At present, unambiguous connections between the graphic features of writing and the supposedly corresponding character traits have not been confirmed. The dependence of handwriting on the emotional state and some typological properties of higher nervous activity has been most reliably established. Specific features of handwriting are used to diagnose certain mental illnesses. For example, the handwriting of patients with schizophrenia is often pretentious and deliberately stylized.

Even N.A. Bernstein noted that what distinguishes the mechanics of the movement of a living organism most of all from the movement of a machine is the “redundancy of the degree of freedom.” The same action can be performed in many ways, so in each action it is possible to identify something that can be associated with the personal meaning of this action. Thanks to this, writers can convey the character of their hero very accurately. So, for example, M. Yuler-montov wrote in the story “A Hero of Our Time”: “His gait was careless, lazy, but I noticed that he did not wave his arms - a sure sign of some secrecy.”

The most objective and irrefutable data about a person’s character is provided not by his passport data, not by his external appearance, not by his involuntary actions, but by his conscious behavior. It is by the choice of possible actions that a person chooses in a given situation that his character is assessed. Human character is quite multifaceted. This can be seen already in the process of activity: one does everything quickly, the other - slowly and thoroughly, thinks carefully, acting for sure, and the third immediately gets to work without thinking, and only after a certain period of time, without solving the problem at once, looks around and coordinates its actions taking into account the circumstances. These features identified in human behavior are called traits, or aspects, of character. Any trait is some stable stereotype of behavior.

However, character traits cannot be extracted from the typical situations in which they appear, and, as noted above, in some situations even a polite person can be rude. Therefore, any character trait is a stable form of behavior in connection with specific situations typical for a given type of behavior.

According to Yu.M. Orlov, along with situations in which a certain human trait is revealed, its essential characteristic is the probability that this type behavior in this situation will take place. A trait can be spoken of as a stable characteristic of a person if the probability of its manifestation in a certain situation is quite high. However, probability means that this trait does not always appear, otherwise it would simply be a matter of mechanical behavior. This understanding of character traits is very similar to the manifestation of a person’s habit: under certain conditions, to act in a certain way. A trait such as altruism can manifest itself in the habit of providing help to everyone who needs it. A habit cannot always become a character trait, it is only a predisposition to act accordingly. A character trait includes a certain way of thinking and understanding. When performing a characteristic act, volitional mechanisms are included, and feelings are involved. Habit does not include these components. At the same time, by conditioning a person’s behavior, character traits are formed in behavior. To become an altruist, you must constantly help people, although the first altruistic act could be caused by a random impulse. The formation of character traits cannot be separated from the formation of behavioral motives. Motives of behavior, realized in action, consolidated in it, are fixed in character. Every effective motive; which acquires stability, according to S.L. Rubinstein, is potentially a future character trait in its genesis. In motives, character traits first appear in the form of tendencies; action then leads them into stable properties. The path to the formation of character traits therefore lies through the formation of appropriate motives of behavior and the organization of actions aimed at consolidating them.

The most common character properties are located along the axes: strength - weakness; hardness - softness; integrity - inconsistency; breadth - narrowness. If strength of character is understood as the energy with which a person pursues his goals, his ability to become passionately carried away and develop great tension when encountering difficulties, the ability to overcome them, then weakness of character is associated with the manifestation of cowardice, indecision, “asthenicity” in achieving a goal, instability of views, cowardice, etc. Strength of character means strict consistency, perseverance in achieving goals, defending views, etc., while softness of character is manifested in flexible adaptation to changing conditions, achieving goals through some concessions, and finding reasonable compromises. The integrity or inconsistency of character is determined by the degree of combination of leading and secondary character traits. If the leading and secondary traits are in harmony, if there are no contradictions in aspirations and interests, then such a character is called integral, but if they sharply contrast, then it is contradictory. When they want to highlight a property that indicates the versatility of a person’s aspirations and hobbies, the variety of his activities, they talk about the breadth or completeness of character. About such a person we can say that nothing human is alien to them. As a rule, these are expansive people who are always able to give of themselves with great spiritual generosity in such a way that they do not lose, but are enriched by becoming familiar with ever new spiritual content. In contrast, people with a “narrow” character are prone to self-restraint, narrowing the scope of their interests, claims, and activities.

At the same time, unity and versatility of character do not exclude the fact that in different situations the same person exhibits different and even opposite properties. A person can be both very gentle and very demanding, soft and compliant and at the same time firm to the point of inflexibility. And the unity of his character can not only be preserved, despite this, but it is precisely in this that it can be manifested.

Character is often compared with temperament, and in some cases these concepts are replaced with each other. In science, among the dominant views on the relationship between character and temperament, four main ones can be distinguished:

Identification of character and temperament (E. Kretschmer, A. Ruzhitsky);

Contrasting character and temperament, emphasizing the antagonism between them (P. Viktorov, V. Virenius);

Recognition of temperament as an element of character, its core, an unchanging part (S.L. Rubinstein, S. Gorodetsky);

Recognition of temperament as the natural basis of character (L.S. Vygotsky, B. Gananiev).

