The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-11-12
Hergdity Is
Big Factor
in Process
BY DIR. BESS v. CUNNINGHAM
Chief Psychologist, Columbia University
Written for NEA Service

Chief Psychologist Coiumoi@ oHNSAs"J
written for NEA Service
xXTHEN fond mother boasts OF
w the remarkable personality OF
her newborn infant, the more i'm
partial bachelor uncle may scot, 1or
to the casual observer the newborn
infant does not appear to lay much
claim to individuality.
Even his father, a decidedly pref
udiced person, is likely to refer TO
this small bit of humanity as 1T.
However, one day, few weeks
later. the baby may protest so Wig
orously against the bottle too long
withheld that the admiring father
proclaims: THAT boy knows what
he wants and he knows how to get
it."
Traits Appear Early
When our infant has grown to the
age of or 3 years, as point out
in my article in the December num-
Der of the Parents Magazine, we
no longer question his possession OF
distinct personality and we find
that he also shows definite charac-
ter traits which predict pretty &C
curately what sort of adult he Will
become.
Suppose we observe 4-year-old
Jimmy in nursery school. We learn
that he is regarded as a very good
loser, that he is rated as gay be-
cause he laughs so often.
We also note he finds himself in
difficulty very often indeed and that
he is far from punctilious in his use
of thank YOU and IF you please"
It is probably safe guess that
these traits will remain with him
through life and that he will be a
happy, busy individual.
Why the Difference?
To appreciate his individuality,
Jimmie should be compared with
Alfred.
Alfred is serious in appearance,
gives little evidence of good or bad
craftsmanship, is inclined to stand
around and watch other children,
and seldom gets into trouble.
Alfred, we learn, is very polite.
Jimmie is not much like this good"
little boy and we can not help but
wonder why the two little boys are
so different.
If we were to select from a babies
hospital two newborn, unrelated
infants, normal in every respect as
far as we could determine, and were
to bring them up together in an
attempt to make them exactly alike,
we should find that while we could
in time make them both honest,
law-abiding citizens, we never could
make them alike.
One child might be ven-tempered
and placid, while the other might
be very easily upset, given to out
bursts of emotion, grieving immod-
erately over the slightest disappoint-
ment.
Training Shows Effect
We might try to instill the same
ideals in the two children, give them
the same educational background,
but when all is said and done we
should have two decidedly different
personalities.
Whether a child is beautiful or
plain, tall or short, emotionally sta
BILE or easily upset, intelligent or
dull-all of which go to make up
his personality" = depends largely
upon his birthright.
Training and habit can, of course,
modify the traits the child inherits,
or a glandular unbalance can cause
unstable behavior which, if correct
ed, will create new personality.
Although children are born and
educated to be different" parents,
educators and others who come in
contact with children in some way
help develop or repress this per-
sonality.
For by personality we mean not
only what the child does and tends
to do, but how he behaves toward
specific persons and how he makes
others behave toward him.
If we can grasp this fact it will
be easy to see that what a parent
does to his child and what the child
does to his parent and how the
parent and child feel about each
other all enter into the making of
personality.