Lecture 16: Who are you? Flashcards
personality trait
an aspect of who you are and if we can establish what they are, we can describe people
personality
a person’s characteristic style of behaving, thinking, feeling, and interacting with others
what is a major challenge for studying personality traits?
Major challenge: determining what should count as personality traits
Ie. creativity, persistence, sociality or focus, loyalty, open-mindedness
what are the 2 important properties personality tests need to be a GOOD measure of personality?
- test-retest reliability
- validity
test-retest reliability
you would get the same result even if you test it multiple times and over periods of time
validity
is the test aimed at the trait I am trying to measure? (aka the extent to which a test measures what it is supposed to measure)
A test with high reliability but low validity produces what kind of results?
consistently produces the same results, but those results may not accurately reflect the personality trait being measured
A test with high validity but low reliability produces what kind of results?
may occasionally capture the intended trait but gives inconsistent results, undermining its trustworthiness
example of a high reliability but low validity test
measuring a person’s forehead is very reliable but gives no insight to how smart someone is
example of a high validity but low reliability test
how to measure how often you are in awe throughout the day
→ can measure how open your jaw is throughout the day → test-retest reliability extremely low
give examples of bad personality tests
which leonardo dicaprio are you most similar to
which female superhero are you
rorschach test
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
rorschach test
the ink-blot test
Participants are shown 10 inkblot images, some in black and white, and others in color. For each image, the individual is asked:
“What might this be?”
Follow-up questions explore why they interpreted the image the way they did.
difference between personality trait and personality state and give an example of the difference
Personality state: more recent (right now) but may fade after a while
Personality trait: is more deep down and doesn’t change a lot with time (very constant)
Ie. Anxiety: personality state - being anxious right now but maybe not later; personality trait - being an anxious person in general
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
the personality test that gives you an ENTJ result –> total of 16 possible categories
- a BAD test still (weak reliability and validity)
if you give someone the test a few months ago, they get a different result
50% of people get a different type upon retaking the test
Not valid either: weakly predicts who are actually the good managers, teammates, etc…
what makes a personality test GOOD –> what are the “Big Five” personality traits?
OCEAN
Openness to experience
Conscientiousness
Extraversion
Agreeableness
Neuroticism (emotional stability)
openness to experience
open mindedness: curiosity, imagination; do you change your mind often/easily?
high: enjoy trying new foods, learning about different cultures
low: prefer to stick to a tried-and-true routine and value practicality over novelty
conscientiousness
measures self discipline, organization, and goal-directed behaviors
messy or organized, are you easily distracted?
high: being reliable, punctual, and detail oriented (creating to-do lists and sticking to deadlines)
low: impulsive, disorganized, less focused on long-term goals (often forget appointments or procrastinate important tasks)
extraversion
the extent to which a person is outgoing, energetic, and social
how social are you?
high: enjoy meeting new people (life of the party, tons of friends)
low: prefer quieter and more solitary activities (ideal night is being alone with a book)
agreeableness
reflects how compassionate, cooperative, and trusting someone is
are you a polite and trusting person, do you avoid conflicts?
high: kindness, politeness, avoidance of conflict (often volunteer to help others and go out of your way to avoid disagreements)
low: skepticism, competitiveness, bluntness (prioritize honesty and feel comfortable challenging others’ opinions)
Neuroticism (aka emotional stability)
measures emotional sensitivity, stability, and resilience
how often does your mood change, are you the same when times are tough vs good, how do you deal with pressure (steadfastness)?
high: often worry about worst-case scenarios and struggle to stay calm under stress
low: maintain a steady demeanor in difficult situations and don’t let negative emotions overwhelm you
what do all of the 5 big traits have in common?
all of these traits should be NEUTRAL (no bad or good connotations)
all of these traits are RELIABLE and VALID (things about you will most likely stay the same ten years from now; can predict things about you that you might want to know)
there is also a lot of agreement between how you think of yourself and how your friends/family members see you
why are there exactly 5 traits? give 3 reasons
- The 5 traits kind of already capture most of all people’s personality
- If you took one of them away, seems like you are missing something important about the person
- Not a lot of overlap between the 5 traits (can easily be high and low on different ones) → they are independent of each other
why do our personalities differ from one another?
because we differ in our genes (nature) and our environment (nurture)
How much of who you are is already built into someone’s genome vs how much of it is through your nurture –> what is the best way to study this topic?
study twins
identical vs fraternal twins
Identical (monozygotic): from the same egg and sperm
Fraternal twins (dizygotic): siblings who happen to be born at the same time
why use twins to study personality and not siblings vs non-siblings?