Based on the materialistic understanding of human phenomena, it should be noted that what character and temperament have in common is dependence on the physiological characteristics of a person, and above all on the type of nervous system. The formation of character significantly depends on the properties of temperament, which is more closely related to the properties of the nervous system. In addition, character traits arise when temperament is already sufficiently developed. Character develops on the basis of temperament. Temperament determines such traits in character as balance or unbalance of behavior, ease or difficulty of entering a new situation, mobility or inertia of reaction, etc. However, temperament does not determine character. People with the same temperamental properties can have completely different characters. Features of temperament can promote or counteract the formation of certain character traits. Thus, it is more difficult for a melancholic person to develop courage and determination than for a choleric person. It is more difficult for a choleric person to develop restraint than for a phlegmatic person; a phlegmatic person needs to spend more effort to become sociable than a sanguine person, etc.

However, according to B.G. Ananyev, if education consisted only in improving and strengthening natural properties, this would lead to a monstrous uniformity of development. The specialization of education, for example, of a melancholic person, could only lead to the fact that he would turn into a hypermelancholic person, into a mimosa-like creature. Cultivating the properties of a phlegmatic person could be a consequence of creating a difficult style of mental activity, lack of flexibility, etc. This does not happen, because as the personality develops and the influence of the social environment increases, the relationship between character and temperament changes. By mastering his needs, feelings, and thoughts on the basis of the development of character and will, a person begins to influence the manifestation of his temperament and transform it. Probably, I.P. Pavlov had this in mind when he distinguished active phlegmatic people from lazy phlegmatic people.

The properties of temperament may, to some extent, even come into conflict with character. In P.I. Tchaikovsky, the tendency to melancholic experiences was overcome by one of the main features of his character - his ability to work. “You always need to work,” he said, “and every honest artist cannot sit with folded hands under the pretext that he is not in the mood. If you wait for favor and do not try to meet it halfway, you can easily fall into laziness and apathy. Dislikes very rarely happen to me. I attribute this to the fact that I am gifted with patience, and I train myself never to give in to reluctance. I learned to conquer myself."

In a person with a formed character, temperament ceases to be an independent form of personality manifestation, but becomes its dynamic side, consisting in a certain emotional orientation of character properties, a certain speed of mental processes and personality manifestations, a certain characteristic of expressive movements and actions of the individual. Here it should be noted the influence exerted on the formation of character by a dynamic stereotype, i.e. a system of conditioned reflexes that form in response to a steadily repeating system of stimuli. The formation of dynamic stereotypes in a person in various repeated situations is influenced by his attitude to the situation, as a result of which excitation, inhibition, mobility of nervous processes, and, consequently, the general functional state of the nervous system can change. It is also necessary to note the decisive role in the formation of dynamic stereotypes of the second signaling system, through which social influences are carried out.

Ultimately, the traits of temperament and character are organically connected and interact with each other in a single holistic appearance of a person, forming an inseparable alloy - an integral characteristic of his individuality.

Character has long been identified with the will of a person, the expression “a person of character” was considered as a synonym for the expression “a strong-willed person.” Will is associated primarily with strength of character, its firmness, determination, and perseverance. When they say that a person has a strong character, they seem to want to emphasize his determination, his strong-willed qualities. In this sense, a person’s character is best manifested in overcoming difficulties, in struggle, i.e. in those conditions where human will is most manifested. But character is not exhausted by force; it has content that guides it, determining how in different conditions the will will function. On the one hand, character is formed in volitional actions and is manifested in them: volitional actions in situations that are significant for the individual pass into a person’s character, becoming fixed in him as his relatively stable properties; these properties, in turn, determine human behavior and his volitional actions. The strong-willed character is distinguished by certainty, constancy and independence, firmness in achieving the intended goal. On the other hand, there are often cases when a weak-willed person was called “spineless.” From a psychological point of view, this is not entirely true - and a weak-willed person has certain character traits, such as, for example, timidity, indecisiveness, etc. The use of the concept “characterless” means the unpredictability of a person’s behavior, indicates that he lacks his own direction, an internal core that would determine his behavior. His actions are caused by external influences and do not depend on himself.

The originality of character is also reflected in the peculiarities of the flow of a person’s feelings. K.D. Ushinsky pointed out this: “Nothing, neither words, nor thoughts, nor even our actions express ourselves and our attitude to the world so clearly and truly as our feelings: in them one can hear the character of not a separate thought, not a separate decisions, but the entire content of our soul and its structure.” The connection between feelings and character traits of a person is also reciprocal. On the one hand, the level of development of moral, aesthetic, and intellectual feelings depends on the nature of a person’s activity and communication and on the character traits formed on this basis. On the other hand, these feelings themselves become characteristic, stable personality traits, thus constituting a person’s character. The level of development of a sense of duty, a sense of humor and other complex feelings is a rather indicative characteristic of a person.

