PSYCH Ch. 13 Practice Quiz

According to Rotter's expectancy theory, Peter is classified as having an internal locus of control. What is Peter most likely to say upon receiving a failing grade on a paper?

"I should have put more effort into the assignment."

Genetics accounts for about ________ percent of the difference in individuals' personality traits.

40-60

Regarding positive illusions, most people _____.

All of the answer options are correct.

Which of the following statement is TRUE regarding self-esteem?

All statements are true.

Which of the following statements is true about personality and human development?

As we age, personality changes primarily because of the different social roles we take on during different phases of life. Biological influences on personality endure throughout our lifetimes.

According to the research the text cited (Schmitt et al., 2007; Terracciano et al., 2005; Heine et al., 2008), how does culture influence personality?

Culture influences which personality traits manifest publicly, but people across cultures report themselves to be equally narcissistic, open, and so on.

Which of the following statements is in accordance with the humanistic perspective on personality?

NOT People are basically bad and generally incapable of growth OR People are basically bad but capable of growth.

Willis and Jimbo are leaving work in an elevator with three other people. Later that evening, they are at home with their wives. Which situation is most likely to reveal any differences in their personalities?

Differences are more likely to be revealed at home.

Although certain genes seem to be involved in personality, it is unlikely that researchers will be able to identify the influence of any specific gene. Why?

Dispositions result from interactions among genes rather than from single genes.

The results of Demetrius's personality test showed that he scored high on introversion and low on unstable emotions. Demetrius's personality test was most likely based on _____.

Eysenck's biological trait theory

Fatimah was raised by parents who gave her unconditional positive regard. However, the love that Grayson received from her parents was conditional on her living up to their expectations. According to Carl Rogers, which one of the following statements is most probably correct?

Fatimah has higher self-esteem than Grayson.

Which of the following accurately summarizes current conclusions from research on twin studies in personality?

Genetics can explain about half the variability in specific attitudes that reflect personality traits.

Neil appears to think quite highly of himself. He believes the world would be a better place if he were in charge of it, and he does not like to be challenged. He takes insults very seriously and defends himself readily. According to what we know about the drawbacks of high self-esteem, we should be concerned about which of the following?

He may become violent if he thinks others are treating him disrespectfully.

How does humanistic theory differ from cognitive theory of personality?

Humanistic theorists believe that personality is based on internal traits, some of which are learned and some of which are biological. Cognitive theorists believe that an individual's thoughts and self-reflection shape personality.

Which of the following people are most likely to have similar personalities and why?

Identical twins. Personality is largely biological, and identical twins share the most genes. Parenting and environment also play a role, and these things are more similar for identical twins.

Which of the following statement is FALSE regarding idiographic and nomothetic approaches used to assess personality ?

Idiographic approach compares people by measuring how they rate themselves.

How does a person's temperament as an infant relate to their personality in adulthood?

Infant temperament correlates with both the general structure of adult personality and various behaviors observed in adulthood.

Why would a modern industrial/organizational psychologist avoid using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator to assess candidates during the hiring process?

It assumes that personality traits can be divided into clear and distinct categories.

Jenna is a very difficult child. In the privacy of her home, she routinely argues with and disobeys her mother. However, when she is in church on Sunday, she does not. In this example, which of the following is true?

Jenna's home is a weak situation, and her church is a strong situation.

Which of the following are results from twin and adoption personality studies?

NOT There is a strong relationship between children's personalities and their personalities of their birth parents OR The degree to which twins have similar personality traits varies from culture to culture.

According to the text, most contemporary personality psychologists focus on which approach to personality?

NOT psychodynamic OR humanistic

Which of the following describes the primary difference between nomothetic and idiographic approaches to personality assessment?

Nomothetic approaches assess people based on common standards. Idiographic approaches assess people on a purely individual basis.

The text summarizes research by David Funder (1995) and Simine Vazire (2010; Vazire & Carlson, 2011) on people's self-reports of personality traits as compared with others' observations. Based on their findings, which of the following is true and why?

On assessments asking about highly evaluative traits, self-reports are less accurate than friends' reports because people want to feel good about themselves.

Janelle was able to describe her friend's personality quickly and accurately. When describing her own personality, though, Janelle had more difficulty and was less accurate. According to the textbook, this difference is most likely due to which of the following?

People are less aware of their own behavior because they usually focus on others' behaviors instead.

What does Walter Mischel's idea of the cognitive affective processing system predict about personality and behavior?

People tend to behave consistently so long as they are in similar situations.

How are self-esteem and the better-than-average effect related?

People with high self-esteem are especially likely to display the better-than-average effect.

What is the relationship between self-esteem and social comparison?

