Strong, balanced, inert type of temperament - Basic types of temperament

We all behave differently in difficult situations, work at different paces, and react to criticism. These differences are largely due to the type of nervous system. The type of nervous system can be strong or weak, inert or mobile, balanced and unbalanced.

The characteristics of the nervous system determine the known types of temperament: choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholic.

According to I.P. Pavlov, the strength of the nervous system is an innate indicator. It is used to indicate the endurance and performance of nerve cells.

The strength of the nervous system “reflects the ability of nerve cells to withstand, without going into an inhibitory state, either very strong or prolonged, although not strong, excitation.”

A feedback relationship between the strength of the nervous system and sensitivity was established. Individuals with a strong nervous system are characterized by a low level of analyzer sensitivity. And a weaker nervous system is more sensitive, that is, it is able to respond to stimuli of lower intensity than a strong one.

Strong type of nervous system

A strong nervous system can withstand a greater load and duration than a weak one.

High efficiency. A person with a strong nervous system is characterized by high performance and low susceptibility to fatigue.

Multitasking. There is also the ability to remember and care about performing several types of tasks simultaneously for a long period of time, that is, to distribute one’s attention well.

Ability to take a hit. A distinctive property of a strong nervous system is the ability to tolerate extremely strong stimuli, remain calm and cool in stressful situations. Emergency, control - such situations mobilize people with a strong nervous system.

Mobilization and safety margin. In situations of intense activity and increased responsibility, an improvement in performance efficiency is observed. Can work in noisy environments. They achieve their best results, as a rule, under conditions of increased motivation.

Routine is depressing. But in the conditions of ordinary, everyday activities, when performing monotonous work, they develop a state of boredom and efficiency decreases, so they achieve their best results, as a rule, in conditions of increased motivation.

Ignores weak signals. Sensitivity is determined by the minimum value of the stimulus that causes an excitation reaction. People with a strong nervous system require a stronger signal for this.

Features of human higher nervous activity. First and second signaling systems (I.P. Pavlov)

General patterns of conditioned reflex activity established in animals are also characteristic of human GNI. However, human GNI in comparison with animals is characterized by the greatest degree of development of analytical and synthetic processes. This is due not only to the further development and improvement in the course of evolution of those mechanisms of cortical activity that are inherent in all animals, but also to the emergence of new mechanisms of this activity.

Such a specific feature of human GNI is that, unlike animals, he has two systems of signal stimuli: one system, the first , consists, like in animals, of the direct influences of factors from the external and internal environment of the body; the other consists of words indicating the influence of these factors. I.P. Pavlov called it the second signaling system , since the word is a “ signal of a signal .” Thanks to the second human signal system, analysis and synthesis of the surrounding world, its adequate reflection in the cortex, can be carried out not only by operating with direct sensations and impressions, but also by operating only with words. Opportunities are created for distraction from reality, for abstract thinking.

This significantly expands the possibilities of human adaptation to the environment. He can get a more or less correct idea of ​​the phenomena and objects of the external world without direct contact with reality itself, but from the words of other people or from books. Abstract thinking makes it possible to develop appropriate adaptive reactions also without contact with those specific life conditions in which these adaptive reactions are appropriate. In other words, a person determines in advance and develops a line of behavior in a new environment that he has never seen before. Thus, when going on a trip to new unfamiliar places, a person nevertheless prepares accordingly for unusual climatic conditions, for specific conditions of communication with people, etc.

It goes without saying that the perfection of human adaptive activity with the help of verbal signals will depend on how accurately and completely the surrounding reality is reflected in the cerebral cortex with the help of words. Therefore, the only true way to verify the correctness of our ideas about reality is practice, i.e. direct interaction with the objective material world.

The second signaling system is socially conditioned. A person is not born with it, he is born only with the ability to form it in the process of communicating with his own kind. Mowgli's children do not have a human second signaling system.

The teaching of I. P. Pavlov on higher nervous activity is one of the first scientific and experimental approaches that connected mental activity with internal physiological processes.

Ivan Petrovich Pavlov (1849–1936). In 1875 he graduated from the natural sciences department of the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics of St. Petersburg University.

In 1879 he graduated from the Medical-Surgical Academy with a gold medal. In 1904, I.P. Pavlov was awarded the Nobel Prize for outstanding achievements in the study of the physiology of digestion. The results of his unique experiments on digestion were presented by him in the book “Lectures on the work of the main digestive glands” in 1897.

To study the digestive system, the dog underwent a complex operation.

The esophagus was cut, and a tube was implanted into the opening in the stomach, which was closed with a stopper. This made it possible to begin experiments with imaginary feeding of animals.

The dog eats, and all the food it eats falls back out of the upper end of the esophagus.

After a few minutes of this imaginary feeding, gastric juice begins to be released. For different food compositions (bread, meat or milk), the glands produce juice of different chemical composition and enzyme concentrations. Hundreds of experiments were carried out in which they studied the chemical composition of incoming gastric juice, its amount for different types of food and the necessary conditions under which the glands began to secrete this juice. As a result of the experiments, it turned out that if feeding is associated with some external signal (for example, a sound) coming immediately before eating, then this signal will be associated with food.

And not just with food, but with some specific food. In response to the “meat” signal, the salivary glands will secrete a composition for meat, and in response to the “bread” signal, a composition for digesting bread. Pavlov called such temporary connections that appear from third-party external signals under certain conditions conditioned reflexes. Subsequently, it was found that they are formed and fixed in the cerebral hemispheres.

I.P. Pavlov devoted the following years to researching the mechanisms of brain function. The method of conditioned reflexes was developed, the doctrine of temperaments and the doctrine of higher nervous activity were created. In 1923, he summarized the work of his institute in the book “Twenty years of experience in the objective study of higher nervous activity (behavior) of animals.” [1]

The doctrine of temperaments Together with his colleagues, I. P. Pavlov worked on the doctrine of Hippocrates about temperaments, presenting it from the perspective of the processes of irritation and inhibition in the cerebral cortex. The physiological basis of temperament was represented by four main types of nervous system: First, the nervous system was divided into strong and weak. Representatives of a weak nervous system are melancholic. Secondly, representatives of a strong type of nervous system, in turn, were divided into those with a balanced nervous system and an unbalanced one.

