What Is Temperament vs Personality?
Short Answer
Temperament is your innate, biologically-rooted behavioral style present from infancy (activity level, emotionality, sociability); personality is your learned, adapted character developed through experience and choices. Temperament is "nature"—the raw material; personality is "nurture"—the shaped result.
Full Answer
Temperament is your inborn baseline—the neurological wiring that shapes how you naturally respond to stimuli, regulate emotion, and engage with others. A high-activity infant who becomes an energetic adult likely has an extraverted temperament. Kagan's landmark 1989 longitudinal research showed that shy infants remain shy adults at rates far higher than chance, indicating biological continuity.
Personality is what you do with that temperament—your learned patterns, habits, values, and adaptive strategies. You can inherit an anxious temperament and develop healthy coping mechanisms through therapy, shaping your personality toward resilience. The famous Four Humors model (choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, melancholic) tracked temperament; modern Big Five and MBTI track personality built on top of that foundation.
Think of temperament as personality's hardware and personality as the software. Your temperament constrains your range—an introvert won't become an extrovert—but doesn't determine your fate. A shy temperament can develop confident social skills.
Explore your temperament foundation with the JobCannon Temperament (Four Humors) test, then see how your life experience has shaped who you are today.
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Take the Free Temperament (4 Humors) TestRelated Questions
Can you change your temperament?▼
Temperament is largely biologically fixed and stable from infancy. However, through neuroplasticity and deliberate practice, you can shift your expression and management of it. An anxious-temperament person can't eliminate anxiety but can develop robust coping skills.
How does temperament affect career choice?▼
Temperament influences natural strengths: high-activity suits fast-paced roles; low-reactive suits high-stress environments (surgery, trading); high-sensitivity suits detail-oriented, reflective work.