How does an individual differ from a personality: analysis of concepts and examples of differences

The explanation of how an individual differs from a person lies in the duality of human nature. A person is born with a set of unique characteristics and properties. One can speak of a baby only as an individual, a representative of the species Homo sapiens. Life in society gives each individual the opportunity to socialize, develop their natural inclinations and form personal qualities. We can talk about such characteristics of a person as personality and individuality only when he is a full member of society.

Numerous examples from life, when, for various reasons, small children find themselves in the company of animals, confirm that the development of man as an individual continues according to general laws. The child grows, but does not acquire personal qualities, as he is deprived of human communication. This confirms the significant role of socialization in the formation of personality.

Let's give a terminological definition with brief characteristics

I will list the most popular words that are often confused by ordinary people. Let's take a wide range of explanations - from everyday and colloquial to scientific.

Human

First of all, this name is used in biology, history, and archeology to distinguish a biological species that has certain structural features of the body and brain. It is an upright creature endowed with cognitive abilities. The word is appropriate to use both in combination with the more social “humanity” and when contrasted with the animal world. This can be called absolutely every one of our “relatives” - from children to adults.

Characteristic features that distinguish a person from a personality:

• The result of the evolutionary process.
• The presence of consciousness and self-awareness.
• The need to be in society, the need to communicate with others like oneself.
• A single way of communication through language, that is, the work of speech recognition and speech reproduction, with the exception of those who have lost the opportunity or have not had it since birth due to their anatomical structure.
• Features of anatomy - upright posture, the presence of fingers and toes.
• The ability to use devices to achieve a goal - any objects used for their intended purpose.

Subjective meaning (that is, a person as a subject of relationships, historical process and cultural) turns a biological species into a social being.

Individual

From Latin the word individuum is translated as “indivisible.” We actually completely copied it (but the meaning of “individual” is still different).

This concept can be called every person living in a group, society and possessing qualities that make him the same as his closest relatives. However, it is an independent unit with intrinsic value. This occurs due to the uniqueness of each individual organism on two levels - physiological and psychological. These are not qualities acquired over the years, but traits that are innate - narrow or wide-set eyes, the presence of a dimple on the chin, timbre of voice or ringing laughter.

Characteristics, what is the difference between an individual and personality:

• The object of the human population cannot be alone, it is inseparable from its own kind.
• Social activity - the presence of roles, statuses, for example, husband or wife, daughter, son, mother, father or neighbor, teacher, friend.
• The ability to adapt on a psycho-emotional level to those around you – the ability to find a compromise and adapt to the demands of society.

These are any qualities that are determined in comparison with other people, in contrast or in accordance.

How personality differs from individuality and individual, examples

The term comes from the word “Person”, and in English the tracing paper from Latin is established - persona.

The definition is inextricably linked with personal qualities, that is, it continues the concept of individuum, making it even more personalized. If earlier we talked about the individual characteristics that a person had innately, now it is more correct to talk about the acquired character, which is revealed in communication and relationships with other people. It is impossible to talk about personal traits without comparison or contrast with society.

Psychologist Daria Milai

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The term is used in many sciences and reflects individual characteristics. Let's go through scientific areas:

• Linguistics. “Language, speech and communicative personality.” Everything can be tied into a single knot; often these three persons develop synchronously. They are all in one person. The quality can be called acquired, because the child at birth does not have speech. The first concept reflects the depth of constructed thoughts, sentences, and the structure of texts. The second explains the degree of verbal expression skill. The third is the ability to engage in various verbal interactions.
• Philosophy. In this science, the most common interpretations of the term appeared; it became a stumbling block. For the first time, the concept of “face” began to reflect a person and his inner world. Over time, philosophical wrangling, experts came to a consensus that a person, unlike an individual, has three traits: free will, reason and feelings.
• Sociology. There are many ideas, but the fundamental one is how the society in which a person lives affects his personal qualities, abilities, and character traits. This once again emphasizes the social orientation of the term.
• Psychology. Perhaps the psychological approach is the most correct. It is at the level of consciousness and the unconscious that a set of developed habits, preferences, experience, knowledge, established opinions and stereotypes of thinking appears. All these features determine a person’s attitude to nature, culture, history, and other people.

