8. Personality Flashcards
what is trait theory?
the assumption that the organization of traits guide the individual’s behaviour
- big five traits
- hexaco 6
what does the radical contextual perspective say about personality stability?
- the situation determines our personality
- personality traits are highly prone to change over time and highly unstable
- stability coefficients are low
- not a lot of support for this idea
what does the biological essentialist perspective say about personality stability?
- personality is most likely the product of genetic rather than environmental influences
- personality traits are highly immutable and stable over time
- stability coefficients are high
what does the compromise perspective say about personality stability?
- personality is moderately stable and can change significantly throughout the lifespan
- lots of different perspectives within this view
- personality changes occur before the age of 30 and remains fairly stable afterward
- similar-sized changes occur before and after age 30
- stability increases until the 50s
what do twin studies tell us about the genetic basis of personality?
- about 50% of measured personality diversity can be attributed to genetic diversity
- correlations are higher for monozygotic twins compared to dizygotic twins
what is mean level change?
- reflects whether a group of people increases or decreases on trait dimensions over time (on average)
- also called normative change
- may be influenced by biological causes or shaped by social/historical processes
how do mean levels of the big five traits change over time?
- mean levels of emotional stability, agreeableness, and conscientiousness increase as we age
- inverted U-shape for openness
- different aspects of extraversion increase (social dominance) while others decrease (social vitality)
- largest change occurs during early adulthood, but continue through adulthood
what is the correspondence principle?
- people experience particular life events that reflect their personality traits
- once these events occur, they further affect people’s personalities
what is rank order consistency?
- quantifies the degree to which individual differences are maintained over time
- relative positions along the traits in comparison with their age peers
what is the rank order consistency for the big five traits over time?
- individual differences in personality are consistent in adulthood (most stability coefficients > .60)
- differential stability increases quickly from adolescence to 30-40, slows, then peaks from 60-70
- peak is followed by decline in the very old
- shorter intervals between measures show greater consistency than longer intervals
what is a type A behaviour pattern and how does it affect health?
- highly competitive, impatient, time-urgency, and achievement oriented
- is a risk factor for heart disease, especially when paired with hostility
what is type D personality and how does it affect health?
- high levels of anxiety, loneliness, and depression who try to suppress their feelings
- also a risk factor for heart disease, and leads to more distress when they develop it
- have extreme social inhibition and fear new situations
how do the big five traits affect health?
- agreeableness has seen to play a protective role for heart health
- conscientiousness is related to lower body fat, healthier metabolic, cardiovascular and inflammatory markers, and better performance on physical assessments
- people higher in conscientiousness engaged in more preventive behaviours and fewer high‐risk health behaviours
- conscientiousness plays a direct role in heart health through its relationship to stress
what big five traits relate to verbal fluency?
individuals with lower neuroticism and higher extraversion, openness, and conscientious have higher verbal fluency scores
how do people’s emotions and motivations change over time (based on the socioemotional selectivity theory)?
- socioemotional selectivity theory (SST) - the view that people seek to maximize the positive emotions they experience in their relationships
- relationships provide two types of rewards; informational rewards, and emotional rewards (positive feelings)
- as we age, we prioritize emotional rewards more than informational ones