The relationship between a person’s intellectual traits is especially important for characterological manifestations. The depth and sharpness of thought, the unusual way of posing a question and its solution, intellectual initiative, confidence and independence of thinking - all this constitutes the originality of the mind as one of the aspects of character. However, how a person uses his mental abilities will depend significantly on character. It is not uncommon to encounter people who have high intellectual abilities, but who do not provide anything valuable precisely because of their characterological characteristics. An example of this is the numerous literary images of superfluous people (Pechorin, Rudin, Beltov, etc.). As I. S. Turgenev said well through the mouth of one of the characters in the novel about Rudin: “Perhaps there is genius in him, but there is no nature.” Thus, a person’s real achievements depend not on abstract mental capabilities alone, but on a specific combination of his characteristics and characterological properties.

In the most general form, all character traits can be divided into basic, leading, setting the general direction for the development of the entire complex of its manifestations, and secondary, determined by the main ones. Thus, if we consider such traits as indecisiveness, fearfulness and altruism, then when the former predominate, a person, first of all, is constantly afraid that “something might not work out” and all attempts to help his neighbor usually end in internal experiences and searches for justification. If the leading trait is the second one - altruism, then the person does not outwardly show any hesitation, immediately goes to help, controlling his behavior with his intellect, but at the same time he may sometimes have doubts about the correctness of the actions taken.

Knowledge of the leading traits allows you to reflect the basic essence of character and show its main manifestations. Writers and artists, wanting to give an idea of the character of the hero, first of all describe his leading, core features. Thus, A.S. Pushkin put into the mouth of Vorotynsky (in the tragedy “Boris Godunov”) an exhaustive description of Shuisky - “a crafty courtier.” Some heroes of literary works reflect certain typical character traits so deeply and correctly that their names become household names (Khlestakov, Manilov, Oblomov, Korchagin, etc.).

Although every character trait reflects one of the manifestations of a person’s attitude to reality, this does not mean that every attitude will be a character trait. Only some attitudes, depending on the conditions, become character traits. From the totality of a person’s relationships to the surrounding reality, character-building forms of relationships should be distinguished. The most important distinguishing feature of such relationships is the decisive, primary and general vital significance of those objects to which a person belongs. These relationships simultaneously serve as the basis for the classification of the most important character traits. A person’s character is manifested in a system of relationships:

1. In relation to other people (in this case, one can distinguish such character traits as sociability - isolation, truthfulness - deceit, tactfulness - rudeness, etc.).

2. In relation to business (responsibility - dishonesty, hard work - laziness, etc.).

3. In relation to oneself (modesty - narcissism, self-criticism - self-confidence, pride - humiliation, etc.).

4. In relation to property (generosity - greed, frugality - wastefulness, neatness - sloppiness, etc.). It should be noted that this classification is somewhat conventional and there is a close relationship and interpenetration of these aspects of the relationship. So, for example, if a person is rude, then this concerns his relationship with people; but if at the same time he works as a teacher, then here it is already necessary to talk about his attitude to the matter (dishonesty), about his attitude towards himself (narcissism).

Despite the fact that these relationships are the most important from the point of view of character formation, they do not simultaneously and immediately become character traits. There is a certain sequence in the transition of these relationships into character properties, and in this sense it is impossible to put, for example, the attitude towards other people and the attitude towards property, since their very content plays a different role in the real existence of a person. A person’s attitude towards society and people plays a decisive role in the formation of character. The character of a person cannot be revealed and understood outside the team, without taking into account his attachments in the form of camaraderie, friendship, love, etc.

In characterological terms, the most important thing is not so much the quantitative characteristic as its qualitative aspects: on what basis and how does a person establish contact with other people, how does he relate to people of different social status - higher and lower, older and younger, people of the other sex . During long-term communication, the mutual influence of people on each other often leaves a significant imprint on their character, and both mutual assimilation is possible, when people, as a result of a long life together, become similar to each other, and the emergence of traits that are opposite, but complementary. However, the leading ones are such relationships, such forms of communication that are formed in work and activity.

A person’s relationships with other people are decisive in relation to activity, generating increased activity, tension, rationalization or, on the contrary, complacency and lack of initiative. The attitude towards other people and towards activity, in turn, determines the person’s attitude towards his own personality, towards himself. A correct, evaluative attitude towards another person is the main condition for self-esteem. It follows that the attitude towards other people is not only an important part of character, but also forms the basis for the formation of a person’s self-awareness, necessarily including the attitude towards oneself as an actor, which depends primarily on the very form of activity. When an activity changes, not only the subject, methods and operations of this activity change, but at the same time a restructuring of the attitude towards oneself as an actor occurs.

Despite the fact that character is referred to as individual characteristics of a person, in the structure of character one can identify traits that are common to a certain group of people. Even in the most original person you can find some trait (for example, unusualness, unpredictability of behavior), the possession of which allows you to classify him into a group of people with similar behavior. In this case, we should talk about typical character traits. N.D. Levitov believes that a character type is a specific expression in the individual character of traits common to a certain group of people. Indeed, as noted, character is not innate - it is formed in the life and activity of a person as a representative of a certain group, a certain society. Therefore, a person’s character is always a product of society, which explains the similarities and differences in the characters of people belonging to different groups.

