Balancing These Three Needs and Capacities Psychology shows that whenever these three personal needs are equally cultivated a full personality develops. It is only when one of these capacities has been denied or neglected that the development of the personality is unbalanced. To the Christian, it is much more apparent that an incomplete personality has resulted when the individual has concentrated on skill and knowledge but entirely neglected his spiritual life. Then, of course, there are those who seem equally abnormal because they have concentrated on the intellectual life and neglected to develop either technical competence or worship. What is true psychologically of the individual, history shows to have been true of whole cultures.
Nations also have personalities.
Whether this is genetically determined or not, is a matter of considerable debate. There are those who argue strongly against it because the concept could be the subject of national pride and corresponding abuse. It is our contention that something of this nature has providentially been allowed to characterize the three branches of the family of man. Whenever the contributions of Shem, Ham, and Japheth have been blended into a single organized way of life, a high civilization has resulted. It will momentarily appear to burst ahead with new vitality, only to collapse - frequently with frightening suddenness.