Answer: trying to isolate nature vs nurture since the environment the twins are in is very similar → so if a trait is found, then that trait might be more of a genetic-basis than environmental-basis
Siblings differ from the non-siblings not only due to genome but also because of environment → we would not know if it is because of their genes or their environment
heritability
the proportion of trait variation that is explained by genetic variant
→ when people differ for a trait, how much of their genes can be predicted that their trait will differ?
example of high heritability trait
eye color (~1): if two people differ in eye color, almost all because of genes
example of medium heritability trait
heart disease (~0.5): runs in the family but also environmental factors play a role (diet, exercise)
example of low heritability trait
number of eyes (~0): when people differ in number of eyes, it is almost always due to an accident (environmental factors), and not genetically
what does heritability MEAN and does NOT mean?
Heritability DOES mean how “genetic” are DIFFERENCES in trait X across people
Heritability does NOT mean how “genetic” is trait X in some person
Heritability does NOT describe how much genes influence a specific trait in an individual
–> Ie. if someone is tall, you CANNOT say “genes are 70% responsible for their height and the environment is 30% responsible → meaningless since heritability does not apply to individual traits; it applies to DIFFERENCES in a POPULATION
Heritability describes the proportion of variation in a trait across a population that can be attributed to genetic differences
–> It answers the question “When people differ in trait X, how much of that difference is due to genetics?”
–> Ie. Height has moderate heritability (~0.7) → this means that 70% of the variation in height between individuals in a population is due to genetic differences while 30% is due to environmental factors
what is heritable? aka heritability > 0
almost everything
for example: the Big 5, aggression, achievement, religiosity, sexual orientation, politics, intelligence
what is the relationship between heritability and group differences?
NOTHING: nothing about group differences in heritable
what are group differences
If you divide people into different groups (high vs low class; immigration status; gender; sexuality), you will find differences between traits of these groups
explain the plant height with the 2 groups analogy and relate it to personality traits
A tempting but FALSE argument
Trait X is heritable within groups (ie. the differences in trait X can be explained by gene differences)
Groups differ in X
→ thus group differences in trait X are explained by gene differences
can be compared to (think about as…): differences in plant height WITHIN the two groups is all GENETIC BUT the differences in plant height BETWEEN the two groups is solely ENVIRONMENTAL
2 groups of plants: group 1 has good water, light, and soil whereas group 2 has bad water, light, and soil
A tempting but false argument
Plant height is heritable within groups (differences in plant height can be explained by gene differences)
Groups differ in plant height
→ group differences in plant height are explained by gene differences
what contributes to how we behave in certain situations? what questions does this raise?
behavior can be attributed to both 1. Personality and 2. Situation
aka how much can we attribute to their personality vs their environment they are in right now?
are there inherently bad people or inherently good people?
^^ does that mean they are all inherently bad or good people or are there other factors we are not considering?
impressionable/influenceable and how that affects people’s behaviors
^^ does that mean they are all inherently bad or good people or are there other factors we are not considering?