Those with a strong but unbalanced nervous system, in which irritation processes prevail over inhibition processes, were classified as choleric. And then the representatives of a strong and balanced nervous system, according to the degree of mobility of nervous processes, were divided into sanguines (mobile, strong, balanced) and phlegmatics (weakly mobile, but strong and balanced nervous system) (pp. 456–457). [1] In addition to the four main types of temperament, two additional categories of people were proposed for consideration: artists and thinkers (artistic and analytical mindedness) (p. 411). [1]

The doctrine of higher nervous activity In 1866, the Russian physiologist Ivan Mikhailovich Sechenov put forward the idea of ​​​​the reflex nature of mental activity: “All acts of conscious and unconscious life, according to the method of origin, are reflexes.”

Subsequently, this idea was developed by Ivan Petrovich Pavlov to the doctrine of higher nervous activity. This is a theory about the mechanisms of the brain, about the activity of the cerebral cortex, which ensures the adaptation of higher animals and humans to the environment.

Congenital reflexes are called unconditioned, and those acquired during life are called conditioned.

The conditioned reflex is a key concept in the doctrine of higher nervous activity. This is a temporary connection that is formed under certain conditions as a result of its reinforcement by an unconditioned reflex (for example, food). Subsequently, behavior will be determined by those signals, associations and commands that were formed and fixed in him as conditioned reflexes. The concept of a conditioned reflex connects human consciousness with the work of the cerebral hemispheres and suggests considering their interaction as the work of a single whole.

Allows you to approach human thinking and behavior from the position of scientific theory and materialism, and not from the position of the action of higher otherworldly mystical forces. For the first time, the connection between associations, experiences and feelings with the work of the brain, the connection between soul and body, was experimentally demonstrated. This is the main value of the doctrine of higher nervous activity for psychology. For the first time in his experiments, Pavlov not only changed existing simple forms of behavior, but also created new temporary connections (habits).

Thus, a scientific experimental basis was provided for the new direction in psychology that was emerging in the West - behaviorism.

Features of the theory Any terms and concepts that could introduce an element of ambiguous and subjective interpretation of the results of the experiments were excluded from the doctrine of higher nervous activity.

It was forbidden to make any psychological judgments and to freely explain the desires, feelings and thoughts of animals.

Only objective facts existing in time and space were considered. Such facts when one could “point with a finger: where the irritation was, where it went” (p. 145). [1] Ivan Petrovich himself wrote about this that when they began to analyze the feelings, desires and ideas of their pets, “the result was completely unexpected, completely unusual: the employee and I found ourselves in irreconcilable differences of language.

We could not come to an agreement, we could not prove to each other who was right. Before this, for decades and after this, it was possible to agree on all issues, to solve the matter one way or another, but here it ended in discord. After that I had to think a lot. We probably chose the wrong path... We completely forbade ourselves (even a fine was announced in the laboratory) to use such psychological expressions as the dog guessed, wanted, desired” (p. 227). [1]

Limitations of Pavlov's teaching. The study of higher nervous activity in the experiments of I. P. Pavlov was limited to the study of the work of the salivary gland in dogs. The level of development of scientific knowledge at the beginning of the 20th century did not allow us to do more. Conducting experiments on animals, I.P. Pavlov and his colleagues noted a certain dependence of the experimental results on the character traits of a particular individual.

The ability to draw direct analogies between studies of animal and human behavior in this regard is very difficult.

Weak type of nervous system

Fast fatiguability. A person with a weak nervous system is characterized by rapid fatigue, the need for additional breaks for rest, and a sharp decrease in work productivity against the background of distractions and interference.

There is an inability to distribute attention between several things at the same time.

Doesn't cope well with stress . In situations of intense activity, work efficiency decreases, anxiety and uncertainty arise. A weak nervous system is not able to tolerate super-strong stimuli. It either turns off immediately (the inhibitory process prevails over excitation), or it is “carried away” without any brakes, with unpredictable consequences (inhibition does not have time to cope with excitation).

Systematization and control. A weak nervous system is characterized by high resistance to monotony, therefore representatives of the weak type achieve better results in everyday, habitual activities. They work successfully according to the algorithm. There is the ability to plan activities, systematize, and carefully monitor the work done.

Increased sensitivity. A weak nervous system has the ability to respond to ultra-weak signals and distinguish between similar stimuli. It is precisely high sensitivity that determines that some people are able to notice the subtleties of shades, sounds, smells, as well as statements and interpersonal relationships.

by Paul Apal'kin

Basic types of temperament

A choleric person is a person whose nervous system is determined by the predominance of excitation over inhibition, so he reacts very quickly, often without thinking, does not have time to slow down, restrain himself, shows impatience, impulsiveness, sudden movements, hot temper, and lack of restraint. The imbalance of his nervous system determines the cyclical change in his activity and vigor: excited by some task, he works enthusiastically, with full dedication, but his strength is short-lived, and as soon as they are depleted, he works to the point that everything is unbearable for him. An irritable state occurs, bad mood, loss of energy and lethargy (“everything falls out of hand”). The alternation of positive cycles of uplifting mood and vitality with negative cycles of decline, depression, causes uneven behavior and well-being of a person, his increased predisposition to the occurrence of neurotic breakdowns and conflicts with people.

A sanguine person is a person with a strong, balanced, mobile nervous system, has a quick reaction speed, his actions are thoughtful, cheerful, thanks to which he is highly resistant to life’s difficulties. The mobility of his nervous system leads to variability of feelings, attachments, interests, views and high adaptability to new conditions. This sociable person easily comes into contact with new people and, accordingly, has a large circle of acquaintances, which, however, is not distinguished by constancy in communication and affection. He is a productive worker, but only when there is a lot of interesting things to do, that is, with constant excitement, otherwise he becomes boring, lethargic, and absent-minded. In a stressful situation, he exhibits a “lion reaction,” that is, he actively and consciously resists and tries to normalize the situation.

A phlegmatic person is a person with a strong, balanced, but sluggish nervous system, therefore he reacts slowly, is taciturn, shows emotions slowly (it is difficult to make him angry or cheer him up); has a high working capacity, good resistance to strong and persistent stimuli, difficulties, but is not able to react quickly in unexpected new situations. He firmly remembers everything he has learned, cannot give up acquired skills and stereotypes, does not like to change habits, daily routine, work, friends, and adapts to new conditions with difficulty and slowly. The mood is stable and even. And in case of serious problems, a phlegmatic person remains outwardly calm.

