Personality part 2

Question 1

Describe the Trait approach for measuring personality.

Answer 1

Identifying and describing the consistent characteristics and differences between us.

Question 2

What are 3 assumptions of the Trait Approach?

Answer 2

1. Personality traits are relatively stable: over time and in varying situations
2. Can predict a person’s behaviour based on their traits
3. Everyone’s trait profile is different

Question 3

Define personality traits.

Answer 3

Personality traits are relatively stable cognitive, emotional and behavioural characteristics of people that help establish their individual identities and distinguish them from others.

Question 4

What are the two major approaches to discover and define personality traits?

Answer 4

The lexical, and the factor analysis approach

Question 5

How is the factor analysis approach used to determine personality traits?

Answer 5

Factor analysis is used to identify clusters of behaviours that are highly positively or negatively correlated with one another, but not with behaviours in other clusters.

(e.g., introversion vs extraversion)

Question 6

What is the one main hypothesis of modern day trait theories?

Answer 6

Everyone has the same traits, but in different amounts; like a spectrum.

Question 7

What are the four key issues faced with the trait theories?

Answer 7

1. How many traits are there?
2. What are they?
3. How do they develop?
4. What can they predict?

Question 8

Who developed the Five Factor Model trait theory?

Answer 8

McCrae & Costa (2003)

Question 9

What are the five factors of the Five Factor Model? accronym: OCEAN

Answer 9

1. Openness (to experience)
2. Conscientiousness
3. Extraversion
4. Agreeableness
5. Neuroticism

Question 10

What theory is the Five Factor Model (McCrae & Costa, 2003) based on?

Answer 10

Cattel’s 16 personality factor (16PF) theory (1965)

Question 11

What is the revised name of the trait assessment of the Five Factor model?

Answer 11

NEO Personality Inventory, Revised (NEO-PI-R)

Question 12

Outline how trait assessments work?

Answer 12

People self-report to statements to give objective personality measures.

Question 13

What are three contributions of the trait approach to personality?

Answer 13

1. Traits can be empirically and objectively measured
2. Useful for predicting many things, not only behaviours but also health, various life outcomes, and much more (criterion validity)
3. Other approaches use the measures

Question 14

How does McCrae & Costa’s (2003) Five Factor Model compare to Cattel’s 16PF theory (1965)?

Answer 14

The Five Factor Model is composed of 5 higher-order factors with each containing several of Cattel’s more specific factors.

The Five Factor Model contains 5 large categories of behaviours (facets) compared to the 16PF theory which has 16 basic personality traits.

Question 15

What are three limitations of the trait approach to personality testing?

Answer 15

1. Depends on self-report, objective measures
2. Descriptive rather than explanatory
3. No accounting for change

Question 16

Briefly describe the social learning approaches to personality theory.

Answer 16

Personality is simply the learned patterns of thinking and behaviour

Question 17

What is the main premise behind the social learning theories?

Answer 17

Personality is driven by classical and operant conditioning; situations determine how people behave

Question 18

What is reciprocal determinism in the social learning theories?

Answer 18

The process of in which we shape and are shaped by our environment

Question 19

Who are the two main social learning theorists?

Answer 19

Julian Rotter and Albert Bandura

Question 20

Who are the 5 main theorists for the trait approach?

Answer 20

1. Allport
2. Cattell
3. Eysenck
4. Costa
5. McCrae

Question 21

What are the three main points of Rotter’s expectancy theory?

Answer 21

1. Behaviour is guided by learned expectancies
2. Expectancies result from prior learning
3. Expectancies are also influenced by locus of control

Question 22

What are the two types of locus of control in Rotter’s expectancy theory?

Answer 22

Internal: the perception that one controls one’s fate

External: the perception that chance or outside forces beyond one’s control determine one’s fate

Question 22

What is Rotter’s equation for behaviour potential?

Answer 22

Behaviour potential (likelihood) = expectancy x reinforcement value

Question 23

What are the factors of Bandura’s reciprocal determinism? What’s the acronym?

Answer 23

(B)ehaviour
(E)xternal environment
(P)ersonal factors (thoughts, feelings, biology)

Question 24

Briefly explain Bandura’s reciprocal determinism.

Answer 24

B —— E
\ /
P

Question 25

What are the three major contributions of the social-cognitive theories?

Answer 25

1. good scientific method
2. recognises the importance of situations in shaping behaviour and
   personality
3. forms the basis of treatments for a range of psychological disorders

Question 26

What are the two major limitations of the social-cognitive theories?

Answer 26

1. Fails to consider unconscious motives and minimises the role of traits
2. Limited in scope: fails to capture the complexity of personality