Personality; Mischel

Question 1

Mischel’s Contribution to Social Cognitive Theory

Answer 1

-Integrated trait + social cognitive approaches to personality
-Considered characteristics of a situation that may explain inconsistencies in personality in different situations
-Explains the impact of beliefs on how a person acts in a situation

Question 2

Limitations of Social Cognitive Theory (3 examples)

Answer 2

1. Some traits ARE consistent across all situations (e.g., intellect)
2. Doesn’t explain how personality changes over time
3. Can’t be directly observed so difficult to quantify the effect of social cognition on personality development

Question 3

Key Points of Social Cognitive Theory

Answer 3

-Emphasizes cognitive processes in the development of personality
-Behaviour is dependent on situational cues
-Found stable patterns of ‘if-then’ situation-behaviour relations that form personality signature: if x situation occurs, then y behaviour might result

Question 4

Cognitive-Affective Processing System: Person variables

Answer 4

-Encoding: The perception of the situation/action
-Expectation and beliefs: Likelihood of success from previous experiences in particular situation
-Goals and values: Outcomes of certain actions in given situations
-Emotional responses: Feelings about the situation/action
-Personal competencies & self-regulation: How does this relate to me?; do I have skills in this situation?