A melancholic person is a person with a weak nervous system, which has increased sensitivity even to weak stimuli, and strong stimuli can already cause a “breakdown”, “stopping”, confusion, “rabbit stress”, therefore in stressful situations (exams, competitions, danger, etc.) .d.) the performance of a melancholic person may deteriorate compared to a calm, familiar situation. Increased sensitivity leads to rapid fatigue and decreased performance (longer rest is required). A minor reason can lead to resentment and tears. The mood is very changeable, but usually a melancholic person tries to hide it, does not show his feelings outwardly, does not talk about his experiences, although he is very inclined to show his experiences, he is often sad, depressed, unsure of himself, anxious, he may have a neurotic disorder. However, because they have a very sensitive nervous system, they often have strong artistic and intellectual talents.

It is difficult to answer exactly what kind of temperament this or that adult has. The type of nervous system, although determined by heredity, is not absolutely unchangeable. With age and under the influence of systematic training, upbringing, life circumstances, nervous processes can weaken or strengthen, their changes can accelerate or slow down. For example, choleric and sanguine people predominate in children (they are energetic, cheerful, easily and strongly excited, cry, after a minute they can be distracted and laugh joyfully, that is, there is a high mobility of nervous processes). Older people, on the contrary, have many phlegmatic and melancholic people.

Temperament is an external manifestation of the character of higher nervous activity, and therefore, as a result of education and self-education, this external manifestation can be distorted, changed, and “masking” of the true temperament occurs. Therefore, a “pure” type of temperament is rarely found, but, nevertheless, the predominance of one or another tendency is always manifested in a person’s behavior.

Temperament influences the manner of behavior and communication, for example, a sanguine person is almost always the initiator of communication, he feels at ease in the company of strangers, a new unfamiliar situation only excites him, and a melancholic person, on the contrary, gets scared, embarrassed, he gets lost in a new situation, among new people . It is also difficult for a phlegmatic person to meet new people, his feelings are few and he does not notice for too long that someone is looking for a reason to get to know him. He tends to start love relationships with friendship and eventually falls in love, but without lightning-fast metamorphosis, because he has a slow rhythm of feelings, and the stability of his feelings makes him a monolover. For choleric and sanguine people, on the contrary, love often appears at lightning speed, at first sight, but is not so stable.

A person's work productivity is closely related to the characteristics of his temperament. Thus, the special mobility of a sanguine person can bring an additional effect if the work requires frequently moving from one profession to another, the efficiency of decision-making increases, and monotony and regimented activity, on the contrary, leads to rapid fatigue. Phlegmatic and melancholic people, on the contrary, under conditions of strict regulation and monotonous work, show greater productivity and resistance to fatigue than choleric and sanguine people.

In behavioral communication, the characteristics of the reactions of people with different types of temperament can and should be foreseen and adequately responded to them.

We emphasize that temperament determines only dynamic, but not meaningful qualities of behavior. Based on the same temperament, both a “great” and a socially insignificant personality are possible.

The famous psychologist C. Jung divided people according to their personality structure into extroverts (“outward-directed”) and introverts (“inward-directed”). Extroverts are sociable, active, optimistic, mobile, they have a strong type of higher nervous activity, and their temperament is sanguine or choleric. Introverts are unsociable, withdrawn, separated from everyone, their actions are guided mainly by their own ideas, they seriously consider making decisions, and control their emotions. Introverts include phlegmatic and melancholic people. However, life is rarely completely pure extrovert or introvert. Each of us has traits of both, it depends on the innate characteristics of the nervous system, age, upbringing, and life circumstances.

Other characteristics of the nervous system

Nervous system mobility

Mobility is a property of the nervous system, which manifests itself in the speed and ease of a person’s adaptation to new conditions, in the speed and ease of his transition from one state to another, from rest to activity and back. The mobility of nervous processes affects the speed of thinking, perception, and memorization.

Mobile type of nervous system

People with a mobile nervous system tend to easily and quickly learn new material, but just as quickly forget it; they easily and quickly get used to new conditions, love the novelty of the situation and new acquaintances.

Inert type of nervous system

People with an inert nervous system master new material slowly, but this mastery is more durable. They are difficult to master, they move more slowly from a state of rest to a state of activity, such people are often accused of being slow.

"Invasion" by Paul Apalkin

Balance of the nervous system

Balance is a property of the nervous system, which manifests itself in the balance of the processes of excitation and inhibition.

Unbalanced type of nervous system

Excitement predominates; it is easier for such people to show external activity than to restrain themselves; they quickly make decisions and take action, sometimes without even having time to think everything through.

Balanced type of nervous system

Inhibition predominates, which is expressed in patience, the ability to effectively suppress inappropriate impulses; excessive constraint of behavior is also possible.”

Character concept

As expected, we must begin by defining character. However, this cannot be done without some preliminary remarks.

The fact is that the interpretation of the concept of “character” in psychology is far from unambiguous. The difficulty of distinguishing between character and temperament has already been discussed above. This becomes even more contradictory if you try to separate the concepts of “character” and “personality”.

In the psychological literature one can find all possible options for the relationship between these two terms: Character and personality are practically identified, that is, these terms are used as synonyms; character is included in personality and is considered as its substructure; on the contrary, personality is understood as a specific part of character; personality and character are considered as “overlapping” entities.

Confusion between the terms "character" and "personality" can be avoided by maintaining a narrower interpretation of these terms. The concept of personality in the narrow sense was discussed at the beginning of the previous lecture. There is also a more specific understanding of character, and I will introduce you to it.

Character, in a narrow sense, is defined as a set of enduring personality traits that express how one behaves and reacts emotionally.

With this definition of character, its properties, like the properties of temperament, can be attributed to formal and dynamic behavioral characteristics. But in the first case, these qualities are, so to speak, exclusively formal in nature, in the second - they bear signs of something more meaningful, designer. So, for the motor sphere, adjectives describing temperament will be “fast”, “dexterous”, “sharp”, “sluggish”, and character qualities will be “collected”, “organized”, “neat”, “lax”. To characterize the emotional sphere in the case of temperament, words such as “lively”, “impulsive”, “hot-tempered”, “sensitive” are used, and in the case of character - “good-natured”, “restrained”, “suspicious”. However, as already mentioned, the boundary between temperament and character is rather arbitrary. It is much more important to understand more deeply the difference between character and personality (in the strict sense).

Now let's look at how these terms are used in everyday language. First, let's notice how different these phrases are from adjectives used to describe personality and character. People talk about a person as “high”, “outstanding”, “creative”, “gray”, “criminal”, etc. Adjectives such as "hard", "cruel", "iron", "soft", "golden" are used in reference to character. After all, we don't say "high character" or "soft personality."

