Extraversion and Neuroticism (1)

FFM: Low scores of extraversion

• Self-contained

• Quiet

• More likely to enjoy solitary activities

FFM: High scorers of extraversion

• Smiling and laughing

• Competitive

• Ambitious

• Enjoy spending time with others

Facets of Extraversion

• Gregariousness

• Activity levels

• Assertiveness

• Excitement seeking

• Positive emotions

• Warmth

Correlates of Extraversion

• Salary

• High-thrill sports

• Interest In sex/sexual partners

• Smiling/positive emotions

• Sociability

• Interest in fame

• Competitiveness/ambition

If extraversion is so good, why isn’t everyone highly extraverted?

• Evolutionary advantage, natural selection

• More successful species (primates and humans) are naturally more sociable

So why is it normally distributed?

• Extraversion is NOT associated with morality.

Costs of extraversion

• More sexual partners – health risks

• Less likely to be faithful – breakdown of family units

• Low on agreeableness – increases likelihood of conflict

• High-thrill activities can be dangerous – increased chance of physical harm

Neuroticism - Psychodynamic explanation

• A result of childhood trauma.

• Dated view, explains where name came from

FFM: Low scorers of neuroticism

• Not anxious

• Don’t worry

FFM: High scorers of neuroticism

• Anxious

• Sad

• Worry

Facets of neuroticism

• Anxiety

• Self-consciousness

• Depression

• Vulnerability

• Impulsiveness

• Angry hostility

Correlates of neuroticism

• Mental/physical health

• Stress and hassles (report more daily stressors in everyday life)

• Relationship dissatisfaction

• Self-esteem

• Worry more (in a quantitative way)

• Anxiety disorders

• Depression

Costs of neuroticism

• Have more stressors in life (not just perception of stressors)

• More likely to be smokers

Benefits of high neuroticism - Lee et al. (2006)

Fewer accidents in adulthood

Benefits of high neuroticism - Egan & Stelmack (2003)

Not doing dangerous stuff: Everest Climbers

• Threat-detection system is highly functioning, better risk assessment

Benefits of high neuroticism - McKenzie et al. (2000)

Neuroticism-related striving

• Increased performance amongst University students high in ‘ego strength’

• Ego strength = self-discipline/organisation and falls under conscientiousness.

• Perhaps driven by increased fear of failure.

Benefits of high neuroticism - Barrick & Mount (1991)

Success in professional (‘thinking’) occupations

• See things more realistically, balances over optimistic/unrealistic views.

Aim of Personality Neuroscience

To go beyond descriptions in individual differences in personality and seek to identify explanatory mechanisms that underlie individual differences in traits at a neural level.

Eysenck’s Theory of Personality - Theoretical Underpinnings

• Focused on biological (and evolutionary) underpinnings of traits

Recognised that both:

• Biological factors (such as cortical arousal and hormone levels) and

• Environmental factors (such a conditioned behaviours)

Influenced a person’s scores of their three personality traits.

Eysenck’s Theory of Personality

• Three personality traits (PEN):

• Psychoticism

• Extraversion

• Neuroticism

Eysenck’s Theory of Personality - Scientific Limitations

Didn’t always do good research.

• E.g. personality traits leading to cancer

Many of this ideas have been shown to be incorrect.

• Failed replications etc.

2019 King's College London enquiry:

• 61 papers were highlighted for retraction.

• 26 papers were considered “unsafe”.

Eysenck’s Theory of Personality - Moral Implications

• Supported race science, particularly on intelligence.

• Frequently published in far-right wing outlets.

Arousal Theory of Extraversion (Eysenck, 1967)

ARAS operates differently for:

• Low E scorers = habitually much more physiologically active

• High E scorers = habitually less physiologically active

The Ascending Reticular Activating System (ARAS)

An important biological determinant of Extraversion = CORTICAL AROUSAL

• Mediates the physiological change from a state of deep sleep to wakefulness

• Mediates transitions from relaxed wakefulness to periods of high attention

The ARAS controls the amount of electrical activity that takes place in the cortex.

Arousal Theory of Extraversion (Eysenck, 1967) - Behaviour

• Low E scorers seek out less stimulation from their environments as it is over-arousing and unpleasant.

