Developing Personality

Characteristics – Rigid

So why does this matter?

The construct of personality is vague with aspects of the different personalities concepts that converge. However, for this endeavor we are not interested in defining or discussing personality types.

The interest here is a general understanding of what traits, beliefs, or thinking may lead to, rigid or inflexible personality characteristics or the converse.

When a person's personality is inflexible or rigid to life's changing situations, life can become difficult.

Personality constraints or disorders may predispose a person to mental disorders.

If one's personality is flexible and adaptable, life's changing problems can be handled in more satisfying and rewarding ways.

Some mental health professionals believe individuals with personality constraints or disorders are unable to make changes and therefore not treatable.

Others even believe prevention is of little influence. However, our experience has shown us that with our young students our effort to create positive conflict did influence their developing personality characteristics.

Futures Academy made no pretense that it in any way was treating these young people.

After years of dealing with many young people who have attended Futures some ideas have become obvious.

This population of students had been unable to succeed in the mainstream public education system.

We have identified several insecure traits and maladaptive beliefs and developing maladaptive schemas, which we discussed before, that have kept them from succeeding.

Developing maladaptive schemas have aided the beginning to develop a continuum of rigid personality characteristics.

Left as they are rigid characteristics may develop into personalities that are difficult or constrained in the future.

We believed many of our students were still young enough and flexible enough to adapt to positive change.

For many young people, positively confronting their maladaptive beliefs may add flexibility to their belief system and allow them to develop more flexible personality characteristics.

Therefore, more flexible and positive lives.

They and society may find this useful in their future.

The discussion below is of the developing continuum of rigid characteristics that often exist within these young people and the more flexible, positive alternative we anticipate they can move toward.

This list of characteristics are what were identified as relevant in the global population of students at Futures Academy.

Any particular student may possess one or more or none of these characteristics.

The developing characteristics vary widely and overlap.

They are the result of how the young person's thoughts, feelings, behaviors developed as they dealt with their surroundings growing up to this point.

These were likely rational thoughts, feelings and behaviors at this point because they were often necessary to survive in their families and/or surroundings.

Continuing these extreme characteristics into the future will likely be problematic.

The following descriptions of personality characteristics are intended to be general in nature and non-technical. They have been identified so all involved at Futures could better understand the problematic issues they were dealing with on a daily basis.

The student body included passive persons who tended not to take an active or dominant part directing their lives.

They may have learned to endured without resistance whatever they perceive was demanded of them.

Until they can no longer take it and strike-out at others aggressively or become self-destructive.

Their extreme behavior swings back and forth not understanding there is a more flexible middle ground.

Especially first semester, a few students acted aggressive, behavior marked by obtrusive energy and discourtesy.

They believed their actions are justified in order to get their needs met.

Often, they felt they had been denied what was rightful theirs.

They did not understand the more reasonable and flexible middle existence.

Some students lacked the capacity for social interaction often rejecting others out right.

They may be intelligent or talented but remain asocial and recluse.

Additionally some pupils may have been avoidant because they saw others as impinging on their world and spent energy evading, or keeping away from others.

There were students who were eccentric and may have been flamboyant and “in your face” deviating from conventional or accepted conduct especially in odd ways.

The egotistic student exaggerated their sense of self-importance believeing the world revolves around them.

Young people who are withdrawn often believed they were unimportant and did not matter even though they may have wished to belong but remained socially detached, introverted and unresponsive to others.

It was common to find vacillating individuals who tended to hesitate in making choices concerning their opinions or the course of action to be taken.

Sometimes, they doubted as to what they should think, feel or act and wavered their in choices.

Sometimes, they enhanced their position regarding ideas such as power, wealth or reputation, aggrandizing, in an effort to exploit a situation or to make themselves appear greater.

Sometimes, they were submissive, noticeably acquiescent, agreeable or compliant readily submitting or giving in to the authority of others believing this was necessary in order to get their needs met.

Students who were unstable tended to lack emotional control and were likely to change frequently or suddenly in purpose or intent.

Futures also had individuals who were paranoid that had a tendency toward excessive or irrational suspicions or distrust of others.

The angry-hostile student showed unfriendly or threatening feelings.

They tended to be sensitive to perceived criticism and could be explosive.

Summary of Continuum of Rigid Characteristics

Passive Aggressive Asocial Eccentric Egotistic Withdrawn Vacillating

Aggrandizing Submissive Unstable Paranoid Avoidant Angry-hostile

Most people may exhibit one or more of these rigid personality characteristics occasionally.

The concern is when a person tends to use a particular set of rigid personality characteristics repeatedly in an effort resolve most of life's changing situations.

We believe children who have developed insecure attachment processes or traits to cope with their surroundings will mostly likely mature with rigid personality characteristics and structures.

Our next article concerns Developing Personality Characteristics that tend to be flexible.

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