Thus, an analysis of secular terminology shows that there are various manifestations. But even more convincing are the following considerations: When judgments about character and personality are made in relation to the same person, these judgments can not only coincide, but also have opposite signs.

Let us take as an example the personalities of outstanding people. The question arises: are there any great people in history with bad character? Yes all. There is an opinion that F.M. was distinguished by his stern character. Dostoevsky, I.P. had a very “heavy” character. Pavlova. However, this did not stop them both from becoming outstanding personalities. Thus, character and personality are not the same thing.

Character is a personality structure that includes only the most pronounced and closely related personality traits, which are clearly manifested in various types of activities. All personality traits are character traits, but not all personality traits are character traits.

Character is an individual combination of the most stable, essential personality traits, which manifests itself in human behavior, in a certain respect:

1. to oneself (degree of competence, critical abilities, self-esteem);
2. in relation to other people (individualism or collectivism, selfishness or altruism, cruelty or kindness, indifference or sensitivity, rudeness or politeness, deceitfulness or truthfulness, etc.);
3. to the task (laziness or hard work, neatness or sloppiness, initiative or passivity, perseverance or impatience, responsibility or irresponsibility, neatness, etc.);
4. Character reflects volitional qualities: willingness to overcome obstacles, mental and physical pain, degree of perseverance, independence, determination, discipline.

What is the relationship between temperament and character? Human character is a fusion of innate qualities of higher nervous activity with individual traits acquired during life. Truthful, kind, tactful or, conversely, deceitful, evil, rude people can be of any temperament. However, with a certain temperament, some traits are acquired more easily, others more difficult. For example, organization and discipline are easier for phlegmatic people to acquire than choleric people, and kindness and responsiveness for melancholic people. Being a good organizer and a sociable person is easier for sanguine and choleric people. However, it is unacceptable to justify one’s character flaws with innate qualities or temperament. Responsive, kind, tactful, tolerant people can be of any temperament.

Types of nervous system and temperament

9.3. Temperament

Temperament is the main personality trait. It is considered the most stable characteristic of a person’s personality, which hardly changes throughout life and manifests itself in all spheres of life. Therefore, each person needs to have an idea about the types of temperament and the properties of the nervous system, about their own type of temperament, and be able to determine the characteristics of another person’s temperament based on behavioral manifestations.

The ancient genus of temperament belongs to the “father” of medicine, Hippocrates (c. 460-377 BC). It was he who first tried to find out what caused individual differences in people's behavior. He and his follower Galen (an ancient Roman physician, c. 130 - 200 AD) came to the conclusion that these differences are due to different ratios of the main types of fluids in the human body. If blood predominates (Latin sanguis) - the person behaves like a sanguine person, mucus (Greek phlegma -) phlegmatic, yellow bile (Greek chole -) choleric, black bile (Greek melana chole -) melancholic. The optimal ratio of these fluids determines health, while a disproportionate ratio is the source of various diseases.

I.P. Pavlov, proving the existence of a certain pattern in the manifestation of individual differences, put forward the hypothesis that they are based on the fundamental properties of nervous processes - excitation and inhibition, their balance and mobility.

The strength of the nervous system determines its performance. It manifests itself primarily in functional endurance, that is, the ability to withstand long-term and short-term, but strong excitement. The balance of nervous processes is the balance between the processes of excitation and inhibition, and their mobility is the rate of change in excitation and inhibition. The mobility of nervous processes is manifested in the ability to change behavior depending on conditions, quickly move from one action to another, from a passive state to an active state or vice versa. The opposite quality to mobility is the inertia of nervous processes. The nervous system is inert when it requires more time and effort to move from one process to another.

These qualities of nervous processes form certain systems, combinations, which predetermine the type of nervous system.

I.P. Pavlov understood the type of nervous system as innate, which is relatively weakly susceptible to changes under the influence of environment and upbringing. He called it genotype. According to Pavlov, the properties of the nervous system form the physiological basis of temperament, which is nothing more than a mental manifestation of the general type of nervous system.

The properties of the nervous system and the characteristics of temperament are more or less obvious and “read” in human behavior. Each person has his own way of holding himself and influencing others. One speaks calmly, balancedly, constantly smiles, and easily forgives insults. The other in these same situations is slow, absent-minded, often afraid to say too much, and remembers insults for a long time. Those who speak loudly, strive to lead in communication, gesticulate, and quickly move from one topic of conversation to another. And those who speak quietly rarely change their posture, are stingy with gestures and facial expressions, and seem to get “stuck” on the details. All this is a manifestation of a person’s individuality and temperament.

I.P. Pavlov identified four main types of the nervous system, close to the traditional typology of Hippocrates and Galen. Comparing his types of nervous system with the typology of Hippocrates and Galen, the Russian physiologist describes them as follows:

• strong, balanced, agile type - sanguine;
• strong, balanced, inert type - phlegmatic;
• strong, mobile, unbalanced type - choleric;
• weak, unbalanced, sedentary type - melancholic.

For I.P. Pavlov, temperament is the most important characteristic of the human nervous system, which in one way or another affects all the activities of each individual.

Based on each type, various systems of conditioned nervous connections are formed, but the process of their formation itself depends on the type of nervous system. Thus, the type of nervous system provides uniqueness to human behavior, leaves a special imprint on its entire essence - it determines the mobility of mental processes and their stability. However, it is not a decisive factor in behavior, actions, and beliefs that are formed in the process of a person’s individual life and in the process of upbringing.

TEMPERAMENT is a stable personality property that expresses the individually unique dynamics of the psyche and behavior, which is equally manifested in a variety of activities, regardless of its content, goals and motives.

A person exhibits the following types of temperament: sanguine, choleric, phlegmatic and melancholic. All types of temperament can be characterized by the main qualities listed below:

• lability - displays the speed of occurrence and course of excitation and inhibition;
• sensitivity is the power of influence that is needed to cause a reaction in a person;
• reactivity - the strength of the emotional reaction to external and internal stimuli;
• activity - that is, how energetic a person is in life and activity;
• rate of reactions - the speed of mental processes and reactions;
• plasticity - flexibility, the degree of ability to adapt to new conditions;
• rigidity - inertia, inflexibility, insensitivity to changing conditions;
• extraversion - the personality’s focus on surrounding people, objects, events;
• introversion - a person’s fixation on himself, on his experiences and thoughts, a tendency to introspection, isolation;
• emotional excitability is the power of influence needed to evoke an emotional reaction.

