Normal and Abnormal Personality Development

1. Overview & Epidemiology

• Personality = the enduring, characteristic pattern of how a person thinks, feels, relates and behaves — relatively stable across time and situations. It is the integrated end-product of two components:
  • Temperament — the biologically based, heritable, early-appearing emotional/behavioural style (the "how"). Largely genetic/constitutional; visible in infancy; ~40–60% heritable in twin studies.
  • Character — the learned, experience-dependent component (goals, values, self-concept, relation to others); shaped by family, culture and social learning; matures into adulthood.
• Personality development = the lifelong process by wh