Let's give an example. Having your own opinion about the political situation means having the traits of personal development. A young man, and especially a child, can only repeat what was said or heard on TV, but not generate his own assessment.

Personality and man, what is the difference, characteristic features:

• presence of temperament;
• pronounced character - people talk about his inclinations even in infancy;
• individual abilities - they need to be developed;
• all actions have motivation.

In general, we can say that personal qualities are cultivated in oneself and controlled, adjusted independently.

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Individuality

The last term that is often confused within the listed definitions. Usually it is understood as personal striking features. The word has its root in the same Latin individuum, that is, “indivisible.” The differences between an individual’s personality and individuality are that the latter distinctive features can be displayed not only in behavior and psychology, but also in purely external manifestations. An example is an individual, author’s, unique style of clothing.

If you feel ordinary, one in a million, and do not find any special characteristics in yourself, this may mean:

• either you have nothing to express;
• or you don't know how.

In my personal consultations, women open up and learn to better understand themselves.

Expression of individuality

The concepts of “personality and individuality” cannot be identified, since the first concept is a characteristic of the second. It is individuality that gives a person a set of unique properties and traits that distinguish him from the social mass.

Personality is an expression of an objective assessment of a person and his compliance with society, and individuality is self-esteem, a subjective perception of oneself from the point of view of acquired qualities.

A person can show his individuality in different areas of activity: in profession, in creativity, in communication. Individuality makes it possible to demonstrate versatile abilities while maintaining the integrity of the psyche.

A person’s individuality is in constant dynamics, manifesting itself in various unexpected situations and conditions. A person’s individual qualities find their vivid expression at critical moments, when it is necessary to quickly make a non-standard decision or take responsibility. At the same time, society’s assessment will not always be positive. The reaction from the outside is an additional stimulus for the development of the subject, determining its direction.

If there is a stop in development, then we can talk about degradation. Its causes can be internal motives, as well as the influence of external factors, when suppression or submission to someone else’s will occurs, excluding the choice of actions or deeds.

What characterizes a person as a person

Initially, the word was almost a dirty word. This term is derived from "Face", and this word, in turn, had a negative connotation in everyday life. It meant what we would now call a mask, a role played—deception. For a long time, the concept was not applied directly to people; about the part of the body that we now call so, they said “face”, “guise”.

From this we can deduce the following. Just as an actor puts on a mask during a performance, so an individual becomes a person only in the process of interaction with other people - a kind of role that the character has built for himself.

Properties

I will list those aspects of life that, one way or another, influenced the formation:

• hereditary predisposition;
• parental education (these two factors are easy to confuse; it is often said that the child’s character is similar to the mother’s, but basically this is the adoption of habits);
• people with whom there is frequent interaction - friends, relatives, classmates, employees.

Particular personality traits may be expressed at one moment and deliberately or unintentionally suppressed at another. This is a significant difference between a personality and an individual, because the latter has a constant set of traits that he is not able to correct at will and through willpower, for example, eye color.

Who is the individual

The concept of “individual” comes from the Latin word “individuum”, which translates as “whole, indivisible”. This concept is used to describe the socio-psychological characteristics of a particular person.

A social individual is a person as a representative of society, a certain social group.

The term "individual" is used in various sciences.

1. In social psychology, the individual is the basic definition around which concepts and theories of interpersonal interaction, communication, conflict resolution, and social management are built.
2. In sociology, this term is used to study public opinion and the behavior of large groups. When conducting sociological surveys, researchers use the concept of “individual” to create typical characteristics of a particular age group of subjects and study the individual characteristics of representatives of a particular profession or category of the population.
3. Physiologists use this term to study processes occurring in a particular organism. This concept allows physiologists to study the human body.
4. In medicine, this term is used to choose treatment tactics for a particular disease in a particular patient. The causative agents of the infection may be the same, but the nature of the course of the disease in two different people will be different. Therefore, doctors take into account the individual characteristics of the patient when prescribing certain medications.
5. In pedagogy, this term helps the educator or teacher implement a person-oriented approach to the child. In kindergarten, teachers create a developmental subject environment in which every child can satisfy his needs for knowledge of the world around him, in engaging in activities that he likes. A teacher at school must not only provide students with material on one or another discipline of the curriculum, but also create conditions for the creative self-realization of each of them.
6. In geography, the concept of an individual is used as a unit for measuring population density and studying the ethnocultural characteristics of a particular people.
7. In history, with the help of the term “individual”, an idea of ​​a particular era or historical event is formed. Thanks to this concept, historians have been able to create psychological portraits of outstanding figures.
8. In art, the concept of the individual formed the basis of different directions. The features of a particular genre in literature, music, and painting did not appear spontaneously. They are the result of the activities of brave individuals who were able to successfully realize their creative potential.

