Chapter 7, personality chapter 8, personality chapter 9 & 10

biological approach in history

- 30-40years ago new borns were viewed as "blank slates" - behaviorism left out the nervous system and people wanted to look at the brain and other sources - biological influence increased and mirrors the decline of behaviorism

A woman indicates on a test that she agrees with the statement, "I am confident in my abilities." Later on the same test, she agrees with the statement, "I have doubts about my abilities." This woman's responses may indicate the presence of which potential problem?

Acquiescence response

Idiographic

An approach to studying personality that focuses more on individuals. looks at multiple dimensions rather than a single dimension on a group

Henry Murray

Blend of trait & psychoanalytic approach Personology: psychogenic needs, needs largely unconscious, focus on which need dominates 1893-1988; Field: intelligence, testing; Contributions: devised the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) with Christina Morgan, stated that the need to achieve varied in strength in different people and influenced their tendency to approach and evaluate their own performances "need for achievement"

state emotion

Caused by temporary conditions

Which of the following is not a basic temperament according to the three-dimensional model of Buss and Plomin?

Connectivity

Among the Big Five personality dimensions, individual differences in _________ typically are the best predictors of job performance.

Conscientiousness

Karen always approaches tasks in an organized, faithful manner. She persists at a difficult job longer than most people and generally accomplishes more. Karen is probably high in which of the Big Five traits?

Conscientiousness

three biological approaches to personality

Hans Eysenck Temperaments Evolutionary personality psychology

psychogenic needs

Henry Murray blended trait and psychoanalytic approach to describe unconscious needs ex: need for achievement

Anna and Hannah are monozygotic twins who have agreed to take part in a research study on the heritability of personality traits. Which of the following is an issue that might act as a confound in this research?

MZ twins may share more of their environment than DZ twins.

biological approach is:

NOT fixed, but research focuses on what we inherit and how much and we're looking at the interplay of our personality and our genetics. It is also difficult to state precise strength

Murray

Need to achieve; develops the TAT and some self report as a way to measure psychogenic needs Thinks that these needs are unconscious

A man tends to have strong reactions to emotional events. He becomes overly excited and panics when facing even mild stress, and takes a long time to recover from these experiences. Eysenck might say this man is high on which personality dimension?

Neuroticism

Which of the following statements is true about the trait approach?

No major schools of psychotherapy have evolved from the trait approach.

Extraversion-Introversion

The extent to which people are social or unsocial, talkative or quiet, affectionate or reserved these differ in behavior and physiology - extroverts resting cortisol arousal is too low (Eysenk's hypothesis, but not really true) - introverts resting cortisol arousal too high (Eysenk's hypothesis, but not really true)

Raymond Cattell

asked the question "How many personality traits?" should not begin with preconceived ideas, but rather let the data do the talking. used factor analysis Source traits 16PF is a personality Invenory

evolutionary personality psychology

attempts to explain how patterns of behavior that characterize all humans originated in the survival value of these characteristics; natural selection and reproduction of the fittest*only matters that you're fit if you reproduce; post-hoc explanations can explain anything after the fact Darwin's theory falls flat where we have not found new species, but we have found more isolated variances of species... but he explains why we have so many types of dogs, cats, birds, etc

the big 5: openness

being curious, original, intellectual, creative, and open to new ideas if they are high in this, they are more bored by familiarity, but if they score low they prefer familiarity

Mastery Goals vs. Performance Goals

both are reasons that make people high achievers mastery: we want to learn for the sake of learning everything performance: a particular goal is in mind and learning is just a means to an end

biological approach strengths

bridge for personality and biology; identifying parameters for behavior changes; interest in research/testing ideas

temperament

broad dispositions to types of behavior; children seem different in infancy; may appear as early as during the pregnancy (activity in the belly) and this seems to be evidence for biological influence because infants have had very limited environmental interaction; lasts throughout life; three dimensions: emotionality, activity, and sociability, but aren't the sole determinant of adult personality. (inhibited 75%? vs uninhibited 25%)

evaluation apprehension

concern for how others are evaluating us - illusion of transparency (people can see how nervous we are) - spot light effect (we think everyones watching us)

Big 5 Criticisms/Limitations

debate about what "factor" means disagreement about structure (are there more or less traits?) atheoretical (we don't have hypothesis, we just use data analysis in factor analysis and more likely to see a type 1 problem)

Neuroticism

degree of emotional instability or stability

Nomothetic

describe on a single dimension... kind of what do we know/what's relevant to a group?

performance approach

doing just enough work to ensure that one's performance will be superior to that of others

big 5 application

employers use personality tests in hiring and the big 5 shows strong evidence for relationship between personality and job performance conscientiousness may best present predictor: careful, thorough, and dependable, and organized...

