Cognitive theories of personality

Flashcard 1: Cognitive–Social Theories Overview
Q: What are cognitive–social theories of personality, and how did they emerge?

A: Cognitive–social theories, developed in the 1960s, are also called social learning theory, cognitive–social learning theory, and social–cognitive theory. They arose as a comprehensive alternative to psychodynamic theories, combining behaviourist and cognitive roots. These theories explain personality in terms of learned behaviours, beliefs, expectations, and information processing, rather than unconscious drives or instincts.

Flashcard 2: Behaviourist Roots
Q: How do cognitive–social theories relate to behaviourist ideas?

A: From a behaviourist perspective, personality is composed of learned behaviours and emotional reactions tied to specific environmental stimuli. Behaviour is shaped through operant conditioning, based on rewards and punishments. Cognitive–social theories adopt this focus on learning but also emphasise cognition, beliefs, and expectations, not just external reinforcement.

Flashcard 4: Bandura’s Contributions
Q: What was Albert Bandura’s perspective on behaviour and personality?

A: Bandura argued that behaviour is not driven by unconscious forces (psychodynamic view) nor automatic responses to stimuli (behaviourist view). Instead, actions are determined by:

• Schemas used to understand the world

• Expectations of outcomes from behaviour

• Beliefs about the ability to achieve goals (self-efficacy)
  Cognitive–social theory thus emphasises rational, goal-directed behaviour mediated by thought processes.

Flashcard 5: Conditions for Behaviour (Bandura, 1977, 1986, 1999)
Q: According to cognitive–social theory, what conditions must be met for behaviour to occur?

A: Behaviour requires the following conditions:

1. Encoding: The situation is perceived as relevant to personal goals.

2. Meaningfulness: The situation has personal significance or value.

3. Expectancy: The person believes the behaviour will achieve the desired outcome.

4. Capability: The person believes they can perform the behaviour and actually can do it.

5. Self-regulation: The person monitors and regulates behaviour to achieve the goal, adjusting if necessary.

Flashcard 1: Encoding and Personal Relevance
Q: What is the role of encoding in cognitive–social theories of personality?

A: Encoding involves perceiving, categorising, and interpreting a situation to determine its personal relevance. A situation must be meaningful and relevant to a person’s goals for them to respond appropriately. If the situation is not recognised as important, goal-directed behaviour is unlikely to occur.

Flashcard 2: George Kelly and Personal Constructs
Q: How did George Kelly explain personality through cognition?

A: Kelly (1955) proposed personal constructs, mental representations of significant people, events, and objects, as the basis of personality. Personality reflects how individuals interpret the world. Behaviour depends on how events are encoded; for example, a delinquent child may respond aggressively if they perceive a minor bump as intentional.

Flashcard 3: Repertory Grid Technique
Q: How can personal constructs be assessed?

A: Kelly developed the repertory grid technique, which indirectly identifies personal constructs by asking participants to compare important people in their lives (e.g., “How is your father like your sister?”). Repeated comparisons reveal the implicit dimensions the person uses to interpret social relationships.

Flashcard 4: Cantor & Kihlstrom’s Cognitive Approach
Q: How did Cantor and Kihlstrom expand on Kelly’s theory?

A: They integrated personal constructs with information-processing theory, arguing that personality is shaped by:

• How people encode, interpret, and remember social information

• Accuracy and organisation of schemas about people and relationships
  Well-structured schemas increase social intelligence and effectiveness in achieving interpersonal goals.

Flashcard 5: Personal Value and Goals
Q: What is the significance of personal value in cognitive–social theory?

A: Personal value refers to the importance a person attaches to an outcome, which depends on their goals. Motivation arises from life tasks, self-defined problems that individuals aim to solve (e.g., independence, grades, friendships). High-value goals increase the likelihood of goal-directed behaviour.

Flashcard 6: Expectancies
Q: What are the key types of expectancies in cognitive–social theory?

