Personality Flashcards
Why is personality difficult to define?
There are so many facets to our identity, which makes
personality complicated to define
There are dozens of theories on personality and only
some consensus on the best ways to describe it
What are the Big 5 personality traits?
Extraversion
Agreeableness
Conscientiousness
Neuroticism
Openness to experience
The state of or tendency toward being predominantly concerned with and obtaining gratification from what is outside the self; a
personality trait or style characterized by a preference for or orientation to engaging socially with others
Extraversion
What are the 6 extraversion subscales of the NEO-PI?
Warmth
Gregariousness
Assertiveness
Activity level
Excitement-seeking
Positive emotion
The state or quality of having a pleasant manner in socializing with others
Agreeableness
What are the 6 agreeableness subscales of the NEO-PI?
Trust in others
Morality
Altruism
Cooperation
Modesty
Sympathy
Very careful about doing what you are supposed to do; concerned with doing
something correctly
Self-efficacy
Orderliness
Dutifulness (Sense of duty)
Achievement striving
Self-discipline
Cautiousness
The tendency towards experiencing intense negative emotions
Neuroticism
One of the most robust predictive factors related to personality for experiencing a mental health problem
Neuroticism
What are the 6 neuroticism subscales of the NEO-PI?
Anxiety
Anger
Depression
Self-consciousness
Immoderation/impulsiveness
Vulnerability to stress
What are the 6 openness subscales of the NEO-PI?
Imagination
Artistic interest
Emotionality
Adventurousness
Curiosity
Liberal values
Enjoying trying new things, even when they are less practical
Openness to experience
A personality
trait that determines how much people regulate their behaviour based on the context
Self-monitoring
Describe the difference between high and low self-monitors
High-self monitors adjust their behaviours based on who is around
Low-self monitors do not filter themselves based on context; act similarly regardless of situation
Describe the Myers-Briggs personality framework
People are placed into 16 personality types based on Carl Jung’s theories
Extraversion (E) vs introversion (I)
Sensing (S) versus intuition (N)
Thinking (T) versus feeling (F)
Judging (J) versus perceiving (P)
Widely used by businesses and corporations
Why is the Myers-Briggs framework far from ideal?
Psychometric evidence suggests that this test has poor validity and reliability
People endorse vague and
general information as highly accurate to their
specific circumstances
Barnum/Forer effect
Persistent (stable) pattern of emotions, cognitions, and behaviour that results in enduring emotional distress for the person affected and for others and may cause difficulties with work and
relationships
Personality Disorders
Describe personality disorders as they relate to the lifecourse
Generally considered chronic - Often developing gradually from childhood/adolescence
Symptoms for some personality disorders may improve as people age
List the 3 cluster A personality disorders in the DSM-5 TR
Paranoid
Schizoid
Schizotypal
What are cluster A personality disorders characterized by?
“Odd” and “eccentric”
What are the 4 cluster B personality disorders in the DSM-5 TR?
Antisocial
Histrionic
Borderline
Narcissistic
What are cluster B personality disorders characterized by?
“Dramatic,” “emotional,” “erratic”
What are the three cluster C personality disorders in the DSM-5 TR?
Dependent
Avoidant
Obsessive-compulsive
What are cluster C personality disorders characterized by?
“Anxious” and “fearful”
Personality disorders are — co-morbid with one another
Highly
Explain the categorical approach to personality disorders and their advantages and disadvantages
Personality disorders are clear categories and have a
clear physiology and underlying cause
Advantage: simplicity
Disadvantage: co-morbidity; overlapping symptoms
Explain the dimensional approach to personality disorders and the advantages and disadvantages
Personality traits exist on a
continuum
Advantage: captures the full range of personality concerns
Disadvantage: when does a
personality trait become a
“disorder”?
Explain the prototypical approach to personality disorders and the advantages and disadvantages
Contains elements of both the dimensional
and categorical approach
Diagnoses require some essential features
while also containing flexibility
Advantage: captures a wide range of personality traits
Disadvantage: the presentation of the personality disorder may vary
What are the two self dimensions of criterion A of describing personality functioning with the alternative model?
Identity: Experience of oneself as unique, stability of self-esteem, accuracy of self-appraisal, emotional regulation
Self-direction: Pursuit of coherent short and long-term goals, constructive and prosocial standards of behaviour, productive self-reflection
What are the two interpersonal dimensions of criterion A of describing personality functioning with the alternative model?
