Personality assessment

Question 1

Personality

Answer 1

Personality refers to consistent patterns of behaviour, thoughts, and emotions that are relatively stable over time and contexts. These patterns encompass a wide range of traits and attributes, making personality assessment relevant in fields like personality, developmental, and social psychology.

Question 2

What is the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

Answer 2

The MMPI is one of the world’s most widely used personality tests designed for clinical assessment and other purposes like employment screening.
It is empirical.

Question 3

What is the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) designed for?

Answer 3

The CPI is similar to the MMPI but is intended for use with “normal” or nondisturbed individuals.

Question 4

What are omnibus inventories in personality testing?

Answer 4

Omnibus inventories measure a wide range of personality traits. For example, the NEO Personality Inventory measures five broad traits along with 30 subscales.

Question 5

How do intelligence tests (IQ tests) gather data?

Answer 5

Intelligence tests, like IQ tests, yield B data by asking questions with specific correct answers, such as reasoning or math problems.

Question 6

What is the term used for tests based on B data?

Answer 6

Tests based on B data are sometimes called “performance-based” instruments, which include the MMPI, IQ tests, and projective tests.

Question 7

What is the projective hypothesis in personality testing

Answer 7

The projective hypothesis suggests that responses to ambiguous stimuli, like inkblots, reveal hidden aspects of a person’s mind and needs.

Question 8

How are responses to projective tests, like the Rorschach inkblot test, interpreted

Answer 8

Responses to projective tests are interpreted based on what the client sees, and these interpretations can reveal insights into the individual’s personality.

Question 9

What are some examples of projective tests

Answer 9

Examples of projective tests include the Rorschach inkblot test, the Draw-A-Person test, and the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT).

Question 10

What are the limitations of projective tests?

Answer 10

Projective tests are expensive and have limited research data on their validity, which has led to debates about their continued use in psychology.

Question 11

What distinguishes objective tests from projective tests?

Answer 11

Objective tests consist of questions answered with Yes/No, True/False, or numeric scales and are more straightforward than projective tests.

Question 12

Is the term “objective” fully justified for objective tests?

Answer 12

The term “objective” can be misleading because even objective test questions may have varying interpretations, making them less than completely objective.

Question 13

Why might ambiguity in objective test questions not be a flaw?

Answer 13

Some ambiguity in objective test questions allows for individual differences in interpretation and can make responses more informative about personality.

Question 14

How are commonality scales used in personality testing?

Answer 14

Commonality scales, like the one in the California Psychological Inventory, identify responses that most people answer the same way and can reveal non-ambiguous items that respondents find easy to answer.

Question 15

Why are objective personality tests often lengthy?

Answer 15

Objective tests include numerous questions to increase reliability through aggregation, helping to obtain more stable and reliable results.

Question 16

What is the primary challenge in constructing reliable objective tests?

Answer 16

The key challenge is to write and select the right questions, as the validity of objective tests depends on their content.

Question 17

What is the rational method in test construction?

Answer 17

The rational method involves creating test items that are directly, obviously, and rationally related to the trait being measured.

Question 18

What are the four conditions that must hold for a rationally constructed test to be valid?

Answer 18

The four conditions are: (1) The meaning of each item should be consistent for respondents, (2) respondents must accurately self-assess, (3) respondents should be willing to report accurately, and (4) all items must be valid indicators of what is being measured.

Question 19

Do most rationally constructed personality tests meet all four criteria?

Answer 19

No, most rationally constructed personality tests fail to meet all four criteria for validity.

Question 20

What is an example of a rationally constructed personality test question?

Answer 20

“How healthy are you?” is an example of a question that might be found in a rationally constructed personality test.

Question 21

Acquiescence bias

Answer 21

Participants tend to agree or discrete with items regardless of their content

Question 22

Deviation bias

Answer 22

Participants tend to respond in a very unusual unexpected way

Question 23

Social desirability bias

Answer 23

Participants respond In a way to present themselves in more favourable light

Question 24

Extreme responding

Answer 24

Participants respond in a more extreme way than others

Question 25

Factor analytic example

Answer 25

IPIP