Chapter 1: Introduction to Personality Theory - Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and concepts from the lecture notes on Chapter 1: Introduction to Personality Theory.

Personality

The study of the underlying causes within a person of their behavior and experience.

Types

Qualitative categories where membership is all-or-nothing; a small number of types describe everyone.

Traits

Continuous trait scores; a person can be described on many traits.

Factors

Continuous factor scores; a small number of factors describe everyone; a person can be described on every factor.

Nomothetic

An approach that studies many individuals and compares them on a few numerical scores to identify general laws; can be difficult to understand a whole person.

Idiographic

An approach that studies individuals one at a time; pure idiographic study is difficult because descriptions imply comparison with others.

Adaptation

How we cope with the world and respond to environmental demands.

Adjustment

How we modify or align our functioning to meet environmental demands and opportunities.

Cognitive Processes

The role thinking and mental labeling play in personality, including conscious and unconscious influences on behavior.

Culture

East/Interdependent vs. West/Independent orientations; differences across generations (e.g., Millennials, Gen X/Y, Baby Boomers).

Biological factors (heredity)

Genetic and other biological influences that contribute to personality.

Personality development

The study of how heredity and learning influence personality and how it changes over time.

Scientific Method

Systematic observation and modification; determinism; empirical research seeks causal explanations.

Determinism

The assumption that phenomena have causes and that empirical research can discover them.

Theory

A conceptual tool that explains specified phenomena, including constructs and propositions about their relationships.

Operational definition

A procedure for measuring a theoretical construct.

Hypothesis

A testable proposition stated in observable terms.

Construct

A theoretical concept representing phenomena that may not be directly observable.

Reliability

The consistency of a measurement across time, forms, or items.

Test-retest reliability

Consistency of a measure when the same test is administered at different times.

Alternate forms reliability

Consistency of scores between different versions of a test.

Split-half reliability

Consistency between two halves of a test.

Validity

The extent to which a test measures what it claims to measure.

Predictive validity

The extent to which a test predicts outcomes it should predict.

Construct validity

The degree to which a test measures the theoretical construct it intends to measure.

Direct self-report measures

Inventories or questionnaires where respondents answer straightforward questions.

Indirect methods

Techniques to reduce distortion, such as open-ended questions, diaries, journals, and projective tests.

Behavioral measures

Observations of behavior in real-world contexts or controlled settings.

Correlational studies

Research measuring two or more variables to determine if they are related.

Causation

A cause-effect relationship where one variable produces changes in another.

Experimentation

True experimental research testing hypothesized cause-effect relationships, with manipulation of an independent variable.

Independent variable

The variable deliberately manipulated by the researcher.

Dependent variable

The variable measured to assess the effect of the independent variable.

Experimental group

Participants exposed to the experimental treatment or IV.

Control group

Participants not exposed to the IV, used for comparison.

Random assignment

Randomly placing participants into groups to control for preexisting differences.

Case study

An intensive investigation of a single individual.

Psychobiography

Application of a personality theory to study an individual’s life, with a theoretical emphasis distinct from a case study.

Eclectic approach

Using multiple theories rather than a single paradigm to understand personality.

Fragmentation of personality theory

No single paradigm dominates; researchers often blend theories (eclecticism) due to differing scientific and humanistic perspectives.

Two Cultures: Scientific vs. Humanistic

Scientific culture emphasizes laboratory, nomothetic, and objective observation; humanistic culture emphasizes field studies, idiographic analysis, holism, and intuition.