Chapter 13 notes

Question 1

factor analysis,

Answer 1

a procedure that assumes that human traits can be measured by correlational studies

Question 2

Eysenck used a hypothetico-deductive approach to extract three bipolar
factors—

Answer 2

extraversion/introversion

neuroticism/stability

psychoticism/superego

Question 3

McCrae and Costa, like Eysenck, placed heavy emphasis on

Answer 3

biological components of personality.

Question 4

High scores on the neuroticism scale may indicate

Answer 4

anxiety, hysteria, obsessive-compulsive disorders, or criminality;

Question 5

High scores on psychoticism indicate

Answer 5

hostility, self-centeredness, suspicion, nonconformity, and antisocial behavior;

Question 6

How many traits do most agree on

Answer 6

5

Question 7

difference in Cattell and Eysenck

Answer 7

Cattell (16 traits) used an inductive method of gathering data; that is, he began with no preconceived bias concerning the number or name of traits or types

• Eysenck (3 traits) used a deductive method to identify three personality factors. That is, he had some preconceived hypothesis in mind before he began gathering data.

Question 8

define traits

Answer 8

relatively permanent dispositions of people

factors that represent a cluster of closely related variables

we may find high positive intercorrelations
among test scores in algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and calculus. We have now identified a cluster of scores that we might call Factor M

Question 9

determine the extent to which each individual score contributes to the various factors, called

Answer 9

factor loadings

Question 10

Unipolar traits are

Answer 10

scaled from zero to some large amount

Question 11

bipolar traits

Answer 11

extend from one pole to an opposite pole, with zero representing a midpoint.

Introversion versus extraversion

Question 12

axes on which the scores are plotted are usually turned or rotated into a specific mathematical relationship with each other (Eysenck)

Answer 12

orthogonal rotation

Question 13

oblique method,

Answer 13

which was advocated by Cattell

Question 14

Eysenck’s Criteria for Identifying Factors

Answer 14

must be reliable and replicable

must also possess ‘heritability’ and must fit
an established genetic model

must make sense from a theoretical view

must possess social relevance

Question 15

Eysenck’s Hierarchy of Behavior Organization

Answer 15

specific acts or cognitions

Habitual acts or cognitions,

Several related habitual responses form a trait—the third level of behavior

Question 16

Eysenck’s three personality dimensions are extraversion

Answer 16

extraversion (E), neuroticism (N), and psychoticism (P)

all bipolar

Question 17

cortical arousal level for intro / extra (which are traits he saw as biological)

Answer 17

intro are aroused more easily so more sensitive to louder sounds; introverts are less likely to become bored

extra opposite ; lower level of cortical arousal

Question 18

Eysenck accepted the diathesis-stress model of psychiatric illness, which suggests that

Answer 18

people are vulnerable to illness because they have either a genetic or an acquired weakness that predisposes them to an illness

the higher the psychoticism score, the lower the level of stress necessary to precipitate a psychotic reaction

Question 19

Biological Bases of Personality ; what are the proportions according to Eysenck with proof

Answer 19

three fourths of the variance of all three personality dimensions can be accounted for by heredity and about one fourth by environmental factors

identical various parts of the world

maintain their position over time

studies of twins

Question 20

Personality and Disease findings

Answer 20

cigarette smoking alone does not cause cancer or CVD but when it is combined with stress and personality factors, it helps contribute to death from these two diseases

Question 21

5 factors are

Answer 21

Neuroticism (N) 
extraversion (E)
Agreeableness
conscientiousness
openness to experience

Question 22

Core Components of Personality

Answer 22

(1) basic tendencies
(2) characteristic adaptations
(3) self-concept

Question 23

Basic Tendencies of traits are

Answer 23

include cognitive abilities, artistic talent, sexual orientation, and the psychological processes underlying acquisition of language

How quickly we learn (talent, intelligence, aptitude) is a basic tendency

Question 24

characteristic adaptations

Answer 24

acquired personality structures that develop as people adapt to their environment

what we learn is a characteristic adaptation

Question 25

self-concept is

Answer 25

actually a characteristic adaptation but it gets its own box because it is such an important adaptation.

• consists of knowledge, views, and evaluations of the self
• believing that one is an intelligent person makes one more willing to put oneself into situations that are intellectually challenging

Question 26

Peripheral Components of traits

Answer 26

(1) biological bases
(2) objective biography
(3) external influences

Question 27

Biological Bases

Answer 27

genes, hormones, and brain structures

Question 28

objective biography

Answer 28

everything the person does, thinks, or feels across the whole lifespan

Question 29

External Influences

Answer 29

how we respond to the opportunities and demands of the context is what external influences is all about.

Question 30

Postulates for Basic Tendencies

Answer 30

individuality (unique set of traits and
that each person exhibits)

origin (genetics)

development (traits develop and change
through childhood)

structure (traits are organized hierarchically from specific to broad)

Question 31

research findings

Answer 31

Traits are good predictors of grades in school, SAT scores, and even daily mood, but traits are not an immutable destiny. Even if your traits predispose you toward certain types of behavior, your actions can subvert those dispositions

Question 32

Critique

Answer 32

generate research - H
falsifiable - H
organize knowledge - H
internally consistent - somewhat inconsistent
parsimony - H

Question 33

Concept of Humanity

Answer 33

not concerned with traditional themes such as determinism versus free choice, optimism versus pessimism, and teleological versus causal influences. In fact, their theories do not lend themselves to speculation of these topics.

• humans possess not only consciousness, but self-consciousness as well.
• heavy emphasis on genetic factors of personality. low on social influences
• trait and factor theories lean toward individual differences

Question 34

Evolution of the Five-Factor Theory

Answer 34

Originally, the five factors were simply a taxonomy, a classification of personality traits. By the late 1980s, Costa and McCrae were confident that they had found a stable structure of personality. In shaping a theory from the remnants of a taxonomy, McCrae and Costa were insisting that their personality structure was able to incorporate change and growth into its tenets and to stimulate empirical research as well as organize research findings. In other words, their Five-Factor taxonomy was being transformed into a Five-Factor Theory

Question 35

Units of the Five-Factor Theory

Answer 35

predict behavior through an understanding of three central or core components and three peripheral ones.

(1) basic tendencies, (2) characteristic adaptations, and (3) self-concept
(1) biological bases, which are the sole cause of basic tendencies; (2) objective biography, which is everything a person does or thinks over a lifetime; and (3) external influence