Personality Psychology Exam 3

who is Paul Ekman?

• clinical psychologist that worked for Inside Out

• studied emotions, facial expressions, non-verbal gestures, cross-cultural universality of emotions, and deception and lying

what are basic/primary emotions?

• serve important function

• evolved to facilitate survival and reproduction

• part of the psychological triad.

• universal, “hard-wired” inside all of us

• help us navigate the world, to survive and keep us safe

what are the different basic emotions?

joy, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, and surprise

What are the adaptive benefits of basic emotions?

they can help send messages that can save the lives of both sender and receiver.

happy

• helps communicate to others you want to form a relationship

sadness

• communicate need for comfort or help

anger

• communicate threat to others to protect self

fear

• communicating need for protection

disgust

• communicating avoidance in food

surprise

• communicating for distraction

why do we study the universality of basic emotions?

if we expect emotions to be universal, then regardless of exposure to culture or people, everyone should share the same features when it comes to expressing their basic emotions

what is some evidence of universality of basic emotions?

cross-cultural research suggest these emotions occur across any age and any culture. 

the conditions that supports the universality of basic emotions are how we have similar expressions of emotions

• facial expressions (non verbal)

  • seen in non-human animals (chimpanzees)

  • blind individuals who have never seen the facial expressions also express them

  • remote tribes also express the facial expressions as well

• body language (non verbal)

  • body language for winning is similar for seeing and blind individuals

• emotion vocalizations

• emotion sounds

  • capacity to recognize emotions thru vocal bursts emerges early in development and is preserved across cultures

what are emotion sounds?

they are vocalizations that humans communicate through.

there are two different kinds

• prosody

• vocal bursts

what is prosody?

the patterns of tune, rhythm, and timbre; interacts with words to convey feelings

• voice pitch happy, higher sad, lower

what are vocal bursts?

brief non-linguistic sounds that occur between speech incidents or in the absence of  speech

• crying - vocalization of sadness

• screaming - vocalization of fear or anger

• can convey at least 24 distinct kinds of emotion

what is the link between basic emotions and personality?

there is a key connection between emotions and personality.

• core memories are valence by emotion

• emotions and memories shape our “islands of personality” (are the building blocks of personality)

how did negative basic emotions develop?

negative emotions can be uncomfortable to experience, but they are necessary to help avoid dangers, connect w/ others, be authentic, recover from losses, express vulnerability, allow closeness, allow to feel the full range of emotions, etc.

what is emotional suppression?

when individuals are socialized to not recognize, experience, and/or embrace negative emotions, and/or when a person does not have social supports to come to the rescue for sadness, anger fear, etc.

• can lead to the inability to process and deal with the negative emotions

what is emotion regulation?

any effort to modify an emotional experience (positive or negative)

what is healthy emotion regulation?

“mindfully embracing” all emotions and adaptively controlling your emotions.

with age it gets better

what are the emotion regulation strategies?

• situation selection

• situation modification

• attentional deployment

• cognitive change

• response modulation.

what is situation selection and when does it occur?

choosing to enter or avoid situations that could generate desirable or undesirable emotions. occurs before event.

what is situation modification and when does it occur?

altering a situation to modify its impact as it is occurring

ex. while on a rollercoaster, thinking this is very scary to this is very fun while on the ride

what is attentional deployment and when does it occur?

controlling the allocation of attention to modify emotional response, occurs during the situation.

ex) when watching a scary movie, looking at phone at scary scenes.

what is cognitive change and when does it occur?

changing the evaluation of a situation to influence its emotional impact. occurs after the event. focus on thoughts

ex. reappraising, seeing the situation in a new light when you get home

what is response modulation and when does it occur?

engaging in a behavior to influence some aspect of a generated emotion. occurs after the event. focus on behavior

ex. I am angry rn so I will go exercise to feel better.

what are self-conscious emotions?

social emotions that related to our sense of self and our consciousness of other’s reactions to us. they develop a little later in life bc they require a person to have a sense of self. most do not have universal facial expressions, but have non-verbal bodily cues

• embarrassment

• pride

• guilt

• shame

what is embarrassment?