Myers-Briggs developed a concept according to which all people can be divided into the following types:

• sensory extrovert (vividly expresses himself, self-confident, socially active);
• sensory introvert (friendly, sociable, charming);
• intuitive extrovert (they talk a lot, but do little, live in dreams and discussions about possibilities, like to make grandiose plans, but do not implement them);
• intuitive introvert (makes decisions based on his own feelings);
• thinking extrovert (loves clarity, algorithms, logic, rationality in everything);
• thinking introvert (socially passive, uncommunicative, but generates brilliant ideas);
• feeling extrovert (tends to give advice, criticize);
• feeling introvert (prone to vivid experiences and emotional outbursts);
• decisive extrovert (impulsive, speaks first, thinks later);
• decisive introvert (calm, reserved, reasonable);
• perceiving extrovert (overflowing with vital energy, easy-going);
• a perceptive introvert (a creative person who draws inspiration from the world around him).

What is individual?

The main difference is the lack of specific, unique features. This is a person who belongs to the crowd, has similar characteristics, conforms to basic stereotypes and is susceptible to public opinion.

Such a person has not grown personally. At the everyday level, we can cite the following traits of an individual who never became a person:

• inability to make decisions;
• lack of responsibility for events;
• low social adaptability;
• following the opinion of the majority;
• lack of point of view;
• the ability to manipulate the person in question.

What is individuality?

All manifestations can be divided into three large groups. These are the features:

• External. These include the uniqueness of the anatomical structure, the chosen style, and the way of dressing. Having an individual style means having a subtle feel for the combinations of clothes, shoes, and jewelry. Make sure that the image corresponds to the internal content and reflects it.
• Behavioral. These include: habits, habits (including negative ones), gait, non-verbal verbal methods of communication. These are any actions that are expressed through behavior. They are completely controlled by the individual. Although sometimes subconsciously.
• Mental. These include the expression of emotions, as well as resentment, anger, and envy. Their positive individual traits are humor, resourcefulness, perseverance, and good memory.

Talent needs to be highlighted separately. This is what distinguishes us greatly and qualitatively from the majority. While many people have creative abilities, often acquired over several years, there are very few truly talented performers, actors, and artists. They can definitely call themselves an individual.

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Development of the individual

The development of the individual occurs constantly. The prerequisites for this process are:

• quantitative and qualitative changes occurring in the tissues and organs of the body during the growth and maturation of the individual;
• formation of personality consciousness;
• human cognitive interest;
• natural curiosity;
• communication with other representatives of a small social group in particular and society in general;
• genetic predisposition of a person to master new types of activities;
• genetically determined human ability to imitate.

Factors influencing the individual and group

“Individual” and “individual” - what is the peculiarity

The difference is made not depending on the properties of a person, but in connection with the situation. So let's imagine 2 circumstances. In the first, citizen A, like one of the previous 100, comes to a credit institution, provides a package of documents, and concludes a deal. It is difficult to assess his individual qualities here, because they actually could not manifest themselves in the most formalized setting. If you look at him as one out of 100, then he is an individual.

Second example. Citizen B is communicating with two people. She differs from them in gender, age, character, social status (wife, mother, sister) - and these differences in this particular case, in this society, are significant. This is where the individual comes into play.

How does personality differ from individuality or individual?

