personality psych 2

biological approach

covers evolutionary factors, genetic factors, and physiological factors of psychology

nature vs nurture

one studies genetic influence while the other studies environmental influence

tabula rasa

“the mind begins as a blank slate”

heritability

a ratio statistic that describes the proportion of phenotypic variance explained by genetic variance

h²

the representation of heritability

twin studies

used to measure siblings that are either monozygotic or dizygotic to determine which pair is more similar

monozygotic

the term for identical twins

dizygotic

the term for fraternal twins

rmz

the index for monozygotic twins, reflects a large degree of genetic overlap

rdz

index for dizygotic twins, reflects a relatively smaller genetic overlap

h² = 2(rmz-rdz)

heritability formula

equal environments assumption

MZ and DZ raised in same homes will experience equally similar environments, if not, then genetic and environmental influences are confounded

representativeness assumption

results from twin research can be generalized to singletons?

adoption studies

heritability gauged by examining similarity to adoptive parents vs biological parents

biological parent

has a different environment and 50% genetic relatedness to the child

adoptive parent

has shared environment and 0% genetic relatedness to the child

r1

index for relationship between child and bio parents on characteristic, reflects shared genes

r2

index for relationship between child and adoptive parents on characteristic, reflects shared environment

twins reared apart

measuring the heritability of MZ twins that don’t share the same environment to measure genetic influence

all

the amount of human behavioural traits that are heritable

smaller

the effect of being raised in the same family is ___ than the effect of genes

shared environment

for example, neighbourhood, overall parenting styles, etc

non-shared environment

for example, friend groups, unique aspects of parenting, within-family experiences, etc

.50

the heritability of drinking and smoking

40

what percentage of political orientation is explained by genetic variance?

molecular genetics

techniques designed to identify specific genes associated with personality traits

DRD4

a gene on chromosome 11 that is reliably linked to impulsivity and novelty-seeking

passive, active, reactive

the three types of genotype-environment correlations

passive

parents provide both genes and environment to children, yet children do nothing to obtain that environment (ex. child’s verbal ability and the number of books in home)

reactive

parents (or others) respond to children differently depending on the child’s genotype (ex a baby who likes cuddling will get more cuddles)

active

person with particular genotype seeks out a particular environment (ex high sensation seekers expose themselves to risky environments)

physiological measures

electrodermal activity (skin conductance), cardiovascular activity (blood pressure), brain activity (EEG), etc

extraversion

the big five trait high in dopamine (reward network)

neuroticism

the big five trait high in cortisol and low in serotonin

openness/intellect

the big five trait high in dopamine (default network)

conscientousness

the big five trait high in serotonin

agreeableness

the big five trait high in serotonin and low in testosterone

reinforcement sensitivity theory

the theory that there are three separate biologically based systems that underpin people’s behavioural tendencies (BAS, FFFS, BIS)

behavioural activation system (BAS)

approach rewards, when active, produces impulsivity, associated with positive emotions and extraversion

fight-flight-freeze system (FFFS)

move away from threats or punishing stimuli, when active, produces fear-proneness and avoidance, associated with neuroticism facets (anger, irritability, upset)

behavioral inhibition system (BIS)

risk assessment (stop and evaluate), when active, produces anxiety and rumination, associated with neuroticism facets (anxiety, depression)

monoamine oxidase (MAO)

an enzyme that maintains a proper level of neurotransmitters

low

high sensation seekers have ___ levels of MAO

tridimensional personality model

includes novelty-seeking, harm avoidance, and reward dependence

novelty-seeking

low dopamine, jumps into things recklessly

harm avoidance

low serotonin, become overwhelmed by events and find it difficult to approach others

reward dependence

low norepinephrine, try to please everyone, are open about their feelings

circadian rythym

around a 24-25 hour cycle that many biological process fluctuate around (can range anywhere from 16-50 hours)

short circadian rythym

morning people, hit peak body temperature and alertness earlier, get sleepy earlier

long circadian rythym

evening people, hit peak body temperature and alertness later, get sleepy later

night people

tend to have higher impulsivity, risk-taking, sensation-seeking and extraversion, higher antisocial traits like psychopathy, and lower conscientiousness and agreeableness

increased right frontal activity

negative feelings, withdrawal motivation

increased left frontal activity

positive feelings, approach motivation

motives

internal states that arouse and direct behaviour toward specific objects or goals, caused by a deficit and based on needs

drive reduction theory

basic biological drives build up in the organism. in response to tension, organisms engage in behaviour to release the energy. The reduction of drive feels good which reinforces behaviour. experiences associated with the process become connected to rewarding feelings.