Choleric is a person with a strong, unbalanced, mobile nervous system, which is marked by the advantage of excitation over inhibition.

Choleric temperament is characterized by cyclicality and impulsiveness in activity and behavior. A choleric person can devote himself entirely to a task, working hard, energetically overcoming difficulties on the way to achieving a goal, and suddenly give up everything. The instability of his mood and cyclical behavior, which scientists explain by the imbalance of higher nervous activity, turn out to be due to the predominance of excitation over inhibition. Therefore, the intense activity of the subcortex is not always sufficiently regulated by the cortex. This is clearly visible during difficult circumstances, when people of this type cannot find the right solution, and during times of strong emotional arousal.

In choleric patients, excitatory reflexes are developed very easily and remain for a long time, but inhibitory reflexes are developed with difficulty. The complex course of excitation and inhibition in a choleric person can lead to a breakdown of the nervous system from the inhibition side. So, the choleric type is highly excitable and unrestrained. But people with such a temperament, when they have serious positive interests, show initiative, energy and integrity in business. If there are no such interests, the choleric person is prone to affective experiences, irritability and incontinence.

A person with this type of temperament is characterized by increased excitability and emotional reactivity. She can be impatient, fiery and harsh in relationships, straightforward. Her volitional actions are very impetuous; if she is interested, she is capable of high concentration of attention, but shows insufficient ability to switch attention. By orientation, a choleric person is an extrovert, loves to be the center of attention, but is not affectionate in communication, likes for everything to be as he wants, unyielding. Has organizational skills. He has lively facial expressions, expressive gestures, and often a fast pace of speech.

Thus, an essential feature of the choleric nervous system is, in addition to great strength, primarily impaired inhibition. He is distinguished by great vital energy, but lacks self-control; he is hot-tempered and unrestrained.

A choleric person is characterized by a high level of mental activity, energetic actions, sharpness, impetuosity, swiftness, force of movements, and their fast pace. A choleric person is prone to repeated mood swings, is quick-tempered, impatient, undergoes emotional breakdowns, and is sometimes aggressive. In the absence of proper upbringing, lack of emotional balance can lead to an inability to control one’s emotions in difficult life circumstances.

Characteristic signs of external manifestations of choleric temperament: hasty, excited pace of movements, straight-line movements begin with a jerk, angular movements, very active facial expressions, loud voice, fast speech (its speed may fluctuate), handshake. During the conversation, the eyes either “light up” or “dim,” which is associated with fluctuations in attention to the topic (even if it is interesting to him). He also responds loudly and sharply to loud remarks. The voice becomes especially unpleasant when comments are made to it in front of other people. Instantly gives a reaction to a negative assessment of his judgments and proposals.

A sanguine person is a person with a strong, balanced, mobile nervous system, which is characterized by a high speed of reactions.

Sanguine people can be easily excited and also easily inhibit their desires. The activities of a sanguine person are characterized by productivity when he is interested, when he finds something new for himself. If it becomes uninteresting, he begins to get bored and leaves the work he started without finishing it. His deliberate actions, in a stressful situation, exhibit a “lion reaction.”

A person with such a temperament is very mobile, easily adapts to new living conditions, quickly finds contact in relationships with other people, is sociable, and feels free and relaxed in a new environment. The sanguine person is a bright extrovert in orientation. Around his friends he is always cheerful and cheerful. His mood is more optimistic.

A sanguine person is characterized by increased reactivity, he laughs loudly and becomes violently angry. Feelings arise very easily and change just as easily; he can easily control his emotions in accordance with the requirements of the environment.

The extremely easy and rapid formation of new nerve connections, their easy restructuring contributes to the fact that a sanguine person quickly grasps everything new, easily switches attention, and learns new skills. He has a flexible mind and a well-developed sense of humor.

The traits of sanguine temperament manifest themselves differently depending on the direction of a person’s activity: in the absence of serious interests in life, sanguine people are frivolous and superficial.

Thus, the nervous system of a sanguine person is distinguished by the great strength of nervous processes, their balance and significant mobility. Therefore, a sanguine person is a fast person who easily adapts to changing living conditions. He is characterized by high resistance to the difficulties of life.

A sanguine person is characterized by high mental activity, energy, efficiency, vivacity of movements, a variety of facial expressions, and a fast pace of speech. A sanguine person strives for frequent changes of impressions, easily and quickly responds to surrounding events, and is sociable. Emotions - mostly positive - arise quickly and change quickly. He experiences failures relatively easily and quickly. Under unfavorable conditions, mobility turns into incontinence and haste. With an insufficient level of self-regulation and low criticality, mobility results in unjustified haste in decision-making and actions.

Characteristic signs of the external manifestation of a sanguine temperament: wide movements, long steps, a fast, rhythmic gait, a tendency to keep a short distance when communicating, a firm gaze, a fairly strong handshake, agile and rich facial expressions, a poignantly fast manner of speech. The eyes “light up” with the appearance of a new idea, a new proposal.

A phlegmatic person is a calm, always balanced, persistent and persistent worker of life (I.P. Pavlov). His reactions are optimally adapted to the strength of conditioned stimuli, and therefore phlegmatic people respond adequately to environmental influences: if the stimuli are weak, then the reaction is weak, if the stimuli are strong, then the reaction is strong. But their characteristic inertia does not allow them to quickly respond to rapid changes in the environment. Conditioned reflexes in phlegmatic people are formed more slowly, but they turn out to be quite stable.

Phlegmatic people know how to control, delay and regulate unconditioned reflexes and emotions. Therefore, in their behavior, movements, and conversation, they are slow and calm. Facial expressions are very poor, the voice is quiet and indistinct. They strictly adhere to the established routine of life, and therefore nothing can distract them from their main work. They are characterized by concentration and endurance; among others, they are distinguished by stability of attention, the ability to try and work hard.

The phlegmatic person is an introvert, so it is difficult to get along with people and does not need new acquaintances. At the same time, he is characterized by commitment, sociability, and equal attitude towards other people. It is difficult to piss him off or bring him to an emotional state.

However, feelings in phlegmatic people arise more slowly than in sanguine and choleric people. However, they are characterized by strength and at the same time restraint in external manifestations, weak expressiveness.

A person with this temperament reacts slowly, so time is not able to act quickly in extreme situations. It is difficult to adapt to new conditions, does not like to change habits, routine, work, friends. In phlegmatic people, the mood is predominantly stable and even. If there are serious troubles, he remains outwardly calm.