The main difference is maximum self-awareness and the ability to control one’s own actions, take responsibility for them, and make decisions. The peculiarity is in willpower, which is expressed not in the desire to be different from others, but in the desire to become better than oneself. Usually, personal qualities, although they are manifested in comparison with others, are assessed by the person himself in relation to himself. That is, for example, the abstract “I” stole and has pangs of conscience not because a neighbor/friend or a policeman said that this should not be done. The reason is the awareness of values ​​and their violation. The individual will be ashamed first of all of himself.

Personal development

According to teachers and psychologists, the process of personality formation begins when a child turns 3 years old. The baby develops a need to do everything on his own. However, in his quest for independence, he encounters some difficulties: it turns out that he cannot yet perform most of the activities that are so interesting to him on his own. This contradiction between the baby’s desires and his helplessness causes violent negative behavioral reactions. The child is often capricious, cries, and refuses to comply with the parents’ demands.

Adults need to treat the child with understanding and patience during this period, since contradictions are the driving force of development. Several months will pass, and the baby will find the right ways to master new activities. This will be his first step towards personal development.

For an individual to become a person, special conditions are needed. Personal development occurs if:

1. Parents are interested in the development of the child, so from early childhood they create a developmental environment at home. Children need to read fairy tales, sing lullabies at night, and take part in children's games. All this forms the child’s moral and ethical basis for personal development.
2. The child must attend a preschool educational institution.

The degree of success of personal development is manifested in critical situations when a person faces a moral choice. A person who has been able to become a strong personality is able to overcome different life situations with dignity. He places spiritual values ​​above material ones. He is capable of:

• refuse dubious proposals from comrades;
• show willpower;
• be purposeful in your work;
• treat your loved ones carefully.

It is impossible to justify a person’s illegal and criminal actions by the fact that he was unable to socialize and express himself in socially encouraged activities. To commit a crime or not is a choice that not an individual is capable of, but a personality. The criminals made their choice consciously. This means they are individuals.

What is the difference between an individual and an individual?

Although these two words have the same root, they have completely different meanings. The first term can be applied to virtually any person who lives among people, has adapted to society and is not only a biological species, but also a representative of society. But the second definition involves the development of the individual. You can develop natural, innate properties (never cut your hair, they will grow to incredible sizes), or you can get acquired ones.

Often people consider themselves individuals only because they try to go against the general opinion. Such informals really differ from the crowd, but the problem is that there are a lot of them, they are already creating their own informal mass. Among her, tattoos, ripped jeans, green hair and ear tunnels become commonplace. Thus, only one that is invented independently and not copied from another can be considered an individual solution.

conclusions

Having answered the question of how a personality differs from an individual and individuality, we can conclude that these definitions, or rather characteristics, are closely intertwined with each other. A person receives individual properties and qualities at birth, but an understanding of all the features of life in society comes to him in the process of growing up, not only physically, but also psychologically. Social institutions contribute to the comprehensive development of the subject, and throughout his life he faces an important task - to preserve his individuality and remain an individual.

What does “outstanding personality” mean in social studies?

We come across all the terminology listed above at school. But the basis for everything is human predispositions. The structure of human development can be presented sequentially as follows:

1. Congenital prerequisites - physical and genetic characteristics.
2. Upbringing, communication, political situation, cultural influence or lack thereof.
3. Perception of social taboos, prohibitions, requirements, norms, traditions, rituals.
4. Self-adjustment of behavior.
5. Active exploration of the world through books, textbooks, films and communication with people.
6. Forming your own opinions, beliefs, postulates.

Points 5 and 6 can alternate endlessly. This is a normal tendency for a mature personality. With the progress of knowledge, changes occur. If they have not been there for 30-40 years or more, we can talk about orthodoxy and rigidity of thinking.

An “outstanding personality,” according to a social studies textbook, has the following qualities:

• strength of will;
• determination;
• extraordinary abilities, including mental and physical.

Signs of an individual

In psychology, the main distinguishing feature of the concept “individual” is the opposition of the characteristic social features of the subject of social life to the instinctive model of animal behavior. In simple terms, the difference between an animal and a single representative of the human race lies in the latter’s ability to adapt to the specific conditions of social interaction.

A person becomes an individual in the process of interaction with other people. The characteristics of an individual are:

• consciousness;
• intelligence;
• speech;
• upright posture.