Personality is the characteristic pattern of a person’s thinking, feeling, and behavior

Personality is often the result of interplay between nature and nurture

• Recall that nature is genetics that determines behavior, and is fixed at birth

• Nurture is our environment and upbringing, as well as the constant effect that experiences have

Personality theories attribute different levels of influence to either

We will also revisit heritability, which does not indicate what proportion of a trait is determined by nature/nurture, nor is it the extent to which traits are passed down

Heritability is the variability in the trait in a population that is due to genetic differences, often estimated from studies of twins

• Or to what degree do differences in genes account for differences in our personality traits

Personality is measured through a variety of tests with different approaches and methodologies

• It is always important to consider the validity and reliability of these measures