Thus, the nervous system of a phlegmatic person is characterized by significant strength and balance of nervous processes along with low mobility. In terms of mobility, he is the opposite of a sanguine person, therefore he reacts calmly and slowly, and is not inclined to change his environment; like the sanguine person, it resists strong and prolonged irritants well.

A phlegmatic person is characterized by a low level of mental activity, slowness, difficulty switching from one type of activity to another and adapting to new conditions. He has a prevailing calm, even mood. Feelings and moods are usually constant. Under unfavorable conditions (lack of interest, fatigue), lethargy, poverty of emotions, and a tendency to perform monotonous habitual actions may develop.

Characteristic signs of the external manifestation of a phlegmatic temperament: a slow, unhurried pace of movements, inactive facial expressions, calm, slow speech, low tone of voice. He often stops his interlocutor and asks him again if he speaks quickly.

A melancholic person is a person with a weak, unbalanced, sedentary nervous system, which has increased sensitivity even to weak stimuli, and a strong one can cause a “breakdown” in them.

The typical melancholic temperament is characterized by weakness of both excitatory and inhibitory processes. Therefore, the conditioned reflexes of melancholic people are unstable and are easily inhibited by changes in the environment. In them, internal inhibition is especially weakened, hence the low complex reactivity, easy distraction, and short concentration on objects of activity.

By orientation, a melancholic person is an introvert, so he has a hard time experiencing a change in his life environment; when he finds himself in new living conditions, he becomes very lost. He can be overly shy, withdrawn, timid and indecisive, and does not like new acquaintances and noisy companies.

A person with this type of temperament displays confusion and spontaneity. In emergency situations, she may experience “rabbit stress,” which will lead to low performance, or even failure to complete tasks.

A melancholic person is a very impressionable person, prone to asthenic emotions. His feelings are characterized by smoothness, stability and weak expressiveness. These people are hypersensitive. Melancholic people endure rudeness, tactlessness, disrespect and other negative aspects of behavior very painfully. They need a calm, familiar environment where they can work successfully.

Consequently, people who belong to this type are characterized by weakness in both the process of excitation and inhibition; they poorly resist the influence of strong positive and inhibitory stimuli. Therefore, melancholic people are often passive and inhibited. For them, the influence of strong stimuli can become a source of various behavioral disorders.

A melancholic person is characterized by a low level of mental activity, rapid fatigue, depth and stability of emotions with weak external expression, and negative emotions predominate. Under unfavorable conditions, increased emotional vulnerability, isolation, and alienation may develop.

Characteristic signs of the external manifestation of a melancholic temperament: a slow, sluggish pace of movements, inactive and at the same time tense facial expressions, a slow manner of speech, a quiet voice, a glance often from the side or past the interlocutor, during a handshake the hand is sluggish, possible “downturned” corners of the mouth, compressed mouth, uneven rhythm of the tongue. Ceases to be active when shouted, sharply remarked, or when attention is drawn to it. During a group active discussion of an issue, he cannot always take the initiative, especially when making value judgments, gets lost in a large audience, and avoids “eye contact.”

The types of temperament described in their pure form rarely happen in life. In fact, all people combine traits of different temperaments, but one of them predominates, so it is difficult to attribute this or that person to a certain type of temperament. In fact, there are more than four types of temperament (as well as types of the nervous system), so we should talk about a mixed type of temperament. Each person actually has all types of temperament, albeit in different proportions.

Features of the type of temperament manifest themselves differently in each personality. They change with age, being directly dependent on the maturation and development of the human body and his psyche. The task is to take into account these characteristics and develop in a person the ability to control his temperament.

How should we take into account the characteristics of one or another type of personality temperament in educational, educational and professional activities?

When working with choleric people, it should be taken into account that they easily concentrate their attention on one or another object, but cannot quickly switch it, since the inhibition processes in them are slowed down. They are also prone to violation of discipline in the classroom, because they are often highly excitable, prone to affective reactions, they need to be captivated by interesting things and given some instructions. Skills and habits in choleric people are easy to form, but changing them can be extremely difficult. Therefore, the transition from familiar actions to other, new ones should be carried out gradually.

In a person of phlegmatic and melancholic temperament, temporary connections are formed more slowly due to insufficient mobility of cortical processes. Therefore, they need to be given more time to assimilate and master the educational material.

The lack of mobility of phlegmatic people leads to the fact that they slowly switch their attention. When working with them, you should select tasks that contribute to the development of greater reaction speed and motor mobility, especially when they must perform tasks in extreme conditions. Dynamic stereotypes in phlegmatic people are formed more slowly than in sanguine people, and therefore they must be gradually switched from one habitual action to another.

People of melancholic temperament require special attention due to their vulnerability and rapid body fatigue. They need a calm, favorable environment and a thoughtful regime of influence, which provides for a gradual transition from familiar living conditions to other activities and circumstances. The weakness of the nervous processes in these people requires a sensitive and careful attitude towards them.

All types of temperament have their positive and negative traits. The positive qualities of a choleric person are activity, passion, energy; sanguine - mobility, emotionality, responsiveness; phlegmatic - self-control, calmness; melancholic - depth and stability of feelings, emotional sensitivity. At the same time, choleric people can be unrestrained, harsh, and affective; sanguine people - insufficiently focused, frivolous.

In some types of activity, for example in extreme situations, problem solving may depend on temperamental traits.

Therefore, for a certain type of activity, people should be selected, focusing on more or less favorable dynamic features of their psyche.

Some types of activities make strict demands regarding the pace and intensity of actions, and therefore require special selection for these qualities. For example, someone who has chosen the profession of a military pilot, tank driver, operator, paratrooper must have an active and strong type of nervous system. This also applies to people who must act in emergency (extreme) conditions.

Temperament is manifested primarily in the peculiarities of using work methods. So, temperamental traits are one of the prerequisites for character development.

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Types of the nervous system. Strong and weak type

Published: 12/20/2018
We all behave differently in difficult situations, work at different paces, and react to criticism. These differences are largely due to the type of nervous system. The type of nervous system can be strong or weak, inert or mobile, balanced and unbalanced. The characteristics of the nervous system determine the known types of temperament: choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholic. According to I.P. Pavlov, the strength of the nervous system is...

