intro to personality

Question 1

Individual difference=

Answer 1

how & why we vary

Question 2

Personality=

Answer 2

characteristic patterns of thoughts, emotions, behaviour

Question 3

personality psych: links to general psych>

Answer 3

ABC: affect, behaviour, cognition
>common principles to explain general behaviours

Question 4

personality psych=

Answer 4

scientific study of variations in thoughts, emotions and behaviours

Question 5

How to study individual difference=

Answer 5

• look beyond personal experience
• ignore anecdotal evidence
• understand what constitutes a good theory

Question 6

Process of evaluating theories»

Answer 6

• Why? (reasonable explanation)
• Testable?
• Operationalised? (can aspects of theory be taken apart & studied in a meaningful way)
• Comprehensive?
• Parisomy? (is it economical? is it most efficient?)
• Heuristic value?
• Applied value? (can it be applied in real world contexts?)

Question 7

How we study individual differences according to different levels of understanding» Different levels»

Answer 7

> Biological
Traits
Learning & Cognition
social factors

Question 8

How we study individual differences according to different levels of understanding> Biological»

Answer 8

• genetics, heritability, brain anatomy
• (e.g. FmRI study of neural responses to explore differences in empathy)

Question 9

How we study individual differences according to different levels of understanding» Traits»

Answer 9

• Conceptualise & measure individual differences
• (e.g. self-report measures to explore trait differences for psychopaths)

Question 10

How we study individual differences according to different levels of understanding> Learning & cognition»

Answer 10

• Behaviourism, social learning theory
• (e.g. experimental study on how psychopaths engage in reward-punishment scenarios)

Question 11

How we study individual differences according to different levels of understanding> social factors

Answer 11

cross-cultural influences, context-dependent interpersonal interactions
- (e.g. meta-analysis of differences between individualistic & collectivist cultures)

Question 12

The self> 2 types»(1) Declarative self

Answer 12

• Declarative self= all conscious knowledge you have of yourself & own opinion of self

Question 13

The self> 2 types> (2) procedural self>

Answer 13

parts of yourself that include what you do and how you do it (behaviour)

Question 14

High self-esteem> pros>

Answer 14

pros: predicts relationship satisfaction & views on how partner perceives them (sciangula, 2009)

Question 15

High self-esteem: cons>

Answer 15

-susceptible to ‘ego threat’ & unrealistic optimism (Baumeister, 1993)
- more likely to engage in high risk gambling behaviours (sekcrinska, 2021)

Question 16

Low self-esteem: cons>

Answer 16

• SE & procrastination> increases negative emotional state which fosters procrastination among final year students (Diamahar, 2020)

Question 17

Meta-analysis: is high self-esteem beneficial? studied across various traits> traits & overall conc>

Answer 17

1. work/study
2. relationships
3. mental health
4. physical health
5. anti-social behaviour
   overall= yes

Question 18

Self-schema=

Answer 18

= network of ideas about oneself, organised into a coherent system
>an evaluation of our abilities & capabilities

Question 19

features of self-schema

Answer 19

• source of self-report data
• both stable & malleable
• can remain intact after memory loss

Question 20

Features of procedural self>

Answer 20

• behaviours
• context sensitive
• can be difficult to verbalise/articulare
• can be modified with time, practice, effort

Question 21

what is the “relational self”?= (anderson & chen, 2002)

Answer 21

idea interpersonal relationships impact sense of self in context:
>there are cognitive associations that guide behaviours and reactions towards others

Question 22

Why do we have a sense of self?>

Answer 22

1. self-regulation
2. information filtering
3. understanding others
4. maintaining identity

Question 23

How many selves do we have?>

Answer 23

• philosophically problematic as “infinite divisability”
• more accurate to think of “aspects of self” that are more or less relevant in different contexts

Question 24

Authentic self» aspects

Answer 24

> self-determining individuality= breaking social norms
self-reflecting= living as the person you think yourself to be
Authenticity scale= authenticity to oneself in all contexts is a key indicator of authentic self (wood, 2008)
Fluency= subjective experience of ease with an experience (Baldwin, 2021)> however difficulty can be important signifier of meaning

Question 25

Authentic self> self-determing individuality=

Answer 25

> self-determining individuality= breaking social norms

Question 26

Authentic self> self-reflecting=

Answer 26

> self-reflecting= living as the person you think yourself to be

Question 27

Authentic self> authenticity scale>

Answer 27

> Authenticity scale= authenticity to oneself in all contexts is a key indicator of authentic self (wood, 2008)

Question 28

Authentic self> Fluency>

Answer 28

Fluency= subjective experience of ease with an experience (Baldwin, 2021)> however difficulty can be important signifier of meaning