Personality Chapter 15
A Taxonomy of 11 Tactics of Manipulation (Buss et al., 1987)
11 tactics include: Charm, Coercion, Silent treatment, Reason, Regression,self-abasement, responsibility invocation, hardball, pleasure induction, social comparison, monetary reward.
Evocation of Anger and Upset in Partners
2 ways that personality plays a role in evoking conflict -Person can perform actions that cause emotional response in a partner (e.g., dominant person behaving condescendingly) -Person can elicit actions from another that upset the original elicitor (e.g., aggressive person eliciting the "silent treatment")
Personality and the Selective Breakup of Couples
According to violation of desire theory (Buss, 1994), break-ups should be more common when one's desires are violated than when they are fulfilled. Research suggests that emotional instability, low conscientiousness, & low agreeableness increase the risk of break-up/divorce
Aggression and the Evocation of Hostility
Aggressive people evoke hostility from others Hostile attributional bias: Tendency to infer hostile intent on the part of others in the face of uncertain behavior from others
Personality Characteristics Desired in a Marriage Partner (Buss et al., 1990) cont
Almost as important are personality characteristics of -dependable character -emotional stability -pleasing disposition Top choices (after love) were personality characteristics!
Narcissism & Social Interaction
Application of Narcissism to 3 domains: Selection: Associate with people who admire them, who will reflect positive view they hold of themselves Evocation: Exhibitionism & need to be the center of attention splits people. Some view them as brilliant and entertaining, others as selfish and boorish Manipulation: Highly exploitative of others, "use" others
Do People Get the Mates They Want?
Are 'all the good ones taken'? Botwin et al. (1997): modest correlations between preferences for ideal personality characteristics in a mate & the actual personality characteristics of an obtained mate. For: Women who were dating Women who were married Men who were married
Assortative Mating for Personality
Complementary needs theory -People are attracted to mates who have different personality characteristics ("opposites attract") -Ex: dominate people prefer submissive mates Attraction similarity theory -People are attracted to those who have similar personality characteristics ("birds of a feather flock together") -Ex: extraverts prefer extraverts
Do People Get the Mates They Want?
Consistently positive correlations: People seem to get mates they want in terms of personality Partner's personality had a large effect on marital satisfaction
A Taxonomy of 11 Tactics of Manipulation (Buss et al., 1987)
Developed through a two-step procedure Nominations of acts of influence Factor analysis of self-reports and observer-reports of nominated acts 11 tactics identified
Aggression and the Evocation of Hostility
Evocation seen: 1.because aggressive people expect others to be hostile 2.aggressive people treat others aggressively 3.people treated aggressively tend to aggress back Thus, hostility from others is evoked by an aggressive person (who fails to realize hostility is a product of their own behavior
Evocation Through Expectancy Confirmation
Expectancy confirmation People's beliefs about personality characteristics of others cause them to evoke in others actions that are consistent with initial beliefs Also called self-fulfilling prophesy, behavioral confirmation
Shyness and the Selection of Risky Situations
Health implications -Shy women are less likely to go to a gynecologist -Shy women also are less likely to bring up contraception with potential sexual partner
The Machiavellian Personality: A Closer Look
High Machs tend to evoke specific reactions from others, such as anger and retaliation for having been exploited High Machs influence or manipulate others in predictable ways, using tactics that are exploitative, self-serving, and deceptive
Personality Predictors of Tactics of Manipulation
High intellect-openness: Reason, pleasure induction, responsibility invocation Low intellect-openness: Social comparison High conscientiousness: Reason Emotionally unstable people use a variety of tactics to manipulate others, but the most common is regression
Personality Predictors of Tactics of Manipulation
High surgency (dominance, extraversion): Coercion, responsibility invocation Low surgency: Self-abasement, hardball High agreeable: Pleasure induction, reason Low agreeable: Coercion, silent treatment
Personality and the Selective Breakup of Couples
Higher selective break-up for those who fail to select partners who are emotionally stable, conscientious, & agreeable similar to themselves in overall personality profile So, personality influences the initial selection of mates and subsequent satisfaction, including the selective break-up of couples
The Machiavellian Personality: A Closer Look
Machiavellianism: Manipulative strategy of social interaction, personality style that uses other people as tools for personal gain People who score high on Machiavellianism ("high Machs") select situations that are loosely structure, with few rules that restrict the deployment of exploitative strategy
Manipulation
Manipulation can be examined from two perspectives within personality psychology Are some individuals consistently more manipulative than others? Given that all people attempt to influence others, do stable personality characteristics predict tactics that are used?