feeling of self-consciousness, awkwardness that emerges when self-awareness allows for the idea of “me” in other’s thoughts

less intense form of shame

nonverbal cue - blushing

what is pride?

a feeling of deep pleasure, reward, or satisfaction derived from achievements. two kinds, authentic vs. hubristic.

one of the few self-conscious emotions that has a clear on-verbal expression that is universal

therefore a universal self-conscious emotion

• recognized by individuals of all ages (4+)

• recognized across various cultures

• displayed by blind athletes

• displayed by non-human animals (chimpanzees)

what is authentic pride?

stems from effort and work put into reaching goals/acheivements.

what is hubristic pride?

stems from global self-attributions about being naturally awesome (egotistical, pompous, arrogant)

positively correlated with narcissism

what is guilt?

the feeling of doing a bad thing, but is associated with a positive approach and reparative actions. perspective taking and empathy is common.

what is shame?

feeling you are a bad person inherently. associated with avoidance actions. rooted from fear that failures and shortcomings will be exposed

emotional intelligence

consists of two parts:

• accurately perceiving emotion in oneself and others

• controlling and regulating one’s emotions

low emotional intelligence

little emotional awareness, unable to think or talk about their own feeling and therefore, emotions are difficult to control

high emotional intelligence

healthy emotion awareness, expression, and regulation, have better personal relationships 

emotion expression and romantic relationship study

longitudinal study that followed newlywed couples for 5 years after videotaping them discussing conflicts.

• emotion expressions were coded from the tapes.

• divorce was predicted with 83% accuracy. 

• all couples (happy/unhappy) experienced conflict, but the difference was in how they expressed negative emotions to each other

  • criticism vs complaints

  • contempt (insults and mockery)

  • defensiveness

  • stonewalling

emotions and personality traits

people differ in their tendency to:

• experience particular emotions

• express particular emotions

• understand/recognize emotions in others

• regulate their emotions in particular ways

Which of the big five are related to positive emotions?

extraversion and agreeableness are related to positive emotions

• extraverts experience and express more joy, enthusiasm, and pride

• agreeable people experience and express more joy and positive affect, and also less anger and contempt

which big five factor(s) is/are related to negative emotions

neuroticism is related to negative emotions

• neurotic people experience and express more fear, sadness, anger, shame, disgust, etc.

• fewer experiences of positive emotions like joy, happiness, and pride

conscientiousness and emotions

related to guilt-proneness

• conscientious people are more guilt-prone, but less likely to actually experience guilt

  • why?

    • bc it is uncomfy for them to feel guilty, and they engage in reparative/approach behaviors to curb future feelings of guilt, and thus reducing the actual feeling of guilt

correlations between openness and emotions

related to very few emotional states, but possibly awe

awe

an overwhelming feeling of reverence, wonder, and admiration produced by that which is grand, sublime, or extremely powerful

• fellings in response to aesthetic experiences

duality of the self

• I vs me / self awareness vs self concept

• I = self awareness

  • self as active observer

• me = self concept

  • self as the object being observed

    • “I am”

“I” relevance to personality

relevant bc people differ in their degree of self-awareness

“me” relevance to personality

it IS personality

• how we describe ourselves

• how others describe us

• how our representations of the self shape thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

purpose of the self

• organizes knowledge and memories

• maintains a self-image that guides behavior

• pays attention to information that matters most

• helps control impulses and maintain focus on long-term goals (self-regulation

• differentiates the self from others, and relate and understand others

• develop identity or self-worth

what is the development of the self-awareness (the “I”)

three stages: 

cognitive/behavioral markers, linguistic markers, emotional markers

cognitive/behavioral markers

occurs at 18-24 mo

1. mirror self-recognition

2. imitation and role-taking

linguistic markers

occurs at 12-24 mo

1.self-referencing w/ 1st person pronouns

• I, me mine

2. narrative language use

• “I had fun at the playground”

emotional markers

occurs at 2-4 yo

1. self-conscious emotions

• pride, shame, guilt, embarrassment

2. require ability to evaluate the self

• particularly in relation to others

• “I” evaluates the “Me”

development of the self-concept “me”

is categorized by early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence

early childhood self-concept development

1. observable characteristics

• I am a girl

1. specific interest/activites

• I like purple

middle childhood self-concept development

1. general interests

• I like sports

2. social comparisons

• I am smarter than john

3. interpersonal qualities

• I am nice

adolescence self-concept development

1. hidden, abstract qualities

• I am moody

• I am self-conscious

types of self-knowledge

declarative knowledge, procedural knowledge , and narrative knowledge

declarative knowledge

the facts and impressions that we consciously know and can describe

     ex. “I am friendly”

two forms:

