Lecture 7: Personality II

Question 1

What does the behaviorist approach argue about individual differences?

Answer 1

Environmental conditions shape behaviour through learning so individual differences in behaviour are primarily the result of types of learning experiences encountered while growing up

Question 2

Two examples of social learning and conditioning?

Answer 2

Classical conditions and operant conditioning

Question 3

What is the behaviourist portrait of human behaviour?

Answer 3

• Focuses on environmental determinants of behaviour
• Argues we can change human behaviour by changing environment
• Human personality has passive quality – shaped primarily by forces beyond our control

Question 4

Whave have behavioural theorists been criticised for?

Answer 4

Behavioural theorists have been criticized for over-emphasising situational influences on behaviour

Question 5

Has the behaviourist approach contributed to the debate? is so how?

Answer 5

By emphasizing environmental variables, behavioural theory made a major contribution to clinical psychology & personality theory

Question 6

What does the cognitive approach argue about individual differences?

Answer 6

Differences in personality stem from differences in the way individuals mentally represent information

Question 7

What does the cognitive approach emphasise the importance of?

Answer 7

Importance of conscious thoughts and emotions

Importance of context in which traits are manifested

Question 8

Brief comparison points of cognitive approach to psychodynamic approach and behaviourist approach?

Answer 8

Less deterministic than psychodynamic approach

Less passive than the behaviourist approach

Question 9

What does the cognitive approach put emphasis on?

Answer 9

• Learned patterns of thinking in guiding behavior
• Personality is learned in social situations
• Social situations impact expression of personality

Question 10

What does bandura’s social cognitive theory argue?

Answer 10

there are ongoing interaction between personal factors, behaviour, and the environment

Self-efficacy: Belief in ability to succeed

Question 11

What does Mischel’s Cognitive/Affective Theory suggest are the most important cognitive person variables?

Answer 11

• Encodings
• Expectancies
• Affects
• Goals and values
• Competencies and self-regulatory plans

Question 12

According to Mischel’s Cognitive/Affective Theory what produces behaviour?

Answer 12

Interaction of person and situation produce behavior

Question 13

Give 4 points that explain the relationship between personal and situational variables?

Answer 13

1/ Personal dispositions influence behavior only in relevant situations
2/ Personal dispositions can lead to behaviors that alter situations, which promotes other behaviors
3/ People choose to be in situations that are consistent with their personal dispositions
4/ Personal dispositions are more important in some situations than in others

Question 14

What are Kelly’s personal constructs?

Answer 14

dimensions that individuals use to interpret self & their social world
-Each person uses unique set of constructs to predict & interpret events

Question 15

What is self-schema?

Answer 15

Cognitive representations of who we are

Question 16

What are self schemas made up of?

Answer 16

Made up of aspects of behaviour most important to us

Question 17

What do self schemas do?

Answer 17

Guide perception & processing of information, also provides framework for organizing & storing info

Question 18

What is the cognitive portrait of human nature?

Answer 18

Humans actively construct the world & their place in it

But can lead to ‘blame the victim’

Question 19

3 strength evaluation points for the cognitive approach?

Answer 19

• Based on empirical evidence
• Focus on predicting behaviour rather than describing behaviour
• Led to cognitive-behavioral treatments

Question 20

3 weakness evaluation points for the cognitive approach?

Answer 20

Vague concepts eg, What is the difference between a personal construct and a schema?

Predictive power (e.g. Bandura everything interacts)

Methodological problems
E.g. Applied to health behaviours (condom use, eating behaviour) – large amount of variance in behaviour not accounted for (Ogden, 2003)
If data doesn’t fit, explanations support models rather than refute them

Question 21

What does the evolutionary approach suggest?

Answer 21

Attempts to explain human behavior & personality in terms of adaptiveness of characteristics for survival & reproductive success

Question 22

What is the evolutionary approach supported by?

Answer 22

Some support from sex differences in mate preference:

• Females value quality of genes and contribution to care
• Males value availability and fertility
• Females invest in looking fertile
• Males invest in appearing prosperous (big up their income)

Question 23

What is the evolutionary approach’s portrait of human nature?

Answer 23

We are as we are through adaptive processes determined by environment

Question 24

Evaluation points for the evolutionary approach (3)?

Answer 24

1/ It is a controversial theory… eg…
-Social and political implications of claims
- Difficult to refute alternative arguments
- Untestable hypotheses
2/ Focus on narrow aspect of behaviour (reproduction)
3/ Cannot account for unique aspects of personality

Question 25

Evidence of the role of genes on personality?

Answer 25

Twin studies – identical twins reared apart similar to across a range of personality characteristics as twins reared together. (Bouchard 2004; Tellegen et al., 1988

also

Eysenck’s trait theory based on inherited differences in nervous system

Question 26

How does environment explain the genetics of personality?

Answer 26

1/ Shared versus non-shared environments
-After genetic factors are removed, children from same family are no more alike than children chosen randomly
2/ Suggests that variables such as socioeconomic status, parenting style contribute little to personality (contradicts behaviourist and cognitive approaches to personality)

Question 27

How does interaction between personality and environment explain the genetics of personality (3)?

Answer 27

1/ Genetic & environmental influences in shaping personality
2/ Child’s personality & environment are both functions of their parents’ genes (built in correlation with genotype & environment)
3/ Environment becomes a function of a child’s personality through three forms of interaction: reactive, evocative, proactive

Question 28

What are the three types of interactions between personality and environment?

Answer 28

1/ Reactive interaction: Different individuals exposed to same environment, interpret it, experience it & react to it differently
2/ Evocative interaction: Each individual’s personality evokes distinctive responses from others
3/ Proactive interaction: As a child gets older, it can begin to select & construct environments of their own which, in turn, further shape their personality