Maybe some of these people are very impressionable/influenceable: if they were surrounded by good people, they would do good; but if they were surrounded by bad people, they would do bad
describe the Sheridan and King study 1972 and what it displayed
portrayed the obedience to authority with authentic victim
Sheridan and King Study 1972: college students were the subjects and they were shown a real “cute fluffy puppy”. They were asked to watch the puppy complete a task and shock it if it got the wrong answer, but with each wrong answer, the voltage increases eventually all the way up to 450 Volts. The course credit is earned upon arrival so there is no obligation to continue. However, 77% of the subjects did decide to shock the puppy
subjects shown a cute puppy and were asked to shock puppy for course credit, but course credit was earned upon arrival (no obligation to continue)- people still shocked the puppy though)
describe the Behavioral Study of Obedience experiment (aka the milgram experiment)
Same concept as shocking the dog, but involves shocking people instead
shocks were fake on human (through audio recording), but ⅔ of volunteers remained obedient to the person in a white coat (committed acts against their conscious)
describe the 2009 Milgram experiment redone and its results and their signifiance
2009 experiment redone: This experiment was redone in 2009 and the results stayed the same → showed that the original results were NOT because people back then were less socially progressive
describe the Peer pressure: Asch 1956 Conformity experiment
Peer pressure: Asch 1956 Conformity experiment
- Only one of the people in the group is the actual subject, the rest of the “subjects” are actors
- They were asked how many lines were on the paper, but all the actors would purposely say the wrong answer to a very easy question
–> results: the actual subject succumbs to peer pressure and after a couple of rounds, he changes his answer to match the rest of the group
however the experimenters repeated the experiment where a lot of people would purposely give the wrong answer but this time there is ONE other person who gives the correct answer
→ as a result, the actual subject (Asch) gives the correct response now
With a partner, much of the power of the group is because of the unicity of the group (you are the ONLY person), but when there is even just ONE more “partner”, it greatly reduces the group dynamic’s power
- NOTE: but if the actual subject were asked, he did NOT attribute getting the right answer due to the presence of the ally
statistics: 5% (with a partner) vs 37%( without a partner) of subjects start saying the false answers
personality textbook definition
Personality: an individual’s characteristic style of behaving, thinking, and feeling
self report definition
Self-report: a method in which people provide subjective information about their own thoughts, feelings, or behaviors, typically via a questionnaire or interview
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI): a well-researched clinical questionnaire used to assess personality and psychological problems
One of the most commonly used personality test
Includes 338 self-description statements to which the respondent answers “true,” “false,” or “cannot say”
Measures a wide range of psychological constructs: clinical, somatic, internalizing, externalizing, and interpersonal problems
Includes validity scales that assess a person’s attitudes toward test taking and any tendency to try to distort the results by faking answers
criticisms of self-reporting tests
- Many people have a tendency to respond in a socially desirable way (ie. they underreport things that are unflattering or embarrassing)
- People often are inaccurate in their self-report about what they have experiences in the past, what factors are motivating their behaviors in the present, or how they will feel/behave in the future
projective tests definition
Projective tests: tests designed to reveal inner aspects or individuals’ personalities by analysis of their responses to a standard series of ambiguous stimuli
A second class of tools for evaluating personality designed to circumvent the limited of self-reporting tests
what are 2 examples of projective tests?
- Rorschach Inkblot Test
- Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
Rorschach Inkblot Test textbook description
Rorschach Inkblot Test: a projective technique in which respondents’ inner thoughts are feelings are believed to be revealed by analysis of their responses to a set of unstructured inkblots
Ie. if most people report seeing birds or people, then someone who reports seeing something unusual, like “two purple tigers eating a velvet cheeseburger,” may be experiencing thoughts and feelings that are different from those of most other people
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT): a projective technique in which respondents’ underlying motives and concerns and they way they see the social world are believed to be revealed through analysis of the stories they make up about ambiguous pictures of people
- Many of the TAT drawings tend to elicit a consistent set of themes (ie. successes and failures, competitions and jealousy, feelings about intimate relationships, aggression, and sexuality)
- Different people tell very different stories about the images → any details that are not obviously drawn from the picture are believe to be projected onto the story from the respondent’s own desires and internal conflicts
Criticisms of projective tests?
The tests are open to the biases of the examiner: the examiner must always add an interpretation (ie. was this about the respondent’s actual father, or about trying to be funny or provocative?) → this interpretation could well be the scorer’s OWN projection into the mind of the test taker
when measured by rigorous scientific criteria, have projective tests been found to be reliable or valid in predicting behavior?
NO!!!
what are 2 methods utilizing technology to study personality?
High tech methods (ie. wireless communication, real-time computer analysis, and automated behavior identification
ie. Study with college girls and boys wearing an electronically activated recorder showed that girls and boys are equally talkative (debunked the stereotype that girls are more talkative)
using new forms of social media to better understand personality traits and how people express themselves in different ways
- ie. Study analyzing people’s social media posts showed that people posting about going out and partying also scored high on extraversion; people posting about being “sick of” things scored high on neuroticism, etc…
what is the trait approach to personality
The trait approach to personality uses (personality) trait terms to characterize differences among individuals
what are the 2 major challenges in the trait approach to personality?