• how we think about and represent the self (self-concept)

• how we feel about the self (self-esteem)

self-concept (the “Me”)

an idea of the self that is constructed from observations of oneself and the responses of others 

• comprised of many “ideas” or characteristics

• selves can be affected by context

• coherence in self-concept is beneficial

coherence

having a stable and clear understanding of one’s identity and values that feels whole and consistent across contexts

ex. acting the same around family and friends

possible selves

in addition to the current self, people also have imagined or feared selves

self-discrepancy theory

The difference between current and possible selves determines how you feel and act, and can lead to positive and negative emotions

      Positive: motivation, goal pursuit, and achievement

Negative: depression, anxiety

• ideal self = what you want to be

• ought self = what you should be

self-esteem

How we feel about ourselves

• Subjective evaluation of your worth as a person

  • “on the whole, I am satisfied with myself”

• Higher levels of self-esteem is a good thing

  • Happiness, successful relationships, career success

• Self-esteem should be differentiated from narcissism

Narcissism

Sense of grandiosity and superiority that goes beyond just feeling like a worthy person

Procedural knowledge

The way you do things unconsciously and automatically

• Not possible to explain to others

• Made up of the behaviors through which you express who you think you are without realizing you are doing so

Narrative knowledge

The stories you tell about yourself and your life

• Construction of the past and the imagined future

  • ex. Life history interview.

Do animals have a sense of self?

Yes, some do!

• Chimps, elephants, dolphins

Others do not

• Cats, dogs

do opposites attract?

sometimes, but predictors of successful attraction are different from predictors of successful relationships

What personality traits promote good relationships

• Higher levels of extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness

Lower levels of neuroticism

Speed-dating

People are more interested in potential partners that are warm and extraverted. being picky undermines the relationship

What personality traits prevent or undermine relationships?

• being disagreeable, not conscientious, and highly neurotic

• Being untrustworthy or having anger issues

• Dispositional contempt

• Rejection sensitivity

Dispositional contempt

Tendency to look down on, distance, and derogate others who violate personal standards

Rejection sensitivity

Anticipating, feeling like, or expressing that you are going to be rejected. Being overly reactive or anxious about being potentially rejected.

Matchmaking

Matching algorithms are based on science

• Companies higher PhD in personality psychology to help develop, test, and study matching.

• Harmony focuses on several factors

  • Agreeableness

  • Preference for closeness

  • Decree a sexual/romantic passion

  • Extroversion

  • Openness

  • Importance of religiosity

  • Optimism

Personality, similarity, and relationships

Being similar to (or different from) your partner in terms of personality, does not predict relationship, quality, satisfaction, or longevity

• It is more about your perceptions of the relationship, relationship characteristics, and similarity in values

• Also species dependent

• ex. for pandas,  low aggressive females that are paired with high aggressive meals have more cubs than other personality combinations

The investment model

Relationship commitment is predicted by:

• How happy people are in their relationship

• How much they have invested in the relationship

• If there are a few quality alternatives

Predictors of relationship quality

Consist of top five relationship factors and top five personality factors

Romantic relationship quality

A person’s subjective perception that their relationship is relatively good versus bad.

Individual differences in:

• People in the relationship

• The relationship itself

Top five relationship predictors of relationship quality

Perceived partner commitment

Appreciation

Sexual satisfaction

Perceived partner satisfaction

Conflict

Top five personality predictors of relationship quality

Satisfaction with life

Negative affect

Depression

Attachment anxiety

Attachment avoidance

Other types of relationships

Polyamory, asexuality, singlehood

What percentage of people have participated in consensual non-monogamy?

