Personality Exam 1

What is Personality?

Sum total of all characteristics (thought, emotion, and behavior) that makes a given person different from all others. It’s what makes you…you, made up of many different elements. the whole is more important than the sum of its parts.

What factors make up personality?

1. Developmental Factors (nature vs. nurture)

2. Biological Factors (brain guides our behavior, experiences change brain chem)

3. Cultural Factors (morals, desires)

4. Cognitive Factors (thinking)

5. Social/Relational Factors (relationships)

Ship of Theseus

Metaphor for Personality. Same boat, but all different parts, so also not the same boat. Is an object the same object after having all of its original components replaced over time? Same goes for identity changing over time

What are the 2 major approaches to the study of personality?

Idiographic and Nomothetic

Idiographic

study the details of individual personalities, the person as a unique combination of individual characteristics, doesn’t necessarily apply or relate to other people, just describes the details that make up this person (even identical twins that have very similar genetics have different personalities)

How do you apply the idiographic study of personality?

Through interview, biography, and case study

What is the strength of Idiographic study of personality?

Can capture essential uniqueness

What is the weakness of idiographic study of personality?

Hard to generalize about human nature

Nomothetic

study the presence of universal traits, how people are similar, can be applied/related to other people (we all have the same traits, but to what degree)

How is nomothetic study of personality applied?

through survey and experimentation (identify trait and measure it)

What is a strength of nomothetic study of personality?

can generalize about human nature

What is a weakness of nomothetic study of personality?

hard to pin down “universal traits”

Nomothetic study of personality is divided into three types:

1. Theoretical

2. Measurement

3. Lexical

Theoretical

based in conventional wisdom or existing psychological theory

Measurement

based in quantitative measurement and statistical analysis of trait terms

Lexical

based on the type and number of words related to personality in a given language (if a language/culture has a word for it, it must be important)

How do we resolve the two major approaches?

it is important to understand both the individual and how that individual fits in a broader social context. personalities serve a social function

Hans Eysenck’s Hierarchical Approach

four levels, moves from broad nomothetic traits to idiographic expressions of those traits, the highest levels are the most universal, the lowest the most individual

supertrait

most general trait (extraversion, openness, neuroticism)

Traits

generic examples of how super traits can show up (sociability, impulsiveness, activity)

Habitual Responses

Examples of generic activities that a trait could determine (likes to spend time with friends, likes large gatherings, involved in the community)

Specific Responses

hyper specific activites that are very specific examples of habitual responses an individual may do (has lunch w/ her bff once a wk, has everyone over to watch Real Housewives)

Do traits determine what people do all the time?

No, a person’s avg. behavior over time and across situations. An extraverted person will generally behave in a more active, sociable manner than an introverted person when averaged across every action. Even extraverts will sometimes, not very often, be less extraverted than someone else

single-trait approach

examines the link between personality and behavior by asking, “What do people like that do"?”

many-trait approach

begins with the implicit research Q, “Who does that?” (that is an important behavior) to determine which traits correlate with the specific behavior

essential trat approach

the research strategy that attempts to narrow the list of thousands of trait terms into a shorter list of the ones that really matter (the Big Five model)

typological approach

the research strategy that focuses on identifying types of individuals. Each type is characterized by a particular pattern of traits

self-monitoring

fundamental issues concerning the relationship between one’s private inner reality and the external image one presents to others

narcissism

people who may be charming, attractive, and even charismatic, but also have a high degree of self-regard and neglect of concern for others that they cause problems for other people and for themselves

Example of Self-Monitoring

a person might drink a beer at a party because the situation calls for it, but they also may be studious in a research seminar, but also may be a totally different person

high self-monitors

different between their inner and outer selves and in how they perform in different settings, carefully survey every situation they enter looking for cues of the appropriate way to act, and then alter their behavior

low self-monitors

largely the same outside as they are inside and don’t vary much from one setting to another, tend to be more consistent regardless of the situation because their behavior is guided by personality

How are high self-monitors like day-to-day?

perform better in job interviews, place themselves in central positions in social networks, make more new friends

What are low self-monitors described as?

self-directed, having integrity, and being consistent and honest

How are narcissists like day-to-day?

when other people reject them, they may take it out (their frustration) on innocent individuals, argue and swear more, don’t accept failure well

What could be a cause for an increase of narcissism in the U.S.?

cultural trends like participation trophies, party favors and telling everyone they’re “special”

The California Q-set

100 phrases describing aspects of personality that might be important for characterizing a particular individual. Raters express judgments of personality by sorting the items into 9 categories from highly uncharacteristic (category 1) to highly characteristic. It forces the judge to compare all of the items directly against each other. The judge is restricted to identifying only a few items as being most important

Examples of California Q-set phrases

1. is critical, skeptical, not easily impressed

2. is a genuinely dependable and responsible person

3. has a wide range of interests

certainty words

“absolutely”, “exactly”, “guarantee”, “sure”, and “truly”

What are people that use certainty words like?

could be sure of themselves or acting confident to cover up insecurity, described as intelligent, verbally fluent, turned to for advice, ambitious and generous

People who grew into conservatives…

showed up 20 years prior as tending to feel guilty, anxious in unpredictable environments and unable to handle stress well

People who grew into liberals…

described as resourceful, independent, self-reliant, and confident

authoritarians tend to be…

uncooperative and inflexible when playing experimental games, experience fewer positive emotions and watch more tv

psychological triad

the three essential topics of psychology: how people think, how they feel, and how they behave