People with low self-esteem tend to engage in upward social comparison.

What is the difference between personality traits and temperaments?

Personality traits are more specific than temperaments.

Imagine that you have a friend, Stephanie, who seems to be seriously underweight. You wonder if she has an eating disorder and tell her your concern. If Stephanie indeed has an eating disorder, what is the defense mechanism used by her if Stephanie spends a lot of time discussing her love of food with you?

Reaction formation

Which response was used by personality researchers to counter against Walter Mischel's situationism critique?

Some traits are more likley to be consistent than other traits across situations.

In what ways do strong situations affect personality differently?

Strong situations mask differences in personality.

What of the following statement about temperaments is correct?

Temperaments represent the innate biological structure of personality.

According to research on sex differences in personality, which of the following statements correctly reflects the probable results of a self-report survey?

Women rate themselves as more agreeable and more neurotic than men.

According to sociometer theory, self-esteem can be compared to

a gauge that measures your social inclusion or exclusion.

Which of the Big Five traits reflects the extent to which a person is trusting and helpful?

agreeableness

According to research on physiological arousal and personality, which brain structure has been associated with inhibiting behavior?

amygdala

The self-schema is best described as

an interconnected set of memories, beliefs, and generalizations about the self

Anna, who has very high self-esteem, is likely to attribute her failing grade on a test to __________. However, when she does well, she is more likely to attribute her success to __________.

an unfair professor; her hard work

Dispositional traits that are determined largely by biological processes are referred to as which of the following?

basic tendencies

In school, Mandy was outgoing, working in student government and the school theater productions. As an adult, she works in public relations and hosts lots of social gatherings. The fact that Mandy is outgoing is a ________, and how she expresses her outgoingness is a ________.

basic tendency; characteristic adaptation

Most contemporary trait theorists believe in interactionism, which means that

behavior is influenced by both situations and underlying dispositions.

In extroverts, according to Gary's approach/inhibition model, the ________ is more active. In neurotic people, the ________ is more active.

behavioral approach system (BAS); behavioral inhibition system (BIS)

Two infants who are not biologically related are adopted by the same family and raised in the same household. Research suggests that their personality characteristics will be most similar to those of

their biological parents.

In country X, there is often only one proper way to do something, from slicing an apple to removing one's shoes. Also, adults do not hesitate to correct or discipline other people's children when they violate this societal norm. Country X's culture is more __________ than that of the United States.

collectivist

A primary advantage of a trait approach to personality is that it provides a method for

comparing individuals with regard to various personality dispositions.

Which of the following is an example of a downward comparison?

comparing yourself to a friend who is worse off than you

Karim likes to try new things. Recently he has gone skydiving, tried tango dancing, joined a soccer league, and started learning a new language. Karim may have been born with a gene that caused him to have low levels of which of the following?

dopamine

Phil tells people that he is the greatest poker player in the world. When people ask him why he is so good, he always tells them about all the really bad players he has beaten. Phil is basing his self-evaluation on ________.

downward comparison

As a baby, Racine had intense reactions to stimuli, cried often, and was easily frightened. Racine's behavior best reflects which aspect of temperament?

emotionality

Zack has suffered damage to his reticular activating system. According to Eysenck's theory, what personality trait might be affected by the injury?

extraversion

When people process information about themselves, which brain region is most active?

frontal lobes

Adoption studies in personality have concluded that

genetics has a greater impact on personality than parenting style does.

Anika is an Olympic athlete. At a loud party where she can hardly hear the person standing next to her, when someone across the room mentions the Olympics, her ears perk up, and she looks to see who might have said it. Anika is able to hear the person across the room because being an Olympian is part of which of the following?

her self-schema

Which of the following is the best definition of temperament?

how biology influences a person's feelings and actions

Marcy wants to know if she can predict what personality her baby will have when he grows up. Her psychologist friend tells her that she cannot predict the baby's exact personality, but she can identify aspects of his temperament. Which of the following traits will they NOT be able to anticipate?

how creative her child will be

Gerald is a psychologist who assesses the personalities of prison inmates. He takes time to hear each client's story and perspective, working to understand each inmate's unique perceptions. Gerald's approach to personality assessment is

humanistic

One of the earliest pieces of evidence that personality has a genetic component was the fact that

identical twins are more similar in personality than fraternal twins

The fact that age-related changes in personality are similar across cultures

indicates that such changes are not entirely a function of the environment.