Individual character reflects a variety of typical traits: national, professional, age. Thus, people of the same nationality are in living conditions that have developed over many generations and experience the specific features of national life; develop under the influence of the existing national structure and language. Therefore, people of one nationality differ in lifestyle, habits, rights, and character from people of another. These typical features are often recorded by everyday consciousness in various attitudes and stereotypes. Most people have a formed image of a representative of one country or another: an American, a Scot, an Italian, a Chinese, etc. Refracting in a unique way, national characteristics reveal typical features inherent in preschoolers, adolescents, elderly people, etc. It is not difficult to describe the typical character of a teacher, doctor, or military man; at the same time, each typical character has its own individual traits. Thus, in literature there are many images of misers, i.e. people in whose minds the passion for hoarding is clearly expressed (Plyushkin, Gobsek, Stingy Knight, etc.), but each of them is an individual.

Despite its stability, the character type has a certain plasticity. Under the influence of life circumstances of upbringing, the demands of society, the type of character changes and develops. It is enough to trace the dynamics of the development of the character of a person who has devoted himself to the teaching profession. Consistently going through the stages, they become professional by accentuation of character. In practice, accentuation is a limiting value, an extreme variant of the manifestation of the norm. Character accentuation is characterized by increased vulnerability only to a certain kind of psychotraumatic influences addressed to the so-called “place of least resistance” of this type character while remaining resilient to others. This weak link in a person’s character manifests itself only in situations that place increased demands on the functioning of this particular link. In all other situations that do not affect vulnerable points of character, the individual behaves without breakdowns, without causing trouble either to others or to himself.

Depending on the degree of expression, a distinction is made between overt and covert (latent) character accentuations. Explicit, or pronounced, accentuations are considered to be at the extreme limit of the norm and are distinguished by permanent features of a certain type of character. Hidden accentuation is a common variant of the norm, weakly expressed or not expressed at all. Such accentuations can appear unexpectedly under the influence of situations and traumas that place demands on the place of least resistance, while psychogenic factors of a different kind, even severe ones, not only do not cause mental disorders, but may not even reveal the type of character. Both types of accentuations can transform into each other under the influence of various factors, among which the characteristics of family upbringing, social environment, professional activity, etc. play an important role.

Since character accentuations border on the corresponding types of psychopathic disorders, their typology is based on a detailed classification of such disorders in psychiatry, nevertheless reflecting the mental properties of character healthy person. Due to the fact that most character accentuations take shape by adolescence and are often most clearly manifested there, it is advisable to consider the classification of accentuation using the example of adolescents. This typology, proposed by A.E. Lichko [Lichko A.E. Adolescent psychiatry. L., 1979], includes the following accentuations:

1. Hyperthymic type. Teenagers of this type are distinguished by their mobility, sociability, and a penchant for mischief. They always make a lot of noise into the events happening around them, and they love the restless company of their peers. With good general abilities they show restlessness, lack of discipline, and study unevenly. Their mood is always good and upbeat. They often have conflicts with adults, parents, and teachers. Such teenagers have many different hobbies, but these hobbies, as a rule, are superficial and quickly pass. Teenagers of the hyperthymic type often overestimate their abilities, are too self-confident, strive to show off, boast, and impress others.

2. Cyclocdytic type. It is characterized by increased irritability and a tendency to apathy. Teenagers of this type prefer to be at home alone instead of being somewhere with their peers. They have a hard time with even minor troubles and react extremely irritably to comments. Their mood periodically changes from elated to depressed (hence the name of this type) with periods of approximately two to three weeks.

3. Labile type. This type is extremely changeable in mood, and it is often unpredictable. The reasons for an unexpected change in mood can be the most insignificant, for example, someone accidentally dropped an offensive word, someone’s unfriendly look. All of them “are capable of sinking into despondency and a gloomy mood in the absence of any serious troubles or failures.” Much in their psychology and behavior depends on the momentary mood of these teenagers. According to this mood, the present and future for them can be colored either with rosy or gloomy colors. Such teenagers, when they are in a depressed mood, are in dire need of help and support from those who could improve their mood, who can distract them, cheer them up and entertain them. They understand and feel the attitude of the people around them well.

4. Asthenoneurotic type. This type is characterized by increased suspiciousness and capriciousness, fatigue and irritability. Fatigue is especially common when performing a difficult mental task.

5. Sensitive type. He is characterized by increased sensitivity to everything: to what pleases and to what upsets or frightens. These teenagers don't like big companies, too gambling, active and mischievous games. They are usually shy and timid in front of strangers and therefore often give the impression of being withdrawn. They are open and sociable only with those whom they know well; they prefer communication with children and adults to communication with peers. They are obedient and show great affection for their parents. In adolescence, such adolescents may experience difficulties adapting to their peers, as well as an “inferiority complex.” At the same time, these same teenagers develop a sense of duty quite early and display high moral demands on themselves and the people around them. They often compensate for deficiencies in their abilities by choosing complex activities and increased diligence. These teenagers are picky about finding friends and acquaintances for themselves, show great affection in friendships, and adore friends who are older than them.

