CHP 13 PERSONALITY Flashcards
Personality
the dynamic organization within the individual of those psychophysical systems that determine characteristics, behavior, and thought
Personality Trait
a pattern of thought, emotion, and behavior that’s relatively consistent over time and across situations
Genetic factors + development of personality
genetic influence accounts for about 1/2 the variance between individuals for all personality traits
Adoption studies
identical twins receive more-similar treatment than other siblings (is the treatment or genetics the reason their personalities are similar?)
Freud’s structural model of personality
Id (acts on pleasure)
Superego (internalized societal + parental standards)
Ego (mediates between supergo + id)
Not based on experimental data
Trait approach
an approach to studying personality that focuses on how individuals differ in personality dispositions (extremely shy<—->extremely outgoing)
Five-factor theory
Personality can be described using 5 factors:
1. Openness to experience (imaginitive v down-to-earth, variety v routine, etc.)
2. Conscientiousness (organized v disorganized, careful v careless)
3. Extraversion (social v retiring, fun-loving v sober)
4. Agreeableness (softhearted v ruthless, trusting v suspicious)
5. Neuroticism (worried v calm, insecure v secure, self-pitying v self-satisfied)
Behavioral Approach System (BAS)
The brain system involved in the pursit of incentives or rewards; the “go” system
Linked to extraversion
Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS)
The brain system that’s sensitive to punishment and that might lead to danger or pain; the “stop” system
Linked to neuroticism
Extraverts
More motivated by rewards than by punishments
Neuroticism
Tend to become anxious in social situations in which they anticipate possible negative outcomes
Locus of control
personal beliefs about how much control people have over outcomes in their lives
Internal locus of control
People believe they bring about their own rewards
External locus of control
People believe rewards (and their personal fates) are a result of forces beyond their control
Bandura’s 3 factors that influence how a person acts
- Person’s environment
- Multiple person factors (characteristics, self-confidence, expectations)
- Behavior
Reciprocal determinism
the theory that how personality is expressed can be explained by the interaction of environment, person factors, and behavior iteself
Situationism
theory that behavior is determined by situations not personality traits
Self-monitoring
how much a particular person tends to change to the situation
Strong situations
tend to mask differences in personality because of the power of the social environment (ex. church, job interviews)
Weak situations
tend to reveal differences in personalities (ex. one’s house, parks)
Basic tendencies
traits determined largely by biological processes; very stable
Characteristic adaptations
Adjustments to situational demands; tend to be somewhat consistent because they’re based on skills, habits, roles, etc.
Idiographic approaches
person-centered approaches to studying personality; focus is on individual lives and how characteristics are integrated into unique persons
Central traits
especially important for how individuals define themselves
Secondary traits
considered less personally descriptive or not applicable
Nomothetic approaches
approaches to assessing personality that focus on how common characteristics vary from person to person
Projective measures
personality tests that examine unconscious processes by having people interpret ambiguous stimuli
Rorschach inkblot test
person looks at apparently meaningless inkblot and describes what it appears to be
Thematic apperception test (TAT)
a person is shown an ambiguous picture and is asked to tell a story about it
Social comparison
tendency for people to evaluate their own actions, abilities, and beliefs by contrasting them with other people
Social comparison with high self-esteem
make downward comparions
Social comparison with low self-esteem
make upward comparisons
self-serving bias
the tendency for people to take personal credit for success but blame failure on external factors
