lecture 10/13

projective test

personality test that provides ambiguous stimuli

• triggers projection of one’s inner dynamics and reveal unconscious motives

rorschach inkblot test

most widely used projective test

• use is controversial → how to interpret people’s responses? what does it predict?

thematic apperception test (TAT)

people express their inner feelings and interests through the stories they make up about ambiguous scenes

• measure affiliation and achievement motivation

trait

characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act in certain ways

lexical hypothesis

all words that are needed to distinguish one person from another have been encoded into language (cannot be tested)

• the dictionary

• 171,000 english words currently in use

factor analysis

a statistical procedure that identifies similarities in data

cattell

16 personality ideas

the big five

• conscientious

• agreeable

• neuroticism

• openness

• extraversion

level 1 (McAdams): general traits

traits are “relatively decontextualized, generally linear, and implicity comparative dimensions of personality

• extraversion & neuroticism

level 2 (McAdams): personal concerns

what people want and how they get it

• contextualized, especially with regard to time

level 3 (McAdams): identity

each of us has a narrative of the self

• despite having different roles, there is a consistent core of self