The Engineer's Personality and the Influence It Has on His Work – A Historical Perspective

Structural engineers working to create concrete structures tend to fall into one of three categories: those who see structure as the mechanics of a sys-tem, those who see structure as materials in action, and those who see structure as individual expression. Examples of these three’types are presented in this article: the engineer-analyst, the engineer-teacher, and the engineer designer. An historical perspective makes clear that improvements in design have not come from computers, and that the best structural designs in concrete have come not from teams of specialists anonymously collaborating, but from individuals. The profession should know that it is still possible to be an individual and a professional in today’s apparently automated, special-ist world, that personality types are essential, and that they are the constants in a rapidly changing, thriving engineering profession.