Examples of the psychological triad conflicting:

• an attraction toward someone you know is bad news (conflict w/ feeling and thoughts)

• intending to do you hw and then going to the beach instead (conflict w/ thoughts and behavior)

• doing something that makes you feel guilty (conflict w/ feeling and behavior)

basic approach

a theoretical view of personality that focuses on some phenomena and ignores others. The basic approaches are trait, biological, psychoanalytic, phenomenological, learning, and cognitive

trait approach

the theoretical view of personality that focuses on individual differences in personality and behavior, and the psychological processes behind them

biological approach

the view of personality that focuses on the way behavior and personality are influenced by neuroanatomy, biochemistry, genetics, and evolution

psychoanalytic approach

the theoretical view of personality, based on the writings of Sigmund Freud, that emphasizes the unconscious processes of the mind

phenomenological approach

the theoretical view of personality that emphasizes experience, free will, and the meaning of life; closely related to humanistic psychology and existentialism

The problem of competing explanations

major advocates of every basic approach have claimed frequently and insistently not only that their favored approach can explain everything worth explaining, but also that the others are all dead wrong. They complement rather than compete with each other because each one addresses a different set of questions about human psychology.

Haidt’s Moral Dimensions

rather than focus on the character flaws of people on one or the other side of an ideological divide, it might be more fruitful to understand how they favor different but equally defensible values

Liberals and Conservatives endorse values called:

1. harm/care (kindness, gentleness, nurturance)

2. fairness/reciprocity (justice, rights, and fair dealing)

Conservatives are also likely to strongly favor 3 other values that liberals regard as less important:

1. in-group loyalty

2. authority/respect

3. purity

ingroup loyalty

taking care of members of one’s own group and staying loyal

authority/respect

following the orders of legitimate leaders

purity

living in a clean, moral way

The Big Five

1. Neuroticism

2. Extraversion

3. Agreeableness

4. Conscientiousness

5. Openness

Neuroticism

People that tend to deal ineffectively with problems in their lives and react more negatively to stressful events. They are particularly sensitive to social threats, such as indications that other ppl don’t accept or support them. Likely to be unhappy, to have problems in their fam relationships, to be dissatisfied w/ their jobs

Extraversion

encompasses traits such as “active”, “outspoken”, “dominant”, “forceful”, “adventurous”, and even “spunky”. Also described as cheerful, upbeat, and optimistic. Consistently rated as more popular, physically attractive, they attend more parties

Conscientiousness

dutiful, careful, rule-abiding, and sometimes ambitious. Can be trusted to show up on time, do as they are told, and not steal anything. They avoid risks and seek to protect themselves. Not necessarily popular or creative, tend to be conforming and not rebellious

Agreeableness

conformity, friendly compliance, likeability, warmth, and even love. Compassion, morality, trust, affability, and modesty. More likely to be involved in religious activities, have a good sense of humor, and be psychologically well adjusted

Openness

the most controversial of the Big Five, Viewed by others as creative, imaginative, open-minded, and clever. Likely to be politically liberal, to use drugs, and to play a musical instrument. They like sophisticated music, appreciate nature, and tend to score higher on tests of general intelligence

Carl Jung’s Early Trait Theory

Proposed the existence of 2 major traits:

1. Introversion: a focus on things within the self

   1. spend a lot of time thinking abt what they have done

   2. quiet, less social, contemplative, introspective

2. Extraversion: a focus on things outside of the self

   1. active, social, energetic

Not a comprehensive theory, but important, gave names to human qualities

Gordon Allport’s Early Trait Theory

Proposed a 3 level hierarchy of traits:

1. Cardinal: a single trait describing the whole person, pretty rare

   1. how many ppl are defined by just one thing

2. Central: the traits most likely to come to mind when describing a person, common traits

3. Secondary: traits that only show up occasionally

   1. present in a person, but less consistently descriptive

Gordon Allport’s 3 level hierarchy revised

can be described in terms of specificity instead of frequency

Cardinal: broad, general traits

ex: a desire for social justice

Central & Secondary: specific expressions of the cardinal trait

ex: works for marriage equality, organizes demonstrations, donates to charities focused on social reform

central are more common, secondary less common

structural, not descriptive

Raymond Cattell’s Early Trait Theory

• came up with the 1st big attempt at descriptive traits, 16

  • warmth, reasoning, emotional stability, dominance

  • liveliness, rule consciousness, social boldness, sensitivity

  • vigilance, abstractedness, privateness, apprehension

  • openness to change, self-reliance, perfectionism, tension

• not clear how some of these are different from each other

Raymond Cattell’s 16 traits simplified

• combine some as opposites of each other

• combine multiple traits wider broader description

• 16 traits into 5 categories

  • Introversion/Extroversion

  • High/low anxiety

  • receptivity/ tough-mindedness

  • accommodation/independence

  • lack of restraint/self-control

PEN Model

Three factors

1. Psychoticism: aggressive, cold, egocentric, impulsive, antisocial, un empathetic, creative, tough minded

2. Extraversion: sociable, lively, active, assertive, sensation-seeking, carefree, dominant, surgent, venturesome

3. Neuroticism: anxious, depressed, guilty feelings, low self esteem, tense, irrational, shy, moody, emotional

HEXACO model

Six factors

1. Honesty-humility

2. Emotionally

3. Extraversion

4. Agreesbleness

5. Conscientiousness

6. Openness to experience