Every individual’s personality is unique, and perhaps this is why there are so many varying theories of personality. What role does brain structure play in one’s personality?

The most popular theory argues that one’s personality is mainly influenced by the two hemispheres of the brain.

Experts believe that the dominance of the left hemisphere makes the person more reliant on logical thinking and leads to increased verbal skills and analytical thinking. In contrast, the dominance of the right hemisphere leads to increased intuition, perception, and enhanced creativity.

A deeper understanding of these mechanisms and the role of brain structure specifies the way in which a person interacts with their environment, says psychologist Stephen Kosslyn. In collaboration with Wayne Miller, he developed the theory that the interaction of the top and bottom brain systems is what determines one’s personality.

“The top part plans and executes while the bottom classifies and interprets information about the world that we receive,” said the two authors of the research.

The two systems communicate and cooperate, but eventually, the top part of the brain is the one that uses the information.

In each person, the degree to which each system prevails in brain function is different,” the researchers explain.

The foundations of the theory of knowledge models depend on how much the person relies on one, both, or none of the two systems. This model determines how we react to the events around us and how we interact and connect with people.

Individuals who use the abilities of both systems easily adapt to the circumstances and have the ability to plan effectively.

Those who use more the bottom brain have insight and can better interpret their experiences but are less able to take initiatives for complex tasks.

When there the top system is more developed, the person is very creative but has a low adaptation capacity.

Finally, people who do not rely on any of the two systems seem to get “lost” in the facts and the requests of those around them and are quite easily affected by the environment.

Thus, according to this theory, these features of brain structure play a crucial role in an individual’s personality traits.


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