6. Psychasthenic type. These teenagers are characterized by early intellectual development, a tendency to think and reason, to introspect and evaluate the behavior of other people. Such teenagers, however, are often stronger in words than in deeds. Their self-confidence is combined with indecision, and categorical judgments are combined with hasty actions taken precisely at those moments when caution and prudence are required.

7. Schizoid type. Its most significant feature is isolation. These teenagers are not very drawn to their peers; they prefer to be alone, in the company of adults. “Spiritual loneliness does not even burden the schizoid teenager, who lives in his own world, with his interests, which are unusual for children of this age.” Such teenagers often demonstrate outward indifference to other people and lack of interest in them. They do not understand well the conditions of other people, their experiences, and do not know how to sympathize. Their inner world is often filled with various fantasies and special hobbies. In the external manifestation of their feelings, they are quite restrained, not always understandable to others, especially to their peers, who, as a rule, do not like them very much.

8. Epileptoid type. These teenagers often cry and harass others, especially in early childhood. “Such children,” writes A.E. Lichko, they love to torture animals, ...beat and tease the younger and weaker, mock the helpless and unable to fight back. In a children’s company, they aspire not just to leadership, but to the role of ruler.” Their typical traits are cruelty, selfishness, and power. In the group of children they control, such teenagers establish their own strict, almost terroristic orders, and their personal power in such groups rests mainly on the voluntary obedience of other children or on fear. Under conditions of a strict disciplinary regime, they often feel at their best, “they know how to please their superiors, achieve certain advantages, take possession of... posts that give them... power, and establish dictatorship over others.”

9. Hysterical type. The main feature of this type is egocentrism, a thirst for constant attention to one’s own person. Adolescents of this type have a tendency towards theatricality, posing, and panache. Such children can hardly stand it when their friend is praised in their presence, when others are given more attention than themselves. “The desire to attract attention, to listen to admiration and praise becomes an urgent need for them.” Such teenagers are characterized by claims to an exclusive position among their peers, and in order to influence others and attract their attention, they often act in groups as instigators and ringleaders. At the same time, being unable to act as real leaders and organizers of the cause, or to gain informal authority, they often and quickly fail.

10. Unstable type. He is sometimes mischaracterized as weak-willed and going with the flow. Teenagers of this type show an increased tendency and craving for entertainment, indiscriminately, as well as for idleness and idleness. They do not have any serious, including professional, interests; they almost never think about their future.

11. Conformal type. This type demonstrates thoughtless, uncritical, and often opportunistic submission to any authority, to the majority in the group. Such teenagers are usually prone to moralizing and conservatism, and most importantly life credo- “to be like everyone else.” This is the type of opportunist who, for the sake of his own own interests he is ready to betray a comrade, to leave him in difficult times, but no matter what he does, he will always find an excuse for his action, and often more than one.

To better understand the essence of the noted accentuations, we can consider their literary analogues. Thus, Gavroche from the novel “Les Miserables” by V. Hugo has a hyperthymic type; for Sonya Marmeladova from the novel “Crime and Punishment” by F.M. Dostoevsky - emotive; in Shakespeare's Othello - stuck; in Milady from the novel “The Three Musketeers” by A. Dumas and Moliere’s Tartuffe - hysterical; in Dmitry Karamazov - pronounced excitability (close to psychopathy); in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet - exalted; in Sancho Panzo from Cervantes' Don Quixote - extroverted. In contrast to “pure” types, mixed forms of accentuations are much more common as a result of the simultaneous development of several typical traits or as a layering of new character traits on its existing structure.

As a rule, with proper educational work, character accentuations are smoothed out and compensated over time. But in difficult psychogenic situations, long-term impact on the “weak link” of character, accentuations can not only become the basis for acute affective reactions, but also be a condition for the development of psychopathy. Accentuation of character when exposed to unfavorable conditions can lead to pathological disorders and changes in personality behavior, to psychopathy.

Psychopathy (from the Greek psyche - “soul” and pathos - “disease”)- pathology of character, in which the subject has an almost irreversible expression of properties that prevent his adequate adaptation to life social environment. In contrast to the 6t accentuations of psychopathy, as can be seen from the definition, they are permanent, manifest themselves in all situations and interfere with the social adaptation of the individual. The reactions of a person with sharpened character traits, compared to the reactions of a psychopath, are more closely related to traumatic factors, while maintaining a certain self-control. So, a cheeky, rude teenager in the family with an accentuated character understands that this cannot be done in front of people he doesn’t know well. He drinks with his peers, however, if drunkenness is not encouraged in the family, he tries to come home sober. For a psychopath, such restrictions do not exist.