About 21%

Polyamory

People have more than one romantic or sexual partner

• People in these relationships can be securely attached to multiple partners at the same time

  • Being securely attached predicts more relationship and sexual satisfaction with each partner

  • No "cross-relationship effects" – people who are in polyamorous relationships, treat each relationship as distinct and independent

Asexuality

Asexuality provides a specific test of the investment model

• Finding show that the investment model generalizes to asexual individuals and their relationships

Singlehood

The study of being single

• Singles people are often viewed as unhappy, given social norms however, single people tend to be just as happy as partnered people

  • Single meet belongingness needs through other non-romantic relationship relationships

Personality correlates a friendship satisfaction

Similar to correlates for romantic relationships

• Higher action version, agreeableness, and conscientiousness are related to higher friendship satisfaction

• Lower levels of neuroticism are related to higher friendship satisfaction

What is work?

Working is essential part of peoples lives around the world

Industrial-organization psychology

Scientific study of working in the application of psychological principles to workplace issues, facing individuals, teams, and organizations.

Personality has long been essential focus of IO psychology

Personality and work

Who makes a good employee

What personality characteristics, predict, occupational and economic success

How does a person – job fit play a role in occupational performance, satisfaction, and success?

Who makes a good leader?

Personality and job performance

Conscientiousness and emotion stability are best predicts of job performance across nearly all jobs

• Predictive validity of supervisor ratings = .41 or 70% accuracy

Extroverted and agreeableness are important in jobs requiring a high degree of interpersonal work

• Customer service (high E and A) vs. Scientist (low E and A)

worker oriented job analysis

Personality is also related to job satisfaction

Worker oriented job analysis

Focuses on identifying the qualities (knowledge, skills, abilities) needed by a person to successfully perform the job

Occupational and economic success

Personality (mean, conscientiousness) is important for predicting occupational and economic success

Human capital formation

Economic value of worker’s abilities and skills

Key factors for human capital formation

Motivation

Persistence

Self-control

Personality-job fit

Finding the best career for your personality

• Research research shows that person job fit is important for job satisfaction, less stress, job, performance, success, etc.

How to find a job that fits you

Key focus has been on vocational interests

ex. Holland’s six types.

Holland’s six types

Realistic

Investigative

Artistic

Social

Enterprising

Conventional

Vocational interest

Strong interest inventory

Holland codes (RIASEC career codes)

Who makes a good leader?

Some personality characteristics make good leaders

• Charismatic and narcissistic people often occupy leadership positions

  • But charismatic, narcissistic, and arrogant people do not make a good leaders

• Humility is key for good leaders, but needs to be combined with high competence, ambition, and self-esteem

Personality predictor of management performance

Emotional stability

Conscientiousness

Extroversion

Openness

Developing leadership

Scientific work has been conducted on:

• Adults

  And people who are already leaders

We know fairly little about:

• How leadership develop develops earlier in the lifespan

• How to promote leadership skills among youth

normal and abnormal personality and disorder

• no sharp dividing line

• having a mild degree of a few characteristics does not imply having a disorder

disorders

can be thought of as exaggerated versions of traits that are advantageous when in the normal stage

• unusual, original, and creative : schizotypal

• self-confident and proud : narcissistic

diagnostic and statistical manual (DSM)

• standard American reference to diagnose and treat psychopathology - first edition in 1952

• current edition: DSM-5-TR (2022)

• used for insurance purposes

purposes of DSM

Make psychological diagnoses more objective

• provides a common vocabulary be used by medical professionals and researchers

Insurance billing purposes

• each disorder has a code for insurance pilling forms when a patient receives treatment

critiques of DSM

disorders are not categorical in the real world

• arbitrary dividing line between “normal” and “abnormal”

comorbidity is prevalent 

• people typically tend to have co-occuring disorders and symptoms of one disorder overlap w/ other disorders

• DSM does not quite reflect the current state of the scientific literature

characteristics of personality disorders

• unusually extreme personality attributes

• problematic (for self or others)

• affect social relationships and interactions

• stable over time

  • can begin in childhood or adolescence 

  • PDs are difficult to change

• ego-syntonic

  • they think others are the ones with a problem