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Higher nervous activity

The higher nervous activity of humans and animals sometimes reveals quite pronounced individual differences. Individual characteristics of VND are manifested in different speeds of formation and strengthening of conditioned reflexes, different speeds of development of internal inhibition, different difficulties in altering the signal meaning of conditioned stimuli, different performance of cortical cells, etc. Each individual is characterized by a certain combination of basic properties of cortical activity. It was called the VND type.

The features of the IRR are determined by the nature of the interaction, the ratio of the main cortical processes - excitation and inhibition. Therefore, the classification of types of VND is based on differences in the basic properties of these nervous processes. These properties are:

1. The strength of nervous processes. Depending on the performance of cortical cells, nervous processes can be strong or weak.

2. Balance of nervous processes. Depending on the ratio of excitation and inhibition, they can be balanced or unbalanced.

3. Mobility of nervous processes, i.e. the speed of their occurrence and cessation, the ease of transition from one process to another. Depending on this, nervous processes can be mobile or inert .

Theoretically, 36 combinations of these three properties of nervous processes are conceivable, i.e. a wide variety of types of VND. I.P. Pavlov, however, identified only 4, the most striking types of VND in dogs:

1 - strong unbalanced (with a sharp predominance of excitement);

2 - strong unbalanced mobile;

3 - strong balanced inert;

4 - weak type.

Pavlov considered the identified types to be common to both humans and animals. He showed that the four established types coincide with Hippocrates' description of the four human temperaments - choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic and melancholic.

In the formation of the type of GNI, along with genetic factors (genotype), the external environment and upbringing (phenotype) also take an active part. In the course of further individual development of a person, based on the innate typological characteristics of the nervous system, under the influence of the external environment, a certain set of properties of GNI is formed, manifested in a stable direction of behavior, i.e. what we call character. The type of GNI contributes to the formation of certain character traits.

1. Animals with a strong, unbalanced type are, as a rule, bold and aggressive, extremely excitable, difficult to train, and cannot tolerate restrictions in their activities.

People of this type (cholerics) are characterized by lack of restraint and mild excitability. These are energetic, enthusiastic people, bold in their judgments, prone to decisive action, unaware of limits in their work, and often reckless in their actions. Children of this type are often academically capable, but hot-tempered and unbalanced.

2. Dogs of a strong, balanced , active type are in most cases sociable, active, quickly react to every new stimulus, but at the same time they easily restrain themselves. They quickly and easily adapt to changes in the environment.

People of this type ( sanguine ) are distinguished by restraint of character, great self-control, and at the same time ebullient energy and exceptional performance. Sanguine people are lively, inquisitive people, interested in everything and quite versatile in their activities and interests. On the contrary, one-sided, monotonous activity is not in their nature. They are persistent in overcoming difficulties and easily adapt to any changes in life, quickly rebuilding their habits. Children of this type are distinguished by liveliness, mobility, curiosity, and discipline.

3. For dogs of a strong, balanced, inert type, a characteristic feature is slowness and calmness. They are unsociable and do not show excessive aggression, reacting weakly to new stimuli. They are characterized by stability of habits and developed stereotypes in behavior.

People of this type (phlegmatic ) are distinguished by their slowness, exceptional balance, calmness and evenness in behavior. Despite their slowness, phlegmatic people are very energetic and persistent. They are distinguished by the constancy of their habits (sometimes to the point of pedantry and stubbornness), and the constancy of their attachments. Children of this type are distinguished by good behavior and hard work. They are characterized by a certain slowness of movements and slow, calm speech.

4. In the behavior of dogs of the weak type, cowardice and a tendency to passive-defensive reactions are noted as a characteristic feature.

A distinctive feature in the behavior of people of this type ( melancholic ) is timidity, isolation, and weak will. Melancholic people often tend to exaggerate the difficulties they encounter in life. They have increased sensitivity. Their feelings are often colored in gloomy tones. Children of the melancholic type outwardly look quiet and timid.

It should be noted that there are few representatives of such pure types, no more than 10% of the human population. Other people have numerous transitional types, combining in their character features of neighboring types.

The type of IRR largely determines the nature of the course of the disease, so it must be taken into account in the clinic. The type should be taken into account at school, when raising an athlete, a warrior, when determining professional suitability, etc. To determine the type of IRR in a person, special methods have been developed, including studies of conditioned reflex activity, processes of excitation and conditioned inhibition.

After Pavlov, his students conducted numerous studies of the types of VNI in humans. It turned out that Pavlov's classification requires significant additions and changes. Thus, research has shown that in humans there are numerous variations within each Pavlovian type due to the gradation of three basic properties of nervous processes. The weak type has especially many variations. Some new combinations of basic properties of the nervous system have also been established, which do not fit the characteristics of any Pavlovian type. These include a strong unbalanced type with a predominance of inhibition, an unbalanced type with a predominance of excitation, but in contrast to the strong type with a very weak inhibitory process, unbalanced in mobility (with labile excitation, but inert inhibition), etc. Therefore, work is currently ongoing to clarify and supplement the classification of types of internal income.

In addition to the general types of GNI, there are also specific types in humans, characterized by different relationships between the first and second signaling systems.

On this basis, three types of GNI are distinguished:

1. Artistic , in which the activity of the first signaling system is especially pronounced;

2. Thinking type , in which the second signaling system noticeably predominates.

3. Medium type , in which signal systems 1 and 2 are balanced.

The vast majority of people belong to the average type. This type is characterized by a harmonious combination of figurative-emotional and abstract-verbal thinking. The artistic type supplies artists, writers, musicians. Thinking - mathematicians, philosophers, scientists, etc.

Personality typology according to V. I. Zatsepin

Published: 09/29/2018
Our former compatriot, now living in Australia, summarizing Western literary data, gives a description of eight basic, from his point of view, personality types: infantile; authoritarian; Machiavellian; accumulative; adventurous; flexible; altruistic; creative (Zatsepin, 2002). Infantile The infantile personality type (psychopath) is characterized by social underdevelopment: dishonesty and lack of empathy. People of this type are quiet, polite, courteous, even charming and at the same time...

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Personality types according to A. Miller

Published: 09/29/2018
A. Miller (1991) created a typology based on a combination of personality traits. He used three dimensions of personality traits: cognitive, affective, and conative. Cognitive dimension - analyticity - holisticity (in other concepts it is analyticity - syntheticity), i.e. the tendency to focus on the whole or parts. The affective dimension is represented by emotional stability—instability, which is determined through the intensity of emotional reactions.…

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Personality types according to E. Fromm

Published: 09.29.2018
This American psychologist believed that early childhood and family relationships are the determining factors in the formation of personality. Therefore, the five personality types he identified (consumer, exploitative, accumulative, market and productive) rather reflect the influence of social rather than innate factors (E. Fromm, 1964). Consumer type A person believes that the source of all benefits is external, and is determined to...

