Influence Of Human Personalities On Economic Development

Economic development can be defined as the gradual adoption or introduction of new technologies; aiding in the transition from an agriculture-based to an industry-based economy. Thus improving the overall standard of living.

There are many factors that can contribute to the economic development of a country, for example natural resources and the available labour force and the education of said force. These are some of the main factors contributing and throughout the years it seems that governments usually focus on one more than the other. Recently, it seems as though economic development is focusing more on the development of humans instead of the development of a nation’s physical environment; implying that developing the way humans interact and engage in the active environment is a key driver to the economic growth of a country.

Varying human personalities are a key influencer on economic development. This means that a way to increase the overall development in a country is to focus on bringing out certain aspects in people that can benefit the economy, rather than change the physical environment around us, leading to government focusing on people rather than the conditions of the natural environment in which they live. The purpose of this essay is to investigate whether this is in fact true and if governments should focus on the developments of human beings instead of the natural environment first.

Some may argue that economic development can be reached through the focusing on bringing out certain behavioural aspects in people and that government should focus on this because these individuals will bring in more economic opportunities and will be able to trade better and make better economic decisions thus increasing and speeding up the development of a nation. Others state that focusing on the natural environment more, actually slows down the rate at which a country develops. However, it can be said that governments should, instead of focusing on the people, focus on rather the improvement of the natural, physical environment.

Recent studies suggest that personality traits as well as certain cultural profiles are influencers in the economics growth of a country. The study suggests that people with certain personality traits, such as extraversion and perseverance, become better entrepreneurs and thus bring in extra economic opportunities; more economic opportunities mean greater economic growth in the country. This can be supported by the fact that a result from the study shows that people with “individually committed psycho-cultural characteristics” are people who influence and encourage activities that are known to help improve the growth of a country. This shows how government should focus more on improving human beings and human interactions in a way that promotes such qualities such as extraversion and self-efficacy to better improve the economic growth.However, it can be said that governments of a country should focus more on improving the natural environment in which we live, rather than focusing on humans to improve the economic development. For a country and economy to grow sustainably, it must not only focus on the human aspect but it must include the environmental and social issues. It has become more clear that managing natural resources are one of the key drivers to ensure long term, sustainable development. A study shows how the focus on environmental sustainability and an overall willingness to change will help improve the economic growth rate in a country. Despite this fact, it can be said that the government should focus on human development due to the fact that they have a better chance of increasing the economic development of a country through increased economic activities. The more focused the government becomes on the physical environment and making an abundance of resources, the more underinvestment there will be in human capital; thus increasing chances of civil war as more people will be unemployed.

In conclusion, focusing on bringing out certain personality traits in a countries population will help increase the overall economic growth and once there is enough growth, soon will the expansion of the physical environment follow. Thus leading to a sustainable economy.