Narcissism & Social Interaction
Narcissism: personality dimension characterized by high levels of self-absorption, conceitedness, placing one's own wants & needs first, sense of entitlement, & low empathy. Those high on narcissism are -exhibitionistic (e.g., flaunt money) - self-centered (e.g., take the best for themselves) -interpersonally exploitative (e.g., using others)
Personality Characteristics Desired in a Marriage Partner (Buss et al., 1990)
Over 10,000 participants, from 37 samples in 33 countries, six continents, five islands. Biggest study on preferences for a long-term mate. Mutual attraction/love is the most favored characteristic
Sex Differences in Tactics of Manipulation
Overall, men and women are similar in performance of tactics of manipulation Small difference in that women are more likely to report using the regression tactic (crying, whining),
Assortative Mating for Personality Cont
Overwhelming support for attraction similarity theory Assortative mating: People are married to people who are similar to themselves (Physical characteristics, ethnic/racial status, personality) Are these positive correlations caused by active selection of mates who are similar, or by-products of other causal processes (e.g., sheer proximity)?...
Do People Get the Mates They Want?
People are especially happy if they are married to partners high on agreeableness, emotional stability, and openness But difference in scores between partner's personality and one's ideal for that personality did not predict happiness
Other Personality Traits and the Selection of Situations
Personality affects situations to which people are exposed through selective entry into, or avoidance of, certain activities Ex: High sensation seeking and more alcohol & drug use, more unwanted sex when drunk, and sexual intercourse w/more partners
Selection
Personality characteristics of others influence whether we select them as dates, friends, or marriage partners. Own personality characteristics play a role in the kinds of situations we select to enter and stay in ("situation selection")
Overview
Personality does not reside passively in an individual. It profoundly affects each person's social environment
Manipulation
Personality is linked to ways in which we try to influence or manipulate others Manipulation or social influence includes ways in which people intentionally alter, change, or exploit others
3 Mechanisms of Social Interaction
Selection People, situations we seek out and avoid Evocation Responses we evoke from others, and how others evoke responses from us Manipulation How we influence, change, exploit, & manipulate other
Shyness and the Selection of Risky Situations
Shyness affects whether a person is willing to select risky situations in the form of gambles Shy women go with the less risky bet. Shyness, in short, has a substantial impact on selective entry into, or avoidance of, situations
Shyness and the Selection of Risky Situations
Shyness: Tendency to feel tense, worried, and anxious during social interactions or even when anticipating social interactions During adolescence, early adulthood, shy people tend to avoid social situations, resulting in a form of isolation
Evocation Through Expectancy Confirmation
Snyder and Swann (1978) study: People led to believe they would be introduced to hostile & aggressive individuals Beliefs led people to behave in an aggressive manner toward an unsuspecting target Then the target behaved in a more aggressive manner, confirming initial beliefs
Evocation of Anger and Upset in Partners
Study by Buss (1991): Role of personality on evocation of anger and upset in married couples Assessed personality characteristics of husbands and wives (self-, spouse-, other-report) Similar results for men & women Strongest predictors of upset are low agreeableness and emotional instability
Assortative Mating for Personality Cont
To answer questions, Botwin et al. (1997) studied dating and married couples -Correlated preferences for personality characteristics desired in a potential mate, and people's own personality characteristics (peer/interviewer ratings) -Correlations were consistently positive (e.g., extraverts desire extraverts) -Thus, positive correlations between spouses are due, in part, to preferences based on personality characteristics of those doing the selecting
Evocation
"Ways in which features of personality elicit reactions from others" Personality characteristics of others evoke responses in us Own personality characteristics evoke responses in others Ex: somebody bumps you in the hallway, or calls you & hangs up