Chapter 7 - Trait approach to personality Flashcards
Aristotle
first written description of personality traits/ dispositions (individual differences In different traits –> important determinants of whether a person behaved ethically)
Hippocrates
physical illness caused by the imbalance of bodily fluids, humors (including blood, black bile, yellow bile, phlegm)
Galen
4 humors = in balance , healthy
> melancholic temperament
> choleric temperament
> phlegmatic temp
> sanguine temp
Wundt
changed categorical types into trait dimensions, placing individuals along dimensions of mood stability and strength of emotions
trait
dimension of personality used to categorize people according to the degree to which they manifest a particular characteristic
two assumptions underlying the trait theory
- personality characteristics are relatively stable over time
- traits show stability across situations (some internal consistency in the way how individuals behave)
Sheldon’s somatotypes
endomorph, ectomorph, mesomorph
somatotype
personality based on physique and temperament
endomorph somatotype
round body,
temperament: Viscerotonia (love of relaxation and comfort)
Ectomorph somatotype
light boned, slight musculature
temperament: Cerebrotonia (need for privacy, restrained, inhibited)
Mesomorph
large, bony, well defined muscles
Temperament: Somtotonia (physical assertiveness, competitive, keen on physical activity)
Lexical hypothesis (Galton)
suggests that it is the individual differences between people that are important that become encoded in single terms
> frequency of use is also connected with importance
Gordon Allport - personal dispositions
represent the unique characteristics of the individual, emphasize the uniqueness of each individual
> cardinal traits, central traits, secondary traits
Gordon Allport - cardinal traits
single traits that may dominate an individual’s behavior (obsessions or ruling passions)
Gordon Allport - Central traits
five to ten traits that best describe the personality
Gordon Allport - Secondary traits
concerned with an individual’s preferences, not part of their core personality, may only become apparent in certain situations
Cattell’s definition of personality
characteristics of the individual that allow prediction of how they will behave in a give situation
Cattell = traits
conceptualized as being relatively stable, long-lasting building blocks of personality
> constitutional (genetically) vs. environmental-mold traits
three different types of traits (Cattell)
- ability traits (how well you deal with a particular situation)
- temperament traits
- dynamic (motivates us and energize our behavior –> attitudes, sentiments, ergs)
common traits (cattell)
shared by many people (intelligence, sociability, dependency)
unique traits (Cattell)
rarer, specific to the individual
surface traits (Cattell)
collections of trait descriptors that cluster together
Source traits
major source of difference in personality that is responsible for all related differences in behavior
Cattell: distinction between several types of personality
- Surface traits vs. source traits
- constitutional traits vs. envrionmental-mold traits
- ability traits vs. temperament traits vs. dynamic traits
- common traits vs. unique traits
Eysenck - 3 basic personality dimensions
Extraversion, neuroticism, psychoticism,
> Goal: identify the main dimensions of personality, devise means of measuring them, test them, using experimental, quantitative procedures
Eysenck - hierarchical model of personality
- types
- traits
- habitual response
- specific responses
BIG 5
> Five traits describing the structure of personality, analysis of data produced the factors NOT exploration (data-derived Hx)
Openness to experience
intellectual curiosity, divergent thinking, willingness to consider new ideas and active imagination
Conscientiousness
degree of self-discipline, organized, determines, plan events (will to achieve, work dimension)
Extraversion
individual’s sociability, sociable, energetic, optimistic, friendly, assertive (low scores = introverts)
> warmth, gregariousness, assertiveness, activity, excitement seeking, positive emotions
agreeableness
characteristics of the individual are relevant for social interaction - trusting, helpful, soft-hearted, sympathetic
> trust, straightforwardness, altruism, compliance, modesty, tender-mindedness
Neuroticism
measures individual’s emotional stability and personal judgment - high: mood swings, volatile
> anxiety, angry hostility, depressions, self-consciousness, impulsiveness, vulnerability
HEXACO model
honesty-humility, emotionality (neuroticism), Extraversion (X), agreeableness vs. anger, conscientiousness, openness to experience
General factor of personality
reducing the Big 5 to two underlying factors: stability and plasticity, reducing these to one = general factor of personality –> blend of all aspects of personality dimensions that are positively valued
