Ghanaian counselling psychologist, Dr. Epiphania Emefa Bonsi, has shared that there are five main types of personalities and each has its own positive or negative ways of affecting a person.
In an interview with host, Paul Anomah-Kordieh on Live Chat with Paul, aired on eTV Ghana, she named the first personality type as openness to experience which she explained as people who are open minded and always ready to receive new ideas from others. They are adventurous and always eager to move out of their comfort zone.
The second personality type, per her knowledge is consciousness. ‘’As the name suggests, they are conscientious and they never perform any task in haste. They are generally methodical and they tend to become perfectionists in the long run’’, she said. She added that in order for one to be conscientious, it is important to have a goal and an objective in life.
The third, which she opined that she personally is, per her view, is extraversion, which has its opposite being introversion. Mrs. Bonsi explained that extraversion has to do with when the individual likes to show more concern towards what is happening outside, and they love to talk to people around them. Extroversial people do not like to spend time alone, rather, they love to be the center of attraction everywhere they find themselves.
Introversion on the other hand, refers to people who are only concerned with their own lives. They do not bother about others and they are seldom interested in what is going on around. Introverts do not talk a lot but they listen more to what others have to say and they do not like to be out at parties and crowded settings.
Agreeableness, which is the fourth, she defined as a personality trait which teaches individuals to adjust in all situations. They accommodate themselves to all situations and are friendly. She instanced that an individual who is of this trait would not mind sleeping on a mat where there is no option of a bed; basically,would not mind trying out any new thing. She commented saying, ‘’People with this personality trait are more happy to help others and this has also been associated with good behaviour. They are also whole-hearted and trust-worthy so I would prefer to live with such a person who is always agreeable’’.
The psychologist furthered on the fifth personality type, neuroticism, where individuals are prone to negative traits such as anxiety, anger, envy and they also dwell on guilt for longer periods. Such individuals are often in a state of depression, mostly have mood swings and they do not know how to enjoy life.
‘’When I was reading on this, the picture that I saw, showed somebody who was reacting to a very simple thing with a very loud voice, with his hands on his head’’, she said.
Dr. Epiphania shared an example of when the death of someone is announced in the home. Someone who belongs to this trait will begin to shout, wailing and throwing himself on the floor but someone else will just contain the incident and want to know more about how it happened instead of making loud reactions.
The licensed counselling psychologist concluded that according to study, the personality is formed from the environment, thus, it takes years to build one’s personality and it can also be changed, although it takes a while.
By: Maureen Dedei Quaye