intrapsychic influences

unconscious psychological processes, conflicts, motives, and structures that originate within an individual’s mind, rather than from external or social environments.

psychoanalytic theory

freud’s theory that focuses on how people cope with sexual and aggressive instincts within constraints of civilized society

psychic energy

force that motivates people to do one thing and not another, operates according to law of conservation of energy

basic instincts

drives, strong innate forces that provide all the energy in the psychic system, primary motives of human behaviour

eros

life instinct, includes self-preservation and sexual instincts (libido)

thanatos

death instinct, includes destructive and aggressive instincts

unconscious motivation

the idea that there are parts of our mind outside of our conscious awareness

levels of consciousness

conscious, pre-conscious, unconscious

conscious

thoughts, feelings, images, presently aware

pre-conscious

information you are not presently thinking about, but is easily retrieved; memories, stored knowledge

unconscious

holds thoughts and memories outside of awareness. includes unacceptable urges, thoughts, feelings, shameful experiences, etc

psychic determinism

the idea that nothing happens by chance, everything we do, think, say, and feel is an expression of our mind (ex. freudian slips)

meta-motives

Hogan’s theory, getting ahead (power, achievement, status), and getting along (belonging, cooperation, altruism)

need

a readiness to respond in a certain way under a certain circumstance (henry murray’s theory of needs)

functions of needs

to organize perception and to organize action

viscerogenic needs

basic biological needs related to survival, satisfied by physical means (ex. food, sex, water, avoid being cold, breathing, etc)

psychogenic needs

secondary needs, satisfied by mental or emotional needs (affiliation, achievement, avoiding failure)

press

non-relevant aspects of the environment

alpha press

objective reality (how the world actually exists)

beta press

perceived reality (what we think is happening)

maslow’s hierarchy of needs

physiological, safety, belongingness/love, esteem, self-actualization

updated hierarchy

physiological, safety, belongingness/love, esteem, cognitive, aesthetic, self-actualization

flow

a subjective state that people report when they are completely involved in something to the point of forgetting time, fatigue, and everything else but the activity itself

peak experience

a momentary feeling of extreme wonder, awe, and vision, sometimes called the “oceanic feeling”

evopsy hierarchy of needs

immediate physiological, self-protection, affiliation, status/esteem, mate acquisition, mate retention, parenting

big three needs

need for achievement, need for intimacy (affiliation), and need for power

implicit motives

unconscious desires, aspirations, and needs. uses projective tests

projective tests

involves presenting participants with images that depict ambiguous situations (ex. TAT)

explicit motives

self-attributed motivation. uses questionnaires

questionnaires

self-report measures (ex. PRF)

nAch

need for achievement, no gender differences, different life outcomes and different childhood experiences

nPow

need for power, no gender differences, more impulsive behaviours in men

nInt

need for intimacy, higher in women, positive correlations with happiness, life satisfaction, and well-being

broad goal dimensions

agency (getting ahead) and communion (getting along)

agency related goals

positively related to extraversion, openness, and conscientiousness. negatively related to agreeableness

communion related goals

positively related to extraversion, openness, and agreeableness

openness

which big five trait is strongly related to aesthetic goals?

humanistic approach

has a fairly optimistic view of human nature, aims to understand each person’s view of reality

materialistic needs

to gain possessions and property, bargain or gamble, to work for money or goods

ambition needs

achievement (master things), exhibition (center of attention), recognition (to evoke praise and respect)

need to defend status

infavoidance (avoid failure, shame), involacy (to preserve one’s good name), defendance (the defend oneself against criticism)

needs related to social power

autonomy, contrarience (the act differently than others), dominance

social affection needs

affiliation, nurturance, succorance (to receive aid from others)

exchange of information needs

cognizance (to explore one’s environment, asking questions and seeking knowledge)

multi-motive grid

uses 14 pictures representing achievement, power, or intimacy and a series of questions about important motivational states