- Narrowing down the almost infinite set of adjectives
- Answered the question of why people have these certain traits and whether these traits arise from biological or hereditary foundations (is it genetic)
What was the approach of Gordon Allport (one of the first trait theorists) ?
think about personality as a combination of traits
personality trait textbook definition
Trait: a relatively stable disposition to behave in a particular and consistent way
- describes a person but does not explain their behavior
ie. orderliness –> trait manifests itself in many different settings and it is usually consistent throughout the person’s life
what are 2 ways that a personality trait might provide an explanation for behavior?
Trait may be a PREEXISTING DISPOSITION of the person that causes the person’s behavior (Gordon Allport supported)
Trait may be a MOTIVATION that guides the person’s behavior (Henry Murray - the creator of the TAT supported)
The study of core traits began with….
The study of core traits began with an exploitation of how personality is represented in language
hierarchical pattern of traits
→ Attempts to narrow down the list depended on the idea that traits might be related in a hierarchical pattern (more general or abstract traits at higher levels than more specific or concrete traits
traits may be organized in a hierarchy in which many specific behavioral tendencies are associated with a higher-order trait
factor anaylsis
computational procedure that sorts trait terms or self-descriptions into a small number of underlying dimensions or factors based on how people use the traits to rate themselves
Factor analysis tests can reveal which adjectives are related or unrelated (ie. people who describe themselves as active don’t describe themselves as laid-back or contented)
describe Hans Eysenck’s model of personality
simplified things to a model of personality with only 2 major traits: extraversion and neuroticism
Extraversion: distinguished people who are social and active from those who are more introspective and quiet (extraverts vs introverts)
Neuroticism: tendency to be very neurotic/emotional unstable vs the tendency to be more emotional stable
Later proposed a 3rd trait: psychoticism - the extent to which a person is impulsive or hostile
psychoticism
the extent to which a person is impulsive or hostile
give 5 reasons as to why the big five model of personality (OCEAN) now widely preferred
- Modern factor analysis techniques confirm that this set of 5 factors strikes the right balance between accounting for as much variation in personality as possible while avoiding overlapping traits
- In a large number of studies, the same 5 factors have emerged
- The basic 5-factor structure seems to show up across a wide range of participants: adults to children, among different cultures, and among different languages → suggesting that the big five may be universal
- The big five traits are associated with predictable patterns of behavior and social outcomes
–> ie. Ie. people identified as high in extraversion tend to spend time with lots of other people and are more likely than introverts to look people in the eye - People’s personalities tend to remain fairly stable through their lifetime: scores at one time in life correlate strongly with scores at later dates
How can we explain why a person has a stable set of personality traits?
Many trait theorists have argued that unchangeable brain and biological processes produce the remarkable stability of traits over lifetime
- ie. brain damage can can someone’s personality (phineas gage, alzheimers, stroke, brain tumor)
- ie. antidepressants can change someone’s personality
Some of the most compelling evidence for the importance of biological factors in personality comes from ____
the study of twins (fraternal vs identical)
–> The more genes you have in common with someone, the more similar your personalities are likely to be
Current estimates place the average genetic component of personality at about ___
0.4
Studies of twins suggest that the extent to which the big five traits derive from genetic differences ranges from __ to __
from 0.35 to 0.49
why are twins used to study personality?
since twins grow up in the same environment, we can take out environment as a factor for personality trait differences and thus attribute to any changes in personality as genetic by comparing pairs of fraternal and identical twins
One study that examined 3,000 pairs of identical and fraternal twins found evidence for the genetic transmission of ____ views regarding topics like socialism, church authority, death penalty, and interracial marriage
One study that examined 3,000 pairs of identical and fraternal twins found evidence for the genetic transmission of conservative views regarding topics like socialism, church authority, death penalty, and interracial marriage
–> a set of genes or interacting genes may produce specific characteristics or tendencies to think in a conservative or liberal manner
social role theory
social-cognitive perspective of the differences in gender personalities
- aka this theory says gender differences in personality and behavior as the result of social and cultural expectations rather than biological factors
evolutionary perspective
holds that men and women have evolved different personality characters in part because their reproductive success depends on different behaviors
- aka argues that gender differences in personality stem from evolutionary pressures related to reproductive success
are gender differences more pronounced in adulthood or childhood?
