LECTURE #2 -

Question 1

Personality Assessment

Answer 1

• is a standardized procedure used to learn about an individual’s personality or measure personality differences among people in a population.

Question 2

L-data (Life-record data)

Answer 2

• Information obtained from a person’s life history or records, such as school or work performance, health records, or personal milestones.

Question 3

O-data (Observer data)

Answer 3

• Information provided by knowledgeable observers, like parents, friends, or teachers. These observers can either be trained to observe systematically or offer more general ratings of a person’s behavior, which can be
  specific or broad in nature.

Question 4

T-data (Test data)

Answer 4

• Information obtained from experimental procedures or standardized tests. This data is typically more objective and comes from controlled environments.

Question 5

S-data (Self-report data)

Answer 5

• Information provided by the individual, usually through questionnaires or surveys.

Question 6

Combining Data Sources Results In….

Answer 6

• increases the reliability and validity of their findings. Using different types of data helps cross-validate conclusions and provides a more comprehensive understanding of personality.

Question 7

Implicit Individual-Differences Measures

Answer 7

• assess unconscious aspects of personality through indirect means, like reaction times or automatic responses.

Question 8

Diary Method

Answer 8

• Individuals self-record their daily experiences and emotions, offering rich, real-time data for understanding personality dynamics over time.

Question 9

Electroencephalography (EEG)

Answer 9

• EEG uses electrodes placed on the scalp to record the electrical activity of neurons.

Question 10

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)

Answer 10

• fMRI captures brain activity during task performance by detecting variations in blood flow to different areas of the brain.

Question 11

Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI)

Answer 11

• DTI detects the brain’s “white matter” — the nerve fibers that transmit neural communication.

Question 12

Case Studies

Answer 12

• Case studies are in-depth analyses of individual cases, where psychologists examine the structures and processes that are most relevant to a person’s personality.

Question 13

Personality Tests and Questionnaires

Answer 13

• allow researchers to study individual differences, especially when it’s not feasible or desirable to conduct intensive studies on
  individuals or perform controlled laboratory experiments.

Question 14

Correlational studies

Answer 14

• help examine how different personality traits or behaviors go together within large populations of people.

Question 15

Correlation Coefficient

Answer 15

• statistic used to measure the strength and
  direction of the linear relationship between two variables.

Question 16

Positive Correlation

Answer 16

• When one variable increases, the other increases as well (e.g., height and weight).

Question 17

Negative Correlation

Answer 17

• When one variable increases, the other decreases (e.g., stress and happiness).

Question 18

Uncorrelated

Answer 18

• No systematic relationship between the two variables (e.g., shoe size and intelligence).

Question 19

Correlational Research

Answer 19

• Involves examining relationships among variables in large populations.
  Importantly, no variables are manipulated by the researchers.

Question 20

Random Assignment

Answer 20

• Participants are randomly assigned to different experimental conditions, ensuring that the groups are comparable at the start of the experiment.

Question 21

Manipulation of Variables

Answer 21

• One or more variables are deliberately manipulated to observe how changes in these variables affect participants’ responses.

Question 22

Causal Inference

Answer 22

• If people in one condition respond differently than those in another, researchers can conclude that the manipulated variable causally influenced the responses.

Question 23

Average Behavior

Answer 23

Measures typical behavior over time, often using self-reports or informant ratings.

Question 24

Variability in Behavior

Answer 24

Examines how behavior changes in different situations, typically assessed through observation or experiments.

Question 25

Conscious Thought

Answer 25

Focuses on what individuals are aware of, captured through self-reports or interviews.

Question 26

Unconscious Mental Events

Answer 26

Assesses unconscious processes using techniques like projective tests or neuroimaging.

Question 27

Reliability

Answer 27

Refers to the consistency and dependability of measurements. Reliable tests produce stable, replicable results.

Question 28

Factors affecting reliability…

Answer 28

■ Psychological state of participants
■ Test characteristics
■ Scoring errors
■ Ambiguity in score interpretation

Question 29

How reliability is measured…

Answer 29

Internal consistency
Test-retest reliability

Question 30

Etic strategy

Answer 30

• Assumes psychological constructs are universal across cultures and can be measured the same way.

Question 31

Emic strategy

Answer 31

• Recognizes cultural differences and adapts constructs and measures accordingly, sensitive to unique cultural contexts.

Question 32

Between-person constructs

Answer 32

• Differences between individuals (e.g.,
  personality traits).

Question 33

Within-person constructs

Answer 33

• Features within individuals (e.g., mind or brain structures).

Question 34

Fixed measures

Answer 34

• Standardized tests applied equally to all, commonly used in personality psychology (e.g., questionnaires). They are objective but may miss individual nuances.

Question 35

Flexible measures

Answer 35

• Unstructured methods like open-ended questions or storytelling, allowing for a more personalized assessment.

Question 36

Nomothetic

Answer 36

• Fixed measures describing populations.

Question 37

Idiographic

Answer 37

• Flexible measures focused on individual uniqueness.

Question 38

Explicit measures

Answer 38

• Clear to the test-taker (e.g., questionnaires).

Question 39

Implicit measures

Answer 39

• The test-taker is unaware of what is being measured, or
  unable to control the response (e.g., pupil dilation, T-data).
  ○ Implicit measures are useful for overcoming self-presentation biases.

Question 40

Validity

Answer 40

• Ensures the test accurately measures what it is intended to measure.

Question 41

Discriminant validity

Answer 41

• Ensures the test is distinct from other existing measures.

Question 42

Causal conception of validity

Answer 42

A test is valid if:
■ The quality genuinely exists.
■ It causally influences the measurement process.