Lecture 2 - Personality Traits Flashcards

1
Q

What is personality trait defined by

(Burger, 1997)

A

The dimension of personality used to categorise people
-according to the degree to which they manifest a particular characteristic

(Burger, 1997)

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2
Q

What are the two underlying assumptions of personality trait theory

A
  • Personality characteristics are relatively stable over time
  • Traits show stability across situations
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3
Q

What is the lexical hypothesis

A

The words people use in the English language, reveal what people find important when describing personality

Galton (1822-1911)

(when looking to describe personality, turn to dictionaries)

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4
Q

What are the two assumptions of the lexical hypothesis

A
  • Most meaningful traits will be used in language as single terms
  • Number of words in a language (that refer to the trait) correspond to its importance (in describing personality)
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5
Q

What is a criticism of the lexical hypothesis (Norman, 1963)

A
  • If lexical hypothesis is valid
  • then it should apply across diff cultures & languages

But it doesn’t (evidence of this later)

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6
Q

What kind of approach did the lexical hypothesis use for its means of collecting data

A

Nomothetic approach

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7
Q

What is a nomothetic approach strategy

A

Focus on similarities btwn groups of indivs
-Indivs are unique only in way their traits combine

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8
Q

What is the goal of the nomothetic approach

A

Identify the basic structure of personality

& Indentify the minimum number of traits required to describe personality universally

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9
Q

What is the methodology of the nomothetic approach

A

Quantitative methods to:
- Explore structures of personality
- Produces measures of personality
- Explores rship btwn variables across groups

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10
Q

What is the means of data collection for the nomothetic approach

A

Self-report personality quennaires

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11
Q

What are the advantages of the nomothetic approach

A

Discovery of general principles that have a predictive function

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12
Q

What are the nomothetic approach disadvantages

A
  • Fairly superficial understanding of any one person
  • Training needed to analyse personality profiles accurately
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13
Q

What is Cattell’s Factor Analysis (16 PF)

A

Way of reducing data from many variables to their underlying dimensions

find correlated traits & list as one cluster/factor (common denominator)

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14
Q

What was Cattell’s theory of personality

16 PF

A
  • Personality is the characteristics of the indiv that allow prediction of how they’ll behave in a given situation
  • Traits are stable, long-lasting building blocks of personality
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15
Q

Where did the 16 factors come from

Cattell 16 PF

A
  • Factor analysis revealed 16 personality factors
  • Cattell’s 16PF came from the factor analysis of the list of 4,500 trait names identified by Allport and Odbert (1936)
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16
Q

Weakness of Cattell 16 PF

A

Problems with replication attempts (Conn and Rieke, 1994)

17
Q

What is Eysenck’s 3 factor approach

A
  • Observe responses in specific situations
  • Typical responses = habitual response
  • Particular traits emerge
Eysenck (1947; 1952)
18
Q

What is a supertrait

Eysenck 3 factor approach

A

Grouping of traits

next logical step of the model

19
Q

What are the 3 supertraits of Eysenck’s 3 factor personality model

A

Sociability

Neuroticism

Psychoticism

20
Q

How was personality measured in Eysenck’s 3 factor model

A

Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (1975)

21
Q

Weakness of 3 factor model

Eysenck

A

Too reductionist

3 traits is far too few

22
Q

What is Costa & McCrae’s (1992) Personality Theory

A

5 factor approach
OCEAN

  • Built on lexical hypothesis foundation
  • Statements that pps agree/disagree with can better access components of personality
  • Analysed the data
  • NOT based on a theory of 5 factors, which is then tested, but rather a data-driven hypothesis
23
Q

What is the HEXACO model

A

Ashton & Lee (2007)

  • Honesty-humility
  • Emotionality
  • Extraversion
  • Agreeableness
  • Conscentiousness
  • Openness

Developed after conducting international research using the 5 factor model, discovering a 6th

24
Q

How can the 6 traits in the HEXACO model be organised

Ashton & Lee (2007)

A
  • Honesty/Humility, Agreeableness, Emotionality
    -contribute to altruism
  • Extraversion, Conscientiousness, Openness To Experience
    -relate to biological separate areas of behaviour
25
Q

Which factor is best? 3, 5, or 6

A
  • Eysenck’s 3 seem to have lost the debate. Irrelevant
  • HEXACO might be a useful revision to the Five factor model
  • Difficulties in determining the “truth” may reflect the use of factor analysis. Could be argued it’s just “agreeableness” for the sake of discovering something new
  • Multiple methods may be needed

lowkey depends on your own opinion

26
Q

How are personality traits measured

A
  • Self-report
  • Other report (e.g., observer report)
  • Behaviour observation
  • Physiology
    -hormones
    -brain activity
    -genetics
27
Q

What the bombaclaat is the big one

A

Musek (2007)

2 Main Factors
Stability (conformity)
Plasticity (non-conformity)

2 factors are further reduced to 1 big ass factor

The general factor measures the factors that are cross culturally highly valued

28
Q

Advantages of self-reports as a means of measuring personality

A
  • Quick & easy; cheap
  • You yourself (arguably) have the best insight
29
Q

Disadvantages of self-reports as a means of measuring personality

A
  • Biases in responding: social desirability & dishonesty
  • Not measuring the biological basis
    e.g., neuroticism at the level of self-report may be masked by learned strategies
30
Q

Advantages of observer reports as a means of measuring personality

A
  • Quick & easy; cheap
  • Close peer has good insight into mind of their friend
  • Can provide convergent perspective
31
Q

Disadvantages of observer report as a means of measuring personality

A
  • Some traits MUCH harder to judge externally
    -e.g. smiling/laughing marker of extraversion
    whereas neuroticism harder to access
  • Peer has no access to inner thoughts
    -despite perception that they do
  • (Although not that important for Big Five but rather for other more intimate aspects of personality e.g. sexuality)
32
Q

Weaknesses of personality trait approaches as a whole

Mischel 1968 & 2009

A
  • Discrepancy btwn what he observed & assumptions of trait theory (some have 3, 5, 6 factors, disagreements etc)
  • Trait models largely descriptive & not predict behaviour
  • Lack of cross-situational consistency of behaviour
    -Can’t be predicted using trait theory
    (characterised as the person-situation debate)