11: Individual Differences

Question 1

What is a personality trait?

Answer 1

Stable cognitive, emotional and behavioral characteristics of people that help establish their individual identities and distinguish them from others

• Every character trait is a continuum
• can’t be directly measured but behavior can be observed to see trait

Question 2

What is a personality state?

Answer 2

Difference in behavior in different situations (e.g. the different ways we are in bar vs. work etc.)

Question 3

Explain the two factors that that Eysenecks two factor model of personality describes

Answer 3

1. Neuroticism (stability, shift of emotions) –> tendency to experience negative emotions
2. Extraversion- the degree to which a person is outgoing and seeks stimulation (not always social, but any outside stimulation)

Question 4

Explain the big five factors of personality

Answer 4

Thought to be personality “supertraids” give main dimensions of a character (everyone is a spectrum)

OCEAN

1. Openess
2. Conscientiousness
3. Extraversion
4. Agreeableness
5. Neuroticism

Question 5

Describe the Characteristics of the character trait openess (according to the big five)

Answer 5

If high score:

• engage with philosophy
• creative but in a cognitive way
• a bit more concrete and more conservative

Question 6

Describe the Characteristics of the character trait Conscientiousness (according to the big five)

Answer 6

= Gewissenhaft/Pflichtbewussseitn

• well organized
• on time
• hard working

Question 7

Describe the Characteristics of the character trait Extroversion (according to the big five)

Answer 7

Often stimulation seeking from environment, people, thrill seeking activity (does not have to be social stimmulation)

• joiner
• talkative
• active
• affectionate

Question 8

Describe the Characteristics of the character trait Agreeableness (according to the big five)

Answer 8

More about Empathy, ability to listen

• soft-hearted
• generous
• trusting

Question 9

Describe the Characteristics of the character trait Necroticism (according to the big five)

Answer 9

Tendency to experience emotional shifts

• worried
• tempramental
• self-conscious
• Emotional

Question 10

What does Eyseneck proposed are the bases of the different personality traits (big five)?

Answer 10

He explained it with biological differences

1. differnet levels of cortical arousal (RAAS)
   
   1. Introverts are overaroused
   2. extraverts are underaroused
2. Suddenness of shifts in arousal
   
   1. Unstable (neurotic) people show large and sudden shifts in limbic system arousal;
   2. stable people do not

Question 11

What is the genetical influence on character taraits?

Answer 11

Difficult to determine but research suggest that approx 25-50% is genetically determined

Question 12

Explain the influence of conscientiousness on health

Answer 12

Overall with higher health outcomes (+ longevity), probably due to

• higher adherence
• increased health beneficial health behavior
• In people with less ability, who are less organised:
  
  • Can be increased with e.g. text reminders, goal setting

Question 13

What is the influence Neuroticism on health?

Answer 13

Overall: poorer health outcome

• higher mental health condictions
• higher report of somatic symptoms (e.g. pain)
• Higher mortality rated in chronicle illnesses (e.g. CVS)
• higher rates of health care usage but less likely to adhere to treatment

Question 14

What is intelligence?

Answer 14

The ability to acquire knowledge, to think and reason effectively, deal adaptively with the environment

But: hard to measure so now definition is more: (“intelligence is intelligence tests measure)

Question 15

Describe Spearman’s two factor theory of intelligence

Answer 15

Believed intellectual activity involved general factor (g) and specific factor (s)

Question 16

Explain the concept of general factor intelligence

Answer 16

Basically what is measured in IQ test and mapped onto Wechsler intelligence scale

Question 17

Explain the Idea of Gardners Multiple Intelligences

Answer 17

There is not just one general inteligence but many forms of different intelligences (not need to know them)

• Linguistic Intelligence: e.g. Shakespeare
• Logical-Mathematic Intelligence: e.g. Einstein
• Spatial Intelligence: e.g. Zaha Hadid
• Musical Intelligence: e.g. Prince
  
  • Furthermore, Gardner believes cardiologists may have this kind of intelligence in abundance as they make diagnoses on the careful listening to patterns of sounds.
• Bodily-Kinaesthetic Intelligence: e.g. Serena Williams
• Intrapersonal Intelligence: e.g. Dalai Lama
• Interpersonal functioning: e.g. Susie Orbach
• Naturalistic Intelligence, the ability to understand and work effectively in the natural world e.g. Bear Grylls
• Existential Intelligence the ability to ponder questions about existence e.g. Sartre.

Question 18

Explain why IQ not always a useful concept to describe an individual’s abilities

Answer 18

1. Because there might not just be a single type of intelligence that can be measured in a IQ test
2. Averaging does not necessarily make sense (needs individual scores) for individual inteligences

Question 19

What is Crystallized Intelligence?

How does it change with age?

Answer 19

GC

1. the ability to apply previously acquired knowledge to current problems.
2. Improves with age then stabelises

Question 20

What is Fluid Intelligence?

How does it change with age?

Answer 20

GF

• the ability to deal with novel problem-solving situations for which personal experience does not provide a solution.
• Shows steady pattern of decline in aging.

Question 21

What are different factors that influence cognitive ability at age?

Answer 21

Many influences summarised in picture:

but overall: a lot of general intelligence at young age + environmental factors (but overall declining at age)

Question 22

What is the influence of genes and environment in intelligence?

Answer 22

1. Genetic factors can influence the effects produced by the environment
   
   • Accounts for 1/2 of the variation in IQ?
     
     • No single “intelligence gene” identified
2. Environment can influence how genes express themselves
   
   • Accounts for 1/2 of the variation in IQ?
   • Both shared and unshared environmental factors are involved
   • Educational experiences are very important

Question 23

Describe the findings of twin studies on the roles of heredity and environment in intelligence research

Answer 23

• Some genetic influence on intelligence
• but hard to determine
  
  • even adopted twins often have similar upbringing

Question 24

Explain the influence of sex on intelligence

Answer 24

Though there are areas where men and women score better, unsure what the reason ist a lot of gender+ social influence

Question 25

What is autism?

Answer 25

3 Aspects are involve. People have difficulties in

1. Social and Emotional areas (empathy, friendship)
2. Language and Communication (jokes, sarcasm, body language)
3. Flexibility of thought and imagination

Question 26

Explain Baron Cohen theory of atism

Answer 26

Extreme Male brain hypothesis –> Male is more extreme in high systemising ans low empathising

Two factors influence autism

1. Empathising
   
   • being able to infer the thoughts and feelings of others (‘Theory of Mind’) and having an appropriate emotional reaction
2. Systemising
   
   • ​​is the drive to analyse or construct any kind of system i.e. identifying the rules that a govern a system, in order to predict how that system will behave

Question 27

Define Simon Baron-Cohen’s Systemising and Empathising Quotients and how they relate to autism

Answer 27

Atism= low empathizing quotient and high systmising quotient

–> Systemising and empathising quotient measured (with giving scores to qustions)

Question 28

What is more effective: problem focussed or emotion focused coping with disease?

Answer 28

Optimal coping depends on the individual and the situation- flexibility is the most beneficial.

• but most studies: emotional less effective (but might be due to close proximity to avoidance coping)