Many of the gender differences that do exist among adults are much less pronounced during childhood
Puberty may also play a role in gender personality differences due ____? provide information on transgender men study
Puberty may also play a role in gender personality differences due to expression of sex hormones
Study of transgender men over a 3-month period during which they were undergoing testosterone treatment showed that significance personality changes occurred: transgender men viewed themselves as being more masculine afterwards and their scores more slowly matched those of non transfer men
do animals have personalities as well?
Studies with guppies, octopi, and hyenas have shown that individual differences in traits resembling the big five (openness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism) were reliable observed
Animals also show consistency in these traits over time
From an evolutionary perspective, differences in personality reflect alternative adaptations that have evolved in species (human and nonhuman) to deal with challenges of survival and reproduction
What was Eysenck’s view on how neurophysiological mechanisms might influence the development of personality traits? (extraversion-introversion)
Eysenck speculated that this might arise from individual differences in cortical arousal
→ suggested that extraverts pursue stimulation because their reticular formation (part of brain that regulates arousal or alertness) is not easily stimulated and thus to achieve greater cortical arousal, they seek out social interactions
ie when they are presented with a range of intense stimuli, introverts respond more strongly (ie. react more negatively to loud noises or salivate more when a drop of lemon juice is placed on their tongue)
what was Jeffrey Gray’s view on how neurophysiological mechanisms might influence the development of personality traits? (extraversion-introversion)
proposed that the dimensions of extraversion-introversion and neuroticism reflect 2 basic brain systems
1. The behavioral activation system (BAS): aka a “GO” system; actives approach behavior in response to the anticipation of reward
2. The behavioral inhibition system (BIS): aka a “STOP” system; inhibits behavior in response to stimuli signaling punishment
The introvert has a highly reactive BIS whereas an extravert was a highly reactive BAS
what is the most widely used personality test in the world?
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
developed by Carl Jung
Is the Myers-Briggs Type indicator a good test?
NO
Several analyses have shown the test is totally ineffective at predicting people’s success in various jobs, and that about half of the people who take it twice get different results each time (no validity and no reliability)
what are the 4 categories in the Myers-Briggs Indicator Test?
Explained that humans roughly fall into 2 main types: perceivers and judgers
Perceivers subgroups:
Sensing (S)
Intuition (N)
Judgers subgroups:
Thinking (T)
Feeling (F)
Extraversion (E)
Introversion (I)
Judging (J)
Perceiving (P)
explain why it is bad for the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test to use binary answers? (ie. you either tend to sympathize with other people or you don’t)
most people are on a spectrum for most traits and not either yes or no (binary)
- actual data shows that these traits do not have a bimodal distribution
- The test pigeonholes people into one category or another
Research has found that as many as ___ percent of people arrive at a different result the second time they take a test, even if it’s just __ weeks later. Why is that the case?
Research has found that as many as 50 percent of people arrive at a different result the second time they take a test, even if it’s just five weeks later
That’s because the traits it aims to measure aren’t the ones that are consistently different among people. Most of us vary in these traits over time — depending on our mood when we take the test (personality states: temporary vs traits: consistent)
Forer effect definition
describes the phenomenon where people perceive vague, general statements as highly accurate and personally relevant to them, even though the statements could apply to a wide range of people
–> A technique long used by purveyors of astrology, fortune telling, and other sorts of pseudoscience to persuade people they have accurate information about them
is the Myers-Briggs accurate in predicting people’s successes at different jobs?
NO!
Another indicator that the Myers-Briggs is inaccurate is that several different analyses have shown it’s not particularly effective at predicting people’s success at different jobs
What is the Myers-Briggs test useful for?
entertainment only
Why would someone pay so much to administer a flawed test? (Myers-Briggs)
Because once you have that title, you can sell your services as a career coach to both people looking for work and the thousands of major companies (ie. McKinsey & Co., General Motors, and a reported 89 of the Fortune 100) that use the test to separate employees and potential hires into “types” and assign them appropriate training programs and responsibilities
→ Once certified, test administrators become cheerleaders of the Myers-Briggs, ensuring that use of the outdated instrument is continued