• High E scorers need to arouse their cortices to pleasurable levels and do so by seeking out stimulation from their environment.

Claridge et al. (1981)

Drug tolerance and personality

• Low E + High N - require a higher dose of sedative drugs than extraverts to make them unconscious

Eysenck’s Arousal Theory is not quite right, but it is suggestive of the right direction

Jeffrey Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST)

Extension/redirection of Eysenck’s theory

• Approach motivation:

  • Behavioural Activational System (BAS)

• Avoidance motivation

  • Behavioural Inhibition System (BIS)

  • Fight, Flight or Freeze system (FFFS)

Gray’s dimensions of personality in Eysenck E and N factor space

High N + High E = Reward Sensitivity (REW)

High N + Low E = Punishment Sensitivity (PUN)

Behavioural Inhibition System (BIS)

Responds to stimuli that one needs/desires but contains a potential threat (conflicting stimuli).

• Activating the BIS is hypothesised to produce vigilance, rumination, passive avoidance, anxiety and potentially depression.

• Linked to the septo-hippocampal system and the amygdala.

BIS sensitivity was originally labelled Anxiety

Fight-Flight-Freeze System (FFFS)

Responds to threatening, punishing or frustrating stimuli.

• Linked to the amygdala, hypothalamus and PAG

• Produces active avoidance (panic and flight) or attempted elimination (anger and attack).

Punishment sensitivity

‘Anxiety’

• Relates to both the FFFS and BIS

• Is essentially Neuroticism

Behavioural Approach System (BAS)

• Responds to cues for reward.

• Linked to the brain’s dopaminergic system

Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST) and Affect

Appetitive Motivational System (BAS)

• Reward signals → positive affect

Aversive Motivational System (BIS & FFFS)

• Punishment signals → negative affect.

Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST): Correlations of E and N

• E ≈ Variation in the responsiveness of the POSITIVE emotion system (sensitivity to reward signals)

• N ≈ Variation in the responsiveness of the NEGATIVE emotion system (sensitivity to punishment signals)

Polivy (1981) and Salovey & Rodin (1984).

Tasks in which the participants are ego-involved have been widely used to induce positive and negative affect, respectively

Larsen & Ketelaar (1989) - Methods

67 students

• 30 positive mood induction (success feedback)

• 37 negative induction (failure feedback)

• Syncretic Skill (new IQ test)

Larsen & Ketelaar (1989) - Aims

• Would high E students experience a greater mood boost than those on the lower extraversion when receiving positive feedback

• Would high N students experience a greater decrease in mood than those with lower neuroticism when receiving negative feedback

Larsen & Ketelaar (1989) - Results for Extraversion

High E

• Strong positive change in mood from the positive mood induction

• No change in mood from the negative mood induction

Low E

• No change in mood from positive or negative induction

Larsen & Ketelaar (1989) - Results for Neuroticism

High N

• Strong negative change in mood from negative mood induction

• Small change following positive mood induction

Low N

• No change

Support for Reward Sensitivity Theory (RST) - Double Dissociation

Larsen & Ketelaar (1989)

• Susceptibility to Positive Mood Induction → Related to Individual Differences in E (but not N)

• Susceptibility to Negative Mood Induction → Related to Individual Differences in N (but not E)

However…

• Unlikely that there will be conditions where we experience only positive or negative emotions.

Cybernetic Big Five Theory (De Young, 2015) - Extraversion

Relates to who is more motivated by:

• The possibility of attaining a given reward

• Getting more enjoyment out of a reward when attained.

Cybernetic Big Five Theory (De Young, 2015) - Neuroticism

• Defensive responses to uncertainty, threat, and punishment.

• Negative Pole = Unflappable

Why extraversion is associated with positive affect – social factors

Behaving in an extraverted manner can result in higher positive aspects, even if they score low on the scale

• Behaviour can influence mood

Social Activity Hypothesis

• Amount of time spent in social situations – increased positive affect

• Social activity mediates the relationship between E and positive affect

HOWEVER not supported by research

Counterargument to Social Activity Hypothesis

Social contribution mediates the relationship between extraversion and positive affect (e.g. feeling helpful)

• Extraversion is linked to closeness and attachment

• Not time spent, but quality of relationships

HOWEVER, social integration (closeness) predicted higher positive affect but not extraversion.