A: Expectancies are beliefs about outcomes of behaviour and personal ability to achieve them:

• Behaviour–outcome expectancy: Belief that a behaviour will produce a specific outcome

• Self-efficacy expectancy: Belief that one can perform the necessary actions to achieve that outcome
  Example: Starting a business requires both the belief that it will succeed and the confidence to execute it.

Flashcard 7: Competences
Q: How do competences affect behaviour in cognitive–social theory?

A: Competences are skills and abilities used to solve problems and achieve goals. They are developed through:

• Operant conditioning

• Observational learning

• Practice and conscious effort
  Example: Social skills for networking or conflict resolution are competences that help achieve interpersonal goals.

Flashcard 8: Self-Regulation
Q: What is self-regulation and why is it important for personality?

A: Self-regulation involves setting goals, monitoring progress, evaluating performance, and adjusting behaviour to achieve goals. It allows people to solve problems effectively, make decisions, and modify strategies if needed. Personality can be seen as the problem-solving efforts people use to fulfil their life tasks.

Flashcard 9: Feedback and Goal Achievement
Q: How does feedback affect self-regulation and goal achievement?

A: Feedback can:

• Enhance performance by focusing attention on problems and solutions

• Hinder performance if it increases self-doubt or anxiety
  Effective self-regulation uses feedback to adapt strategies and ensure goal fulfilment, reflecting the dynamic, cognitive nature of personality.

Flashcard 1: Contributions of Cognitive–Social Theories
Q: What are the main contributions of cognitive–social theories to the study of personality?

A:

• Emphasises the role of thought, memory, and information processing in personality.

• Behaviour reflects expectations and skills encoded in memory and activated in specific situations.

• Supports interventions for behaviour change, such as weight management or quitting smoking.

• Highlights reciprocal determinism — the dynamic interaction of environmental factors, personal factors, and behaviour shaping each other.

• Highly testable through experimentation, unlike some psychodynamic concepts.

Flashcard 2: Limitations — Overemphasis on Rationality
Q: What is a key limitation of cognitive–social theories regarding rationality?

A: Cognitive–social theories tend to overemphasise rationality and cognition, underestimating:

• Emotional processes

• Motivation

• Irrational behaviours
  Example: A figure like Adolf Hitler demonstrates high cognitive and social intelligence, yet his extreme emotional and motivational disturbances cannot be explained solely by cognitive processes.

Flashcard 3: Limitations — Assumption of Conscious Awareness
Q: How does the assumption of conscious awareness limit cognitive–social theories?

A: Theories often assume people know what they think, feel, and want and can report it. This may be unrealistic for:

• Individuals with unconscious or implicit motivations

• Complex behaviours that arise from emotions or drives outside conscious awareness
  Example: Self-reports of morally extreme behaviours (e.g., Hitler) may not capture unconscious motives or irrational drives.

Flashcard 4: Comparison with Psychodynamic Theories
Q: How do cognitive–social and psychodynamic approaches complement each other?

A:

• Psychodynamic theory: Strong in understanding unconscious processes, emotions, and motivation, but weak in explaining cognition and problem-solving.

• Cognitive–social theory: Strong in understanding rational thought, goal-directed behaviour, and learning, but weak in accounting for unconscious processes and emotions.

• Integration potential: Each can inform the other for a more complete understanding of personality.

Flashcard 5: Integration with Emotional Intelligence
Q: How have cognitive–social theories been integrated with emotional intelligence research?

A: Integrative approaches combine cognition and emotion to explain adaptive social behaviour:

• Emotional intelligence = ability to perceive, understand, and manage emotions in oneself and others.

• Supports flexible adaptation to social environments and effective goal pursuit.

• Predicts career exploration, goal perseverance, and motivation, as emotional skills influence both performance and personal development.

Flashcard 6: Convergence of Cognitive–Social and Psychodynamic Research
Q: In what areas have cognitive–social and psychodynamic theories shown convergence?

A: Researchers have identified overlap in:

• Implicit processes (unconscious or automatic influences on thought and behaviour)

• Interactions between emotion and cognition

• Development of integrative frameworks that account for both conscious problem solving and unconscious motivations