L2 Personality Part 2

Introduction to Modern Personality Research

• Focus on identifying and understanding personality traits.

• Traits are individual differences that are stable and drive behavior.

• Traits are concepts that describe general patterns of behavior.

Core Dimensions of Personality

• Modern research seeks core dimensions that explain variations in personality, rather than just individual traits.

• Factor Analysis: A statistical approach to identify hidden patterns among a large set of traits.

Historical Background

• Allport and Odbert's 1936 study used a dictionary to list personality-descriptive words.

  • Started with all words, then eliminated physical characteristics and evaluative terms.

  • Resulted in a list of 4,504 personality trait words.

• Need for further reduction due to synonymy and similarity among traits.

Process of Factor Analysis

• Researchers reduced the extensive list through participant self-ratings.

• Participants rate how well each personality word describes them (scale of 1 to 7).

• Factor analysis reveals clusters of traits that exhibit similar patterns of use.

• Outcome typically results in a smaller number of core dimensions explaining variations in the data.

The Big Five Model of Personality

• Modern consensus points to Five Factors (OCEAN):

  1. Openness to Experience: Imaginative vs. conventional.

  2. Conscientiousness: Organized vs. carefree.

  3. Extraversion: Outgoing vs. reserved.

  4. Agreeableness: Trusting vs. suspicious.

  5. Neuroticism: Anxious vs. calm.

• Mnemonic: OCEAN (Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism).

• Each factor gives insight into behavioral tendencies and interpersonal dynamics.

Nature vs Nurture Debate

• Key question: Is personality due to genetics (nature) or experiences (nurture)?

• Heritability Studies:

  • Assess genetic contribution to personality differences.

  • Scale from 0% (pure nurture) to 100% (pure nature).

Types of Heritability Studies

Adoption Studies

• Examines adopted children, their biological mothers, and adoptive mothers.

• Compare personality traits of the child to both mothers to assess influences.

Twin Studies

• Comparison of identical (monozygotic) twins and fraternal (dizygotic) twins.

• Identical twins share 100% of genetics; fraternal twins share 50%.

• Measure personality similarity between types of twins to infer genetic vs. environmental contributions.

Twin Studies Raised Together vs. Apart

• Identical twins raised together vs. apart provide insights into the influence of environment on personality.

Conclusions from Heritability Studies

• Findings indicate a rough estimate: 50% nature, 50% nurture contributes to personality.

• Some traits show varied heritability (e.g., Openness at 57%, Neuroticism closer to 50%).

Variability Within Families

• Despite shared genetics and environment, siblings often display significant personality differences.

• Introduced concept of Reciprocal Determinism:

  • Behavior influences environment and vice versa.

Causes of Divergence in Personality Among Siblings

1. Divergence: Siblings may choose different paths to stand out.

2. Differential Treatment: Parents may unconsciously treat siblings based on their individual personalities.

3. Unique Experiences: Different interpretations of the same family events based on age and maturity.

4. Exaggeration: Small differences in personality can become more pronounced within family contexts.

Summary of Lecture

• Modern personality research emphasizes understanding the stable traits that differentiate individuals.

• The interplay of genetics and environmental factors continues to shape personality, reinforcing the complexity of human behavior.