Since psychopathy develops on the basis of character accentuation, the differences between certain types psychopathy has names corresponding to accentuations (cycloids, schizoids, epileptoids, asthenics, etc.). The causes of psychopathy can be divided into two large groups: 1) diseases (brain injury, infection, intoxication, psychotrauma, etc.); 2) congenital inferiority of the nervous system, caused by hereditary factors, birth trauma, etc. Such psychopathy is called constitutional, or true. They already appear in childhood in the form of various violations of the emotional-volitional sphere, although intelligence can be preserved. The study of various forms of psychopathy indicates the absence of clear criteria for pathology. According to P.B. Gannushkin, the difference between psychopathic characteristics and the corresponding “simple human shortcomings” is mostly only quantitative [Gannushkin P.B. Favorite works. M., 1964]. When they talk about the presence of a certain character in someone, they thereby indicate a certain one-sidedness of his mental organization, a certain disharmony of the psyche. In fact, it is impossible to say about a normal “ideal” person what his character is, since all his behavior is a simple reaction to external influences.

It should also be noted that the boundaries between individual psychopathy are vague and unclear. The identified forms of psychopathy are for the most part an artificial product of schematic processing of what is observed in reality. At the same time, the behavior of psychopaths of the same type can be different: one paranoid can be different: one paranoid can be a universally recognized scientist, another can be mentally ill; an individual can be a beloved and popular poet, or he can be a useless slacker. Here it is necessary to raise the question of the connection between psychopathy and human genius. Based on the fact that, in a mild form, certain psychopathic features are inherent in all “normal” people, it is clear that the more sharply an individuality is expressed, the brighter the psychopathic features characteristic of it become. This is probably why among highly gifted people, with a richly developed emotional life and easily excitable imagination, there is a significant number of undoubted psychopaths. In the prevention of psychopathy, the most essential means is education, but it often turns out to be helpless in the face of the complete absence of volitional delays in some and the powerful pressure of drives that destroy the personality in others.

Character is not a frozen formation; it is formed throughout a person’s life path. Anatomical and physiological inclinations, as has been shown, do not absolutely predetermine the development of a particular character. Recognition of the dependence of character on such factors as appearance, body constitution, date of birth, name, etc., leads to the recognition of the impossibility of changing and cultivating character in any significant way. However, the entire practice of education refutes the thesis about the constancy of character; such cases are possible only in the case of personality pathology.

Character, despite its versatility, is only one of the sides, but not the whole personality. A person is capable of rising above his character, capable of changing it. Therefore, when they talk about predicting behavior, they do not forget that it has a certain probability and cannot be absolute. A person can challenge circumstances and become different (unless, of course, she hides her powerlessness behind the phrase “That’s just my character”).

The development of character over time is, of course, determined by what he was like before. Even with the most dramatic changes in life, character usually still retains a certain unity in its most general basic features. But character is not fatally predetermined, although it is determined by the objective circumstances of a person’s life path, but these circumstances themselves change under the influence of a person’s actions. A person himself is the creator of his character, since character develops depending on his worldview, on the beliefs and habits of moral behavior that he develops, on the deeds and actions that he performs, depending on all his conscious activities.

Self-education of character presupposes that a person is able to free himself from excessive conceit, can look critically at himself, and see his shortcomings. This will allow him to determine the goal of working on himself, i.e. those character traits that he would like to get rid of or, conversely, develop in himself. Probably, in order for the character not to become contradictory, so that new traits take root more easily, it is necessary to provide for an organic connection between new and existing traits, their harmonious interaction.

More experienced people provide great assistance in character development, and here it is important to find an example worthy of imitation. In the East they say: “If there is a student, a teacher will be found.” There is a deep meaning here. No teacher can teach someone who does not want to learn. Anyone who wants to learn will always find someone to look up to, someone to follow as an example. A person's character is formed through interaction with others. But anyone who undertakes to help others must first himself demonstrate an example of determination, activity, organization, perseverance and other character traits that he must form in his students. Here we must not forget about the mechanisms of imitation, which primarily apply to negative manifestations of behavior. First mother, father, other family members, then kindergarten teachers, peers, teachers, etc. are potential mentors. However, a real impact on character is possible only if the teacher is self-referential to the student.

A role model does not have to be real. This could be a movie hero or a hero of a literary work, distinguished by deep integrity and exceptional strength of character, a war hero, an advanced scientist. The centuries-old history of Russia provides vivid images of persistent, purposeful characters. For example, it is enough to point to M.V.Lomonosov and A.V.Suvorov, whose life is a kind of school for character education.

Of particular importance in the formation of character is a person’s social activities, active participation in which develops a sense of responsibility to the team, contributes to the development of organization, endurance, and a sense of duty. The most effective means of character formation is work. Strong characters are people who set themselves big tasks in their work, persistently achieve their solution, overcome all the obstacles that stand in the way of achieving these goals, and exercise systematic control over the implementation of what was planned. Here it is appropriate to recall the words of N. Ostrovsky: “Courage is born in struggle. Courage is cultivated day after day, in persistent resistance to difficulties.” A simple and effective way to build character is to engage in physical education and sports, which make people more resilient and courageous. Sport provides the opportunity for competition, where everyone goes to the maximum of their strength, shows what a person is capable of.

