Module 1: Defining and Measuring Personality Flashcards
The textbook defines personality as…
the set of psychological traits and mechanisms within the individual that are organized and relatively enduring and that influence the individual’s interactions and adaptations to the environment
What are the 6 domains of personality functioning?
- Dispositional
- Biological
- Intrapsychic
- Cognitive-experiential
- Social and cultural
- Adjustment
Correlational studies establish…
associations among variables
A correlation coefficient is a type of statistic that reflects…
the strength and direction of an association among variables
Pearson’s correlation coefficient is denoted with what letter?
r
Pearson’s r captures the association between…
two continuous variables
Random assignment is used for __________-subjects designs
between
Counterbalancing is used for ___________-subjects designs
within
What are 3 strengths of correlational studies?
- Higher degree of ecological validity (no manipulation, measuring things as they are)
- More flexible (easier to apply in a variety of settings)
- Allow researchers to investigate questions where variables cannot be manipulated
What is one major weakness of correlational studies?
Correlation does not equal causation
What are 3 strengths of experimental studies?
- Can test causal theories
- Greater control to rule out alternative explanations
- Better able to replicate
What are 2 weaknesses of experimental studies?
- Cannot manipulate all variables
- More difficult to achieve ecological validity
Psychological traits
Characteristics that describe ways in which people are different from each other
i.e., shy; talkative
Psychological traits describe the ____________ _______________ of a person
average tendencies
Psychological mechanisms
Refer to the process of personality
i.e., the psychological mechanism of extraversion would be that they look for and notice opportunities to interact with other people
Psychological mechanisms typically have 3 essential ingredients:
- inputs
- info from environment - decision rules
- think about certain options - outputs
- behaviour or action
What are the 3 levels of personality analysis?
- Human nature level
- universal traits
- i.e., need to belong - Individual & group differences level
- i.e., some people have a stronger need to belong than others
- i.e., males (one group) are more aggressive than females (another group) - Individual uniqueness level
Nomothetic versus idiographic research
Nomothetic:
- statistical comparisons
Idiographic:
- focus on single subject
Most of the grand theories of personality address what level of personality analysis?
The human nature level
i.e., Freud emphasized universal instincts of sex and aggression
Most empirical research in contemporary personality addresses what level of personality analysis?
The individual/group differences level
i.e., research on extraversion and introversion; anxiety and neuroticism; self-esteem; individualistic versus collectivist cultures
Briefly describe the dispositional domain
Wants to understand the traits people are born with, how they develop/ are maintained over time, and how people differ from one another because of these fundamental trait dispositions.
Briefly describe the biological domain
Aims to understand the genetic, psychophysiological, and evolutionary underpinnings of personality.
Briefly describe the intrapsychic domain
Deals with mental mechanisms of personality (many of which operate outside of conscious awareness)
Briefly describe the cognitive-experiential domain
Focuses on cognition and subjective experience (conscious thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and desires)
Briefly describe the social and cultural domain
Understands personality as being affected by the social and cultural context
Briefly describe the adjustment domain
Focuses on how personality plays a key role in how we cope, adapt, and adjust to life
What are the 5 scientific standards for evaluating personality theories?
- Comprehensiveness
- explains all the facts - Heuristic value
- guide to new knowledge - Testability
- has precise predictions that can be tested empirically - Parsimony
- few premises and assumptions - Compatibility & integration across domains and levels
The field of biology has a grand theory (i.e., theory of evolution), does the field of personality?
No
What are the 4 sources of personality data?
- Self-report data
- Observer-report data
- Test data
- Life-outcome data
What source of personality data is the most common method for measuring personality?
Self-report data
An advantage of observer-report data is that it allows researchers to use multiple observers and this allows researchers to evaluate the degree of agreement among observers - which is known as…
inter-rater reliability
What are some different forms of test data?
- Mechanical recording devices (i.e., actometer)
- Physiological data (i.e., fMRI)
- Projective techniques (i.e., ink-blots)
Personality psychologists often use self-report data and observer-report data to predict…
life-outcome data
What are the 3 standards used to evaluate personality measures?
- Reliability
- Validity
- Generalizability
What are 3 ways to estimate reliability?
- Repeated measurement
- test-retest reliability - Examine relationship among items
- internal consistency reliability - Obtain measurements from multiple observers (only applicable with observer-report data)
- inter-rater reliability
What are 3 ways to approach the problem of socially desirable responses?
- Remove them statistically
- Use/ develop questionnaires less susceptible to this responding
- Use a forced-questionnaire format
What are the 5 types of validity?
- Face
- Predictive
- Convergent
- Discriminant
- Construct
Face validity
Whether the test appears to measure what it is supposed to
i.e., a scale measuring manipulativeness might include items such as “I made a friend just to obtain a favour” - most people would agree that this act is manipulative thus it is face-valid
Predictive validity
Whether the test predicts criteria external to the test
Sometimes called criterion validity
i.e., a scale intended to measure sensation-seeking should predict which individuals actually take risks to obtain enjoyment
Convergent validity
Whether a test correlates with other measures that it should correlate with
i.e., if a self-report measure of tolerance corresponds well with peer judgements of tolerance then the scale has high convergent validity
Discriminant validity
Refers to what a measure should NOT correlate with (opposite of convergent validity)
Construct validity
Broadest type of validity that subsumes all other forms of validity