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Personality types according to D. Keirsey

Published: 09/29/2018
Another approach to the classification of personality types is the approach of D. Keirsey (1956). Keirsey developed and supplemented the concept of Carl Gustav Jung, taking into account the latest achievements of both cognitive-behavioral and existential-humanistic psychology. As a result, he created an idea of ​​four integral types of temperament, differing in the most significant and stable psychological characteristics - from the value-motivational structure to the observed style of behavior. Author…

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Personality types according to I.L. Zelenkova and E.V. Belyaeva

Published: 09.29.2018
According to the works of I.L. Zelenkova and E.V. Belyaeva, there is a classification of moral personality types that lifts the curtain on people’s actions and their motivation. In total, the authors describe five personality types. It often happens that one person may have a mixture of several moral personality types with a predominance of certain traits. One way or another, all this is reflected in human manifestations that allow...

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Types of rationality

Published: 09/29/2018
Researchers of rationality today propose to distinguish three types of it: the classical type of rationality, the non-classical type of rationality, the post-non-classical type of rationality.
Types of rationality manifest themselves not only in the high spheres of scientific comprehension of the world, but also in ordinary life. Types of rationality describe the most characteristic principles of organizing and processing information, principles of constructing a picture of the world and decision-making mechanisms. Classic type of rationality Classic... no comments

Character and personality traits

Character is manifested not only in relation to other people, but also to oneself. Each of us, consciously or unconsciously, quite often compares ourselves with others and thereby develops a fairly stable opinion about our intelligence, appearance, health, position in society, that is, we form a “set of self-esteem” that determines whether we are modest or arrogant, demanding or self-righteous, shy or vain.

Most people tend to rate themselves as slightly above average. This suggests that the need for fairly high self-esteem is inherent in humans, that is, everyone wants to respect themselves. Self-esteem is one of the sources of psychological stability and good mood. Suppose a person made a mistake, did something wrong. If this person has a sufficiently high self-esteem, he can reassure himself: “Everything is okay, I’m not a fool and this is not typical for me,” i.e. psychological defense is triggered, and the person calms down.

In people suffering from neurosis, self-esteem is most often overestimated or underestimated, sometimes even extreme (the kindest, the shyest, the most honest). People with hysterical manifestations express the following judgments: “I am much smarter, prettier, kinder than most people, but I am the most unhappy and painful.

A person who considers himself much smarter than others and deliberately emphasizes this inevitably causes irritation among others. This is quite natural - after all, the thought “Look how smart I am” implies a disdainful attitude towards others. And who is pleased that someone thinks he is stupid? Inappropriate conceit, emphasizing one’s own merits, arrogance, and disregard for others are an inexhaustible source of negativity from others. Often we have to communicate with people who envy the success of their work colleagues due to insufficient self-esteem. “The worst and most malignant type of envy is envy of intellectual superiority,” argued D. Fielding. When one's abilities and successes are not accompanied by humility, they create envy and negative attitudes from others. Inflated self-esteem contributes to the development of character traits such as increased sensitivity. Resentment is usually an emotion that arises in response to the unfair treatment of other people. But what does it mean for a person to be “unjust”? And that another’s opinion of him is lower than his own opinion of himself. It is clear that inflated self-esteem contributes to resentment and intolerance to the slightest remark (although there is another extreme: from the height of his “I” a person does not even take serious criticism to heart). A person with insufficient self-esteem is potentially conflicted in situations related to rewards and rewards for work. The discrepancy between expected and actual rewards naturally leads to resentment and envy, which accumulate and eventually result in harsh accusations against someone.

What communication difficulties do people with low self-esteem experience? The idea of ​​oneself as less capable, unattractive, unhappy, sick creates a depressed mood and strengthens the “inferiority complex.” Persistent low self-esteem leads to excessive dependence on others, lack of independence and even ingratiation, shyness, isolation, and even a distorted perception of other people.

How does a person usually react to other people's attempts to lower his self-esteem through reproaches or criticism? It is clear that he does not experience pleasure, but his emotions depend on who criticizes, for what, for what purpose, and especially to what extent the expressed assessment of what is happening differs from his own. They rarely take offense at criticism from people whose opinions they value (their comments are not intended to humiliate, but to help). Sometimes you shouldn't take into account accusations from random strangers. But every person has some particularly vulnerable sides, criticism of which causes strong negative emotions. It is always offensive for women when their appearance and cleanliness are negatively assessed, and for men this is often an insult to their professional qualities and masculine virtues (strength, courage, perseverance). There are words that, once spoken, cause such damage to a relationship that all subsequent “balancing” measures cannot correct them. Example: In the heat of a family quarrel, a man said to his wife: “I have stopped loving you. I do not like you". And although this is not the case, as further actions prove, such thoughtless words take away the warmth of the marital relationship. It should be remembered that you should not give a general negative assessment of a person, and at the same time, do not pester him with constant petty reproaches. “Otherwise, such criticism causes resentment, anger, bitterness, a desire to justify and blame, and to attack the unpleasant critic.

Many people feel uncomfortable when confronted with a person who constantly bursts out with barbs at themselves. The fact is that in a situation where one person praises another, they are in an unequal relationship: The first is aware of his intentions and true feelings and clearly understands what is behind this - flattery, compliment or well-deserved praise. The one who listens is in a more difficult position, because he cannot always grasp the intentions of the interlocutor. Therefore, the caution and negativism with which a person greets a stream of praise, especially from a layman or a stranger, is not surprising. Flattery is clearly exaggerated praise given to win someone's favor. When received by the one to whom it is addressed, it harms him - makes him arrogant, self-righteous and self-confident, and as a result rightly arouses the hostility and ridicule of others.

Unlike flattery, a compliment does not pursue selfish goals and is the result of sincere, momentary pleasure or habitual politeness. A well-timed compliment, no matter how brief it may be, lifts a person’s mood.

Deserved praise properly supports and increases a person's ambitions, thereby encouraging him to take on more difficult tasks - this is the benefit of praise. It is said less often and with conviction, without pathetic enthusiasm, and when it comes from someone whose opinion is valued, it is nice.