Ch 4: Trait perspective Flashcards
2 Points made by this Perspective:
1) Continuity: ppl are consistent in their actions, thoughts and feelings across different times and situations
2) Individual differences: personality consists of a pattern of trait qualities
- the make up of these qualities is different from one person to another
- emphasis on personality structure
Types
categorical, distinct & discontinuous
-differences among ppl are seen as qualitative
Traits
continuous dimensions of personality on which people vary
-linear
Hippocrates & Galen’s Ideas of 4 categories of people
1) choleric(irritable, yellow bile,
2) melancholic (depressed, black bile)
3) sanguine (optimistic, blood),
4) phlegmatic (calm, phlegm),
- each type was a reflection of excess bodily fluids
Introvert
tends to prefer solitary activities
-when facing stress, they tend to withdraw themselvs
Extravert
tends to prefer time spent with others
-when facing stress, they tend to look for people
Trait theories/ dimensional approach
people occupy different points on continuously varying dimensions
- individual differences reflect differences in amount of a trait
- represents quantitative differences in people
Nomothetic views of traits
- the belief that traits exist in the same way in every person
- allows comparison among people
- traits are universal
- individuality reflected in unique combinations of traits
Idiographic view of traits
- emphasizes each person’s uniqueness
- focuses on how one person’s experience varies across situations
- traits are individualized/cannot be compared
- a given trait may only exist for one person in the world
Nomothetic definition
uniqueness arises from unique combinations of levels on many trait dimensions
-the dimensions themselves are the same for everyone
Factor Analysis
-a statistical procedure used to find basic dimensions underlying a set of measures
Factor
a dimension that underlies a set of interrelated measures, such as items on a self-report inventory
Factor loading
a correlation between a single measure and the factor to which it is being related
Interactionism
the idea that situations and personality interact to determine behaviour
- Weak situations: permit easy expression of personality (college campus)
- Strong situations: force behaviour into channels (army boot camp)
- prevents expression of personality
Interpersonal circle
personality patterns deriving from varying levels of dominance and love
Lexical criterion
an index of importance of a trait based on the number of words that refer to it
Second-order factor
a factor that emerges from a factor analysis performed on a set of previously found factors
Situationism
the idea that situations are the primary determinants of behaviour
Behavioral signature
the pattern of situation-behavior links the person has established over experiences in some specific domain
-the impact of trait is context-dependent
Diathesis-stress model
theory holding that a vulnerability plus stress creates problems in behavior
Dynamic approach to interactionism
- people choose the situations they enter
- not a random process
- they are influencing the behaviours they engage in
- ppl evoke diff responses from others which makes every situation unique
- raises idea of reciprocal determinism (context & personality influence eachother)
Interactionism: Analysis of Variance Approach
-some people being affected one way and other people in the opposite way
Linkage Viewpoint (Mischel & Shoda, 1995)
-traits not freestanding tendencies but patterns of linkages b/w situation and action
ex: given situation X, action Y will be likely
key point: a given action shouldn’t be expected to occur all the time bc the situation that elicits it, isn’t always going to be present
