Chapter 1 Personality Theory

Question 1

Hierarchy (10)

Answer 1

In addition to the issue of units of analysis, a second consideration in the study of personality structure is that of hierarchy. Theories of personality differ in the extent to which they view the structures of personality as being organized hierarchically, with some structural units being higher in order and therefore controlling the function of other units.

Question 2

Personality (6)

Answer 2

All personality psychologists use the term personality to refer to psychological qualities that contribute to an individual’s enduring and distinctive patterns of feeling, thinking, and behaving.

Question 3

Process (11)

Answer 3

Personality process refers to psychological reactions that change dynamically, that is, that change over relatively brief periods of time.

Question 4

Structure (8)

Answer 4

The concept of personality structure refers to stable, enduring aspects of personality.

Question 5

System

Answer 5

One prominent alternative is to think of personality as a system. A system is a collection of highly interconnected parts whose overall behavior reflects not only the individual parts but also their organization; colloquially, one might say that in a system “The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.” Theorists who view personality as a system recognize that people have distinctive characteristics that are well described by personality trait and type constructs.

Question 6

Temperament (13)

Answer 6

Biologically based emotional and behavioral tendencies that are evident in early childhood.

Question 7

Trait (9)

Answer 7

The word trait generally refers to a consistent style of emotion or behavior that a person displays across a variety of situations.

Question 8

Type

Answer 8

The concept of type refers to the clustering of many different traits.

Question 9

Units of analysis (8)

Answer 9

A more technical way of saying this is that different theorists provide different basic variables, or different units of analysis, in their scientific models of personality structure.

Question 10

What 5 goals do personality theories pursue?

Answer 10

They engage in (1) scientific observations that underlie theories that are (2) internally coherent and systematic, (3) testable, and (4) comprehensive and that foster (5) useful applications.

Question 11

Personality theories address what, how, and why questions about personality by developing theories that address which four distinct topics?

Answer 11

(1) personality structure
(2) personality processes
(3) personality development
(4) personality change (including via psychotherapy).

Question 12

Personality theorists have confronted a range of issues throughout the history of the field. In developing theories that encompass these issues, the theorist hopes to develop a framework that serves what three scientific functions?

Answer 12

(1) organizing existing knowledge about personality
(2) fostering new knowledge on important issues
(3) identifying new issues for study.

Question 13

How should the existence of multiple theories in the field by thought of?

Answer 13

The existence of multiple theories in the field can be understood by thinking of theories as toolkits, each of which provides unique conceptual tools for doing the jobs of the personality psychologist.