4.6 abc

Trait

a characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act in certain ways, as assessed by self-report inventories and peer reports.

personality inventory

a questionnaire (often with true-false or agree-disagree items) on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors; used to assess selected personality traits.

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

the most widely researched and clinically used of all personality tests. Originally developed to identify emotional disorders (still considered its most appropriate use), this test is now used for many other screening purposes.

empirically derived test

a test (such as the MMPI) created by selecting from a pool of items those that discriminate between groups.

Big Five factors

five traits— openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism —that describe personality.

social-cognitive perspective

a view of behavior as influenced by the interaction between people's traits (including their thinking) and their social context.

behavioral approach

focuses on the effects of learning on our personality development.

reciprocal determinism

the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment.

Self

in modern psychology, assumed to be the center of personality, the organizer of our thoughts, feelings, and actions.

spotlight effect

overestimating others' noticing and evaluating our appearance, performance, and blunders

self-esteem

our feelings of high or low self-worth.

self-efficacy

our sense of competence and effectiveness.

self-serving bias

a readiness to perceive ourselves favorably.

narcissism

excessive self-love and self-absorption.

individualism

a cultural pattern that emphasizes people's own goals over group goals and defines identity mainly in terms of unique personal attributes.

collectivism

a cultural pattern that prioritizes the goals of important groups (often one's extended family or work group).