Empathy: Comprehension and appreciation of the experiences of others, tolerance of different perspectives, understanding the effects of one’s behaviour on others
Intimacy: Depth and duration of connection with others, desire and capacity for closeness, mutuality of regard
What are the five dimensions of criterion B for defining personality disorders with the alternative model?
Negative affectivity vs emotional stability
Detachment vs extraversion
Antagonism vs agreeableness
Disinhibition vs conscientiousness
Psychoticism vs lucidity
Frequent and intense experiences of high levels of negative emotions and their behavioural manifestations
Negative affectivity
Avoidance of socioemotional experience, restricted affective experience and expression
Detachment
Behaviours that put the individual at odds with others including exaggerated self-importance, antipathy, readiness to use others
Antagonism
Orientation towards immediate gratification, leading to impulsive behaviour
Disinhibition
Wide range of culturally incongruent odd, eccentric, or unusual behaviours and cognitions
Psychoticism
A pervasive pattern of social and interpersonal deficits marked by acute discomfort with, and reduced capacity for, close relationships, as well as by cognitive or perceptual distortion and eccentricities of behavior, beginning by early adulthood
Schizotypal Personality Disorder
What is the treatment for Schizotypal Personality Disorder?
People with SPD often get referred to therapy for help with mood or anxiety and thus often end up treated for depressive disorders.
Much like schizophrenia, a combination of medication and community integration programs seems to be effective
A persistent pattern of detachment and restricted emotion in interpersonal settings in which one neither desires nor enjoys close relationships and shows emotional coldness, detachment, or flattened affectivity not better explained by another psychotic disorder, mood disorder, or autism spectrum disorder
Schizoid Personality Disorder
What makes treatment particularly difficult for schizoid personality disorder and other related disorders?
Quite rare for people to present to services for support
There is little research in this area
When do those with schizoid personality disorder most often seek treatment?
When public attention is drawn to a person or family encourages them
What does treatment for schizoid personality disorder involve?
Treatment often involves social skills training to help clients identify emotions in others, foster empathy
May involve roleplaying
What is/what isn’t effective in interpersonal settings
A pervasive distrust and suspiciousness of others such that their motives are interpreted as malevolent, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts
Paranoid personality disorder
A pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others, occurring since age 15 years, characterized by failure to conform to social norms, deceitfulness, impulsivity, irritability/aggressiveness, reckless disregard, irresponsibility, and lack of remorse
Antisocial personality disorder
Up to — percent of adult males have antisocial personality disorder; up to — percent among new male inmates in Canadian correctional facilities
5.7, 44
What are the two neurobiological differences hypothesized to influence antisocial personality disorder?
Underarousal hypothesis: evidence that people with ASPD are chronically understimulated
Fearlessness hypothesis: people with ASPD do not experience fear to the same degree as other people
What does treatment for antisocial personality disorder?
Treatment typically involves behavioural interventions and social skills training, best outcomes come if caught
Why does the dark triad suck
More pop psychology instead of evidence-focused
Stigmatizing, overly simplistic
What is the dark triad?
Psychopathy, machiavellianism, narcissism
A pervasive pattern of instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, and marked impulsivity, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts
Borderline personality disorder
What four characteristics summarize borderline personality disorder?
Unstable relationships
Unstable identity
Impulsivity
Unstable affect
Borderline personality disorder is among the most common personality disorders, affecting between — and — percent of the population
1.6 and 5.9
What is the treatment for borderline personality disorder?
Dialetical Behaviour Therapy - Acceptance and change
- Achieving safety
Four requirements of dialetical behavioural therapy (DBT) skills?
Distress tolerance
Interpersonal effectiveness
Emotion regulation
Mindfulness
A pervasive pattern of excessive emotionality and attention seeking, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts
Histrionic personality disorder
A pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior), need for admiration, and lack of empathy, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts
Narcissistic personality disorder
What is the treatment for narcissistic personality disorder?
Some research suggests cognitive therapy can help clients get unstuck from fantasies (i.e., grandiosity) and focus on day-to-day pleasurable experiences
Coping strategies such as relaxation training and mindfulness
A pervasive and excessive need to be taken care of that leads to submissive and clinging behavior and fears of separation, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts
Dependent personality disorder
A pervasive pattern of social inhibition, feelings of inadequacy, and hypersensitivity to negative evaluation, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts
Avoidant personality disorder
A pervasive pattern of preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism, and mental and interpersonal control, at the expense of flexibility, openness, and efficiency, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts - defined by extreme conscientiousness
Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD)
