Page 22 - Advanced Biblical Counseling Student Textbook

A second piece of evidence for the biological paradigm is the “inheritance of temperamental traits.
There is clear and strong evidence that temperament traits are transmitted genetically. Studies of
personality traits of adults and their children and studies of identical and fraternal
twins raised together and raised apart consistently point to the significant role of biology, especially
genetics, in forming our personality. In studies in Sweden and the United States, researchers have found
that identical twins raised apart have more similar personality types than fraternal twins raised
together. Even preferences in clothing style, personal interests, body posture, body language, speed and
tempo of talking, sense of humor, and recreational habits were discovered to be more common among
the identical twins studied. Such research lends support to the biological paradigm of human
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personality.“

The third piece of evidence for the biological paradigm is “the consistency of temperament over time.
Some have linked temperament to genetics and then defined personality as temperament plus
environment (nature + nurture). Generally speaking, when we go to bed at night, we do not expect to
wake up the next day with a radically changed personality. Although abrupt changes do occur these are
often due to trauma of some sort, either physical or emotional, which changes brain physiology in the
case of an accident or brain chemistry in the case of a traumatizing event. More often, humans
experience a stable consistent personality, which is predictable from day to day. Biological psychologists
believe that this is because of the stable nature of our brain hardware. Clearly, it seems that there is not
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refuting the fact that inborn genetic and physiological patterns underlie human personality.”

The biological paradigm is interesting and important to study. It helps us understand how our brains are
connected to our personality. We also have a better understanding of how temperament traits are
genetic. However, we know “the biblical teaching regarding human nature includes both physical and
spiritual dimensions. The Bible teaches that humans are a unified whole consisting of both material and
immaterial attributes united together to become a ‘living soul.’ The separation of body and spirit is
unnatural and is the essence of death. To leave out the spiritual aspect of human nature is to leave out
one of the foundational moorings of a biblical anthropology.”
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Take a moment and think about your personality from the biological approach. What personality traits
do you think you were born with? Do you have personality traits now that you had when you were a
child? Even as a baby? Write a few of them here:

The Behavioral Paradigm of Human Personality
Let’s take what we just learned about the biological approach to personality and spend a little time on
another approach. The behavioral paradigm of human personality “sees people as behaving organisms,
as animals who are simply more complex in nature and more advanced in mental capacity. Correction
and reinforcements come from everyday experiences and forces in the environment, which serve to
shape our thinking, attitudes, behavior, and personality. Biological psychologists see behavior as a result
of brain functioning and innate personality traits. Behaviorists believe that personality traits are
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determined by causal factors within the experience of the person rather than in his biology.” Let’s
take a quick look at four propositions Professors Shields and Bredfeldt use to summarize the behavioral

26 Ibid., p. 160.
27 Ibid.
28 Ibid. p. 161
29 Shields & Bredfeldt, p. 165-166, 2001.

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