chap 2 Methods in Personality Psychology

Vocabulary flashcards covering research methods, LOTS data sources, psychometric reliability and validity, fixed vs. flexible measures, and neurobiological correlates in personality psychology.

L-Data

Life history or life record information obtained from objective background events, such as academic transcripts, medical records, criminal records, and employment history.

O-Data

Observer report data gathered from knowledgeable informants—such as parents, friends, teachers, or trained researchers—about an individual's behavioral patterns.

T-Data

Test data collected under controlled conditions where participants complete identical standardized tasks under identical instructions.

S-Data

Self-report data provided directly by the individual regarding their own inner thoughts, feelings, traits, and motivations.

Experience Sampling Method (ESM)

An intensive longitudinal research approach (also known as Ecological Momentary Assessment) where participants report on experiences multiple times per day in natural environments using real-time technology.

Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC)

A computerized text analysis software tool that counts words in text samples to analyze linguistic patterns that reflect psychological states.

Nomothetic Measures

Fixed, standardized assessment procedures administering identical items to all individuals to derive broad generalizations and compare individuals to norms.

Idiographic Measures

Flexible assessment approaches tailored to the individual to capture unique personal meanings, self-narratives, and specific contexts.

Biological Basis of Extraversion

Neural function characterized by greater activity in brain reward centers (nucleus accumbens, ventral striatum) and reduced amygdala activity in response to positive stimuli.

Biological Basis of Neuroticism

Neural function marked by heightened amygdala reactivity to negative stimuli and reduced connectivity between emotional processing and executive control regions.

Biological Basis of Conscientiousness

Neural function associated with greater activity in prefrontal cortex regions involved in planning, inhibition, and goal-directed behavior.

Reliability

The extent to which psychological observations can be replicated, ensuring measures are dependable, consistent, and stable.

Test-Retest Reliability

The stability of test scores when the same assessment is administered to the same individuals at different points in time.

Internal Consistency

The degree to which different items on the same test intended to measure the same construct correlate with each other, typically evaluated using Cronbach's alpha.

Inter-Rater Reliability

The degree of consensus or agreement among different observers or judges evaluating the same behavior or response.

Validity

The extent to which a test or observation actually measures the specific psychological phenomenon or construct it intends to measure.

Relationship Between Reliability and Validity

Reliability is a necessary but insufficient condition for validity; a measure can consistently measure the wrong construct (reliable but not valid), but it cannot accurately measure the intended construct inconsistently.

Content Validity

The degree to which a test's items adequately sample and cover the entire domain of the psychological construct it claims to assess.

Criterion Validity

The extent to which assessment scores predict or correlate positively with relevant external real-world outcomes.

Construct Validity

The degree to which an assessment tool successfully measures the theoretical construct it is supposed to measure and nothing else.

Convergent Validity

A subtype of construct validity demonstrated when an assessment correlates positively with other established measures of the same construct.

Discriminant Validity

A subtype of construct validity demonstrated when an assessment does not correlate strongly with measures of distinct, unrelated constructs.

Correlational Research

A research design examining how variables naturally relate without experimental manipulation, quantified by coefficients from $-1.0$ to $+1.0$.

Experimental Research

A research method utilizing random assignment, control of extraneous variables, and direct manipulation of independent variables to establish causal relationships.