Across cultures, people tend to become __________ neurotic, __________ extraverted, and __________ conscientious as they age.

less; less; more

The better-than-average effect applies to

most of the population

Evidence from cross-cultural research shows that there is __________ support for the five-factor theory and that __________.

much; some cultural differences also emerge

Once Gilligan got back from the island, he thought it was a good idea to take an ocean cruise to Antarctica. This time, he wanted to be certain to go with people who were not annoying, so he created the Gilligan Compatibility Inventory. His friends answered questions about specific traits and patterns of behavior. Each answer was scored on a scale of 1 to 5. Gilligan's test was a(n) _______ of personality.

objective measure

According to Bandura's Reciprocal Determinism Theory, our personality is influenced by

our environment, person factors, and our behavior.

Which term concerns people's characteristic thoughts, emotional responses, and behaviors?

personality

Daryl is taking a personality test in which he is shown a series of simple scenes. He is supposed to tell a story about what is happening in each scene and suggest what the characters are feeling. Daryl is taking what type of test?

projective

Jamie is developing a new test to assess individuals' personalities. She asks people to draw a picture of their families. Then she interprets each drawing based on her opinion of what it reflects about the individual's personality. Jamie's test is a(n) _______ of personality.

projective measure

Amy and Carmine went to different psychologists to take a personality test. Amy's psychologist asked her to look at and interpret a series of ambiguous pictures. Carmine's psychologist administered a written test with a series of true-or-false questions regarding his beliefs and feelings. Amy's psychologist used a(n) __________ measure of personality, while Carmine's psychologist used a(n) __________ measure of personality.

projective; objective

The collection of mechanisms that people have to protect their emotional well-being has been referred to as the

psychological immune system

Hans is an extravert and is very sociable. Mickey is introverted and prefers solitude. According to Eysenck's theory, we would likely expect different levels of activity in which region of these men's brains?

reticular activating system

(Q001) For an experiment, Sarah must write a description of herself every hour. After the first hour, when Sarah is at school, she writes, "I am a student." An hour later, she is working in her job at a nursing home and writes, "I am young." Both "student" and "young" are part of Sarah's __________, but in these different situations she has different __________.

self-schema; working self-concepts

When Jon scored a 95 on his first psychology exam, he reported that he had spent a great deal of time studying. When he scored a 60 on his second psychology exam, he stated that the exam was poorly written. These responses are an example of

self-serving bias.

Little Lauren goes swimming at a community pool. There are other children her age playing cheerfully in the pool. But Lauren keeps her distance from them, preferring to play by herself. This situation reveals the aspect of Lauren's temperament that is called _______.

sociability

Don thinks that people have high self-esteem if they are accepted by society, and that people have low self-esteem if they are rejected by society. Don believes in which theory of self-esteem?

sociometer

Melanie and Yasmina are traveling to Europe for the first time. Melanie takes the lead in making arrangements; she is thoughtful and controlled. Yasmina thinks all their plans will fall through, and her emotions change from scared to excited. According to biological trait theory, Melanie probably is _______, while Yasmina probably is _______.

stable; unstable

Although your friend is much more outgoing and boisterous than you are, at your college graduation you were both somber and quiet. Graduation was probably an example of a(n) __________ situation.

strong

The biologically based tendency for us to act or feel in certain ways is known as which of the following?

temperament

Studies of the relationship between infant temperament and adult personality show

that infant temperament can predict aspects of adult personality.

Ana takes an online personality test. The results say that she scores high on the extraversion dimension of personality and low on the conscientiousness dimension of personality. Ana most likely took a personality test that was based on _______.

the five-factor theory

In biological trait theory, the important difference between extraverts and introverts is that

the resting level of the reticular activation system (RAS) in extraverts is lower than in introverts.

When Madison was hired for her dream job, she told her friends that her hard work had paid off. But two months later, after she was passed over for a promotion, she told her friends that her colleagues were preventing her from getting her work done. Madison is displaying which of the following?

the self-serving bias

Cici gave up her dream of becoming an artist because her parents expected her to become a lawyer. According to Rogers, Cici likely did not experience which of the following from her parents while growing up?

unconditional positive regard

Heidi's son, Aiden, just stuffed a toy down the toilet and flooded the bathroom. Aiden is crying because he does not want to get in trouble. Heidi tells him that she loves him no matter what he does, but that he cannot put toys down the toilet. According to the person-centered approach, Heidi is helping Aiden's personality develop freely by creating ________.

unconditional positive regard

Mrs. Kittridge is a teacher who always says that she is not as "cool" as other faculty. When Mrs. Kittridge says this, she is making a statement based on _______.

upward comparison

Recent psychological research suggests that parental influence on the personality of children is

weaker than had been previously assumed.

Self-esteem and objective life outcomes are ________ related.

weakly

According to the five-factor theory, which of the following describes the various poles of the trait called neuroticism?

worried versus calm