Volitional personality traits: definition, types, ways of development

Surely many are familiar with the situation when people, justifying their weakness or lack of will, try to laugh it off, saying that they have both strength and will, but no willpower. Let's see what will is, whether it is given to everyone, whether it can be developed and how.

Specialists in the field of human psychology pay great attention to the study and diagnosis of personality characters, including giving a detailed description of such an individual's quality as will. Volitional personality traits are a combination of many different characteristics that define a person as emotionally, morally and spiritually strong. To be strong-willed means to show such traits:

• purposefulness;
• determination;
• exposure;
• patience;
• courage;
• energy;
• initiative;
• persistence;
• adherence to principles;
• organization;
• discipline;
• self-control.

If such character traits in a person are absent or their opposites are present, then this indicates a poorly developed volitional side of the personality and a negative character. Volitional qualities are most often acquired and developed in the process of gaining life experience... Of course, the basis for personality development is genetically laid in the human psyche, but this or that character image is nurtured in the course of a person's upbringing in childhood and adolescence. Over the years, by a certain age, it is already possible to judge and assess the prevailing personal image.

If the process of personality formation had favorable conditions for the development of volitional qualities, then throughout life they will be stable and stable, and their manifestation will not depend on any particular situation that has developed. That is, people with a strong and persistent will always have it under any circumstances, and not from time to time. In a person, both individual volitional qualities and their totality can be present. In the latter case, we are talking about a special strength of character and the presence of complete power over your personality.

It is customary to divide the volitional qualities of a person into basic or primary (they are also emotional-volitional) and systemic (moral-volitional or moral-volitional). Primary qualities, as a rule, are laid down in the human psyche genetically and are the basis for the development of systemic qualities.

Their list is quite extensive and includes not only positive, but also negative qualities. Consider the main positive qualities, which include energy, patience, self-control and courage.

An energetic person is able to make immediate decisions and act quickly. At the same time, he invests in the process the maximum amount of physical and emotional strength. He is always positively disposed, no difficulties can stop him, on the contrary, they only kindle the excitement in him.

People like this all the time make plans, set new goals for themselves, attracting and dragging other people along with them. They always strive to materialize their thoughts, their whole essence is able to turn into an inexhaustible flow of energy and at the same time infect others. In this case, vigor, as a personality trait, is not associated with physiological vigor or vigor of temperament. These are different concepts.

Patient people achieve results by volitional efforts no matter what, even poor health, ailments, fatigue or headache cannot stop them or force them to slow down their activities... A weak-willed person, as a rule, is surrendered to the power of such negative states and postpones the execution of all affairs to a later date.

Patience can in some cases act as the opposite of energy, since the latter calls for a quick response and action. And patience is determined by the ability to wait a long time, persistently and methodically approach the goal, even if it is far away, while maintaining composure and calmness, when visible results of activity are still not noticeable. But patience cannot be equated with a passive personality.

Feelings and emotions are not able to take power over a person who has self-control. Constant self-control makes it possible to think over, weigh everything and not commit impulsive actions, which, as a rule, lead to the destruction of already existing results of activity. A person with a high level of self-control remains emotionally balanced, even if plans are thwarted for some unforeseen reason, and the path deviates from the set course. Aggression, panic, or apathy is not about self-control.

Courage is consciously working to overcome various fears. It makes it possible not to succumb to the fear that hinders on the way to goals. At the same time, a person is aware of all possible risks and dangers, but still maintains his mental stability and the level of quality of his activities. But courage should not be confused with stupid recklessness that puts health and life at unnecessary risk. Such behavior does not evoke courage, but a desire to receive the delight and boast of others.

Volitional qualities, which will be described below, are called "systemic" because each of them is the result of a complex combination of several unidirectional traits. For example, courage can be seen as a combination of courage, energy, and self-control. These qualities incorporate the emotional side of the personality, both intellectual and spiritual. If the primary volitional qualities are poorly developed in a person, then it is very difficult to develop systemic qualities on their basis.

Already from the name it is clear that the main thing in this quality is striving for the goal. This striving must be conscious and active and lead to certain results. Neither internal nor external obstacles can stop a purposeful person on the way to achieving the cherished goal. There are strategic goals that can take a long time to achieve.

Such goals define the principles and ideals of the individual. To achieve them requires discipline, the ability to consistently follow the plan. And there are tactical goals, daily, monthly, etc. The ability to achieve them shows the ability of the individual to quickly and correctly tune in to work, gather his thoughts and strength and meet the given short deadlines, despite the possibility of some obstacles and difficulties.

