The modern inexorable pace of life often unsettles people. Admit it, did you have the feeling that “something is wrong”? That banal fatigue has already developed or is turning into something else? Have you ever had nervous breakdowns, sleepless nights? Have you already managed to “google” and make a lot of diagnoses to yourself? Don’t jump to conclusions. Perhaps we are just talking about accentuations of your character.
History reference
Attempts to classify human characters, and with the help of this, learn to predict human behavior in advance and systematize his actions, have been going on for a long time.
The first to study accentuations was E. Kretschmer, later his activity was continued by W. Shelden. These researchers are considered the pioneers of the problem of character classifications. Later, the theme was developed by E. Fromm, K. Leonhard, G. Shmishek, A. E. Lichko and others.
There is still no unified classification of character types (based on accentuations). But the techniques of the last three of the above authors have become the most popular.
What is character accentuation
The very concept of accentuations was introduced by K. Leonhard. In his opinion, these are just sharpened character traits, that is, personality traits that create a stereotypical type of human behavior. They can be used to predict the behavior of an individual in a specific situation that activates these traits. The author notes that accentuations are observed in 20% -50% of people.
According to A. Lichko, accentuation is the norm, but its extreme version. By this, the author understands pronounced individual character traits that make a person vulnerable in certain situations.
If you delve into the essence of the definitions, then accentuations in adolescence are usually called “transient adolescent accentuations”, and adults with pronounced character traits – “accentuated personalities.” Although there are no significant differences. It is only noted that in adolescence, these traits can be easily corrected and completely eliminated, and in adults, only compensated by self-regulation.
An accentuated personality has a peculiar character imbalance. The complexity of an unambiguous answer to the question of what accentuations are (norm or pathology) lies in the characteristic feature of the phenomenon. They differ in the strength of their manifestation. Sometimes they are barely noticeable (only for the close circle), and sometimes they are visible with the naked eye and for many they look like a deviation.
The place of accentuations among norms and pathologies can be represented as follows.
| Normal zone | Pathology zone | ||||
| Normal area | Accentuated area | Zone of psychopathy | |||
| Area of hidden accentuation | Zone of clear accentuation | Moderate | Heavy | Extremely heavy | |
Explicit accentuation is at great risk. Under the influence of certain psychogenic factors, it can develop into deviant behavior and problems with adaptation.
What are the dangerous accentuations: conflicts emerging from an irritating situation, and nervous breakdowns. If the traumatic situation is repeated very often (constantly), then the accentuation can develop into a neurosis.
Accentuations lend themselves to correction, and over the years, under the influence of upbringing and self-education, they can approach the norm (in 40% of people by the age of 30-35, not a trace remains of them). Or, on the contrary, go into pathology with destructive parenting styles and living conditions.
However, do not flatter yourself if you were able to tame your character. Unfortunately, at any time, the contradiction between the will and your individuality can manifest itself again. That is why there is a widespread opinion in psychology that, when evaluating an adult (over 40), you cannot believe everything you see. He really shows what he considers necessary (passed through the filter of norms, expectations, morals) or what he could not cope with.
It is also interesting that it is impossible to say unequivocally what accentuations are for a person: a reward or a punishment:
- on the one hand, they are dangerous by the development of psychopathy, deviant behavior and even criminal;
- on the other hand, they can contribute to the formation of an outstanding personality, for example, the development of an acting career.
Differences between accentuations and psychopathy
How, then, can one distinguish accentuation from psychopathy? And is it even possible? Maybe. In psychology, there are 3 generally accepted landmarks that distinguish the norm (albeit pronounced) from pathology.
- The peak of accentuations occurs in adolescence. During normal psychophysiological development before and after it, they are smoothed out.
- Accentuations become noticeable only in certain conditions (situations).
- Accentuations do not cause maladjustment (impossibility of adaptation to external social conditions). If discord in relations with oneself and the environment arises, then not for long. At the same time, not any difficult life situation can cause such a discord, but only an individually critical one (for which accentuations do not have enough strength).
Reasons for accentuations
Until now, the reasons for the formation of accentuations have not been precisely established, but possible negative biological and socio-psychological factors have been named. Biological includes:
- the effect of toxins on the child’s brain during intrauterine and early extrauterine development;
- heredity;
- infections and brain injuries;
- uneven mental and physical development, hormonal imbalance.
Socio-psychological factors include:
- school maladaptation;
- destructive style of family education or inadequate position of the teacher;
- adolescence (perestroika);
- mental trauma.
I recommend that you, dear readers, check yourself for the presence of accentuations, and if you find them, find out your type (if you do not already know). This is necessary to maintain your own psychological (and sometimes physical) health and relationships with others. Knowing your type can help you avoid traumatic situations at work, at home, and at school.
It is worth noting that a mixed type is often found, that is, several accentuations are noted at once. This significantly impairs the possibilities of corrective work, but nevertheless does not make it impossible.
Outcomes
So, if we generalize the most popular theories, then we can safely say that in psychology, accentuations mean an extreme version of the norm, and not the emergence of pathology.
Accentuation is not a sentence. You can and should fight with them (if they interfere with a happy life and formation in society). Correction methods are individual. First of all, they depend on the type of accentuated personality.
What can I say in conclusion? “I have this character” is not an excuse. This is an attempt to absolve oneself of responsibility. The character can be changed. So the phrase that people don’t change is also a lie. It’s another matter if people just don’t want to change. This is more like the truth.
Goodbye, as always, I recommend food for the mind (and useful for practice). RV Koz’yakov “Methods and techniques for diagnosing character accentuations.” The manual contains all the popular questionnaires and tests, presents many classifications with descriptions and practical recommendations. You can find information about teenage accentuation.
By the way, if you are interested in the topic of teenage accentuations, then you can read:
- my article “Character Accentuations in Adolescence”;
- as well as the work “Methods and types of character accentuations according to Leonhard, Shmishek.” These are the most popular techniques.
I wish you success in the battle with your character. Always remember that it’s worth it!