Biological approach to personality

examines the extent to which heredity determines our personality

According to the evolutionary psychology perspective, the process of social exclusion leads to anxiety because

experiencing anxiety serves an important survival function.

extraversion-introversion arousal level

extraverts: prefer nosier open rooms. more happy individuals (may not be due to extraversion, but might be due to good social network or that they may be more sensitive to reward) introverts: quieter isolated rooms

A psychologist examines six personality tests. She suspects that four of the tests are really measuring the same personality trait and that the other two measure another personality trait. What kind of research should the psychologist conduct to test her hypothesis?

factor analysis

Personality researchers sometimes examine the personalities of children who were adopted shortly after birth. They do this because

genetic and environmental influences are not confounded like they are when examining children raised by their biological parents.

central traits

groups of traits that best describe a person

the big 5: agreeableness

high score: Good-natured, cooperative, trusting, warm, and relates to performance in service jobs. less likely to be deviant at work

the big 5: neuroticism

high score: would tend to be more anxious, irritable, temperamental, and moody - experiences a range of emotions and experiences the ends of a spectrum of emotions low score: not unfeeling, but much more stable

frontsl lobes

higher activiation of the left frontal lobe are happier (extraverts) lower activation nof the inhbited part of the brain are more sad (introverts)

performance avoidance

i want to do well so I can avoid a negative outcome

monozygotic twins

identical twins formed when one zygote splits into two separate masses of cells, each of which develops into a separate embryo "100%" genetic similarity

the big 5: extraversion

if they score high, they are energized by socializing. They tend to be assertive, talkative, sociable, expressive and relates to performance in sales and managerial jobs. Relates to team performance and leadership & relates to happiness. if they score low, they tend to be more of an introvert who are energized by alone time

A personality psychologist designs an experiment in which she plans to use the twin-study method. The psychologist is probably conducting research to examine the

influence of genetics on personality.

A five-year-old boy is controlled and gentle. He is reluctant to play with new children and hesitates when entering new situations. Temperament researchers would probably identify this child as

inhibited

Those acquaintances of yours who prefer quiet and perhaps isolated rooms in which to study are, according to research, more likely to be

introverts

a trait...

is a dimension used to categorize according to the degree to which a characteristic is manifested

Eysenk's arguments for biological approach

it's consistent over time and in different different situations; there's a lot of cross cultural research as well; studies that point to genetic influences (tied to the evolutionary theory... our behavioral traits may have also come from survival); estimates that 2/3 of personality are due to biology and 1/3 due to environment, but currently we do not have the knowledge to state this precisely

functional autonomy

maintenance of behavior for reasons other than the original cause

achievement goals

mastery goals vs. performance goals approach goals vs avoidance goals

Psychoticism

measure of nonconformity or social deviance; high levels: egocentric, aggressive, cold, impulsive, unconcerned about others

trait approach defense of criticisms

measuring behavior would do better if the right behaviors were measured & & it was a group study aggregate data identifying relevant traits and says we may be looking at wrong traits importance of 10% of variance

Where did Type A & B Personality types originate?

medicine, who is more at risk for heart attacks

characteristics of high achievement

moderate risk takers optimistic tackle work with energy prefer jobs with responsibility like immediate feedback anticipate future/ makes plans succeeded due to myself, failed due to other's

trait approach criticisms

more about what is left out (the questions how do traits develop or what can be done to help are not answered) there's a lack of agreement on framework such as what are the big traits? how many traits are there?

features of trait approach

not interested in one person, but rather how a group behaves less emphasis on underlying mechanisms, only says people tend to do x, y, z, but not why they do x, y, z easily make comparisons across people

trait approach strengths

objective measures allows data to guide conclusions practical applications large amount of research to support theories

PANAS Scale

one of the most widely used scales to measure mood or emotion

The Big 5

openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism "OCEAN" McKray & Casta? the five main personality traits

evolutionary psychology mate selection

p242-249 Guys: looks for appearances that would show that the female is able to reproduce (young, wide hips, etc). may be nervous that the baby is not theirs. & men have a low cost when having birth. men may try to reproduce a lot so they can have some offspring (certainty) Women: look for a partner who can support them and has resources/can protect them (age might be part of this: good middle ground and physiology - how fit and strong they are)

Hans Eysenck

personality is determined more by biology than actions of parents; Looked at the underlying structure of personality and was trying to see how personality develops (which is different than the trait approach); Used the new tool of factor analysis; Three basic personality dimensions: - extraversion-introversion - neuroticism - psychoticism

Type A personality

personality type that describes people who are competitive, driven, hostile, and ambitious. more at risk more heart disease (high blood pressure-anger and hostility increase blood pressure-, stress- cortisol is dumped-, HDLs/Lipids/etc, not including biology)

evolutionary psychology application

school performance and temperament - temperament not related to intelligence - some fit better in "classroom" (at 5 & 6 year olds :little girls have better attention than little boys in the U.S.) - students/teach interactions (some teaching styles fit better for some students or likability makes students more engaged)

According to evolutionary personality theory, men and women base their choice of romantic partners in part on concerns for "parental investment." This means we

select mates who are likely to contribute to successful reproduction and child-raising.

