PSY505 CH7 Gordon Allport

Gordon Allport

focused on each person’s uniqueness.

rejected both psychoanalytic (too deep) and behavioral (not deep enough) approaches

supported an idiographic approach—studying one person in depth rather than using broad generalizations.

Allport – Traits

stable, frequent patterns of behavior seen across many situations.

Allport – States

temporary emotional conditions influenced by the moment 

Activities

short-term behaviors caused by situations

Lexical Approach

use language (adjectives) to categorize traits.

Cardinal Traits

Rare traits that dominate a person’s whole personality 

General Traits

Common traits found in most people, like honesty, kindness

Secondary Traits

Situation-specific traits that appear only in certain circumstances

Universal Trait Dimensions

The idea that all people share traits to different degrees 

Factor Analysis

A statistical method used to group similar traits together to identify major trait dimensions.

Purpose of Factor Analysis

to find which traits co-occur or correlate with each other.

Latent Trait

cannot be directly observed but is inferred from several related behaviours

Labelling Factors

After similar traits are grouped together, psychologists give the group a name that best fits what those traits seem to describe

Factor Analysis (Benefits)

Making complex data simple and organized.

we can describe, predict, and explain personality more easily.

Factor Analysis (Limitation)

Factor analysis is based only on math and data 

Doesn’t Explain “Why” the traits co-occur