In accordance with the developed goals, a person accepts self-commitment. It should be feasible and doable at the level of optimal difficulty. This commitment can be recorded in a self-education program with an approximate time frame for completion. If it is difficult for a person to formulate such a program himself, then his relatives can come to the rescue, but it is better to turn to a psychologist. This is the self-education program that the famous psychologist Dale Carnegie recommends in his book “How to Win Friends and Influence People” [Minsk, 1990].

1. Today I will be happy. This means that I will be guided by the words of Abraham Lincoln, who said that “most people are about as happy as they resolve to be happy.” Happiness lies within us; it is not the result of external circumstances.

2. Today I will try to adapt to the life that surrounds me, and not try to adapt everything to my desires. I will accept my family, my job and the circumstances of my life as they are and try to adapt to them.

3. Today I will take care of my body. I will do exercises, take care of my body, eat right, try not to harm my health or neglect it, so that my body becomes an ideal machine to fulfill my requirements.

4. Today I will try to pay attention to the development of my mind. I'll learn something useful. I will not be mentally lazy. I will read something that requires effort, thought and focus.

5. Today I will engage in moral self-improvement. To do this, I expect to accomplish three things: I will do something useful for someone without him knowing about it; I'll do at least two things I don't feel like doing - just for exercise.

6. Today I will be friendly to everyone. I'll try to look my best; If possible, I will wear what suits me best, I will speak in a low voice, I will behave kindly, I will be generous with praise, I will try not to criticize anyone, not to find fault with anyone, and not to try to lead or correct anyone.

7. Today I will try to live only for the present day, I will not strive to solve the problem of my entire life at once. In twelve hours I can do things that would horrify me if I had to do them all my life.

8. Today I will outline the program of my affairs. I'll write down what I'm going to do every hour. I may not be able to follow this program exactly, but I will put it together. This will save me from two evils - haste and indecision.

9. Today I will spend half an hour in peace and solitude and try to relax.

10. Just today I will not be afraid, especially I will not be afraid to be happy, enjoy beauty, love and believe that those I love love me.

One of positive points This program is to emphasize the point that character is formed not so much in difficult moments of life (although there are such turning points in everyone’s life), but rather in everyday, everyday activities. And here the daily routine, adherence to discipline, and adherence to norms of behavior are essential. Even small actions, if they serve good deed and are carried out systematically, cultivate positive character traits, and ennoble a person.

Temperament is an innate property of any person, a kind of biological basis on which the actual social personality is based. Temperament types manifest themselves as 4 main types (phlegmatic, choleric, mechancholic and sanguine), as well as their various combinations.

Description

Temperament is not only the basis of a person's personality. This is one of the oldest methods of classification, based on an emotional attitude to the world. When we talk about a certain temperament, we mean the various mental properties of people. People with different temperaments have obvious differences in the stability, depth and intensity of emotions, as well as in their external manifestations. Thus, a choleric person has much stronger energy and emotional sensitivity than a phlegmatic person. And sanguine people are much more open than melancholic people. Types of temperament reflect individual stable characteristics of the psyche, activity and behavior of people.

Nature or nurture?

The concepts of “Personality” and “Temperament” are not synonymous. Temperament does not depend on mood, status and age. It is the foundation that remains the same throughout life, even though every aspect of a person's personality may change from birth to death. People often confuse temperament and character. But these are completely different characteristics: temperament is given to us from birth, and we acquire character in the process of education. Two people may have the same temperament but be completely different in all other respects. Take, for example, the image of a hero and a villain. They may have the same type of temperament, but no one will say that they are similar to each other.

All people have access to wide range various emotions. We can all be angry, happy, sad... Sometimes we want to be close to other people, and sometimes we want to be alone. The temperament of any person is determined by the balance of all these emotions. Who is a temperamental person? This is what we call a person who clearly demonstrates his emotional and behavioral characteristics.

A little history

Four temperaments have been known since ancient times. The ancient Greek thinker and physician Hippocrates was the first to divide people into species based on
on his theory of “four liquids”. He believed that personality is determined by the predominance of black bile, mucus, and yellow bile in the body. It is from these “four body juices” that all 4 temperaments get their names.

The term “temperament” itself was introduced into use by the ancient physician Claudius Galen. He outlined his typology of temperaments in a treatise called “De temperamentum” (from the Latin “proportionality”). Temperamental choleric gets its name from the Greek word “chole,” which means “bile.” In the body of a sanguine person, according to Galen, blood (“sanguis”) predominated. The character of a phlegmatic person was determined by mucus (“phlegma”), while a melancholic person was distinguished by the predominance of black bile (“melas chole”).

Now we know that temperament does not depend on “body fluids”, but on innate properties nervous system, however, these names have taken root in science and have remained so.

And now?

At the core modern understanding temperaments lie in the works of the outstanding physiologist I.P. Pavlov on the types of higher nervous activity. According to Pavlov, the physiological basis of human temperament is the ratio of three the most important properties nervous system: mobility, balance and strength of inhibition-excitation processes.

Cholerics: mobile, unbalanced, strong;
Sanguine people: agile, balanced, strong;
Phlegmatic: motionless, balanced, strong;
Melancholic: motionless, unbalanced, weak.

It is not difficult to determine any type of temperament; it is enough to evaluate it nervous system person according to these characteristics.