Perseverance tends to be indispensable companion of purposefulness. This quality paves the way for success. But this happens if perseverance is supported by rationality and a clear understanding of what exactly this or that goal should be achieved and how to correctly calculate the forces and actions to achieve it, so as not to waste energy. Persistence allows you to achieve long-term strategic goals, preventing a person from losing faith and attitude.

A principled person necessarily has his own views, opinions and beliefs. It is by them that he is guided in his activities and in achieving goals. He is not afraid to demonstrate his position on this or that issue, knows how to defend his point of view and remains true to her under any circumstances. Often adherence to principles is paired with honesty or fairness. The arguments of principled people, as a rule, are reasonable, objective and expedient.

An initiative person possesses energy, courage, adherence to principles, independence. Such a person is always ready to take responsibility for his actions and actions. The initiators want, as a rule, to achieve not only personal goals, but also public ones, acting for the benefit of others. They strive for transformations, for creating better conditions for life, for putting in order what requires it. Most often, proactive people achieve success in social activities and in creativity. They are active, ideological and creative people.

Making deliberate and balanced decisions and their phased implementation is what lies at the heart of decisiveness. If any problems and obstacles arise on the way to achieving goals, a decisive person does not get lost and does not wait for everything to turn out by itself, on the contrary, acts quickly and without hesitation, quickly building a new plan of action and thereby bypassing or eliminating obstacles that have arisen... Decisiveness implies the presence of logic in actions and an immediate transition from thought to action. Therefore, decisiveness should not be confused with impulsiveness, this is not the same thing.

A person with such a strong-willed quality clearly sees the desired goal in front of him. and knows how to go to her consistently... He analyzes all his actions, based on the final result, which should be obtained according to his understanding. The strategist not only draws up a detailed plan of his actions, but also sets priorities correctly. And skillfully adapts on the way to the goal and changes in conditions, as well as the occurrence of unforeseen circumstances.

A self-sufficient person is distinguished by independence and the ability to do without support from the outside in solving their problems and in achieving their goals. Such people are not afraid of loneliness and do not need anyone's help. Their activity depends only on them. They do not lend themselves to outside influence if this is contrary to common sense and their deep convictions. But at the same time, they are able to soberly and critically assess their actions.

The formation and development of volitional qualities of a person goes on throughout life when faced with various problems, obstacles, difficulties and difficulties, if necessary, make some decisions, when setting and achieving various goals. They train the will and instincts of self-preservation and survival inherent in nature, and the genetic heritage of mental and physical abilities and capabilities passed on by ancestors, and the educational basis of childhood and adolescence. But the most important and important motive for the development of willpower is the desire for self-improvement of the individual and the desire to achieve success in life.

Ways to develop and strengthen willpower:

• start instilling in yourself a love of a healthy lifestyle and try to get rid of bad habits, if any;
• go in for any kind of sport (athletes have always been considered one of the most strong-willed individuals);
• sign up for a hobby club and attend classes regularly;
• no matter what you do, try to complicate the process, the development of volitional qualities of a professional is determined by the fact that he constantly directs the vector of his actions upward so that over time the result of professional development in a particular activity and an increase in the effectiveness of his actions become noticeable;
• subject all your plans and actions to analysis, as well as the results, both successful and unsuccessful.

Ideally, it is necessary to start training the will as early as childhood. If you didn’t have time to do it, then, as they say, it’s never too late, it’s just harder to do it. As for the upbringing of children, the same advice is relevant here as for adults.

If you want to develop volitional qualities in yourself, then psychologists advise the following.

• To begin with, you need to learn how to intelligently set goals for yourself. You cannot immediately load yourself with overwhelming tasks. This will not lead to positive results. If you succeed in achieving the first small result, it will generate joy and satisfaction, which will be an incentive to achieve the next goal. That is, learn to gradually move from simple to complex.
• Determine for yourself an area that will serve as the basis for the development of volitional qualities. It can be a profession, a hobby, some other interests. It is better to choose an area that you will start to master from scratch. This will help you see how quickly and efficiently the development process is.
• Keep a diary of your successes and failures. Successes will stimulate the desire for new successes. And the analysis of failures will help to learn from mistakes and take this into account in the future, but one should try to treat failures calmly, perceiving them as “teachers”.
• Praise Yourself for Success (if you are working on raising the will of your children, then do not forget to praise them).
• Be persistent and consistent in your actions... Do not forget that, like any other, willpower training should be regular.