Personality Flashcards
what does personality consist of
people’s characteristic thoughts, emotional responses, and behaviors
what did allport define personality as
the dynamic organization within the individual of those psychophysical systems that determine characteristic behavior and thought
Psychosocial systems:
highlighted the mental nature of personality, and recognized that personality arises from both biological processes and external environment
Genetic Factors Influence the Expression of Personality
All personality traits have a genetic component
Genetic influence accounts for about half (40-60 percent) of variability
Genetic factors on personality can be studied through which type of studies
Adoption studies: two children tend to be no more alike in persona than any two strangers randomly plucked off the street
Many features of characteristics are determined largely by interactions between biological factors and environments (nature and nurture)
Genes code for
proteins, not behaviors
T or F: Certain combinations of genes acting together can make us more less likely to react in a specific way to certain types of stimuli
True
Temperaments
general tendencies to feel or act in certain ways (broader than personality traits) Innate biological structure of personality and more stable than personality traits
Three main structures of temperaments
Activity level: overall amount of energy and action a person exhibits
Emotionality: intensity of emotional reactions
Sociability: general tendency to affiliate with others (preference to be with others)
T or F: temperaments can dramatically shape life outcomes
True
T or F: nature/nurture starts to become complementary over time
True
What part of the brain is responsible for social anxiety
Amygdala
Trait approach to personality
focus on how individuals differ in personality dispositions, such as sociability, cheerfulness, and aggressiveness
Five-factor theory (OCEAN)
Openness to experience
Conscientiousness
neuroticism
extraversion
agreeableness
Shown to predict life outcomes such as career success, marital satisfaction, and longevity
There are cross-cultural differences in traits related to social interaction
Biological trait theory
Two major dimensions: introvert and extrovert and emotional stability (neurotic) and high constraint/ low constraint
What did Eysenck propose?
Eysenck proposed that personality traits are based on biological processes that produce behaviors, thoughts, and emotions; he believed that differences in arousal produce the behavioral differences between extraverts and introverts
What did Jeffrey Gray Propose?
approach/inhibition model of the relationships between learning and personality; he said that personality is rooted in two motivational functions: to approach rewards and avoid pain
behavioral approach system
the brain system thats involved in the systems of incentives and rewards
behavioral inhibition system
the “slow down” system, sensitive to punishment, cautiously inhibits or slows behavior when there are signs of danger
fight or flight freeze system
the “stop or escape” system, promotes behaviors that can protect the organism from harm, such as remaining motionless or escaping
what is the bas and bis linked to
the bas is linked to extraversion and the bis is linked to neuroticism
what is grays model useful for undersanding?
for understanding personality differences in impulsivity and risk taking
what is humanistic approaches
emphasize personal experience, belief systems, the uniqueness of the narrative of each human life, and the inherent goodness of each person
self-actualization
people seek to fulfill their potential for personal growth through greater self-understanding
What did Carl Rogers propose?
a person-centered approach to understanding personality and human relationships
What does Rogers theory highlight
the importance of how parents show affection for their children and how parental treatment affects personality development; he also said that parents’ love is conditional, they will only love the children if they do what the parents want them to do which can cause the child to lose themself and abandon their true feelings/dreams
unconditional positive regard
parents should accept and prize their children no matter how the children behave, this would lead them to develop a healthy sense of self-esteem and would become a fully functioning person
common motifs across people’s stories about themselves that increases their overall well-being
redemption: where things start badly but become better; contamination: things start well but then some person or event makes it turn bad; meaning-making: where an event or episode yields a deep insight about life
What did Julian Rotter introduce
the idea that behavior is a function of two things: the person’s expectancy that a reward will result from the behavior and the values the person ascribes to particular rewards
Locus of control
how much control people believe they have over what happens in their lives (internal locus of control: they bring their own rewards; external locus of control: forces beyond their control)
Bandura’s three factors that influence how a person acts
- environment
- person factors (self confidence and expectations)
- behavior
what are the three factors working together called
reciprocal determinism
need for cognition
how much a person enjoys and tends to engage in complex thought, people with high need for cognition are more likely to systematically evaluate and compare information before they make a major decision
sitiuationism
behaviors are determined more by situations than by personality traits
self monitoring
being sensitive to cues of situational appropriateness
cognitive-affective processing system
people react in predictable ways to specific conditions
True or False: personality becomes stable over time in part because people choose situations into which they place themselves
true
strong situations
mask differences in personality because of the power of the social environment
weak situations
tends to reveal differences in personality
interactionism
behavior is determined jointly by situations and underlying dispositions
what did the investigation of personality differences across 56 nations find?
people from east asia rated themselves lower on extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness, and rated themselves higher on neuroticism
idiographic approach
person-centered, focus on individual lives and how various characteristics are integrated into unique person
nomothetic approach
focus on characteristics that are common among all people but that vary from person to person
projective measures
personality tests that measure people’s response patterns by telling stories about ambiguous stimulus items
Rorschach inkblot test
person looks at a meaningless inkblot and describes what it appears to be
Thematic Apperception Test
person is shown an ambiguous picture and is asked to tell a story about it; the story is scored on the motivational schemes that emerge
California Q-Sort
100 cards with statements, asked to sort into 9 piles according to how accurate it describes the person
What is the self
encompasses the person’s thought processes, physical body, and conscious awareness
What is Hazel Markus’ self schema?
self schema consists of an integrated set of memories, beliefs, and generalizations about the self that helps us efficiently use information related to ourselves
what brain regions are active when thinking about the self?
middle of the prefrontal cortex
working self concept
limited amount of personal knowledge that is active in the mind at once, guides behavior, tends to focus on characteristics that makes them different
Self esteem
person’s emotional response to contemplating personal characteristics
reflected appraisal
process of learning about oneself through the eyes of others
Sociometer theory
self esteem tracks how well a person is fitting in with groups and other people
True or false: self esteem is strongly related to objective life outcomes
false, it makes people happier but it does not necessarily lead to successful social relationships/success
narcissism
self-centered people who feel superior to others and are manipulative, it usually make up a dark triad: narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism
psycopathy
general lack of caring for the welfare of others, impulsive and reckless, low levels of fear
Machiavellianism
people who are especially manipulative of others for their own gain and lack concern with moral norms against harming others
True or False: dark triad of traits is associated with career success, making more money, being in leadership positions, and winning political elections
true
light triad
humanism (valuing the worth of every person as an individual), faith in humanity (believing in the inherent goodness of humans), and kantianism (imperative of moral actions)
better-than-average effect
people tend to describe themselves as above average in every way (favoritism to self)
positive illusions
overly favorable and unrealistic beliefs about themselves (better than average, unrealistic personal control, unrealistic about their personal future)
Why are positive illusions beneficial
serves as a psychological resource that helps protect people from harmful effects of stress or threat, reduced illness and greater likelihood of recovery
social comparison
when people evaluate their own actions, abilities, and beliefs by contrasting them with other people’s (downward and upward comparison) - leads to biased self-views when it is used selectively
self serving biases
people with high self esteem tend to take credit for success but blame failure on external factors