Recent research challenges one aspect of Eysenck's original theory, suggesting that extraverts and introverts differ in terms of their

sensitivity to stimulation.

social anxiety vs introversion

social anxiety (evaluation apprehension) is more about being shy/nervous around people and introversion is where people gain energy by being alone and prefer this time to themselves. Introversion does not mean they're shy, and many shy people don't not want to be around people, in fact they may be trying to make more friends

Cross-cultural studies find similar patterns of what men and women look for in their spouses across many different cultures. These findings support evolutionary personality theory because they suggest that mate preferences do not merely reflect differences in

social learning patterns.

Researchers have examined cerebral asymmetry in depressed people. The results of this research suggests that

some people may be born with a greater likelihood to become depressed than others.

Research on genetic determinants of personality tell us that

somewhere around half of adult personality is determined by genetics, but experience also plays a large role in who we become.

Hierarchy of personality (Eysenck)

specific response (lowest level) habitual response (general routines) traits supertrait

Blank Slate Theory

states that every newborn baby is born as if their mind were a blank slate onto which they write thoughts and experiences

Attributions of achievement motivations

table 8.1 p 170 stable, locus, and control

Deffensive Pessimism

tendency to expect bad outcomes and prepare for dealing with those bad outcomes only positive form of pessimism

Negative Affectivity

tendency to experience negative emotions and moods, feel distressed, and be critical of oneself and others

dispositional optimism

the expectation that in the future good events will be plentiful and bad events will be rare good for achievement and health

the foyer effect

the tendency to believe ambiguous information which can happen with some inventories

problems with genetics research

there are assumptions about identifying twins as MZ or DZ and unless they're tested we don't know for sure we assume twins share environments, but that's not true we also assume that twins are random and that's not true either

continuum of traits

there's a spectrum and a normal distribution for the the population

biological approach weaknesses

to to test evolutionary directly(weak research support); lack of agreed model; few suggestions fo personality suggestions

stability of traits

traits are stable across time and situation, but they change, just very slowly so they're still stable

trait approach criticism

traits do not predict behavior well little evidence for situation consistency (but some argue there is stability)

heritability of personality

twin studies show 40-50% of similar personality? and adoption studies compare parents to children and adoption studies with twins who are separated at birth and compare how similar or different they are is a nature vs nurture question separating genes and environment is unethical with people and not possible to manipulate with humans or may not be as accurate with animals

dizygotic twins

twins who are produced when two separate ova are fertilized by two separate sperm at roughly the same time

the big 5: conscientiousness

when people are high in conscientiousness, they tend to be organized, responsible, dependable, persistent. Relates to performance at work. Relates to leadership and longevity. Academic success & less likely to be deviant at work.

Compared to most of us, individuals who score high on the trait of openness are more likely to

willingly consider new ideas.

mastery approach

working to attain something of self-determined intrinsic value best long term learning

Which approach to personality has relatively little to say about how people develop specific personality characteristics?

Trait

Isaac is a teenager who has a very difficult relationship with his father. One day he is talking to his girlfriend, Chloie, and he says, "I swear I am never going to be anything like that man when I get older!" Chloie knows about the research in personality and heritability, and smiles as she remembers that about ________% of our adult personality is directly linked to the contribution of genetics.

40

Different teams of researchers examining human personality traits have independently found evidence that there may, in fact, only be _______ such traits.

5

assessment of evolutionary psychology

?

mastery avoidance

A fear of not performing up to one's own standards

cardinal traits

A single trait that completely dominates a person's entire personality. Most often found in fictional characters than in actual people.

Which of the following is false about childhood differences in temperament patterns?

Differences are related to intelligence.

Research has found that extraverts are not always happier than introverts. Why not?

Extraverts are more likely to be impulsive.

Gordon Allport

First recognized work on traits/ "founder". The work "Personality Traits: Their Classification and Measurement" functional autonomy also offered the first college class on personality trait theory of personality; 3 levels of traits: cardinal, central, and secondary held this assumption that traits can't make predictions of a person (because they're built off of groups) two stages of research: nomothetic & idiographic

Type B personality

Personality characterized by relatively relaxed, patient, easygoing, amicable behavior.

Recent research on the "Big Five" personality factors uses an approach to understanding personality similar to that advocated by

Raymond Cattell

Achievement Motivation

a desire for significant accomplishment: for mastery of things, people, or ideas; for attaining a high standard A psychogenic need developed by Henry Murray

Positive Affectivity

a dispositional tendency to experience pleasant, engaging moods such as enthusiasm, excitement, and elation

factor analysis

a statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person's total score. *Raymond Cattell

five aspects of trait approach

achievement motivation type A behavior social anxiety emotions optimism & pessimism

You know a woman who has many friends and is often out having fun. But this woman also typically acts before thinking, thus bringing her a lot of trouble. This woman is probably

an extrovert

Approach goals vs. Avoidance goals

approach: doing things? avoid: avoid some other potential outcome