Mixed types

Although psychologists know only four pure temperaments, they are often used to describe a person. mixed types. IN real life pure types are extremely rare.

Mixed types consist of primary and secondary temperaments, for example, melancholic phlegmatic or choleric sanguine. The primary temperament describes the most obvious external manifestations of a person, and the secondary characterizes the personality in more detail.

Let's get acquainted with the 4 main temperaments.

Melancholic people

Melancholic people are introverts and emotionally sensitive perfectionists. These are idealists who strive to do everything a certain way, and are very upset when this becomes impossible. Melancholic people often have low self-esteem and constantly criticize others because people rarely live up to their standards.

Their behavior is a consequence internal struggle between an imperfect world and the desire for perfection. Melancholic people find it difficult to accept things as they really are. This leads many of them to neurotic behavior. They are not capable of impulsive behavior and panic if they are unable to plan events in advance.

They feel most comfortable in their own company. Of course, melancholic people can have a good time in society, but it drains their energy, so they rarely really need it.

Melancholic people are very emotional, capable of admiring the beauty of nature and crying without hiding their tears. Their psyche is very vulnerable due to their tendency towards perfectionism. The typical reaction of a melancholic person to stress is tears, not rage. They are not aggressive, and tend to avoid things that cause suffering.

Why did melancholic people become like this?

In primitive society, melancholic pack members were analysts and information gatherers. They noticed potential danger and then reported it to the leader. This is what made them such perfectionists, because any mistake created many problems for the community.

IN modern society melancholic people also strive for analytical activity. They become scientists, financial analysts, programmers, etc. High sensitivity allows them to achieve success in creativity and extrasensory perception.

Phlegmatic people

Phlegmatic people are calm and peaceful introverts who live to please others. The natural state of a phlegmatic person is to help others, not to defend own desires. They always choose the path of least resistance. These people are so desperate for peace that they seek to avoid conflict at all costs. When they are forced to argue, they panic greatly.

A phlegmatic person has a desire to be a “winner”; all he wants is peace and tranquility. He always follows laws and rules. This is due to a deep-seated fear of doing something wrong, rather than a lack of courage or conscious desire to be a “good person.” These people rarely resort to aggressive insults or physical violence. In love, they sometimes lack passion, since their emotions are hidden very deeply.

Phlegmatic people behave quite confidently in familiar situations, but panic if circumstances suddenly change. These people are not thrill seekers. They enjoy a predictable, calm lifestyle, free of surprises.

Why did phlegmatic people become like this?

In the distant past, the phlegmatic members of the primitive community were obedient performers who carried out most of the work on the orders of the leader.

Today they also rarely stand out in society, but without them the world will collapse! Phlegmatic people are excellent cooks, secretaries, librarians and accountants.

Cholerics

Cholerics are proud extroverts, the real “Alphas” of humanity. These are born leaders and leaders who always strive to be in control of the situation. It is important for them to be on top, to be the best! They often (but not necessarily) have high self-esteem.

Cholerics can be firm and consistent in solving problems. They believe in "tough love" and try to "help" others by challenging them. Cholerics subconsciously try to dominate in any situation. They love to compete but hate to lose.

Sometimes choleric people derive pleasure from pain or humiliation of people they do not like. They truly enjoy feeling better than others. These temperamental people are best described by words such as “hot,” “brash,” “passionate,” and “dominant.”

Cholerics believe that they have the right to advise people, but they laugh at the thought that others can do the same. They feel comfortable in new situations and are constantly in search of thrills.

Their pride and desire for dominance, as well as open expression of emotions, sometimes results in outright aggression. Cholerics scream and swear loudly to show that they are the biggest and strongest. Cholerics strive for independence, because dependence for them is always a weakness.

Why did choleric people become like this?

In a primitive communal pack, the choleric occupied the place of leader. He commanded everyone and asserted his dominance through force. He had to instantly respond to any challenge and intimidate his fellow tribesmen, constantly proving his superiority.

In modern society, choleric people also strive for leadership roles. They can be found among top managers, politicians, military personnel, department heads, etc.

Sanguines

Sanguine people are noisy and talkative people; These are open and emotional social extroverts. They easily get along with people and are able to find a common language with anyone. How more people surrounds them, the better they feel, so they are not too picky. Sanguine people really need the attention of others.

They talk more than they listen. More than anything else, sanguine people fear boredom. These people are chasing fashion and popularity. They are not particularly reliable, they can be talkative and capricious, but they have an open and kind heart. Sanguine people live “here and now,” which can manifest themselves in external and internal disorder.

Sanguine people are true inspirers, encouraging others to take action. They are optimistic and know how to convince people of what they themselves are confident of.

How did sanguine people become like this?

In the past, sanguine people performed an important social role, educating and encouraging members of the community. They were the glue that held people together.

In modern society you can find them as educators, psychologists, artists and prominent political figures.

Temperament is an innate characteristic of a person’s individual behavior. People with different types temperament choose different types activities and express their emotions in different ways. It is impossible to change your temperament, but you can change your character!